Prime Minister Julia Gillard will today accuse Opposition Leader Tony Abbott of ''hacking into the retirement savings'' of generations of Australians with his promise to undo the proposed Minerals Resources Rent Tax.
In a speech to the Financial Services Council in Sydney this morning, Ms Gillard will insist it would be nothing short of ''social and economic vandalism'' to threaten people's superannuation by revoking the tax due to start from July next year.
''Our pool of superannuation savings has real consequences for economic management,'' she says.
''For a nation with a long-standing propensity to spend more than we earn, a super pool bigger than our GDP helps offset our current account imbalance, and fosters liquidity and stability.''
Ms Gillard says increasing universal superannuation from 9 to 12per cent by 2020 can only be achieved if part of the proceeds of the new mining tax is used to mitigate lost revenue incurred by taxing super at concessional rates.
She insists Mr Abbott poses a risk for every Australian heading towards retirement and a risk for Australia's jobs and future economic stability for decades.
''Our opponents, as usual, are willing to squander long-term economic stability and jobs for Australians for the sake of short-term political gain,'' the Prime Minister says.
''Hacking into the retirement savings of generations to come would be an act of social and economic vandalism that we cannot allow.''
The Prime Minister said in uncertain economic times, confident decisions would determine the nation's future and Australia's place in the world.
''If we allow the insidious belief to creep in that Australia is not up to reform - that we should punch below our weight, rather than above - that we should always put off to tomorrow what we'd prefer not to think about today,'' she said.
''Then it is ordinary Australians who will feel the pain of that failure of confidence.''
The Prime Minister angered union bosses yesterday by backing away from what they say was a commitment to consider holding an inquiry into Australia's troubled manufacturing industry.
But Ms Gillard was firm yesterday stating there would be no wide-ranging inquiry into the sector because it would hold up progress on the need to reinvigorate Australian manufacturing.
In Wollongong to visit BlueScope Steel, which last week announced it would shed 1400 jobs and move out of the export market, Ms Gillard said she was more concerned about action than inquiries.
Australian Workers Union national secretary Paul Howes said the Prime Minister ''made it very clear'' when she met with union and employer groups on Monday that she was open to holding an inquiry.
He said he was disappointed she had appeared to change her mind.
Some of her own parliamentary team are annoyed she will not instigate an inquiry into the manufacturing industry.
Most outspoken of them is Labor senator and former AMWU boss Doug Cameron, who said it was an ''economically irresponsible and politically dumb'' move not to hold an inquiry.
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