Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he did not break his election promise not to make changes to superannuation by deciding to increase the tax rate on superannuation accounts over $3 million.
The federal government plans to double the tax rate on the nation's largest super accounts from 15 per cent to 30 per cent, which it expects to affect about 80,000 people.
Speaking to ABC Radio, Mr Albanese denied it constituted a broken promise.
"'No it's not," he said.
"It very clearly takes effect after the next election, and what we're doing here is a very modest change.
"This is a modest change about improving the sustainability of the system."
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said he was "dead against" the change and promised his party would repeal the legislation after the next election if it won government.
"We're not going to stand by and watch Australians attacked," Mr Dutton said.
"There are 80,000 that they're talking about now. But that figure of $3 million is not indexed so in 10 or 15 years' time, there will be tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of Australians who will be affected by this.
Mr Albanese said Australians would be "surprised" there were 17 Australians with more than $100 million in their super accounts, and one Australian with more than $400 million.
"That's not what superannuation is for," he said.
He said it was the only change to superannuation the government would propose in this term of government.
The government expects to net about $2 billion a year from the change.
Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor said it amounted to a "supersized" broken promise.
"This is a breach of trust with the Australian people," Mr Taylor said.
"The prime minister was unambiguous in saying there wouldn't be changes to superannuation.
"If Labor can't be trusted on superannuation tax, how can we trust them on other taxes as well?"
Mr Taylor also noted that because the $3 million threshold would not be indexed, more people would be affected by it over time.
He said the Coalition would oppose the legislation when it came before parliament.
"When people make investments over a long period of time, they have to trust the regime, they have to trust the institution," he said.
"To say one thing before an election and something different afterwards is obviously highly dishonest."
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the change would not affect the core of the super scheme.
"There will still be generous tax concessions for everybody in the superannuation system, just a little bit less generous for the half a per cent of people who have more than $3 million in their super," he said.
"We're not messing with the fundamentals.
Mr Chalmers told Sky News he would not "quibble" over whether it constituted a broken promise.
"People have got a couple of years to prepare for it," he said.
"I think it's entirely appropriate we legislate it before [the election].
"If [Opposition Leader] Peter Dutton and Angus Taylor want to go to the wall for these half a per cent of people with very large superannuation balances, the party that gave us a trillion dollars in debt want to borrow even more money to give for these unaffordable tax breaks [they can]."
But he acknowledged it may cost the government at the polls.
"Sometimes doing the right thing, taking the right path is not always the path of least resistance," Mr Chalmers said.
"But we've got a responsibility to the Australian people to make the right decision even if it comes at a political cost."
Mr Chalmers said if the Coalition wanted to repeal the legislation, it would have to explain where else it would find savings to pay down debt.
