Graeme Edgeler: constitutional law expert defends current Super scheme for MPs

A constitutional lawyer's defending MPs' generous Super scheme, saying it guards against corruption.

Taxpayers contribute $2.50 for every dollar MPs put in - up to $36,000 dollars. 

Ordinary employers only contribute 3.5 percent of a worker's salary. 

Graeme Edgeler says MPs who know they'll be safe in retirement are less likely to look for money elsewhere. 

"It's the 'you're going to be looked after'. Yes, it's generous, but it's money that would come out of your salary, probably, if we didn't have the Super scheme - your salaries would be a bit higher." 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Talking about getting into the trough. MPs very nearly, but
did not get their lavish taxpayer kiwisaver contributions taken away. Now,
for every dollar I don't know if you know this,
for every dollar of parliamentarian adds to their kiwisaver, the
taxpayer puts in two dollars. Fifty hands up. Heard like
that deal? In twenty twenty the Remuneration Authority wanted to

(00:22):
have a look at this, but unfortunately, of course that
thing called COVID happened. Now if the Remuneration Authority had
got rid of that, if their plan had been implemented,
taxpayers would have saved around eight million dollars. So to
discuss this, I have a constitutional law expert online, Graham
edel a good afternoon to your Graham.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
Good afternoon.

Speaker 1 (00:41):
Why are MP's KII save a scheme so different from
our own?

Speaker 2 (00:47):
Well, I think the important thing when you're looking at
MP salaries is the overall amount of money they get.
So when the Remunerational Authority is setting their salaries, it's like, okay,
how much a you're going to earn as an MP.
One of the things they take into account as some
of the perks, and another thing that they take into
account is the super scheme. And so we'll work out
what the fair amount of MPs should be paid, and

(01:09):
then if we decide actually some of that should go
to super different question. And so I think it is
reasonable to encourage strongly MPs to put a fair amount
of their money that they're going to earn into a
super scheme, essentially an anti corruption measure. It's that you
are going to be looked after. Yes, it's generous, but
it's money that would come out of your salary that

(01:31):
probably if we didn't have the super scheme, your salaries
would be a bit higher. And so I think having
it looking at it is that way. Come up with
the fair amount for MPs to be paid, and then say,
but there's some benefit in making sure you know that
you're going to be looked after it so that you
don't have to be on the take while you're an MP.
We have similar rules for judges and things like that.
It's generous so that we can avoid sort of risks

(01:54):
of corruption.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
Do you think that's a sensible thing to do, because
the rest of us look at it and go, well, hello,
come on, this is waste of taxpayers money, which we're
currently I don't know if you've noticed in a nationwide
fat war against.

Speaker 2 (02:06):
I agree, and I think wasting taxpayers money is something
we should not do absolutely. But again it's like, if
we're going to be paying MPs a certain amount of money,
you know, imagine if their salaries were twenty percent higher,
and that was just the sole difference was we got
rid of this, but we made their salaries fifteen percent higher. Yep,
we wouldn't be saving any money. But then MPs would

(02:29):
you know, oh, I can make a bit more money.
And so one of the reasons for us sort of
they've gotten rid of a lot of the old perks,
the very cheap flight for the MPs who retired used
to get. None of the current MPs ever going to
qualify for that. But one of the nice things that
that system had. You know, when Title Philip Field, for example,
got convicted of misusing his officers in MP, he lost

(02:51):
that and so wouldn't it be good. You know, one
of the ways you could make this a stronger anti
corruption mischa would be, okay, if you're an MP to
put some of your money into that super scheme, well
you get convicted, you know, the way we took Tyder
phillips Field's flights away from them. We're going to take
that large lot of money that we put into your

(03:12):
key we saver away from you, you know, and so
the costs won't go up because the overall salary is
what it is. And then we've got you. Here's another
incentive not to be on it for the tape.

Speaker 1 (03:24):
Well, I like the cut of your GiB and if
you were running things, things would be tough. And I
thank you so much for your time. Gradmeduler.

Speaker 2 (03:30):
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