Trish Crossin (NT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The rabble from Mr Abbott want to rip out that major savings boost from my Territorians.

Honourable senators interjecting—

No, it does not sound as good. I am not Scottish. I think I have a Cornish background. Of course, the 'noalition' say no, no, no. That is all they can say. In not supporting this legislation, they want to rip out the major savings boost that my constituents in the Territory could so well do with.

This legislation will provide 30,000 low-income earners in the Northern Territory with an extra boost to their super accounts through a refund of the contribution tax, worth up to $500 a year in extra retirement savings for a person with an income of $37,000, but, no, they do not want that to happen either for Territorians. That is right: those people are more concerned about supporting the top end of town and not low-income earners, of which I have at least 30,000 in the Northern Territory.

Senator Nash interjecting—

The saddest thing about your position, Senator Nash—and I cannot believe that, as a senator from regional Australia, as I am, you would do this—is that you would turn your back on businesses in rural and remote Australia. This legislation is going to deliver a special new tax benefit for 16,000 Northern Territory businesses and a cut in their company tax. Of the 16,000 businesses in the Northern Territory, 9,600 are situated in Darwin and Palmerston, in the seat of Solomon. I am yet to see 9,600 letters, signed by the member for Solomon, Ms Griggs, outlining to those 9,600 businesses why it is that she did not support this legislation. Every single day, when I am out and about, most of the businesses come to me and say: 'We don't understand why the member for Solomon wouldn't have supported us getting our special new tax benefit. We don't understand why the member for Solomon walked away from us being able to instantly write off each asset worth up to $6,500.' Why is there no explanation from her about why she has walked away from supporting small business in the Northern Territory, particularly the 9,600 businesses in Darwin and Palmerston? Once this legislation goes through, I will have the pleasure of writing to each and every one of them and explaining why this is the government that can raise the flag for small business. This is the government that will support small business. This is the government that will now be able to say to small business: 'Not only is part of this package about looking after the future of your workers, with a better superannuation benefit, but a big part of this package is to ensure that you are part of the 2.7 million businesses in this country, many of which are struggling with our patchwork economy, that will get a huge boost and huge assistance from this government.'

What a day of shame in this federal parliament when the party opposite us, which once used to be the champions of the economy and once used to pretend that they were the friends of small business, have turned their back on both. They are unable to embrace the new economy that this country is about to embark upon, thanks to the mining boom, are unable to embrace the pressures and the needs of small business in our community and are unable to assist small business to maximise the benefits out of the boom that we are about to realise.

Last but not least, this legislation will fund vital infrastructure, particularly in our rural and remote areas. If you are a member of this parliament, particularly if you live outside the capital city kingdoms of Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, I do not understand why you would not happily put your hand up to support this legislation, why you would not embrace the opportunity for this country to benefit from the minerals resources boom, and get on board with a minerals resource rent tax to assist workers with superannuation, assist small business with tax cuts and put into this country the vital infrastructure that is so badly needed. When you bring those three elements together, you will have a new economy and a new future for this country. But what we see on the other side are members of a party that had no alternative, no other ideas— (Time expired)