Ted O'Brien (Fairfax, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question goes to the Assistant Treasurer. On 19 May this year the Assistant Treasurer said, 'around 10 per cent of taxpayers' will be hit by Labor's unfair super tax. Can the Assistant Treasurer confirm to the House that his publicly announced 10 per cent figure will mean that at least 1.2 million Australians will be impacted by Labor's super tax?

Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for the question. Can I state that this is a policy, as I stated yesterday on a number of occasions, that is well designed, that applies to around half a per cent of members' funds and that applies to funds that are $3 million or larger—significantly larger than is required for somebody to have dignity in retirement. Can I also reiterate that this policy will see concessional treatment for the entirety of those funds.

The member asks a question about the number of people who will be affected by this policy. What I can say is that, if we look at our tax system, thresholds across our tax system are not indexed. And if we look at a particular policy that was put forward by those opposite—a change to the division 293 part of our tax system—those opposite, when they were in government, lowered the threshold at which concessional treatment was made less concessional, from $300,000 to $250,000. That was a policy put forward by them. They did not index the $250,000 threshold.

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

If the Assistant Treasurer can pause, the Manager of Opposition Business has a point of order.

Alex Hawke (Mitchell, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Industry and Innovation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister knows division 293 is not relevant to the question. The question was about a public statement about a 10 per cent figure that he made about this policy. So we ask him about this policy and his own figure. We're quoting him on this.

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

The manager is correct. The Assistant Treasurer wasn't asked about any other policy topic. He can do some compare and contrast, but he can't simply launch into what has happened in the past. That wasn't part of the question.

Leader of the Opposition, I am trying to uphold what the manager has said. I assume we want to move forward, so perhaps you could assist by ceasing interjecting. I'm just going to make sure that the Assistant Treasurer is directly relevant. He can talk about the new arrangement, but he can't talk about the opposition, because he wasn't asked about the opposition.

Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The point I am making is that what's underpinning this question is an assumption that a particular threshold will not change for 30 years. And the point I'm making is that there are a range of thresholds in our tax system, and we see in our tax system that thresholds are reviewed from time to time, and that there was a threshold in the superannuation system that was introduced by those opposite that was not indexed. That is the connection to the question raised by those opposite. I reiterate that this is a policy that affects half a per cent, and it is a fair and modest measure.

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

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition and the Treasurer are just—

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition, you know that is not appropriate, when I'm about to call another member, who's on her feet. Come on. You're now warned, for that sort of behaviour. We simply can't have people just going for each other across the chamber. It's not going to happen this term. It's not going to work that way. I've been very clear with everyone. I'd like to hear from the honourable member for Bullwinkel.