According to the research, published in a white paper entitled Australia Today, only 15 per cent of Australians consider themselves either very well or fairly well off, while 66 per cent stated they are “unprepared” for retirement.
MLC noted that superannuation fund members who sought professional advice were more confident in the adequacy of their retirement savings than those who did not, with only 27 per cent of advice-seekers expecting to need the government pension, compared with 49 per cent of those who did not receive advice.
MLC's executive general manager of wealth advice, Greg Miller, said uncertainty caused by government changes was further undermining confidence among superannuation fund members.
“The constant political tinkering of the super system has also confused the conversation, and we run the risk of Australians becoming ambivalent to planning for retirement due to this confusion,” he said.
The need for “clear, measurable and robust” superannuation objectives was reinforced by MLC's executive general manager of superannuation and investment platforms, Paul Carter, who said an adequate retirement income target is needed to “mitigate generational inequity and gaps in living standards”.
“Superannuation has been the subject of political whims for too long. The end result has been constant tinkering, or significant unanticipated change, which has left Australians feeling uncertain about their retirement,” Mr Carter added.
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