Extract from The Guardian
Russell Broadbent says a solution to impasse is within the
government’s grasp and treasurer should reach ‘across the aisle’ to
Chris Bowen
Victorian Liberal backbencher Russell Broadbent has criticised the treasurer, Scott Morrison,
for failing to reach out to his opposite number, Chris Bowen, on
superannuation – saying a solution to the impasse was well within the
government’s grasp.
The veteran backbencher told Guardian Australia on Thursday he could not comprehend why the treasurer had rebuffed Labor’s recent overture on superannuation given there was such a significant overlap between the Coalition’s proposition and Labor’s.
“We are so close now, there’s hardly any difference,” Broadbent said. “I think we need to reach across the aisle. Why are we attacking Labor?”
The Labor leader, Bill Shorten, on Wednesday floated a compromise of removing the backdating on the $500,000 lifetime cap in return for lower thresholds for high-income contributions.
Shorten said the proposed measures would improve the budget over the forward estimates by $238m and $4.4bn over the decade.
Morrison immediately rebuffed Labor’s offer, describing the proposal as “more suited to the economy of the 1970s than a 21st century economy where people have flexible work patterns, shared responsibilities in their families and different sources of income over the course of their life”.
On Thursday morning the revenue and financial services minister, Kelly O’Dwyer, echoed Morrison’s criticism.
“Labor has come out with a policy that is going to make it that much harder for older Australians, for women, for carers, for anyone who has taken time out of the workforce to be able to catch up on their superannuation contributions,” O’Dwyer said.
“They are going to make it more difficult for people who are self-employed, who are contractors, who work for small business because they are scrapping flexibility measures that actually give those people the ability to be able to contribute more concessionally to their superannuation retirement.”
But Broadbent said the Coalition had to realise coming to terms with Labor on major budget policies when there were broadly common policy views was important to managing the government’s agenda in the new parliament. He said such cooperation was not unprecedented.
“Both the prime minister and the opposition leader know a combination of these two policies is fair. You’ve just got to take the opportunity,” he said.
“They could really come to a compromise here that would benefit the nation as a whole.”
Morrison’s ability to compromise has been constrained by internal dissidents opposed to the policy the Coalition took to the recent election. The treasurer has been locked in talks with colleagues about super for weeks.
The internal talks have canvassed lifting the $500,000 lifetime cap to $750,000 but it would remain backdated to 2007. Labor wants those measures to be prospective – beginning from budget night, 3 May 2016.
The veteran backbencher told Guardian Australia on Thursday he could not comprehend why the treasurer had rebuffed Labor’s recent overture on superannuation given there was such a significant overlap between the Coalition’s proposition and Labor’s.
“We are so close now, there’s hardly any difference,” Broadbent said. “I think we need to reach across the aisle. Why are we attacking Labor?”
The Labor leader, Bill Shorten, on Wednesday floated a compromise of removing the backdating on the $500,000 lifetime cap in return for lower thresholds for high-income contributions.
Shorten said the proposed measures would improve the budget over the forward estimates by $238m and $4.4bn over the decade.
Morrison immediately rebuffed Labor’s offer, describing the proposal as “more suited to the economy of the 1970s than a 21st century economy where people have flexible work patterns, shared responsibilities in their families and different sources of income over the course of their life”.
On Thursday morning the revenue and financial services minister, Kelly O’Dwyer, echoed Morrison’s criticism.
“Labor has come out with a policy that is going to make it that much harder for older Australians, for women, for carers, for anyone who has taken time out of the workforce to be able to catch up on their superannuation contributions,” O’Dwyer said.
“They are going to make it more difficult for people who are self-employed, who are contractors, who work for small business because they are scrapping flexibility measures that actually give those people the ability to be able to contribute more concessionally to their superannuation retirement.”
But Broadbent said the Coalition had to realise coming to terms with Labor on major budget policies when there were broadly common policy views was important to managing the government’s agenda in the new parliament. He said such cooperation was not unprecedented.
“Both the prime minister and the opposition leader know a combination of these two policies is fair. You’ve just got to take the opportunity,” he said.
“They could really come to a compromise here that would benefit the nation as a whole.”
Morrison’s ability to compromise has been constrained by internal dissidents opposed to the policy the Coalition took to the recent election. The treasurer has been locked in talks with colleagues about super for weeks.
The internal talks have canvassed lifting the $500,000 lifetime cap to $750,000 but it would remain backdated to 2007. Labor wants those measures to be prospective – beginning from budget night, 3 May 2016.
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