Treasurer Joe Hockey has come under fire from former Prime Minister Paul Keating for flagging an idea to allow superannuation funds to be accessed early by those seeking to buy their first home.
Mr Hockey’s thought bubble was made public over the weekend as the Treasurer spoke of the need to make housing more accessible for young people.
While the Coalition has no current plans to introduce such an idea to Parliament, Mr Keating has slammed the proposal and labeled the very thought irresponsible.
“Breaking what is now a national consensus on the principle of preservation, where savings cannot be drawn down till age 55, would amount to the wilful destruction of one of the best retirement systems in the world,” Mr Keating, seen as the key architect of Australia’s compulsory super system, said in an op-ed for Fairfax Media.
“This idea is certainly not an innovation and is not responsible enough even to be considered a thought bubble.”
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Mr Hockey’s comments on tapping super early for first home purchases took on new life on Monday as Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the idea merited a frank and open debate.
"It is something that I am very happy to see further debated but there are obviously some issues around it, and let's fully consider it," he said, adding that the notion was “perfectly good and respectable”.
"(However), at this stage we don't have any plans to introduce it."
Labor immediately dismissed the idea, saying it would erode retirement savings and potentially further raise house prices. Similar sentiments were echoed by Mr Keating, though the former PM went a step further in saying the comments were a trend for the Liberal party to undermine the super pool.
“(The Liberal party) is always trying to pull the plug out of the bath of Australia's universal superannuation pool,” he said in the op-ed. “And treasurer Hockey's proposal to let people access their superannuation savings before age 55 is just that – an attempt to pull the plug from the bath to lower the level of compulsory savings.”