SUPERANNUATION – LAW AND LEGISLATION – AUSTRALIA

Book of death bid to keep default life insurance

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 12-Aug-19

Parliament is due to vote on legislation in September that would see people under 25 and those with low account balances no longer automatically receive life insurance through their superannuation. It has been estimated the measure could reduce the premiums that life insurance companies receive by almost $3 billion. It is believed lobbyists for life insurer TAL have circulated a document featuring examples of dead and injured workers who have received insurance payouts but who would not have done so under the proposed changes. The document has been dubbed ‘the book of death’ by some MPs.

CORPORATES
TAL LIMITED

Super changes to cost AMP $30m annually

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Original article by Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 19-Feb-19

Embattled wealth manager AMP has advised that the federal government’s superannuation reforms will reduce its operating earnings by about $10m in 2019 and up to $30m in 2020. The reforms will allow the Australian Taxation Office to consolidate super accounts that are inactive or have low balances. AMP estimates that the reforms will affect about 370,000 of its super accounts. The bill has been passed by the Senate with the Greens’ support, although it has yet to be passed by the lower house.

CORPORATES
AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ

Super loopholes cost retirees billions

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Original article by Anthony Klan, Olivia Caisley
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 3-Dec-18

Professor Thomas Clarke says lobbyists from the financial sector have done a good job in persuading governments to go easy on the regulation of superannuation over recent decades. The University of Technology, Sydney academic says this has come at the expense of workers and retirees, who he claims are losing billions each year because of exemptions in various pieces of superannuation legislation. The Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees, which funded Clarke’s research, states that both sides of politics have been guilty of watering down legislation.

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIAN INSTITUTE OF SUPERANNUATION TRUSTEES, RICE WARNER ACTUARIES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, SUPERRATINGS PTY LTD

Super carve-out is absolutely ridiculous

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Original article by Anthony Klan
The Australian – Page: 8 : 8-Aug-18

National Party senator John Williams has criticised a loophole in the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act which mean that super fund trustees cannot be penalised for breaching it. The statute stipulates that penalties for non-compliance include jail time and financial damages, but these sanctions do not apply to super fund trustees. Williams has described the situation as "ridiculous" and called for urgent action to address the issue.

CORPORATES
NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO MISCONDUCT IN THE BANKING, SUPERANNUATION AND FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, IOOF HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX IFL

Superannuation funds should not be secret societies

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Original article by Robert Gottliebsen
The Australian – Page: 23 : 20-Nov-17

All Australians would hopefully agree with the notion that money within a superannuation fund belongs to its members, not to a union or an employer. They would also agree that fund trustees are responsible to their members and not to unions or employer groups, and that any payments made by funds to unions or employer groups be disclosed, along with the reasons for the payments. Legislation to enforce these notions is currently before federal parliament, and it is concerning to hear that unions and employer groups are protesting against its passage.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Super funds’ safe harbour ‘extraordinary’

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Original article by Sally Patten
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 20-Dec-16

The Federal Government has proposed to protect superannuation funds from legal challenges when fund members claim that the fund did not meet their fiduciary duties. The intention of the Government is to encourage funds to offer more comprehensive retirement income products (CIPRs). Michelle Levy, a partner at law firm Allens, says it would be inappropriate to offer a safe harbour solely for CIPRs.

CORPORATES
ALLENS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

Retail chiefs resist super fund choice

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 7-Jan-16

Retail industry superannuation fund REST opposes new legislation giving workers a choice of super fund and making changes in the process of selecting default funds by employers. REST chairman Ken Marshman argues in a letter sent to the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption that employers do not want to be burdened with the obligation to choose a default fund, preferring to leave this task to those having expert knowledge of super.

CORPORATES
REST SUPER PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, COLES GROUP LIMITED, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, INDUSTRY FUND SERVICES PTY LTD

Regulators examine super switch breaches

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Original article by Clancy Yeates
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 3-Mar-15

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority will look into allegations that banks are illegally trying to gain market share in the superannuation sector. UMR Research has released the findings of a survey which suggests that banks have offered inducements to encourage employers to change their default super funds to those offered by the banks. The Financial Services Council says UMR should disclose which banks have offered incentives to switch default funds

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, UMR RESEARCH PTY LTD, FINANCIAL SERVICES COUNCIL, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, INDUSTRY SUPER AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, BT FINANCIAL GROUP PTY LTD