I'm sure its been said in here before, but the problem with...

I'm sure its been said in here before, but the problem with super laws/treatment is that they are not being driven by a "mission statement", for want of a better term.

Super is there to get people off the government pension. To achieve that, a target income amount (and that's when the fight begins) should be supported by super contributions that are 100% tax free - going in and coming out. As a suggestion, the target income amount might be twice or thrice the respective pension.

For example, taking a 2 x pension amount, if a couple's govt pension would be $22,240 pa, and the deemed rate (another bun fight!) is 5% pa, then a couple should be able to put away $889,616 completely tax free to generate an income of $44,480 pa - ie, twice the current government pension and somewhere between a "comfortable" and a "modest" retirement as defined by most analysts. To address income volatility, a 3x multiplier should be considered.

Putting away more is then subject to a progressive tax so that by the time you can generate, say, 10 x the govt pension rate, money put into super would attract some maximum tax rate going in. Money coming out (during the draw-down phase) would be equally treated: zero tax on income up to 2 or 3 x the govt couple's pension rate, with a progressive tax to some maximum. Earnings in the accumulation stage of the super fund should continue to be taxed at 15%.

Excess contributions by the super wealthy, and taxes on the wealthy's retirement income may deliver a revenue neutral tax outcome, but more sophisticated modelling than I can do would need to be done to assess this.

Contrary to media prattle, super tax concessions are not forgone revenue, but an investment for future reduction in the government's welfare bill.

By the media dressing up the govt pension as a "norm" it is driving public malcontent if a prudent person dares to strive for an annuity (private pension) above this. Very plainly: a govt pension allows for subsistence living at best and should note be used as a yardstick as to what is acceptable and what isn't.

My chest feels lighter!