Parliament yesterday passed legislation extending Single Touch Payroll (STP) to all employers from 1 July, this year, which Assistant Treasurer Stuart Robert says will protect the rights of Australians to their superannuation.
The rollout of STP would give the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) up-to-date information on the amount of superannuation owed to employees, in what Robert labelled “an important improvement to transparency”.
“Employers should know the ATO will be able to closely monitor superannuation compliance, and employers will face severe consequences for ripping off their workers,” he said.
Industry Super Australia (ISA) just last week called for the STP legislation to be passed, believing that it could lead to a similarly automated system for regular superannuation payments.
The Institute of Public Accountants (IPA) also welcomed the legislation passing, seeing the potential for public accountants to help small businesses transition to digital payment systems.
“While it is appreciated that not all small or micro businesses are digitally ready for STP, their accountant is in the driver’s seat to assist them to meet these new reporting obligations,” IPA chief executive, Andrew Conway, said.
The super fund announced that Gregory has been appointed to its executive leadership team, taking on the fresh role of chief advice officer.
The deputy governor has warned that, as super funds’ overseas assets grow and liquidity risks rise, they will need to expand their FX hedge books to manage currency exposure effectively.
Super funds have built on early financial year momentum, as growth funds deliver strong results driven by equities and resilient bonds.
The super fund has announced that Mark Rider will step down from his position of chief investment officer (CIO) after deciding to “semi-retire” from full-time work.