Kelly O'Dwyer (Higgins, Liberal Party, Minister for Revenue and Financial Services) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Bennelong for his question and I note that, like everyone on this side of the chamber, he is absolutely focused on ensuring the prosperity of all Australians through our enterprise tax plan, making sure that we back businesses to invest in those businesses and also making sure that government lives within its means so that we have prudent fiscal management. It is because of our economic plan that we have seen more than a million jobs delivered—a promise that we have made on this side of the chamber that has been delivered by a coalition government. It is a significant achievement. Of all of those businesses who work incredibly hard and who employ hardworking Australians.

But we on this side of the chamber believe in rewarding hard work and aspiration. We believe in doing that through making sure that they don't pay one more dollar of tax than they absolutely need to. That is why, under our first stage of our personal income tax plan, around 10 million working Australians will see lower, fairer and simpler taxes. By the end of our tax plan, we will see around 94 per cent of Australians face a marginal tax rate of no more than 32½c in the dollar. The only thing standing between those millions of Australians and their tax relief is those sitting opposite. It will take one vote here in the House of Representatives and one vote in the Senate.

Of course, the member asks, 'Are there any alternative approaches?' There is one, and that is from those sitting opposite. It is higher taxes: higher taxes on retirees, on homeowners, on small- and medium-sized enterprises, on family businesses and on all Australians through their retirement savings. In total, those opposite will put their hand in the pockets of millions of Australians and pick more than $200 billion worth from those people who have worked hard for that money.

And they don't just have that terrible indignity that they want to impose on Australians. They also want Australians to believe that they have going to somehow deliver a surplus. I ask those in the chamber, 'What do these five things have in common: the internet, the European Union, the Hubble Space Telescope, The Simpsons TV show and the Harry Potter series?' Not one of those things existed when those opposite last delivered a surplus 29 years ago. The Leader of the Opposition treats the Australian people as mugs, but they are not mugs. They know all about his rolled-gold promises and they know he cannot be trusted.

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