The Federal Opposition has committed to a plan to better educate businesses as to how they can get the most out of the MySuper and SuperStream superannuation reforms, should the Coalition win the next election.
The announcement comes as a survey commissioned by Legalsuper found that 60 per cent of employers were unaware or indifferent toward the MySuper reforms due to come into effect in July 2013.
Around the same number of those surveyed expressed ignorance or indifference to the government’s key SuperStream changes.
Shadow Assistant Treasurer Mathias Cormann said he was not surprised at the results of the survey.
“Labor’s very disjointed and chaotic implementation of their changes in the super space has created a lot of confusion.”
“Given the way Labor has mismanaged both the policy development and implementation process, I’m not surprised that there is still a lot of disengagement even in relation to some of the more sensible changes,” Cormann said.
Senator Cormann told Investor Weekly that if elected, the Coalition would embark on a plan to better educate businesses as to the reforms and at the same time ensure that genuine competition in the default fund market drives further improvements in efficiency, service quality and value for both employers and employees.
Senator Cormann stopped short of providing greater detail on the Coalition’s business education strategy as the policy will likely form part of their election platform, which is not due until closer to the federal poll.
However, in its past Better Super campaign embarked on as part of the 2006-07 budget, the Coalition used direct mail to households and businesses, as well as print and electronic media advertising.
Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation Bill Shorten told media that the government had transformed superannuation to ensure the system was “properly serving the interests of members”.
“We have passed legislation to improve regulator, governance, and efficiency settings in superannuation,” Shorten said.
In response to concerns over the percentage of employers apparently unsure or indifferent to the Government’s super reforms a spokesperson for the Minister said the government had taken every opportunity to speak about the super reforms and would continue to do so.
