Australia’s right-wing One Nation party proposes pension shake-up to boost take-home pay

SYDNEY – Australia’s hard-right One Nation party, which has surged in recent polls, on Sept 7 proposed redirecting a portion of people’s future pension contributions to take-home pay, a move criticised by the ruling centre-left Labor party.People who pay rent or a mortgage should be able to choose to shift one-quarter of their future compulsory pension contributions to their pay packets for up to three years, with the extra pay taxed under concessional rates instead of the higher personal rate, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson said.“One Nation wants to give people some breathing room... you get more of your own money in your pocket when you need it,” Hanson said in a statement.A full-time worker earning about A$90,500 (S$82,531) in a year would receive around A$2,300 more after tax under One Nation’s policy, Hanson said.Employers would continue to make the compulsory 12 per cent contribution.Founded in 1997, One Nation was long seen as a fringe party, but Hanson’s hardline on immigration has drawn more support in recent polls.A widely watched Newspoll by The Australian newspaper, released on Aug 30, showed One Nation’s primary vote up 1 point to 30 per cent compared to the previous poll, ahead of Labor at 29 per cent and the opposition Liberal-National Coalition at 19 per cent.Higher living costs, largely driven by rising fuel prices, have squeezed families, with voters ranking living expenses along with immigration as their top priorities in polls.Treasurer Jim Chalmers called One Nation’s policy “a full-frontal attack” on the retirement savings of workers, and said the next national election, expected in 2028, would be a referendum on Australia’s pension sector, which is worth about A$4.5 trillion.“(This is) a recipe to make Australian workers tens of thousands of dollars worse off in retirement,” he said, adding that the losses from compound interest will outweigh the policy’s short-term financial benefits. REUTERS