Attention: Consultation on Reforms to Superannuation Governance

I wish to make a submission to the review of REFORMS TO SUPERANNUATION GOVERNANCE

I have an interest in this change in law, as I am a small balance member of an Industry Fund.

I do not agree with the Cooper Review finding about a need to introduce compulsory independent board members in the way proposed. I think that the Cooper Report recommendation gave excessive focus to corporate models of governance, and neglected the fundamental trust framework that underwrites Australia’s retirement savings model.

I think that any change to Superannuation Law should look to the trustee duty to the members as a priority.

The equal worker / business model was developed because of the significant value of defined benefit funds in the 80’s and 90’s. It was hoped the Swiss Chalet type of scandal would not reoccur if business owners did not dominate trust funds.  An independent board member was not the solution then because workers’ right to have a say in their retirement was a much better model to trustee appointment, then as now.

Defined Benefits Super ‘started ending’ with the take-over of Walton’s Stores by Bond Corp. Walton’s was a business with a mature well-capitalized defined benefit super scheme. When Walton’s was shutdown by Bond, Bond took the capital as owner of Walton’s. After this businesses with defined benefit super became takeover targets. And in addition, more volatility in deregulated world financial markets also contributed to ‘defined benefit accounts’ rapidly reduced in importance.  Most of this part of the market is now closed to new members and so is a legacy element of Australia’s Superannuation System.

With this cut to a link to the capital of these trusts employers now are weakly linked to super fund trusts.

In a future system with mainly accumulation member accounts I believe that Cooper should have recommended that ‘Employer Representatives’ be replaced with ‘Independent Representatives’.   

What Cooper is recommending entrenches a right to trusteeship. This compulsory right of trustee representation should be cut when capital adequacy maintenance obligations become no longer significant. 

The proposed re-writing of fund trust deeds will weaken member representation. It will weaken what little control I have over the savings I am now putting away for my old age. No government should be doing this, and millions of fund members will vote out a party that does it.

A fundamental reason to recommend independent board members is to moderate big shareholder interest in large corporations.  It is hoped that corporations with independent membership of boards will have a voice for small investors rather than just big investor representation.  Cooper gave no sound evidence that this could apply in Superannuation Trusts. In fact he seems to have neglected the option of strengthening the fiducially duties of trustees as an alternative recommendation.

I thought that this neglect to consider tightening trustee fiducially obligations in place of an unsupported “best practice” remark pointed to a report writter bias. With the Sarbanes–Oxley Act, in response to American corporate weak governance, trustee like duties were written into company law to protect society from the power of control. 

In addition I have a concern that no transitional period has been allowed. The lack of any transitional period will disadvantage a significant element of Australia’s retirement saving system. This points to ‘a before the next election focus’. It points to a politically driven change, with unneeded urgency, for a major change to control of large amounts of capital. I fear a short period for my fund to prepare will put the performance of my small super balance at risk, and disadvantage it in a free investment market.   

This change does not have the support of members who choose industry fund rather than retail funds. I made a free choice to invest in this form of tax-advantaged trust because of the strong member representation. I object to the weakening of member representation this draft law brings.

Yours truly,
Ian Gillard