All sides of politics are feeling the heat from Pauline Hanson. On Tuesday, the One Nation leader pulled the rug out from under the Coalition by announcing a policy to slash tobacco excise by 75%, to deal with surging illegal sales. The policy was remarkably similar to one Liberals and Nationals have been discussing for months.
And Labor, after taking up a fight on Hanson’s weekend comments on superannuation, received some unsolicited social media feedback. Hanson accused the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, of being “full of shit” for claiming One Nation wanted to scrap Australia’s retirement savings scheme in a fundraising pitch to Labor members. Hanson insisted Australians should be able to use their savings in times of financial distress.
The renewed debate on superannuation was sparked by a speech from Liberal frontbencher Andrew Bragg last week. An implacable critic of compulsory saving rules, Bragg said super was “one of the biggest public policy failures since federation”. Asked her view on Sunday, Hanson told News24 that Australians struggling with the cost-of-living should be able to tap into their super.
She claimed many people are “pulling out” their money and spending it, only to rely on the aged pension in retirement – exactly the situation super is designed to prevent. Hanson called the system “broken” and called for more help for those facing financial hardship, also suggesting first home buyers be allowed to use super as a deposit for a house. Her grab bag of shortcomings came without any policy solutions, but Hanson struck on the most powerful line for voters angry at the economy: “It is their money,” she said.
Before the last election, the Guardian Essential poll found majority support for allowing first home buyers to use super for housing, at 57%. Already hardship provisions allow early release of some super funds. Sensing a rare opportunity to fight One Nation on its preferred turf, Labor has argued for days that Hanson and the Coalition would team up in minority government to pull apart the $4.5tn super system.
But while the deputy Liberal leader, Jane Hume, said a Coalition government would revisit whether Australians should be able to get access to their retirement savings early, she stressed the system was highly valued and savings were needed for retirement years. The opposition leader, Angus Taylor, has talked up the current rules while also calling for more investment flexibility. As Paul Kelly wrote in The Australian on Wednesday, Labor considers Paul Keating’s superannuation system in its reform pantheon, alongside Medicare, and to be “defended at all costs”.
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