Retirement
SuperAPI co-founder criticises Labor's superannuation tax as 'sneaky tax on young people'
Retirement
SuperAPI co-founder criticises Labor's superannuation tax as 'sneaky tax on young people'
The co-founder of SuperAPI has labelled Labor's proposed tax on superannuation balances above $3 million as a "sneaky tax on young people, tomorrow" disguised as a policy targeting wealthy retirees today.
SuperAPI co-founder criticises Labor's superannuation tax as 'sneaky tax on young people'
The co-founder of SuperAPI has labelled Labor's proposed tax on superannuation balances above $3 million as a "sneaky tax on young people, tomorrow" disguised as a policy targeting wealthy retirees today.
Ben Styles said the unindexed $3 million threshold would disproportionately affect future generations due to inflation and wage growth over time.
"The reality is that Labor's $3 million cap, unindexed, is a sneaky 'tax on young people, tomorrow' that is dressed up as a 'tax on rich people, today'," he said.
"The deceptive tax grab that borrows from young people's future relies on the fact that in 40 years when today's 25-year-olds are retiring, $3 million will not be considered a very high balance."
Styles referenced recent modelling from AMP Deputy Chief Economist Diana Mousina to support his position on the policy's long-term impact.
The SuperAPI co-founder argued the policy would discourage financial responsibility and ambition among young Australians.
"Every young person today will face the prospect of being penalised for working hard and achieving," he said.
"This is un-Australian and disincentivises ambition and financial responsibility."
Instead of targeting high superannuation balances, Styles advocated for policies that would support lower-income earners in building retirement savings.
"Instead of punishing people for being successful, we should be focusing on lifting those at the lower end, creating incentives for young and low-income workers to save and invest in their future and removing penalties, ie. taxes, that might stand in the way of them achieving the same wealth that boomers have enjoyed for decades," he said.
Labor's proposed policy would impose a 30 per cent tax rate on earnings from superannuation balances exceeding $3 million, up from the current 15 per cent concessional rate.
The policy has faced renewed scrutiny as debate continues over superannuation taxation and wealth inequality in retirement savings.
The government has positioned the measure as targeting a small number of high-balance accounts while preserving superannuation concessions for the majority of Australians.
SuperAPI operates as a technology platform serving the superannuation industry with data and analytics services.
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