Top 10 dunderhead comments, Mining tax is good for Aust, Could Greens control both houses?, Liberals light on super, SMSF collectibles OK and more.
Welcome to the August 2010 Federal Election edition of the SuperGuide newsletter, a free and independent source of superannuation information for consumers.
The highlights of this special edition of the SuperGuide newsletter are:
- THE SOAPBOX – MINERAL RESOURCE RENT TAX: LET’S GET ON WITH IT. Despite the bluster and bullying from the mining industry, the MRRT is a good thing for Australians, and for the generations of Australians that follow us. In fact, the MRRT is the least of the mining industry’s worries. Click on the link below to find out more.
- FEDERAL ELECTION 2010: TOP 10 DUNDERHEAD COMMENTS. Who is the biggest dunderhead of all during this election campaign? It’s not the journalist who wrote the ridiculous commentary on the colour of Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s hair, or those who made countless references to Opposition Leader Tony Abbott’s speedos (aka “budgie smugglers’’) or even the absurd feud between the former ALP leader, Mark Latham and long-time Channel 9 journalist Laurie Oakes. Read about the top 10 gaffes, and discover who takes out the award for the biggest dunderhead comment of the election campaign. Click on the link below to find out more.
- GREENS MAY DO A BRADBURY ON ELECTION DAY. The Greens have a strong chance of securing the balance of power in the Senate. While the two major parties bicker about the timing of a debate, or a forum, or who’s not doing what, the Greens may well slide in and seize the balance of power in the Lower House as well. Click on the link below to read more.
- LABOR’S GONE LONG TERM ON SUPER. Three headline announcements dominate the ALP’s superannuation policy platform – increasing the Superannuation Guarantee by 3%, banning commissions from July 2012, and introducing MySuper. Click on the link below to find out about these policies and other ALP super policies.
- GOOD NEWS FOR SOME IN LIBERALS SENIORS POLICY. At the time of writing, the Liberals had not released a superannuation and retirement policy, although they did release a Seniors policy, which may contains good news for some readers. Click on the link below to find out more.
- USE SUPER MONEY TO FINANCE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS. The Liberals are offering tax rebates for approved infrastructure bonds on eligible projects. Click on link below for more information.
- SMSFS: COLLECTIBLES REMAIN OK INVESTMENTS, SAY ALL PARTIES. Although the Cooper Review recommended banning collectibles in SMSFs, the Liberals, the ALP and the Greens have ignored this recommendation. Click on the link below to find out more.
COMING UP!
In this AUGUST 2010 FEDERAL ELECTION edition, we have not included any Q and As. We will be publishing a special Q and A edition at the end of this month (AUGUST 2010), and this second AUGUST edition will also include commentary on superannuation policies that major parties failed to consider important enough for an election campaign (does contributions caps, the tax treatment of excess contributions, and the impact of the recent Age Pension changes sound familiar?). As promised, our SEPTEMBER 2010 edition will be dedicated to INVESTMENT, and the SEPTEMBER 2010 edition will also include a feature on the Age Pension, and the changes taking place on 20 September 2010.
Note: You can click on the links below or you can access the newsletter links directly via the SuperGuide website. Click here if you would like to access the August 2010 Election special edition of the SuperGuide newsletter page via the website.
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Trish Power
THE SOAPBOX
Mineral Resource Rent Tax: Let’s get on with it
Historically, mining booms have attracted ‘cowboys’, opportunists and, individuals desperate for a break – a new beginning. In the early days, regions enjoying ‘gold fever’ or any other type of mining boom have often had an element of lawlessness as thousands of people would descend onto a previously sparsely inhabited area and all vie for their own ‘pot of gold’. Greed, hardship, alcohol, lack of systems and lack of services often resulted in very dangerous places to live.
Read more
FEATURES
2010 Federal Election: Top 10 dunderhead comments
The ridiculous commentary on the colour of Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s hair, the countless references to Opposition Leader Tony Abbott’s speedos (aka “budgie smugglers”) and the absurd feud between the former ALP leader, Mark Latham and long-time Channel 9 journalist Laurie Oakes, meant that the key issues facing our country at election time have been largely ignored by the main media outlets.
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Greens may do a Bradbury on Election Day
One of the highlights of the 2002 Winter Olympics for Australia was the final in the 1000 metre speed skate. In the last leg of the race the favourites slipped or became tangled with other competitors causing thrills and spills leaving Australian skater, Steven Bradbury, last man standing. He sailed through the finishing line first with his arms lifted high above his head.
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Labor’s gone long term on super
The Australian Labor Party’s superannuation and retirement policies are reasonably well-known: the ALP have been in pre-election mode since the Government announced its response to the Henry Tax Review on 2 May 2010, and then confirmed the ALP policies in the 2010 May Federal Budget.
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Good news for some in Liberal Seniors policy
At the time of writing this article, four days before the 2010 Federal Election, we are still waiting for the Liberal/Coalition policy on superannuation and retirement. Perhaps they don’t have one. The Liberals have however released a Seniors policy which does allude to some superannuation and retirement policies.
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Liberals: Use super money to finance Australian infrastructure projects
An idea that has been around the block once or twice, is the latest Liberal policy encouraging the private sector to be involved in the financing (and presumably the building) of Australia’s infrastructure projects. If the Liberal/Coalition parties win the 21 August 2010 election, they promise that any infrastructure project approved by the Federal government will be able to issue bonds giving investors (potentially superannuation funds or retail investors) a 10% tax rebate.
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SMSFs: Collectibles remain OK investments, say all parties
Self-managed super fund trustees who own art within their super fund, or valuable coins or antiques or any other type of collectible investment can now rest easy. The Cooper Review’s recommendation that collectibles be banned as suitable SMSF investments has been dismissed by the Greens, the Liberals and the Australian Labor Party.
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