Retro budget cements higher tax and spend

So they will have three streams of savings – two into their superannuation account, and one into a bank account elsewhere. Under our scheme there would be only two streams of savings – one into super and the other into a bank.

And we’d be happy to see them salary sacrifice more than their employer’s 9.5% into super, as long as the contribution to the house purchase was counted as a loan and repaid over time.

So the deposit could be saved more quickly, and over time the superannuation balance would be boosted as well, plus the purchaser would benefit from the significantly higher returns available from home ownership compared to superannuation.

In summary, Labor has won some significant policy debates, with the government capitulating. But it hasn’t won all of them. Malcolm Turnbull is fulfilling the promise that some saw in him to pull the Liberal Party back towards the “centre” (whatever that term really means), but at the same time I suspect this will fan the vote of One Nation and other minor parties.

It certainly leaves a lot of work for us to do in fields other than, but including, housing.