PETER STEFANOVIC:
And the government will spend less taxpayer money on the Aged Pension over the next 40 years, despite the country's ageing population. The Intergenerational Report ‑ so, this report is going to be released by Jim Chalmers tomorrow. And as we've said to you all week, it's going to reveal a decline in spending to support retirees because of the superannuation system. Despite projections twice as many Australians will be aged over 65 by 2062, spending on the aged pension will decrease to 2 per cent of GDP by 2035. Australia is forecast to have the lowest government spending on pensions among OECD countries. As Jim Chalmers said in the paper this morning, or in a statement, that goes to show that the system appears to be working, the super system, anyway.
So, let's bring in the Assistant Treasurer and the Financial Services Minister, Stephen Jones, before we get to that, Stephen, good to see you by the way. This report out tomorrow, it is going to show the changing face of Australia over the next 40 years, I hope I'm still around to see the end of that by the way. But big long term questions on how we're going to pay for essential services. But in the short term, ie. this term of government, is ambitious tax reform off the agenda?
STEPHEN JONES:
Well, look, we've focused, Pete, on the things that are currently before us in this Parliament. We've got our efforts to ensure that multinationals pay their fair share. We're introducing more fairness into the taxation arrangements in superannuation around high‑balance superannuation funds, and really digging down on tax avoidance. A big thing that I'm focused on is ensuring that we can show to Australians that under the existing rules, every Australian is paying what they ought to be paying and that we're really reducing the tax avoidance. I think that's a critical part of the integrity of the system. These are our focuses. We've got some reforms in the Parliament as well around the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax. That's a fairly big agenda, Pete. We've got to digest that and work through that and ensure that we can demonstrate to the Australian people the system's working efficiently.
STEFANOVIC:
Those changes are merely tweaks, though, are they not? Rather than full‑scale changes?
JONES:
They're all fairly considerate. We're talking about new tax raisings through all of those measures in the billions of dollars. So, I wouldn't describe them as insignificant. They are significant reforms and hotly contested, I've got to say, as well, particularly in relation to the high balance superannuation initiatives. But we're committed to doing it because Australians expect services, they expect us to balance the Budget. Nobody wants to pay tax, but we've got to ensure that we've got a system that is fair and efficient and that's what the existing measures are directed to.
STEFANOVIC:
Okay, but decreasing company taxes or increasing the GST, even for argument's sake, would that not be more significant in terms of productivity?
JONES:
Not on our agenda at the moment, Pete, what we are focused on are these measures. And I've got to say, you mentioned superannuation in the beginning, an important measure introduced over 30 years ago now, ensuring that Australians have a more dignified retirement. It's these sort of measures which will mean we don't have to increase taxes by the same amount into the future because we've got a system in place which is ensuring that Australians are more self‑reliant in retirement. Because over the next 40 years, two things are going to happen. They're going to be more people over the age of 65, that's just a factor of demographics. But a second thing that's going to happen is Australians' expectations and notions about what is necessary for a dignified retirement are going to shift, they're going to increase, there's going to be more, people are going to expect more. And superannuation is the buffer on that. It means we need to rely less on the tax and transfer system through the pension arrangements and people are putting in place more for their own retirement.
STEFANOVIC:
Is it fair to say that the rising cost of age pension will be offset by super savings? Is that the point that you're making?
JONES:
Absolutely, but not only in terms of where we are now. Just consider certain things like broadband, mobile phones. Our parents never had either of those things, they wouldn't have thought them as a necessary part of living in retirement. That and more into the future, the next iteration, next generation of these things, it all costs money. Health care, the costs of health care are going to go up. The cost of all of these things that we expect to be a normal part of living and retirement is going to go up. People's expectations are going to go up. Superannuation is ensuring that those increased expectations and the increased notions about what it is to live a dignified retirement is going to be met because people are saving for it throughout their entire life, and it's working.
STEFANOVIC:
Okay, Stephen Jones, we'll leave it there. Appreciate your time, as always.