One of my predecessors in Werriwa, Gough Whitlam, made many memorable contributions to public debate over the course of his life. I'm sure we can all rattle off some of them, but one that resonates with me and is pertinent to today's debate is the words that he said in 1957 at the Chifley memorial lecture. On the occasion, Gough noted:

The way of the reformer is hard in Australia.

Those on this side of the chamber know the truth of those words only too well. In terms of reform, it is something that Labor governments do, and obviously it doesn't get any tougher than tax reform. Everybody talks about it, but very few do anything about it, because it's just too big and there are so many moving parts and vested interests. The history of modern-day tax reform is littered with reports, from the Asprey report in 1975 to the Henry review in 2010 and then the coalition's tax white paper in 2015. Forests of paper and newsprint have been devoted to the subject of tax reform, with curiously very little being achieved along the way.

In terms of that reform, the Albanese Labor government has already achieved a great deal. In June this year, the legislation for the first tranche passed, giving 13 million Australian workers a tax cut. Further, this legislation limited negative gearing to new builds to encourage new supply. In August, the Albanese Labor government acted again with a second tranche of reforms, this time locking in a permanent instant $20,000 tax write-off for small businesses and loss carry-backs for companies who have a turnover of up to $1 billion. Now, in October, the third tranche of reforms outlined in this year's budget is before the House. At its heart, this suite of reforms relates to the introduction of a minimum tax for discretionary trusts and further legislation to implement reforms to negative gearing and capital gains tax arrangements.

Schedules 1 to 3 of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 3) Bill 2026 introduce a minimum tax of 30 per cent on the taxable income of discretionary trusts. This change will take effect from 1 July 2028 and is about delivering a fairer tax system. It does this by helping fund tax cuts for workers and better aligning the tax rate on trust income with the tax rate paid by workers. Those opposite, who have no genuine interest in fairness and equity, let alone the average worker, will be interested in digesting a few facts on discretionary trusts. Firstly, discretionary trusts have more than doubled over the past 20 years. Secondly, Australia now has over a million trusts, around 80 per cent of which are discretionary. Third, the majority of trust income flows to the top 10 per cent of families, and approximately 90 per cent of total trust wealth is held by the wealthiest 10 per cent of households. Fourthly, analysis shows families with discretionary trusts in 2022-23 faced an average tax rate about four per cent lower compared with families with similar incomes who did not use a trust. Finally, 95 per cent of tax filers and more than 90 per cent of small businesses will not be affected by the proposed changes.

There are legitimate reasons to use a trust. These include succession planning and asset protection. However, as analysis has proven, the huge increase in the number of trusts has resulted in a different tax outcome for people with similar levels of income. The Treasurer and the Treasury have consulted widely on the matter. As a result, the government has made it clear that a range of trust types will be excluded from these changes. The exclusions include fixed trusts, charitable trusts, special disability trusts and superannuation funds. In addition, primary production income and certain income relating to vulnerable children will also be excluded. Further, deceased estates and all discretionary testamentary trusts established for genuine testamentary purposes will be excluded, as will all distributions from trusts to registered charities and deductible gift recipients.

Schedules 4 and 5 of this bill implement the reforms to the capital gains tax and negative gearing that were announced in this year's budget. It is expected that the reforms of this schedule will help an estimated 75,000 first home buyers into the market over the next decade. This is a tremendous outcome for a government that is serious about tackling housing supply and will help to reverse a worrying trend over the past decade. Further, these reforms will also preserve the gains investors have made and support investment into the new housing supply.

Regarding CGT adjustments, the legislation builds on the core legislation passed in June, addressing a number of more complex issues and ensuring the change is appropriately applied to a range of specific taxpayer circumstances and structures. Regarding negative gearing, this legislation includes the definition of a new residential dwelling and types of housing investment exempt from the limits on negative gearing.

Finally, schedule 6 relates to payday super transitional relief. It is now law that it is a requirement for employers to pay their employees' super at the same time as their salary and wages. This measure will strengthen our superannuation system and will help deliver a more secure retirement for millions of Australian workers. Often in my office, I have to speak to people who have not had their superannuation paid by their employers, leaving them without the retirement that they thought they were going to receive, and, sometimes, these are people in quite significant financial hardship. It is really important that this is something the government did. Employees will benefit from more frequent and earlier super contributions, which will grow and compound over their working life. This is a great win for workers.

The amendments in this bill provide transitional relief where the timing of contributions in the first year impacts an employee's concessional contribution caps. This will mean that individuals will not be adversely impacted by their employer transitioning to a payday super contribution frequency. Labor built Australia's world-class super system, and we will always protect it and seek to make it better, and this is just another example of doing that.

I began my remarks today by quoting my predecessor in Werriwa on the difficulty of reform, so it would be full circle to quote him again at the conclusion of my contribution. In 2002, Gough said:

Throughout my public life, I have tried to apply an overarching principle and a unifying theme to all my work. It can be stated in two words: contemporary relevance.

The measures contained in this bill speak to that very objective for our taxation system—to make it relevant for a contemporary Australian society and economy. The content of this bill has been subject to much debate and consultation. What is before us, then, is a measured and balanced piece of legislation. It gets the details right as it addresses contemporary needs and challenges, and I thank the Treasurer for this legislation and commend it to the House.