One Nation super withdrawal plan would cost workers $25,000, council says

A median full-time worker would retire $25,000 poorer under a One Nation proposal to allow early access to superannuation contributions.

The Super Members Council released the modelling, warning the policy would stoke inflation, force interest rates higher and worsen household cost-of-living pressures.

Under the proposal, workers could withdraw 3 per cent of superannuation contributions across three years. A couple taking up the option would be more than $50,000 worse off at retirement, according to the council.

Super Members Council chief executive Misha Schubert condemned the plan.

"Turning super into an ATM is a reckless idea that would make battling Australians poorer," Schubert said. "This would belt battlers – not help them – by damaging their super and their retirements and driving up both inflation and interest rates."

Schubert said Australians facing housing stress should speak to their banks about relief options rather than drawing down retirement savings.

One Nation designed the policy to run for three years, but the council warned temporary measures risk becoming permanent.

Making the policy permanent would unwind the increase in the Super Guarantee from 9 per cent to 12 per cent over the past decade, stripping up to $132,000 from an average worker's balance at retirement.

The council added that funds would be forced to shift money into short-term liquid investments, damaging investment performance. Even members who keep their super intact could retire with up to $246,200 less, while higher Age Pension costs would push up taxes on everyone.

The council compared the proposal to the pandemic-era early superannuation release scheme, under which Australians withdrew almost $38 billion before the JobKeeper wage subsidy was introduced.

Most of that money was taken out by younger Australians, with research showing subsequent increases in spending on alcohol, gambling, furniture and takeaway food.