Summary

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The majority voted against a motion introduced by Tasmanian Senator Helen Polley (Labor), which means it failed.

Motion text

That the Senate notes that—

(a) COVID-19 and the associated recession should not be used to justify changes to the scheduled superannuation payment increase from 9.5% to 12% by July 2025 – too many people retire with insufficient retirement savings, and data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics does not show that an increase in superannuation leads to a decrease in wages;

(b) with superannuation withdrawals at $32 billion, and predictions that this will reach $42 billion by the end of the year, Australians will regard this temporary measure that is allowing early access to super as careless policy management and a complete lack of foresight;

(c) there have already been 560,000 Australians who have completely cleared out their retirement savings, with 82% of these people under the age of 35 – young people will already fare worse following this pandemic and this has aggravated the problem;

(d) females are already worse off, with women retiring with approximately 47% less super than men – this is due to higher levels of part-time and casual work and repeated career breaks; and

(e) there also needs to be a more targeted approach to reducing inequalities females face, and prevent them from retiring in poverty.

Votes Not passed by a small majority

Nobody rebelled against their party.

Party Votes
Australian Greens (50% turnout) 4 Yes 0 No
Mehreen Faruqi NSW Yes
Sarah Hanson-Young SA Yes
Nick McKim Tasmania Yes
Rachel Siewert WA Yes
Janet Rice Victoria Absent
Jordon Steele-John WA Absent
Larissa Waters Queensland Absent
Peter Whish-Wilson Tasmania Absent
Australian Labor Party (60% turnout) 15 Yes 0 No
Tim Ayres NSW Yes
Catryna Bilyk Tasmania Yes
Kim Carr Victoria Yes
Anthony Chisholm Queensland Yes
Don Farrell SA Yes
Katy Gallagher ACT Yes
Nita Green Queensland Yes
Malarndirri McCarthy NT Yes
Deborah O'Neill NSW Yes
Helen Polley Tasmania Yes
Louise Pratt WA Yes
Tony Sheldon NSW Yes
Anne Urquhart Tasmania Yes
Jess Walsh Victoria Yes
Murray Watt Queensland Yes
Carol Brown Tasmania Absent
Raff Ciccone Victoria Absent
Patrick Dodson WA Absent
Alex Gallacher SA Absent
Kristina Keneally NSW Absent
Kimberley Kitching Victoria Absent
Jenny McAllister NSW Absent
Marielle Smith SA Absent
Glenn Sterle WA Absent
Penny Wong SA Absent
Stirling Griff SA Centre Alliance Yes
Rex Patrick SA Centre Alliance Yes
Sam McMahon NT Country Liberal Party Absent
Sue Lines WA Deputy President Yes
Rex Patrick SA Independent Absent
Jacqui Lambie Tasmania Jacqui Lambie Network Absent
Liberal National Party (50% turnout) 0 Yes 1 No
James McGrath Queensland No
Matthew Canavan Queensland Absent
Liberal Party (69% turnout) 0 Yes 20 No
Simon Birmingham SA No
Andrew Bragg NSW No
Slade Brockman WA No
Michaelia Cash WA No
Claire Chandler Tasmania No
Richard Colbeck Tasmania No
Mathias Cormann WA No
Jonathon Duniam Tasmania No
Hollie Hughes NSW No
Jane Hume Victoria No
Andrew McLachlan SA No
Jim Molan NSW No
James Paterson Victoria No
Gerard Rennick Queensland No
Linda Reynolds WA No
Anne Ruston SA No
Paul Scarr Queensland No
Dean Smith WA No
Amanda Stoker Queensland No
David Van Victoria No
Eric Abetz Tasmania Absent
Alex Antic SA Absent
Wendy Askew Tasmania Absent
David Fawcett SA Absent
Concetta Fierravanti-Wells NSW Absent
Sarah Henderson Victoria Absent
Matt O'Sullivan WA Absent
Marise Payne NSW Absent
Zed Seselja ACT Absent
National Party (67% turnout) 0 Yes 2 No
Perin Davey NSW No
Bridget McKenzie Victoria No
Susan McDonald Queensland Absent
Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party (0% turnout) Absent
Pauline Hanson Queensland Absent
Malcolm Roberts Queensland Absent
Scott Ryan Victoria President No
Totals (61% turnout) 22 Yes – 24 No