Portfolio — 19 August 2026

The Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services, Dr Mulino, used question time to announce a package of superannuation reforms anchored by an increase to the Low Income Super Tax Offset, raising the average payment by $410 and extending benefits to about 1.3 million Australians earning between $28,000 and $45,000 [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s157].

The Minister said the boost could translate into a potential retirement benefit of roughly $15,000 for eligible low-income workers over their careers. He framed the measure within a broader government agenda of better targeting superannuation concessions to improve the system's sustainability while preserving concessions that benefit millions of Australians [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s157].

**Superannuation fairness and protection**

Dr Mulino outlined reforms closing loopholes that allow perpetrators of family violence to access a victim's superannuation death benefits [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s157]. He referenced the survivors law passed earlier this year, which stopped convicted child sexual abuse perpetrators from shielding assets in superannuation, as part of the same protective trajectory [TA-260818-house-3c50651fdca4:s157].

The Minister indicated that further reforms to strengthen consumer protections for retirement savings would be announced the following day, signalling the current package is not yet complete.

**Reform trajectory and continuity**

The superannuation announcements build on the recent finalisation of the News Bargaining Incentive legislation, with the Assistant Treasurer expanding the portfolio's reform agenda into retirement income policy. The measures collectively reflect an approach centred on superannuation fairness, sustainability, and protection for vulnerable members — threading together concession targeting, perpetrator loophole closure, and foreshadowed consumer protections into a single reform narrative.

**Synthesis**

The question time contribution shows the Assistant Treasurer consolidating multiple superannuation reform threads into one policy arc: immediate cost-of-living relief through the LISTO increase, structural concession targeting for sustainability, protective measures against exploitation by perpetrators, and a foreshadowed next tranche of consumer protection reforms.

All material derives from a single question time exchange. The records do not capture any opposition response or crossbench engagement on these measures, limiting the view to the government's framing alone.