The South Australian Parliament introduced the Superannuation Funds Management Corporation of South Australia (Investment in Russian Assets) Amendment Bill for debate this week. The amendments are in response to the ongoing military action in Ukraine that has resulted in many lives lost, and millions of people displaced.
On 5 May 2022, the Honourable P.B. Malinauskas (Croydon-Premier) obtained leave and introduced the Bill, declaring changes were necessary to continue the concerted efforts of the international community to put ‘powerful economic pressure on President Putin’.
The amendments form part of the commitments made during the recent state election, in which the opposition of the time, declared they would introduce measures to enable the removal of state government funds from Russian assets.
In response to critics of the move, the Premier stated that ‘when you get elected to Premier, you get elected with an extraordinary amount of authority, and the idea of the job is to use that authority consistent with a set of principles that you believe to be right.’ The Premier went on to say that ‘there is a clear and urgent need to ensure that Australians are not inadvertently helping to fund Russian aggression through their retirement savings.’
The debate was adjourned on the motion of Mr Cowdrey.
If passed, the amendments will reportedly bring South Australia in line with other Australian states such as New South Wales and Queensland.
