The Shadow Minister for Superannuation has hit out at the federal government's last minute decision to extend the drawdown relief for self-funded retirees.
The government announced yesterday it will extend the drawdown relief provided for account-based superannuation pensions during 2010 and 2011, according to a joint statement from Deputy Prime Minister and Treasurer Wayne Swan and Assistant Treasurer in the making Nick Sherry.
"Julia Gillard and Labor have created unnecessary uncertainty by waiting until a minute to midnight to make this announcement," Shadow Minister for Superannuation Luke Hartsuyker said.
"This is long overdue and should have been announced earlier to give self-funded retirees peace of mind for the upcoming financial year. Drawdown relief was made available in 2008 to assist self-funded retirees protect assets during falls in global asset prices, but the continued mismanagement of the Australian economy by the Gillard-Rudd government has required its extension."
Hartsuyker went on to accuse the government of treating self-funded retirees with contempt.
"Labor made things worse for superannuants in 2008 by implementing their bungled bank deposit guarantee, forcing many funds to freeze the redemptions and assets of thousands of self-funded retirees," he said.
"Self-funded retirees must be supported because of the substantial contribution they make to the economic security of Australia.
"The Coalition welcomes the extended drawdown relief because it provides self-funded retirees with added protection against the economic mismanagement of the Gillard Labor government."
Despite the criticism, the government also used its announcement to applaud the efforts of self funded retirees who have saved to fund their own retirement.
"We understand that the global financial crisis is having an ongoing impact on the portfolios of self-funded retirees," the statement said.
The drawdown relief, as in the past two years, will be in the form of a 50 per cent reduction in the minimum payment amounts for account-based, allocated and market-linked pensions, it said.
The change will require amendments to the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Regulations 1994 and the Retirement Savings Accounts Regulations 1997.
