Angus Taylor (Hume, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) | Hansard source

It's double at the moment; that's right. Let's assume wages are growing by three per cent. Heather is a hairdresser earning $70,000 a year. Under Labor, her real wage gains will be completely taxed away—all gone. They're not getting real wage gains under this government. They're going backwards right now. But, under our tax-back guarantee, Heather will get a tax cut of about $250 in year 1, and that will rise to $1,000 in year 4. Paul the plumber is earning $140,000 a year, working incredibly hard. Under Labor, his real wage gains will be completely taxed away as well—all gone. Under our tax-back guarantee, Paul will get a tax cut of $250 in year 1 and $1,200 in year 4. In short, under our policy, Australians will get more each year. We will give Australians a bigger tax cut without the tax increases that are occurring under this government. Australians will be rewarded, keep more and get ahead, because that's what we believe in.

The Treasurer, of course, has given the game away. On Sunday, after budget week, the Treasurer was being interviewed by David Speers on Insiders. In that interview, the Treasurer said that our indexation policy will cost a quarter of a trillion dollars over the decade. Well, there's the rub, because that's the figure he wants to steal from Australians. That's his hidden tax. He admitted it. That's how much he wants to get. Of course, if he can get inflation up higher, he can take more. He'll keep trying to push it up, no doubt. But it will not happen on our watch. We will ensure Australians keep their money. Our policy is fair. It's simple and it's honest, unlike those opposite.

As I said, the coalition has proposed amendments to Labor's legislation. I move the second reading amendment circulated in my name:

That all words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:

"the House declines to give the bill a second reading and:

(1) calls on the Government to immediately pass laws to end bracket creep and implement a Tax Back Guarantee, by indexing the personal income tax brackets to inflation starting with the first two tax brackets in 2028-29, and the remaining tax brackets from 2031-32; and

(2) notes this will deliver lower income taxes, permanently, to all Australians and ensure that income taxes cannot rise without the passage of new laws".

Our proposed amendments include the following. Labor's $250 annual income tax cut stays in the bill. We support it. We seek to retain schedule 3. Labor's $1,000 deduction for work related expenses also stays in the bill. We support that as well. We seek to retain schedule 4, but we oppose Labor's toxic taxes on Australians. We don't support Labor's changes to capital gains tax as contained in schedule 1. These changes punish aspiration, and the coalition therefore seeks the removal of schedule 1 from the bill. We also don't support Labor's changes to negative gearing in schedule 2. Their own budget papers explicitly admit that the combined impact of these taxes will reduce housing supply and push up rents. The coalition therefore seeks the removal of schedule 2 from the bill as well. Put simply, we support tax cuts. We oppose tax increases. It's that simple.

Here's what Australians need to know. If the Albanese government doesn't endorse our changes, it means two things: (1) Labor is for imposing higher aspiration-killing taxes on Australians, and (2) Labor is for inflation, pushing more Australians into higher tax brackets, paying more tax so it can have more of their income. The ball is in Labor's court. They have an opportunity here to support our proposal to protect Australians' incomes from inflation, to support our policy to end bracket creep, to support the coalition's determination to provide real, meaningful tax cuts to Australians, to support our plan for generational tax reform, to support our vision for a fairer, freer and better Australia and to restore Australians' standard of living and protect their way of life. We believe in aspiration. If Labor truly seek to preserve the reward for the hardworking spirit that makes our nation tick, they will support our amendments.

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