Minister for Superannuation Chris Bowen has begun an attack on opposition leader Tony Abbott, slamming comments Abbott made about Australia's superannuation system.
"At some point, saving money by keeping people off the pension while forgoing revenue to encourage them to make alternative provisions becomes counterproductive," Abbott wrote in Battlelines, his book released last year.
"It could be simpler and fairer for the revenue forgone in superannuation concessions to be provided as a pension instead."
According to Bowen, Abbott's comments pose a risk to the national superannuation system and the challenges of coping with the ageing population.
"To argue that we should abolish superannuation tax concessions and use the money to pay for the abolition of the pension means test is plainly short-sighted," he said.
According to Bowen, as the proportion of working Australians supporting an increasing number of older Australians decreases, the ageing population will increase demand for government services and push up health costs.
"Australia's superannuation system makes us better placed than many countries to meet the challenges of an ageing population and is a vital pillar in generating sustainable retirement incomes," he said.
However, First State Super chief executive Michael Dwyer questioned the government's commitment to maintaining the super system as the main way for Australians to save for their retirement.
He said the current concessional cap arrangements could cause super fund members to lose faith in the system.
"The caps are punishing and could mean that investors will turn to other types of investments, as opposed to super which is highly regulated," Dwyer said.
Abbott's Battlelines was sixth place on the top 10 list for non-fiction titles, according to Dymocks.
