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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-09-20 Daily Xml
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STATUTES AMENDMENT AND REPEAL (SUPERANNUATION) BILL

Second Reading

Adjourned debate on second reading.

(Continued from 30 May 2012.)

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (16:11): I rise on behalf of the Liberal Party to support the second reading of the Statutes Amendment and Repeal (Superannuation) Bill 2012. As the member for Davenport outlined at some length in another place, the bill covers a range of issues. I do not propose to go into all the detail that he did on behalf of the Liberal Party in indicating our support for those particular provisions of the second reading of this legislation. Suffice to summarise that in a number of areas the bill seeks to repeal parts of our legislation which are now superfluous as a result of decisions that the commonwealth has taken, particularly in relation to family law provisions.

It also repeals the state's Unclaimed Superannuation Benefits Act because the commonwealth government has again taken initiatives at the national level that all these unclaimed super moneys will be collected centrally by the Australian Tax Office. There are then a range of other technical provisions relating to the Triple S superannuation scheme for public sector workers, particularly in relation to interpretive rulings on allowances, over-award payments and payments made in lieu of leave being considered as ordinary time earnings. Then there are series of amendments, some of which relate to the election provisions for election of representatives to the Super SA board and the Funds SA board of directors, and regulation-making powers in relation to lost members in those particular ballots.

In all of those areas the member for Davenport has indicated that the Liberal Party is supporting the government's proposals outlined in the bill before us. The one controversial issue, and I think the only issue upon which the member for Davenport and indeed I have received any correspondence about, has been those sections of the legislation which relate to the Electricity Industry Superannuation Scheme (EISS). Those few avid readers of Hansard will note that I have the world's longest notice of motion in private members' business for the establishment of an—

The Hon. M. Parnell: Is that a challenge?

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS: That is a challenge to the Hon. Mr Parnell. It comprehensively beats anything he has ever done in terms of length of a notice of motion. I claim no credit for it at all. The member for Davenport in association with those activists who have lobbied strongly on behalf of this issue have drafted the notice of motion, and I filed the notice of motion on their behalf.

During that debate, I outlined the reasons for the disputation and the controversy about these particular provisions. Subject to a discussion with the member for Davenport, I will advise members that we will be seeking a vote on the next Wednesday of sitting on establishing the Ombudsman's inquiry.

Without again going into the detail—as I said, I can refer the few avid readers of Hansard to my brief comments during that particular debate, when I introduced that motion—essentially, what is now being agreed to by the government and the opposition, at least in part, is that the potentially controversial elements of this bill will be removed by the government's own amendments; that is, the government will move amendments during the committee stage to remove provisions in the bill that relate to the EISS.

That clearly leaves the option for the government at some later stage, if it so chooses, to introduce legislation which specifically addresses this particular issue, potentially in exactly the same way as was originally outlined in this bill. Or, hopefully, if the government is wise, if it is prepared to support the Ombudsman's inquiry, it could then introduce either its original intended bill or some amended bill if in fact the Ombudsman finds some validity to the claims being made by the advocates on behalf of the EISS issue.

Given that the government is going to remove or propose the removal of those particular controversial elements from the bill, the opposition will be supporting those amendments and therefore will not need to prolong the committee stage of the debate by way of detailed questioning on this issue.

As an opposition, we are happy to leave the facts to be determined by the Ombudsman in his inquiry, and then—as I am sure the government can—the opposition will reserve its position in relation to the particular issues that have been raised by those who have concerns about the government's treatment of the Electricity Industry Superannuation Scheme. With those words, I indicate the Liberal Party's support for the second reading of the bill.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (16:18): I would like to thank the Hon. Mr Lucas for his contribution. This bill seeks to amend the following acts for the purpose of making amendments to the superannuation arrangements provided under those statutes: the Judges' Pensions Act 1971, the Parliamentary Superannuation Act 1974, the Police Superannuation Act 1990, the Southern State Superannuation Act 2009 and the Superannuation Act 1988. The bill also seeks to repeal the Unclaimed Superannuation Benefits Act 1997 and proposes consequential and technical amendments to the Subordinate Legislation Act 1978 and the Superannuation Funds Management Corporation of South Australia Act 1995.

The legislation contained in the bill will amend the Judges' Pensions Act 1971 and the Parliamentary Superannuation Act 1974 for the purpose of removing family law provisions that are no longer required as a result of the commonwealth Attorney-General prescribing the commonwealth's own method of determining the value of an accrued benefit or an interest that is still in the growth phase in terms of the Family Law Act 1979 in the commonwealth.

The bill also repeals the state's Unclaimed Superannuation Benefits Act 1997 and thereby enables state government superannuation schemes to be part of the commonwealth arrangements dealing with the central collection of unclaimed superannuation money and reuniting taxpayers with their lost and unclaimed superannuation money.

The bill also provides for the Treasurer to transfer to the Australian Taxation Office all the unclaimed superannuation moneys currently held by the state government. The legislation contained in the bill will also provide voting rights for spouse members of Triple S and persons who have invested money in either a Super SA income stream or a Super SA flexible rollover account, enabling them to take part in elections for members of the superannuation board and a member of the Funds SA board.

The legislation contained in the bill will also modify the definition of 'salary' under the Southern State Superannuation Act to ensure that employers' superannuation contributions payable to the Triple S scheme satisfy the commonwealth's requirement that they are based on employees' ordinary time earnings. The legislation contained in the bill will also amend the provisions for the Superannuation Act 1998 that deal with the situation where a contributor suffers from a reduction in salary, which is not due to disciplinary action taken against the contributor, to ensure that, if the former position held by the contributor no longer exists, the contributor will not be disadvantaged.

The bill also originally dealt with a proposal that schedule 1B of the Superannuation Act be amended to allow the South Australian Superannuation Board and the Electricity Industry Superannuation Scheme Board to enter into an arrangement that would enable persons in receipt of a taxed-sourced pension from the EISS scheme to be transferred to a taxed fund administered by Super SA. However, this provision has now been removed from the bill, pending an outcome of the proposed review into the benefit reduction formula which reduced gross benefits of EISS members, following the scheme's loss of constitutional protection and its consequential move into a taxed environment.

Finally, a further amendment is proposed to the Southern State Superannuation Act which relates to the government's proposal to introduce a tax-exempt public sector scheme by 1 January 2013. The new scheme is being introduced for the primary purpose of enabling state government employees earning less than $37,000 to take advantage of the new commonwealth low income earner superannuation benefit. The proposed amendment clarifies that, if an employee elects to move to the new tax scheme, state government employers will not be required to make employer contributions to both the new tax scheme and the Triple S Scheme but, rather, to the new tax scheme only.

Bill read a second time.

Committee Stage

In committee.

Clauses 1 to 13 passed.

New clause 13A.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: I move:

Page 6, after line 4—After clause 13 insert:

13A—Amendment of section 21—Payments by employers

(1) Section 21—after subsection (3) insert:

(3a) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply in relation to a person who is a member of a prescribed scheme (irrespective of whether the person is also a member of the Triple S scheme).

(3b) If an employer is not required to pay an amount in relation to a person under this section because the person is a member of a prescribed scheme, any payment the employer is required to make on behalf of the person under the Commonwealth Act must be made to the prescribed scheme.

(2) Section 21(5)—after the definition of employer insert:

prescribed scheme means a superannuation fund or scheme prescribed by regulation for the purposes of this definition.

This amendment facilitates the introduction of a new tax exempt superannuation scheme by 1 January 2013 to ensure that employees of the state government, who are low income earners earning less than $37,000 per annum, will receive the new commonwealth low income earners' superannuation payment. In particular, the amendment provides a mechanism to ensure that upon the Triple S member electing to join a new tax scheme, there is no doubt that the state government employer of that member will be required to contribute only to that new scheme and not to Triple S.

The amendment ensures that if election is made by the member the employer is bound under the statute to contribute to the new tax scheme. Finally, the amendment ensures that the new tax scheme operates under the same sphere as the Triple S scheme in respect to employer obligations under the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992.

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS: As I indicated in the second reading, the member for Davenport has indicated that the Liberal Party will be supporting not only this amendment but all of the government's proposed amendments in the committee stage of the debate.

New clause inserted.

Clauses 14 to 17 passed.

Clause 18.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: I move

Page 7—

Lines 11 to 13 [clause 18(1)]—Delete subclause (1)

Lines 16 to 21 [clause 18(3) to (5)]—Delete subclauses (3) to (5) (inclusive)

These amendments are to accommodate the removal of the Electricity Industry Superannuation Scheme. If these amendments are passed, the rest are consequential.

Amendments carried; clause as amended passed.

Clauses 19 and 20 passed.

Clauses 21 and 22 negatived.

Clauses 23 and 24 passed.

Clause 25 negatived.

Clause 26 passed.

Clauses 27 and 28 negatived.

Clause 29 passed.

Clause 30.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: I move:

Page 30, lines 21 to 26 [clause 30(3)]—Delete subclause (3)

Amendment carried; clause as amended passed.

Clause 31 passed.

Clause 32.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: I move:

Page 19, lines 31 to 35 [clause 32(1) and (2)]—Delete subclauses (1) and (2) and substitute:

Section 20B(1)—delete 'established' and substitute: managed

As the EISS amendments have been now put through, this deletes 'established' and substitutes 'managed' with regard to Funds SA.

Amendment carried; clause as amended passed.

Remaining clauses (33 and 34), schedules and title passed.

Bill reported with amendment.

Third Reading

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (16:30): I move:

That this bill be now read a third time.

Bill read a third time and passed.

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