THE Retirement Income Review released today provides a valuable baseline of data against which to measure the performance of Australian retirement income and superannuation systems.

The Financial Services Council (FSC) has welcomed the considered contribution to the policy debate from the panel of independent experts and notes their conclusion that Australia’s retirement income system is ‘effective sound and its costs are broadly sustainable.

The review made the important conclusion that government expenditure on the Age Pension as a proportion of GDP is projected to fall over the next 40 years to around 2.3 percent and that higher superannuation balances reduce Age Pension costs. In effect, the superannuation system is delivering on its objectives.

FSC CEO Sally Loane said, “The FSC acknowledges the review’s emphasis on using retirement savings more efficiently, and we support implementing the Retirement Income Covenant for trustees. In the context of our successful system, however, we urge the government to also consider carefully whether any changes to the schedule increase in the superannuation guarantee to 12 percent would be in Australians’ best interests.

“The independent review, and the Productivity Commission inquiry that proceeded it, both emphasised that consumers have a right to expect our retirement and superannuation systems are efficient,” Ms Loane said.

She said the FSC recognised there was more work to be done to make the retirement system more efficient, including finalising the government’s recently announced ‘Your Future, Your Super’ reforms, which if implemented carefully will help ensure our mandatory superannuation system is efficient and competitive.

A copy of the Retirement Income Review can be found at: https://treasury.gov.au/publication/p2020-100554

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WEALTH manager Atlas Advisors Australia and venture fund Stoic Venture Capital have given an in-principle commitment to invest further with Uniseed.

Stoic Venture Capital is the co-investment Fund of Uniseed, a commercialisation fund which focuses on financing start-up companies that spin out from Australian member universities.

Stoic Partner and member of Uniseed’s investment committee, Geoff Waring said the venture fund’s relationship with Uniseed, which manages a $50 million commercialisation fund and a $20 million follow on fund, was highly valued.

Dr Waring said Uniseed’s partner research organisations comprised five of Australia’s top six research organisations which collectively developed more than 50 percent of all patents from Australian research organisations.

“The most valuable asset of any startup is intellectual property,” Dr Waring said. “Uniseed’s deals flow from the sources of more than half of Australia’s patents. 

"This, along with its expertise at commercialising research makes it unique in Australia."

Stoic Venture Capital has co-invested in 17 investments since making its first investments with Uniseed in 2018.

Atlas Advisors Australia is the largest limited partner in Stoic Venture Capital. Atlas Advisors Australia executive chairman Guy Hedley said Uniseed was ranked the fifth best university venture in the world, according to Global University Venturing.

“With more than $5 billion invested in annual research expenditure, Uniseed’s member organisations make up more than 40 percent of Australia’s organisational expenditure on research,” Mr Hedley said.

“This investment is leading to the development of innovative technology in medicine, applied science and engineering.

“The startups that evolve from Uniseed’s member organisations in turn generate employment and support growth in today’s tough economic environment,” Mr Hedley said. “We are pleased to support Uniseed’s objectives and the growth of their portfolio.”

Stoic Venture Capital’s investments in Uniseed’s portfolio include:

• Probiotic drink (PERKii);
• Drone radio-tracking technology (Wildlife Drones);
• Smart helmet for motorcycling (Forcite);
• Agricultural robots (Agerris);
• Enhancing immunity to fight respiratory diseases (Ena Therapeutics);
• Drug for treating kidney disease (Certa Therapeutics);
• Addiction rehabilitation drug (Kinoxis);
• Eye damage from diabetes (Occurx);
• Breast cancer side effects treatment (Que Oncology);
• Magnetic nanoparticles for cancer diagnosis (Ferronova).

www.stoicvc.com.au

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THE Health Services Union has launched a landmark work value case in the Fair Work Commission to lift wages for the aged care workforce by 25 percent.

If the case succeeds, over 200,000 personal carers, activities officers, catering, cleaning, and administration workers would see their pay rise by at least $5 an hour.

The starting rate for a personal carer is currently $21.96 per hour, and the average carer retires with $18,000 in superannuation.

If the HSU claim succeeds a qualified personal carer would see their wages increase from $23.09 to $28.86 an hour.

The HSU claim also seeks to build in career paths and to recognise specialist carers in areas like dementia or palliative care.

“Aged care in this country has relied for too long on the goodwill of an underpaid and insecure workforce of women. It’s time for change,” HSU president Gerard Hayes said.

“Aged care workers are skilled. They provide care and support to our most vulnerable, to residents enduring episodes of sadness and at times anger. They should be recognised and paid for their skills.

“This pay rise is an issue of justice, but it also goes to the sustainability of the system. Four in 10 aged care workers intend to leave the sector within the next five years, because they are at breaking point. A workforce crisis is coming unless we see a significant boost to pay," Mr Hayes said.

“The Federal Government cannot keep hiding behind the Aged Care Royal Commission. We need  action immediately. The best thing the Commonwealth government can do is support this pay rise for the long-suffering aged care workforce.”

The HSU recently released economic modelling which showed a 0.65 percent rise in the Medicare levy would raise $20.4 billion over four years, funding a pay rise, an additional 59,000 aged care jobs and close to 90 minutes of additional resident care per day.

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TOMORROW, the inquiry into the destruction of Indigenous heritage sites at Juukan Gorge will meet two Western Australian agencies with a key role in the Juukan Gorge tragedy — the Registrar of Aboriginal Sites and the Aboriginal Cultural Material Committee (ACMC).

Northern Australia Committee Chair Warren Entsch said understanding the role of these agencies under the Western Australian Aboriginal Heritage Act is a key part of understanding how Juukan Gorge came about.

"The Aboriginal Heritage Act has failed to protect Aboriginal Heritage," Mr Entsch said.

"The bureaucracy has played a significant role in this failure and we need to understand why."

In its submission, the Yinhawangka Aboriginal Corporation stated their concerns about the ACMC:

"It does seem to me that the discretionary power of the Minister (to direct the ACMC to do anything) that has existed since 1980, the limited resources of the Department and the ACMC, the limited role of Aboriginal people speaking for their country, and the limited role of experts like archaeologists and anthropologists, all act to render the ACMC impotent in the exercise of the functions that the Parliament originally intended them to exercise."

In evidence before the Committee, the Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation questioned the integrity of the site registration process. It stated:

"A total number of 172 important heritage sites have been removed [from Yindjibarndi country], over the past 10 years, from the register of sites held in the department. Without proper reasons, it's not possible to actually work out why they've been removed. In fact, a man called Joe Dortch wrote a paper in which he examined the removal of, I think, 3,000-odd sites from the register for no apparent reason.

"The Yindjibarndi people have made submissions and archaeologists and anthropologists have made submissions saying just how important a particular site is, but departmental staff, in their wisdom and without ever setting sight on a place, say, 'Oh, no, this is not significant,' and the ACMC, which is understaffed and has no knowledge of country, because they're not Indigenous people from that particular country, basically go on the recommendations of the staff and say this is not a site, when all of the evidence that's put before them shows that it is the site of significance that ought to be protected —172 cases."

Programs for the public hearing are available on the Committee’s website.

Public hearing details

Date: Friday, 20 November 2020
Time: 12pm to 2:30pm AEDT
Location: by video/teleconference

The hearings will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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