Stephen Bates (Brisbane, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is for the Treasurer. How are Labor's stage 3 tax cuts actually good for the economy?

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank very much the member for his question. The stage 3 tax cuts which were legislated by the former parliament to come in in two years time—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Barker is warned.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As the honourable member knows, the tax cuts that were legislated by a former parliament come in in around two years time. The government's position on those tax changes hasn't changed. Our priority is to focus on some of the nearer-term issues in our economy, some of the issues that were central, for example, to the Jobs and Skills Summit, which was held here in Canberra last week. The most pressing thing we can do in the economy right now is responsibly deal with people's cost-of-living pressures in a way that delivers an economic dividend, deal with some of the labour and skill shortages which are holding our economy back and invest in the future of our economy, whether it be energy, skills or some of the other important ways to ensure we have a future made in Australia.

I know that there is a lot of debate and discussion about those tax cuts. I listen respectfully, obviously, to all points of view that are put to us about the future of those tax cuts, but our focus is on some of the nearer-term pressures. Those opposite asked the Prime Minister about taxes in the budget. I say this to those opposite: if we had a tax on stupid questions asked by the member for Hume, we could pay off the deficit in one hit.