The Productivity Commission will conduct an inquiry into the selection and ongoing assessment of default superannuation funds in modern awards, Treasury has announced.
The inquiry is expected to begin in early February 2012 and run for up to eight months.
“The government believes default funds should continue to be included in modern awards, but there should also be a transparent set of criteria that such funds can be assessed against,” Shorten said in a statement.
The inquiry follows the Cooper Review released about 18 months ago. The review’s 177 recommendations centred around helping consumers, most of whom rely heavily on the default superannuation system, make informed choices.
Meanwhile, the coalition claims default funds under the current modern awards system are highly prejudicial toward industry funds and has challenged the government to examine the system.
The Productivity Commission will hold public hearings and release a draft report for public comment, before delivering a final report to the government.
