Jay Weatherill Wants More Mps to Get Super Boost

ADVERTISER.COM.AU SUNDAY FEBRUARY 15 2015 NEWS 05

Jay Weatherill Wants More MPs to get Super Boost

EXCLUSIVE

MICHAEL McGUIRE EXAMPLES

POLITICIANS elected since Based on current 2006 stand to gain a windfall of positions and don’t take hundreds of thousands of dol- UP into account pay rises, inflation, rate of return on UP lars in retirement payments if Jay Weatherill gets his way and current super scheme, revives the old parliamentary compounding returns or superannuation scheme abol- tax. Also assumes the ished a decade ago because it MPs remain in their was seen as too generous. current position for 12 The Premier said he under- EMERGENCY POWER years and remain in stood it would be an unpopular Parliament for 21 years. move but to attract better qual- SERVICES PRICES Steven Marshall ity candidates and limit the Liberal leader temptation of corruption then it LEVY Current salary of was important to improve politi- $267,978 would result in cians’ pay and conditions. $866,641 payout after 21 “I don’t think politicians years based on current should be making decisions as 15.4 per cent super politicians even vaguely inter- contribution rate. Under ested or concerned about where UP old scheme would be their next job might be coming UP entitled to 75 per cent of from when they leave politics,’’ current salary – $200,984 he said. “I don’t think we want a year in retirement. people pulling their punches be- Annabel Digance cause they are worried about Labor chairwoman of what kind of job they are going Public Works Commit- GAS to get.’’ tee, backbencher In the Governor’s speech to UP WATER Current salary of Parliament earlier this week, PRICES $174,568, would result in the Government expressed its $564,553 payout after 21 in-tention to commission the PRICES years. Under old scheme inde-pendent Remuneration entitled to $130,926 a Tribunal to review how much year in retirement. politicians are paid. Natalie Cook Labor Mr Weatherill said, while the CAR REGO backbencher terms of reference were still to Current salary $153,130, be finalised, it would include a which would result in a review of the super system and $495,222 payout after 21 he favoured a return to the years.Under old scheme scheme that was in place before would get $114,848 a 2004. The Government was un- year in retirement. able to provide any cost estimate for any change. Liberal treasury spokesman ditched the old scheme, mean- Rob Lucas said the party had You can’t ing new politicians would re- made no decision on whether it ceive the same contribution as would support the change. He other workers. This was initially said it would be a matter for the 9 per cent but it has since risen “party room” to decide. to 15.4 per cent. Mr Weatherill said political Flinders University political life involved many sacrifices lecturer Haydon Manning and limited a person’s job backed an increase in politi- opportun-ities in later life. cians’ remuneration and said “I have seen colleagues be serious many ex-MPs told him there spend the best years of their had been an “apparent’’ drop in lives trying to get into Parlia- TELL US WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THIS AT ADVERTISER.COM.AU the quality of candidates and it ment, spending a lot of their was tougher to find recruits. money, trying to campaign high-profile figures such as Lib- election, so any changes would scheme receives a lifetime pen- Politicians’ super entitle- “If you have a good job and are and get elected for a couple eral leader Steven Marshall, In- not increase his payout. sion of 41.2 per cent of their pen- ments changed in 2004 after being paid quite well, what is the of terms and get flung out, frastructure Minister Stephen Under the highly complex sion after six years. It then goes former federal Labor leader motivation to put your hand up for middle aged with very few Mullighan and Greens leader formula which determines such up by 0.2 per cent a month, with Mark Latham pledged to close preselection,’’ he said. job prospects,” he said. Mark Parnell. It could even cap- pensions, Mr Weatherill will a higher loading the more senior down what he said was a scheme However, financial planning “I just think there is some-thing ture former Ministers Grace need to serve as Premier for 12 the position. out of touch with community expert Theo Marinis questioned inherently unfair about it.’’ All Portolesi and Chloe Fox who years and be in Parliament for 21 There is an even more gener- standards. It was a popular the move, saying: “It is un- MPs who entered Parlia-ment at lost their seats in the 2014 poll. to qualify for the maximum pay- ous scheme for those elected be- promise and Prime Minister funded, very generous to the the 2006 and 2010 elec-tions The Premier is already a ben- out of around $230,000 a year. fore 1995 which captures John Howard adopted the pol- people who receive it, but ridicu- would benefit from the change, eficiary of the old scheme, as he The legislation provides that a Speaker Michael Atkinson and icy as well. lous to the people who have to which would include entered Parliament at the 2002 politician in the pre-2004 Mr Lucas. Premier Mike Rann also pay it, who are the taxpayers.’’

Reproduced with the permission of The Advertiser