Shadow Minister for Environment, Housing and Homelessness Andrew Bragg speaks to the media at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia on Aug. 19, 2026. Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty Images
A Coalition senator’s idea to let home buyers put up their retirement savings as collateral to access a home loan has received “qualified support” from an economist, as debate continues over how much power people should have over their superannuation.
The idea was floated by Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg in a speech to the Financial Services Council on Sept. 22 as a way of letting Australians draw down their super to help purchase a property, while not necessarily draining their retirement savings.
It had “qualified support” from former Reserve Bank economist Peter Tulip, who told AAP tapping into super could mean buyers make more prudent decisions.
“If you use super as collateral, then people are putting at risk their own retirement balances so you would expect them to behave,” he said.
“They (the centre-right Coalition) have got some scheme that encourages more prudent borrowing and more prudent bidding.”
He called the idea a “clear improvement” on the Labor government’s five percent deposit scheme, which he said encourages buyers to take risks.
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“The big problem with the government’s scheme is that it’s going to change behaviour,” Tulip said.
“It provides buyers with a one-way bet: house prices go up, they make a fortune, house prices go down, the taxpayer pays.”
The Coalition has previously taken superannuation policies to two elections—one policy allowed Australians siphon $50,000 to buy a home.
In response, Labor has criticised both policies as unacceptably damaging to the superannuation system, which Labor introduced.
“That would be devastating for people’s retirement incomes, it would make people worse off, superannuation is for retirement,” Treasurer Jim Chalmers told ABC Radio on Sept. 22.
“The Liberals, the Nationals and One Nation all want to vandalise that.”
The government is clinging to maturing super to take pressure off the age pension in the coming years, as outlined in Treasury’s triennial intergenerational report released on Sept. 21.
But Senator Bragg said diverting 12 percent of one’s income to retirement savings coupled with the impacts of demand-side housing policies meant budding property purchasers were being hamstrung in their quest for a home.
“If Australians can reorient some of their super savings early in life … they can optimise their objectives,” he said in his speech.
Senator Bragg has previously copped heat for going AWOL on housing policy, when he criticised compulsory contributions at a National Press Club address in August leading to a dressing down from Liberal leader Angus Taylor.
The opposition leader on Sept. 22 stressed that Bragg’s ideas were not Coalition policy.
“It’s Australians’ money, they should have choice in it,” he told reporters in Sydney, adding the opposition strongly supported self-managed super funds.
Senator Bragg took care to note he was merely spitballing during his address.
“We are keeping an open mind, and they are options worthy of a debate,” he said.
By Will Nicholas in Canberra.