Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) | Hansard source

Another one in the Treasurer's portfolio of decision-making is the exemptions from quarantining for additional dwelling uses or their purposes, or their exclusions as residential dwelling, similarly additional business or enterprise exemptions, entity class exemptions.

But wait, there's more. The Treasurer is also giving himself power to set an alternative method for working out the maximum amount of the working Australians tax offset: the WATO. This is the wage offset of allegedly $250. But, remember, bracket creep will see the average worker pay $2,000 more annually, so that's as useful as Labor's $275 energy bill relief—which basically didn't happen—where your energy bill is now thousands of dollars higher. But the Treasurer wants to shift the goalposts on the WATO as well.

The coalition has promised with our tax back guarantee that we will index the tax brackets and halt bracket creep once and for all, putting more of what you earn in your pocket—a fixed change, not something up to the Treasurer of the day to determine. The Treasurer, today in question time, repeatedly said 'we're bringing back bracket creep' like it's a good thing. It is not. And, in case you missed it, we will repeal all the unmandated tax grabs in this bill. This is an attack on aspiration.

Even for their income tax deduction, announced well before the budget, of $1,000 annually without receipts, I hear that, on average, people might get $250 at best from that measure. It's little wonder the Treasurer wants easily movable goalposts, and it's little wonder small businesses are using AI to photoshop the Prime Minister in as their new 47 per cent business partner.

These are terrible, undemocratic bills that set a shocking historical precedent. The coalition opposes them. We support lower taxes for working Australians and will be making that point in this debate and at the next election.

See this speech in context