Ian Goodenough (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Approximately 6.9 million Australians representing 31 per cent of the adult population directly own shares in companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. Furthermore, 23.4 per cent of our national superannuation fund balances are invested in Australian shares. The government's planned reduction in the company tax rate to 25 per cent will benefit a wide range of Australians from the nearly seven million who own ASX-listed shares directly in their own name to just about every worker who has their compulsory superannuation contributions invested in Australian company shares through their super funds. Company tax cuts mean that retained profits can be reinvested in business expansion promoting further economic growth or return to shareholders.

The government's plans to reduce corporate tax rates are designed to maintain Australia's international competitiveness in an increasingly competitive global marketplace as emerging nations in our region become more automated and mechanised through the adoption of new technology and the mobility of investment capital and resources across international boundaries become more fluid. Australia must reform and innovate in order to stay competitive in terms of trade and investment with our closest trading partners in the region. That is why passing the legislation for company tax cuts is so important. (Time expired)

Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

) ( ): There used to be a time in this country where if you worked hard, you could get ahead. I believed that if I worked hard I could make something of myself. It was the Australian dream: work hard, aspire and give it everything. But not everyone in this place believes in an Australia like that. Labor doesn't believe in rewarding those people who work hard. Labor doesn't believe in Australians getting ahead. The Leader of the Opposition has been very clear that he'll come after the new wealthy, those with incomes above $75,000. That's right: he'll roll back your tax cuts—the same tax cuts that the Turnbull government delivered. If you're a hardworking, experienced teacher, school principal, clinical nurse, health professional, miner or diesel fitter, he sees you as the next elite, and he is coming after your hard-earned pay.

I take the case of a schoolteacher six years out of university. Just as that teacher is working hard to get ahead in their career, around the time when they're settling down to start a family and buy a home, Labor wants to come after their hard-earned wages. Make no mistake: the teacher would become part of Australia's new wealthy—the elite Australians that the Leader of the Opposition hates so much. So he'll come after you, just as he wants to come after Australian businesses and companies. In contrast, the coalition government says, 'Work hard, aim higher and aspire.' This government values hard work, and we're ensuring, through our reforms, that if you work hard, you can get ahead. Every Labor member in this room voted against our tax cuts because they hate aspirational Australians.