17 February

Here's the swindle right at the heart of superannuation. The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) sets the 'benchmarks' for different levels of retirement. For example, whether you want a 'basic', 'modest' or 'comfortable' retirement. These benchmarks are used by all super funds and policy makers as a guide. Why is it a swindle? For a few reasons, firstly because it's the finance industry being allowed to determine how much money we all need - what could go wrong there? It's a fundamental conflict of interest. Secondly because, as you can see in the graph, a 'comfortable' retirement is currently set at a level that is more affluent than most households, even if they're still working and earning income. It's ridiculously high (which in turn forces all of us to give the finance industry more money to invest). Retirement has never, ever, in human history been a time where you have more wealth than people raising families. (Until the boomers shifted retirement to a 'lifestyle' paradigm.) Thirdly and most scandalously, the only way any of this affordable is through colossal tax concessions. The taxpayer funds most of these enormous nest eggs we're accumulating, those tax concessions alone currently cost more than the entire aged pension. And it's not just the concessional 15% tax here, it's the completely tax-free super current retirees enjoy (once the boomers die, I will bet my house that concession will go, it was a vote bribe by Peter Costello, to boomers).