Treasurer Joe Hockey has suggested allowing Australians to repeatedly dip into their super over the course of their lives to pay for things such as job retraining or buying their first homes.

But the radical idea – which represents a significant rethink of the role and nature of the superannuation system – threatens to inflame tensions with the super industry, and has been quickly slammed by Labor and some economists.

Mr Hockey said on Saturday that Australians ought to start thinking seriously about the way in which their super savings can be used in the future, because we are all going to be living for longer and therefore working for longer.

His comments followed the release of the Abbott government's Intergenerational Report on Thursday which showed life expectancy rates jumping dramatically in the future, with average male life expectancy rising to 95.1 years by 2055, and female rates hitting 96.6 years.