Superannuation in New Zealand - Compulsory Retirement Savings

LINKS:

Office of the Retirement Commissioner

• ORC: ORC Research

Super Talk - Lots of recent debate, etc..

Reports of the Task Force on Private Provision for Retirement 1991-92

Retirement Income Policies -1997 Periodic Report Group

1997 Periodic Report Group July 31 Report ("The Todd Report")

As an alternative perspective to the Todd report, look at Social Security Privatisation in Britain: Key Lessons for America's Reformers. It compares the UK and US systems.

Issues Papers for the Minister for Senior Citizens, prepared by the Senior Citizens Unit, October 1996

Address by the Hon Jenny Shipley, Minister of State Services, to the National Council of Women Northern Regional Seminar, "Superannuation and Compulsion", 10 May 1997.

Address by Deputy Prime Minister the Hon Winston Peters, Treasurer, to the Insurance Institute's National Conference, 13 May 1997.

The CTU's Referendum Page

Elections: 1997 Referendum - Compulsory Retirement Savings Scheme

Ara Nui: Aotearoa / New Zealand : Retirement Savings Referendum

Comment on Private Pensions from the OECD

Demographic and other data are available from the New Zealand Official Yearbook On The Web (1999)

Note also: New Zealand Survey of Older People in 2000

You can see some discussion on the valuation of superannuation in part 3 of "Women, Families and Unpaid Work".

COMMENTARIES:

Some provision for retirement is necessary -

1. Should this be funded through savings or through taxation?
2. If savings based, should it be compulsory or voluntary?
3. If savings, how much, and where, with what security/guarantees?
4. Should Government involvement apply universally or be targeted towards those with less ability to provide for themselves? If targeting, how are these people/groups to be selected?
5. Are there transition problems moving from one approach to another?

(Further comment here)

There might be some value in comparing the proposed scheme to previous ones in New Zealand:

• Pages 186-7 of the 1975 NZ Official Yearbook describe the (short-lived) New Zealand Superannuation Fund. There are some close parallels with the current proposal.
• Pages 536-537 of the 1939 NZ Official Yearbook describe the contributory superannuation scheme introduced under the 1938 Social Security Act.

Comparisons could also be made with schemes overseas:

• Michael Good, Chief Investment Advisor for New Zealand Guardian states that the Australian compulsory scheme is now at $280b after 10 years , in comparison to a Treasury Forecast of over $50b in compulsory super schemes by 2011 (in 1997 dollars) [Sunday Star-Times 27 July 1997, page D11]. What has been the Australian experience?

Maoris The Losers In Winston’s Annuity Gamble (press release by Hamish Anderson)

Compulsory retirement savings and matrimonial property (comment by Stuart Birks)

Some Possible Effects of the Proposed Retirement Saving Scheme (media article by Professor Chris Moore, focusing on the impact on the pattern of savings)

The Superannuation Debate (comment by Stuart Birks)

Prepared for web by Stuart Birks

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