The End Of " Retirement " !

Access to superannuation is only supposed  to be allowed in special circumstances, and yet thousands of Australians are withdrawing money from their superannuation fund because of hardship caused by this coronavirus pandemic putting them out of work.  It has been revealed that there is absolutely no eligibility check on why three million people have withdrawn $28 billion from their retirement accounts.

In some cases the need is genuine and the money will be used to put bread on the family dinner table but financial analysis is now delivering other interesting stories..  One senior banker who was not authorised to speak publicly hinted that there has been a ten percent increase in the customers who are up to $25,000 ahead on their mortgages.   The banker said early superannuation access was a factor contributing to that trend.

Another mortgage executive recounted an increase in customers attempting to use the money withdrawn from superannuation as the deposit for a house purchase. Changes to stamp duty laws intended to increase activity in the labour  intensive building industry are making home purchase more attractive to first home buyers.

The purpose of " superannuation for all " legislation, when it was introduced was to ensure that all Australians retired with sufficient income to free them from depending on the old age pension.  There was concern that this aged pension might otherwise retreat beyond the ability of the government to finance it unless the numbers were substantially reduced.

What is causing concern is the reality that some superannuation accounts are now empty.  The entire contents have been withdrawn because of this perceived emergency and the people concerned at are at an age when accumulating a new sufficient retirement total looks unlikely.  Part of the Australian workforce now seems likely to have to work into old age and make do on the old age pension when they finally retire.

To make matters worse, we are encountering the phenomenon of " Stagflation ", which reduces the cost of living and cements in place the stagnation of wage levels which were overdue for an increase.  All this is artificial.   The lockdown stopped people taking holidays and spending money, and this immobility of cars decreased petrol usage, resulting in an oil glut and a sharp price fall.  There is no indication when this coronavirus will end or what sort of economy will then emerge.

Analysis of credit bureau records is also illustrating.   There has been a jump in spending on what the analysts term non-essentials and this includes, gambling, liquor and furniture.   That does contrast sharply with the " hardship " eligibility which is supposed to underscore superannuation withdrawals.

What is done - is done.  And we have to live with it.  But for many the hope of a comfortable retirement is now an illusion.  Sacrificed on the altar of surviving the coronavirus pandemic  !

The " Snail Mail " Question !

We seem to have a quixotic situation evolving within Australia Post.   They are about  to expand parcel delivery to a seven day basis while mail delivery contracts to home delivery taking place every second day.  The reason given for this conundrum is the ever depleting flow of letters through the system, counter balanced by the amazing growth of internet shopping.

This is obviously exacerbated by the coronavirus lockdown.  The closure of traditional shopping centres has forced customers to change shopping habits but this was a new mood pattern that was quite evident before the virus came on the scene.  In fact there is doubt that when the virus finally departs we may not see the same plethora of shops reopen.   Internet shopping seems to have gained a permanent hold and that parcel delivery flow looks to be permanent.

Initially, the mail system was an integral part of commercial life in Australia.  Most services were billed on a monthly basis and for the cost of a stamp Australia Post would deliver to a home letterbox anywhere in Australia.  This was a high security operation and the public had confidence that money sent as a birthday gift through the post would reach its destination safely.

Because of the volume handled daily, the cost of a postage stamp was low and as the numbers of letters dwindled the stamp cost has risen.  We are fast reaching the stage when changing monthly payment cycles are only made by email billing or payment is demanded by direct debit.  The era of electronic computer contact and cheap phone calls has reduced the personal letter flow to the ever decreasing aged in our communities.

We are fast reaching the stage when delivery speed for letters has dropped by the wayside.  The sheer volume of parcels now handled by the Post Office has reduced the delivery cost to the point where elevating a letter to the priority status of a parcel and ensuring overnight delivery becomes a reality.  It seems obvious that we are heading into an era of first and second class mail.  Eventually, we may see second class mail delivered on a weekly rather than a daily basis.

It all depends on the importance of what is to be delivered.   The Post Office parcel delivery system has the function in place to deliver a " courier " style letter on an overnight basis.  It is obvious that the old overnight postal service is becoming uneconomic because of ever dropping volume and the importance of what is to be posted must be at the discretion of the sender.  It is now evident that there is not a vast difference between the rate for parcels compared with the rising letter rate.

That seems to be the inevitable outcome of this " supply and demand " situation as it evolves further  !

Theft In High Places !

An almost unbelievable story of misfeasance has come from our near neighbour, Malaysia.  In the distant past it was ruled by a testy prime minister who frequently clashed with his Australian  counterpart.   The exchanges between Dr Mahathir and Paul Keating were legendary.

Dr Mahathir eventually retired and in 2009 Najib Razak came to power as the prime minister heading the UNMO party.  He instituted reforms and one of these was the creation of a Malaysian National Futures fund titled IMDR, which accumulated billions of Malaysian ringgits.   There was consternation when evidence emerged of a computer fraud and billions of ringgits went missing.

Under Razak's rule as prime minister the investigation seemed to go in concentric circles that never reached a conclusion, and politics in Malaysia sharpened when the now extremely aged Dr Mahathir emerged from retirement and challenged Razak at the polls.   He swept back into office in a landslide, and now that investigation into the missing money took new impetus.

It was discovered that more than a billion in US Dollar value had found its way into former prime minister Razak's personal bank account.  He tried to account for this by claiming the money was a personal loan from the Saudi Royal family. Najib Razak and his wife were arrested and prevented from leaving Malaysia while an indepth investigation uncovered more of the story.

It uncovered a treasure trove of high value consumer goods stashed away in Razak's former home.  It was like something from the tale of the Arabian Nights and consisted of rings, brooches, tiaras, watches and necklaces which the jewellery trade valued as worth more than $ 273 million.  Most of this had been obtained by internet purchases.

The former prime minister went to trial and now that court has delivered its verdict,.  He was charged with abuse of power, three charges of breach of trust and three money laundering charges. Razak was found guilty on all seven counts and the  High Court judge delivering that verdict took two hours to deliver his finding.

Razak still claims to be innocent and will lodge an appeal.  He is now claiming the fraud is the work of a shonky financial adviser, who has left the country and can not be traced.  The trial has yet to proceed to sentencing and that may cause a few problems because the political balance in the country has again changed.

Razak's political party - UNMO - is again back in power as part of an alliance that has Muhyiddin Yassin occupying the post of prime minister.   It will be interesting to see how this affects whatever sentence is handed down to the former head of the UNMO party.

What is peculiar is that this crime happened in a democratic regime.  Malaysians go to the polls to elect their government and grand theft is usually the preserve of dictators.  In this instance it seems that a legally elected prime minister chose to use the country's Future Fund as his personal piggy bank.

Highway Horror !

A " Tradie " had an unsetlling experience in Queensland this week.  This 27 year old Gladstone man had been working at an outlaying homestead and when the job was finished was heading back into the city in the late afternoon.  He was driving at the legal speed limit of 100 kph when he noticed " movement " on the floor of his ute, and discovered that he had an unwanted " passenger ".

It was a fully grown eastern brown snake, rated as one of the most venemous reptiles of the many types that are common to this country.  His first thought was to stop and get out of his ute, but when he moved his foot to the brake the snake began to coil around his leg and showed aggression by striking at the front edge of the seat he was sitting on.

He grabbed a work knife that was laying on the passenger seat and began a fight for survival with the snake, all the while keeping his foot off the brake and careering down the highway at a hundred kph.  It was an unnerving battle keeping from running off the road while inflicting damage on the snake but he emerged victorious.   He threw the dead snake in the tray and - certain that he had been bitten - took off at high speed to try and get to a hospital which would have the necessary anti-venom on hand.

That ute travelling  well above the speeed limit drew the attention of a highway patrol car and the distressed driver was happy to see flashing lights in his rear view mirror.  The speed cop heard his story and saw the dead snake and used his radio to summon help.  Time is of the essence in dealing with snake bite and an ambulance was quickly summonsed to make a high speed dash to rhe scene.

Fortuitously, the medical examination showed no sign of the telltale punctures a snake bite would have inflicted and it was not necessary to inject the driver with anti-venene.  The police also waived any thought of issueing a speeding ticket and that tradie continued his journey with a story that would leave his family spellbound.

Finding a snake beneath your feet while driving a vehicle would be the ultimate horror most people could imagine.  The Australian continent comes with a big range of venemous snakes of various types and they are known for their curiosity and tendency to investigate cars that attract their attention.

It is not a good idea to park a vehicle with the door open or the windows lowered anywhere snakes may be present.   Even having a picnic with the boot raised is an invitatiion  to a curious snake to climb in and make an inspection.  Most snakes are not aggressive and if left alone will eventually depart, but trying to remove them can easily end in a snake bite.    That Tradie would be well advised to buy a lottery ticket while his luck still holds !

The Rising " Bamboo " Curtain !

A DFAT warning about travel to China should be taken very seriously. China has clearly abandoned the " one country, two systems " deal it struck with Britain when Hong Kong lost its status as a British dependency and became an integral part of China in 1997.  That ushered in a fifty year period when Hong Kong residents were supposed to be free of Chinese government interference.  They would enjoy rule by their own legislature and be subject to the Hong Kong court system.

Beijing has been constantly encroaching in recent times.  It insists on vetting those standing for the city's legislative council, resulting in massive street protests and a growing movement for independence.  Beijing has now imposed new security laws that make it a crime to show any opposition to Communist party rule.  Suspects can be whisked over the border and tried in a Communist court where the rules of law that apply in Hong Kong are disregarded.  Those convicted simply disaoppear into the massive Chinese gulags.

Chinese tactical thinking changed when the chief financial officer for Chinese electronic giant Huawei was arrested in Canada on a warrant from the United States when her plane touched down for a fuelling stop. China responded to the imprisonment of Meng Wanzhow by arresting two Canadian businessmen on a visit to China on espionage charges, and this remains unresolved.

China is using the massive bargaining power it enjoys because of its trade balance with the rest of the world to play tough guy.  It can show its displeasure with another country by simply plucking tourists of that nationality off the street and charging them with espionage.  Short of going to war, there is nothing the arrested tourist's country can do to gain release other than endless negotiation.

Relations between Beijing and Canberra are strained because of Australia's insistence on an independent enquiry into the coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China and spread around the world.  Chine is sensitive about its handling of the outbreak and wants to shut down all forms of investigation.  It is actively warning Chinese citizens not to travel to Australia because of claimed hostility to Asians and there is the fear that this could lead to the arrest of Australian tourists visiting China on trumped up charges.

We seem to be fast heading into a similar " bamboo curtain " which is replacing that old " iron curtain " that was the dividing line between the west and Russia.   The massive Chinese middle class was encouraged to travel and became the biggest tourist groups visiting Australia and China was a safe destination for Australians.  That has now changed and that DFAT warning is a clear signal to wipe China off the travel itinerary.

Australians who ignore that warning might find the all important exit clearance blocked and face an inderterminate stay beyond the reach of Australian consular services.  Unfortunately, as China is our biggest trade partner that will not be helpfull in restoring mutual business contact now that the coronavirus is slowly fading as a medical emergency.   Australian businessmen and women who take that risk do so at their personal peril.

Creating Value From Waste !

We Australians generate a lot of waste and in the past it either went to landfills or it was shipped overseas for processing.  The technology exists to turn waste into productive raw materials for industry.   China was the main destination, but  in 2018 Chins imposed restrictions and so did  Taiwan, Malaysia India and Thailand.  Our unwanted waste if piling up in Australia. We are in danger of drowning in a sea of our own rubbish.

Trying to extricate our economy from the damage caused by this coronavirus has made job creation urgent and both the Federal and state governments have contributed to a plan to deal with this waste problem in Australia.  Six hundred million dollars have been set aside to create the necessary waste conversion plant and it is calculated that this will deliver about ten thousand new jobs in a completely new industry.

When this waste goes to landfills it involves three people  to put it in the ground.    The recycling to make usable raw material for industry would expand that to ten jobs and create a new range of professional skills.  This would take waste processing up the scale from unskilled labouring to the trained levels necessary to operate a sophisticated new industry.

The technology now exists to turn waste into high value raw material which is safe for human health and the environment.  That waste we have been exporting overseas has been so processed and usually returns to this country as finished products.  It is surprising how many commonly used items are actually constructed from waste that has been reconstructed back to the state of the same raw material  we mine from the ground.

Work is about to start to build a new recycling plant in Albury, on the New South Wales and Victorian border.   It makes sense to draw the waste from the two sources of high density population on each side of that border and Albury has both the road and rail connection to deliver the newly created raw material to industry in the eastern states.

It will be in the interests of the Australian economy for both the Federal and the state governments to persuade industry to convert to using raw material generated by waste processing.  There will be the usual inertia to resist change but the advent of this pandemic has shaken the industrial structure to the extent that change is now necessary for the survival of many industries.

Both the money and the intent are being concentrated on a serious plan to recycle the waste we generate to flow back to industry as raw marerial.   The options for exporting it overseas are ending and sending it to landfill is fast filling usable sites.  It seems it took a pandemic to undertake what should have been obvious years ago.

Water Safety !

Last weekend three men lost their lives off La Perouse when their fishing boat overturned in moderate sea conditions.  The alarm was quickly raised and the event happened close to where a rescue helicopter is based.   It was in the air in minutes and a recue crew winched the men out of the water but the sea had claimed their lives.

Their boat was washed onto an onshore rock shelf and their fishing gear scattered nearby.  What was apparent to the rescuers was that this was a well equipped fishing boat that met all legal requirements.  It carried safety vests for each on the people aboard and these were clearly visible beside the upturned boat.   The tragedy is that these deaths could - and probably would - have been prevented had the men been wearing these safety devices.

The law is very clear.  When a boat ventures to sea it is the job of the water police to regulary check that it meets the legal safety requirements regarding safety vests, flares and other life saving equipment.  That same safety law now requires rock fisherpeople to have a safety vest but the law falls short of requiring that it be actually worn.

That law does require children carried in a boat to wear a flotation device when on the water but the legislation does not apply to adults.  The sea is an unforgiving enemy or a best friend, depending on its mood and how mariners are prepared.  There is strong opposition from many boat people to a law change to make a safety device a compulsory item of wear on the water.   Some claim they are uncomfortable and restrict movements but the modern version inflates automatically once it comes in contact with water.

Rock fishing is a known water hazard.  Even on the calmest day the sea delivers the odd wave that is much bigger than the rest and this is likely to sweep fisherfolk well above wave level into the water.  The drowning statistics from rock fishing tell an ongoing story of death and people enjoying that sport are warned to never take their eyes off the sea.   That dangerously big wave arrives without warning.

Most deaths by drowning woud be prevetable if the law required safety devices to be worn whenever people ventured aboard boats or engaged in rock fishing.  We regularly hear of miracle events where someone has stayed afloat for days clinging to debris but this is counterbalanced by events where even the quick action of a rescue helipcopter fails to save lives.

It is time the politicians became courageous and passed a law that the water police could implement. Its time we put on a safety vest automatically whenever we ventured onto the water, or decide to fish from the rocky shore.