Super Consumers Australia welcomes new parliament
Super Consumers Australia looks forward to working with the 47th Parliament to improve the superannuation and retirement systems for people on low and middle incomes. We encourage the incoming parliament to improve the super system, so that people can easily find and stay in a high performing superannuation fund. We also want to see people better supported through the retirement planning process so they can make the most of their retirement incomes.
“The superannuation system has continued to mature into a system that genuinely supports Australians and their retirement goals. The system cannot rest on its past success and must evolve to meet the needs of today’s consumers,” says Xavier O’Halloran, Director at Super Consumers Australia.
The Your Future, Your Super reforms are already having an impact on ensuring people can find and stay in high performing funds. All funds identified as underperforming in the 2021 performance test have responded by either merging or reducing fees. However, large parts of the market are yet to be tested, meaning consumers in these products are unaware of how their super is performing.
“It is time to test more super investment options, so Australians can have faith that they are in a super fund which can pass a basic fitness test,” says O’Halloran.
People are still struggling with the complexity of planning for retirement. People need greater assistance in the form of advice, basic product design and guidance if they are to meet this challenge. Other jurisdictions, such as the UK, have helped people at this stage by developing a ‘one-stop shop’ for retirement advice. This innovation would bring together and build on the scattered resources Australian consumers must rely on to plan for retirement.
“As the quality of advice review continues, the new parliament has an opportunity to reflect on what people need to help plan for retirement. We need to be looking at solutions that make sure everyone can get a good outcome from the retirement system regardless of wealth or level of financial knowledge,” says O’Halloran.