Sue Lines (President) Share this | Hansard source

The time allotted for the consideration of the Treasury Laws Amendment (Making Multinationals Pay Their Fair Share—Integrity and Transparency) Bill 2023 has expired. I will first deal with the second reading amendments circulated by the opposition. The question is that the opposition's second reading amendment on sheet 2249 be agreed to.

Opposition's circulated amendment

At the end of the motion, add ", but the Senate:

(a) notes that:

(i) the former Coalition Government implemented more than a dozen measures to combat multinational tax avoidance including by:

(A) playing a leading role in the original OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting project, and committing to the OECD two-pillar solution to multinational tax, and

(B) introducing the Multinational Tax Avoidance Law; the Diverted Profits Tax; strengthening the thin capitalisation and transfer pricing rules; doubling penalties for multinational tax avoidance; and establishing the Tax Avoidance Taskforce,

(ii) despite promising to only raise taxes on multinationals at the election, the Labor Government have broken promises to:

(A) raise taxes on superannuation, unrealised capital gains and franking credits, and

(B) end small business tax incentives,

(iii) this bill introduces major tax changes that have not been subject to an appropriate public consultation, demonstrating yet again that Labor does not understand business and refuses to implement regulations and policies to support business, which then grow the economy and employ Australians,

(iv) the Senate Economics Legislation Committee heard evidence that the bill—far from being limited to multinationals and tax avoidance—will increase taxes on Australian companies, harm investment in Australian industries, and negatively affect housing affordability in Australia; and

(b) calls on the Government to withdraw Schedule 2 to the bill and undertake an appropriate consultation with industry and tax bodies to ensure the bill does not hurt Australians jobs, industries and businesses".

Question negatived.