Jo Briskey (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

and complexity crept into too many of the systems Australians rely on. This Labor government was elected with a mandate to turn that around. As the Treasurer has said, productivity is too often treated as a cold or technical concept, when in reality it's 'the best way of making people better off over the long-term, creating more opportunities and making our economy and our society more dynamic'. That is exactly what this bill is about. It is far from headline grabbing, but it does the job of significantly improving our economy.

Schedule 1 seeks to remove the $2 minimum threshold for tax-deductible donations. Two dollars doesn't sound like much—in fact, a cup of coffee and a chocolate bar cost more. But, in practice, it reflects a very modern understanding of how Australians give. The $2 threshold has been in place since 1927. It was designed for a time when donations were made in coins, recorded by hand and processed manually. That world no longer exists.

In my community, the changes in schedule 1 will have a big impact. At local sporting clubs, community festivals and charity fundraisers, people increasingly give in small amounts. They round up at the checkout. They tap their phone. They donate $1 at a time, regularly and willingly. These are not insignificant contributions. Over time, they add up. But, under current law, they are treated as if they don't matter. This reform fixes that. By removing the $2 threshold. We are recognising that every contribution counts. We are encouraging microgiving. We are supporting innovation in fundraising, including digital platforms and round-up donation systems, and we are making it easier for Australians to support the causes they care about. This helps with productivity because the not-for-profit sector is a productive part of our economy. It delivers social outcomes efficiently, it mobilises private capital for public good, and it strengthens the social fabric that underpins economic participation.

This reform is also a part of the government's broader goal of doubling philanthropic giving by 2030. It builds on the work already done to streamline the deductible gift recipient system to create new community charity categories and to strengthen the regulatory framework that supports trust and transparency in the sector. This is sensible reform. It is modern, and it reflects how Australians actually live and give today. Much of the work done by charities and community organisations depends on small donations made regularly by ordinary Australians. Making it easier for people to give supports the organisations that do so much of the heavy lifting in our communities.

Schedule 2 focuses more on tax administration, specifically for closely held trusts. Again, this is practical reform. Under the current system, trustees must report beneficiary tax file numbers on a separate form, in addition to the trust tax return. That duplication is creating unnecessary compliance costs, and not to mention it increases the risk of error, simply adding complexity for trustees, beneficiaries and their agents. Schedule 2 aims to fix this. It allows beneficiary TFNs to be reported at the same time as the trust tax return is lodged, where the beneficiary has already provided that information. That's one form instead of two. That's one process that isn't weighed down by duplication. That's exactly the kind of change that Aussie businesses are asking for. They aren't asking for less integrity, just less red tape.

Throughout Australia, there are thousands of small-business owners and family enterprises who use these trust structures. They are not multinational corporations with teams of accountants; they are locals trying to get on with the job. They are not looking for loopholes; they are just looking for clarity. They want to spend less time navigating the forms and spend more time growing their business and employing more people, all the while contributing to our economy. This Labor government is backing them in with this reform because we know that by helping businesses we are strengthening the tax system at the same time.

Schedule 3 is a little bit more broad in nature. It deals with minor and technical amendments across Treasury legislation. No matter how small they are, they are still essential. Good economic management requires legislation that is clear, coherent and fit for purpose in a modern economy. Over time, drafting errors emerge, unintended consequences arise and language becomes outdated. If we were to leave these unaddressed, these issues would then go on to undermine confidence in the system. That is why successive governments have supported regular technical amendment processes. They are about care and maintenance. They ensure the law works as it was intended, and they reduce uncertainty for those who rely on it. This schedule continues that work—the work of so many governments before us and no doubt those in the future. It's quiet, responsible work and in the public interest.

Schedule 4 addresses eligibility for the research and development tax incentive. The R&D tax incentive is an important program. It supports innovation, it encourages investment, and it helps Australian businesses develop new products and technologies, but, like any public program, it must be well targeted. This schedule seeks to exclude tobacco and gambling related activities from eligibility for the incentive. These industries are associated with significant health and social harms. Taxpayers should not be subsidising research and development that entrenches addiction or undermines the long-term wellbeing of our fellow Australians.

This schedule is about aligning innovation with national priorities. Importantly, the exclusion is carefully designed, because research that is undertaken solely for harm minimisation, such as helping people quit smoking or gambling, remains eligible. This is the right balance. We are ensuring public support is directed towards innovation that builds Australia's future, not activities that work against it. Once again, this is what responsible economic stewardship looks like. Taken together, these measures reflect Labor's broader economic agenda, an agenda focused on productivity, participation and fairness that recognises that strong public finances and a strong social fabric go hand in hand.

As the Assistant Treasurer has noted, productivity growth does not come from slogans; it comes from systems that work, from regulation that is proportionate and from policy settings that reward effort and innovation. This bill sits alongside the government's wider economic reforms: tax cuts for every taxpayer, the thousand-dollar deduction to simplify tax returns, stronger integrity measures to ensure multinational corporations are paying their fair share, and reforms to ensure Australians receive a fair return from our natural resources. This is a coherent agenda, not a collection of one-off measures.

In my community, the impact of Labor's measured and responsible economic management is clear. It shows up when local charities can raise funds more easily, when small businesses spend less time on paperwork, when investment is directed towards industries that create long-term good jobs, and when Australians feel the system is fair and works for them. Labor's approach supports this.

Productivity is ultimately about how we use our collective resources—time, capital, talent. When we reduce unnecessary complexity, we free those resources up. When we align incentives with long-term outcomes, we invest more wisely. And when we make it easier for Australians to participate, whether as workers, donors or innovators, we strengthen the economy as a whole. This is the fundamental difference between this Labor government and those opposite.

This bill is what good economic management looks like. Labor has never believed that productivity comes from making life harder for working people. It comes from building systems that are fair, straightforward and easy to deal with. When people trust the system and can navigate it more easily, the whole economy works better. We've seen the alternative—the belief in a trickle-down economy—that far too often ends up leaving people to fend for themselves. But for Labor, our economic mission is simple: to build an economy that rewards work, values contribution and leaves no-one behind, an economy that works not just on a spreadsheet but in working people's lives. I commend the bill.

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