THE SENATE QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE: TAKE NOTE OF ANSWERS Superannuation SPEECH Thursday, 25 July 2019

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Senator McCARTHY (Northern TerritoryDeputy Opposition Whip in the Senate) (15:26): What we're doing on this side of the House is seeking clarity, better information and understanding. The desperation is not from this side of the House. The desperation is in those families who are struggling to feed their children, who are struggling to live on CDP$11 a dayand who are struggling to live on Newstart. That's where the desperation is. So when a senator comes into the chamber and brings forward ideas we naturally will ask and examine: 'Where is the government going on this? How can Australians bank on what Senator Cormann says when members of his own government are touting more interference, in this case in superannuation?'

In the Northern Territory alone we have a figure of more than $200 million in lost and unclaimed super owed to people in the Northern Territory. I realise that this may be a small amount in the nationwide figure of $17.5 billion in lost super, but it is a huge amount for a population of less than 250,000 people. Thirty per cent of the population in the Northern Territory are First Nations people. So it is imperative that, when an idea or a concept as important as superannuation is even questioned, we challenge it and ask questions around it.

We have an ever-growing number of government members speaking out and undermining assurances from senior cabinet members about superannuation increases. It should be straightforward. These increases should proceed as guaranteed in law, yet we have even brand new senators talking about what they want to see happen with superannuation. Good luck to them, obviously, and welcome to the Senate, but also welcome to the scrutiny that is required of each and every senator. We all know that.

Senator Bragg made a very interesting first speech last night. Much of it I was very happy to hear, in particular that part around First Nations and their voice to parliament. But he also threw in the idea that, for some reason, superannuation contributions should be voluntary for low-income earners. So people who are low-income earners can look forward to an old age of poverty? These are the questions we have to now examine and ask. Or maybe they can live on the pension that Senator Ruston thinks is so generous.

Senator Bragg's statement that First Nations people should be rightly and properly recognised in the Australian Constitution is to be applauded. He's one of the first members of the government to support the inclusion of an Indigenous advisory body in the nation's founding document. But what is the government's actual position on constitutional recognition of Australia's First Peoples?

When we come in here and talk about superannuation, there is a lot that the government can turn its attention to to make sure the super system is working for all Australians. I've given you the figure in terms of the people of the Northern Territory. Recently, a Victorian charity called First Nations Foundation was in the Top End helping Territorians, particularly residents in our remote areas. As we know, in the Northern Territory over 100 Aboriginal languages are spoken. Those people were able to listen to the First Nations Foundation on how they can reclaim their lost super. Understanding the super system is a massive struggle for First Nations people and others with English as a second or third language living in remote areas. I mean, oh my goodness, you can have the best education, but understanding the super system is still a complex process, so imagine what it's like for those people who have English as a second or third language. It's extraordinarily difficult.

The Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation's chief executive, Alastair King, has rightly said that the superannuation industry really needs to lift its game for people living in remote regions. In areas where internet access is poor or basically non-existent, it can be incredibly difficult to access this sort of information. Most people don't even know where to start looking for their lost super funds or even know they had superannuation funds they could rollover or access. The superannuation system has been pretty slow in adopting strategies thatprotect vulnerable customers. That's why this side of the house needs to keep you guys accountable.

Download the Hansard transcripthere.