EXCLUSIVE Hidden cost of Labor's new super tax that could send prices soaring at Coles and Woolworths

Daily Mail​

22-07-2025

Labor's radical tax plan for superannuation could end up seeing Australians pay more for their weekly food shop, farmers are warning.
Parliament resumed for the first time since the May election on Tuesday, and one of the key pieces of legislation the Albanese government will try to get passed is a new tax on superannuation savings even before the funds are accessible.
Anthony Albanese 's government wants to impose a new 15 per cent tax on unrealised super balances above $3million, which would see self-managed super funds taxed on the paper value of assets before they are sold.
This radical departure from the usual capital gains tax practice would also double the headline tax rate to 30 per cent, with superannuation already subject to a 15 per cent earnings tax during the accumulation or working phase.
While most wage earners have their super invested in liquid assets like shares and bonds, many farmers hold self-managed super funds tied to their land, and may be forced to sell the farm to stay under the $3million cap.
National Farmers' Federation president David Jochinke told Daily Mail Australia that this could result in less supply of food and therefore higher prices.
'Higher taxes and costs on farm business ultimately make it harder for them to keep fresh produce on supermarket shelves, and this one has the potential to be significant,' he said.
'These farmers will be taxed simply because their land value has gone up on paper. No additional income. No sale. Just a tax bill.'
'This is not just about yachts and waterfront mansions. It's about orchards, dairies, and the family farms that put food on the table.'
The National Farmers Federation estimates Labor's Better Targeted Superannuation Concessions bill from 2023 would affect 3,500 farmers immediately, with Labor proposing to backdate it to July 1.
It estimates 17,000 family farms are held within a self-managed super fund, which can have up to six members.
The government will not index that $3million threshold, meaning more and more people will become subject to the tax as inflation continues.
The NFF argues this would see another 14,000 farmers have assets worth more than $3million in coming decades.
'We urge the government to proactively consider changes it can make to the proposed 'Super Tax' to avoid impacts on farmers and small businesses across the country,' Mr Jochinke said.
Labor has a landslide majority in the House of Representatives but needs the Greens in the Senate to get legislation passed.
The Greens want the threshold lowered from $3million to $2million but indexed for inflation.
But Mr Jochinke said if the government is forced through negotiations to accept the Greens' position it would be an even worse outcome.
'This would be an even more devastating outcome for Australia's farming families than the original Super Tax parameters,' he said.
'Thousands more farms will be in jeopardy if the threshold is lowered to $2million.
'We are against the current bill, and in particular its taxing of unrealised gains, but to aim for an even lower threshold in order to ram the bill through the Senate is just reckless.'
Nick McKim, the Greens' treasury and economic justice spokesman, said superannuation had become a way for people to accumulate vast sums at a tax rate that was well below that applied to income.
'Over time Australia's superannuation system has become less about providing a dignified retirement for working people, and more of a vehicle for wealth accumulation. This needs to change,' he said.
'The Greens want to ensure that very wealthy Australians pay their fair share of tax, so that governments can do more to support people who need it.'