Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

The first point I would make in terms of cost of living is that the CPI impact is substantially less than the GST when it was introduced. If those opposite are concerned about the cost of living, they can explain why a 2.5 per cent increase in the CPI was okay but a 0.7 per cent increase to the CPI with associated tax cuts and increases to the pension and family tax benefit is somehow not okay. It beggars belief.

In terms of the costs, I would make this point. The Climate Institute expect Britain to have a carbon price of $24 to $30 a tonne over the next few years; Sweden, $130 a tonne; Switzerland, $30 to $60; Norway, $53; and Ireland $24 to $37 a tonne—self-evidently not what Senator Cormann is suggesting, but quite the opposite to what Senator Cormann is suggesting. Again I mention this: Senator Cormann always fails to consider the impact of free permits, which reduce the carbon impact for the most emission-intensive trade exposed industries to about $1.30 a tonne.