Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question. What I would say to the member is that we have structured the flood levy through the taxation system, so the taxation system obviously does work. It looks at what people earn during a financial year and consequently it is calibrated with income. That is the right thing to do. That is how we structure burdens in our society. We structure burdens on the basis that people who have the capacity to pay more should pay more. In making that design of the flood levy, we did it deliberately so those with additional capacity would pay more.

What I would also say to the member is that it does seem to me, as we look at these questions from the opposition, a little bit odd indeed. What people may think, watching this debate, is that we may be looking at two alternate packages to fund the recovery and rebuilding that is necessary around the nation. But, of course, that is not true. There is the government’s $5.6 billion package: savings, deferrals and asking Australians for a contribution, with that contribution calibrated against income. So higher income earners pay more. People who earn less than $50,000 a year do not pay anything; people earning $60,000 a year pay less than a dollar a week—

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