00:00The Future Fund was born 18 years ago.
00:07Money stashed away for investment with its earnings to pay for unfunded super liabilities.
00:13I expect that it will invest in things like equities, bonds.
00:19Today, the Treasurer tinkered with the Fund's mandate.
00:23So it will consider areas of national interest when deciding what to invest its $230 billion in.
00:31Increasing the supply of residential housing, supporting the energy transition and delivering improved infrastructure.
00:38The Government at pains to say these are secondary considerations and won't affect its earnings.
00:45There are no changes being proposed here to the existing benchmark rate of return or the risk profile.
00:51But the Opposition is suspicious of the changes.
00:55It's not there to invest in their pet projects, to invest in whatever they think is necessary to deal with their economic failures.
01:04The Fund's father and recently departed Chair was scathing, saying it would undermine its independence and earnings.
01:12And that when Governments direct savings to particular areas, they usually end in political decisions that lose money.
01:19The Future Fund is already investing in some of these areas.
01:22Well if that is the case, why do we need a change in the investment mandate?
01:26In its nearly three years in office, Labor has sought to reshape the Reserve Bank, the Productivity Commission and now the Future Fund.
01:34Taking the chance to pull the levers of power while it can, in case it ends up on the Opposition benches after the next election.
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