Fairfax Media has today reported that the Queensland Liberal/National Party Government has appointed the wife of Shadow Treasurer, Joe Hockey to the board of the superannuation fund covering Queensland public servants - Qsuper.
Hockey’s wife, a former Deutsche Bank executive which the report described as a “self-made millionaire”, will receive a $45,000 fee for filling the trustee director position.
The report said Queensland Treasurer Tim Nicholls had gazetted Ms Babbage’s appointment in mid-June but had not publicly announced the move.
Babbage is a non-executive director of Swiss Re Life and Health Australia Ltd.
The two funds have announced the signing of a non-binding MOU to explore a potential merger.
The board must shift its focus from managing inflation to stimulating the economy with the trimmed mean inflation figure edging closer to the 2.5 per cent target, economists have said.
ASIC chair Joe Longo says superannuation trustees must do more to protect members from misconduct and high-risk schemes.
Super fund mergers are rising, but poor planning during successor fund transfers has left members and employers exposed to serious risks.