Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) | Hansard source

I too rise to speak on the Treasury Laws Amendment (Cost of Living Tax Cuts) Bill 2024, and I am very pleased to be speaking on this very important bill. It is very important because this bill means that all 13.6 million Australian taxpayers will receive a tax cut from 1 July this year. Of course, this is on top of the Albanese Labor government's cost-of-living relief, which is already being delivered right across the country in the form of cheaper medicines, more bulk-billing, cheaper child care, fee-free TAFE, building more social and affordable homes, and increasing rent assistance. These, combined with the tax cuts, are vitally important.

These tax cuts mean, for example, that in my electorate on the New South Wales North Coast every taxpayer will receive a tax cut this year. In fact, 71,000 taxpayers in Richmond will receive that tax cut, with the average tax cut being $1,384. I will just put in perspective what our tax cuts are delivering compared to what we saw previously with the Liberals and Nationals. Under our plan, under these new tax cuts, 61,000 residents in my electorate will receive a bigger tax cut than they would have otherwise under the Liberals and Nationals. That is a huge amount for my electorate, and what a difference it will make for people. Certainly there has been a very positive response from my community in terms of the fact that Labor is delivering these tax cuts for so many people across the community.

Our tax cuts are very good for Middle Australia, good for working families, good for women, good for helping with cost-of-living pressures, good for labour supply and good for the economy. The tax cuts will make a real difference for those 13.6 million taxpayers who will be receiving that tax cut—2.9 million more than would have benefited under the previous government's plans. That means 11.5 million taxpayers will receive a bigger tax cut, and it means that 5.8 million women will receive a bigger tax cut. People such as nurses, teachers and police are some of the most likely to benefit, with more than 95 per cent of those taxpayers getting a bigger tax cut.

I want to discuss this in the context of Labor's strong support for workers and improving working conditions right across the board. Whether it's job security or working conditions, it is only Labor that consistently delivers this support. Particularly, our right-to-disconnect laws are vitally important for workers across the country, and that is especially true for police and emergency service personnel. I am a former frontline police officer, and I know how important it is for police to have really good working conditions in place, especially the right to disconnect.

What are we seeing? We are seeing the opposition leader opposing it and claiming that he will repeal it. We finally see an election policy from the Liberals and Nationals, and what is it? They're going to repeal all these laws that create better working conditions for Australians, including the right to disconnect. That's really appalling when it comes to police officers. I can tell you, as a former police officer, how important it is to have those working conditions in place to make sure that police have that work-life balance. Our police do an amazing job under often very difficult circumstances, and it is Labor who backs them.

It really shows how out of touch the opposition leader is that he wants to repeal these laws. It is quite disturbing and appalling. Yesterday we saw the Police Federation of Australia come out and condemn the opposition for their stance. In fact, they have said that the opposition's measures are disrespectful and wrong. I stand with the Police Federation of Australia and I stand with all police officers. Indeed, many of the former police colleagues I have spoken to also condemn the opposition leader for wanting to take away important workplace rules. As I said, our police work very hard, and Labor delivers for them, whether it's their working conditions or their tax cuts. For example, a police officer on $110,000 a year will now get a tax cut of $2,400 under Labor. We certainly stand with our police forces, but the opposition leader doesn't, and he is certainly out of touch.

In terms of tax cuts, parents, particularly those with young children, will be meaningfully supported to return to work under the government's tax cut changes through increases to their take-home pay. I want to speak about what a positive impact this will particularly have for women. I am very proud to represent a government that is absolutely committed to gender equality. First and foremost, let me emphasise our government's resolute dedication to take real action on gender equality. We understand that achieving true equality requires more than just words; it demands concrete steps to achieve that real change. Our commitment to gender equality is directly reflected in these tax cuts, because every single taxpaying woman in this country will receive a tax cut. Now, thanks to this government, 90 per cent of taxpaying women will receive an even bigger tax cut, and that certainly will make a huge difference. These targeted measures are essential in narrowing the gender pay gap and promoting economic equality.

As I've said, Labor's new tax plan is part of a suite of cost-of-living relief for women. Over our past two budgets we've made significant investments to support women across various sectors and right across the board, through investment in child care, paid parental leave, women's safety, family law, workplace safety, women's health and fair wages. We have placed women at the centre of our economic agenda, whether it be through the Jobs and Skills Summit, the employment white paper or recommendations from our Women's Economic Equality Taskforce, along with analysis contained in the white paper, integral to developing our national strategy to achieve gender equality. By investing in women's education, training and entrepreneurship, we're not only fostering economic growth we're creating a much more equitable society for all. As a government we are committed to leading the charge and change and creating a future where every individual—everyone, regardless of gender—has the opportunity to fulfil their potential. It is through this commitment to real change that we can do that.

As I said, these tax cuts have widespread benefits. Under the proposed changes, taxpayers earning less than $45,000 will now receive a larger tax cut. This will significantly boost the take-home pay of Australians on modest incomes and people working part time. Someone on the average wage in Australia, which is around $73,000, will now get a tax cut of more than $1,500 a year, which is more than double what they would have received under the Liberals and Nationals. This is particularly important for those living in regional and rural Australia. As we know, people in these communities earn less than people in the city, so it makes a huge difference percentage-wise for people living in regional areas like mine and throughout regional and rural Australia. Labor are always very cognisant of making sure we are delivering for people in country Australia. We know how important that is.

These tax cuts will make a huge difference, and our changes will also deliver a better, more progressive tax system. By dropping two tax rates and lifting two thresholds, we're giving everyone a tax cut and providing a significant amount of help right across the board. The Albanese Labor government are introducing these changes because we recognise the economic realities of 2024. Australians are under real pressure right now and deserve a tax plan that responds to the challenges they are facing every day.

I'm sure we all agree that five years ago, when the coalition initially legislated these stage 3 tax cuts, we were in a very different place. That was before the pandemic, before persistent inflation, before higher interest rates, before global conflicts and before global uncertainty. All of those factors have put Australians under much more sustained cost-of-living pressures. From talking to people, we know the cost-of-living pressures they are experiencing. When circumstances change, changing policy is the responsible thing to do to provide support to people. Cutting taxes is one measure that can help provide cost-of-living relief.

We are getting wages moving again, bringing inflation under control and driving fairer prices for Australian consumers. Also, really importantly, we are providing cost-of-living relief in the form of energy bill relief, cheaper medicines, more income support and the biggest boost to rental assistance in 30 years. We spent more than $20 billion on that cost-of-living measures package. We are providing this cost-of-living relief in a responsible way that doesn't add to inflationary pressures, while laying the foundations for a stronger and more resilient economy.

This bill is all about delivering a tax cut for every taxpayer and more tax relief for people to help with cost-of-living pressures. We've heard a measure of negativity from all the opposition speakers. They don't like our changes. They'd prefer wages to be lower. We know that Liberals and Nationals want Australians to work more for less money. We don't. We want to assist them by giving them tax cuts and ensuring they've got cost-of-living relief because, in comparison to the Liberals and Nationals, Labor are absolutely committed to providing support for Australians through tax cuts and cost-of-living relief.

In conclusion, I am very proud to be speaking on this bill because it will have a real impact and deliver real assistance to people by providing tax cuts right across the country. It will be particularly good for people in regional and rural Australia and will have a major impact on and provide benefits to women in our society. I commend the bill to the House.

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