Deborah O'Neill (NSW, Australian Labor Party) | Hansard source

What a breathless performance we've just witnessed there. The exhaustion that must be felt by the end of it—

It's so, so rich to have a representative from a party that opposed every good intention of this government to bring a tax cut come in here and go on with that load of baloney. That is a total misrepresentation about what is really going on in the set of bills and the amendments that are before this parliament this evening, I find it really hard to hear a contribution like that and not want to laugh at how incorrect, how misconceived, how determined to mislead the Australian people that sort of a contribution is. It was full of alarm, full of fear, full of hyperbole and full of exaggerated drama.

Let's just cut to the chase and get some real facts on the table, because ordinary working Australians are over the outrage factory. They've had enough. They're exhausted by the constant whingeing and whining of the Liberal-National-One-Nation union out there about how terrible our country is. I believe in Australia. I believe in Australian workers. I believe in Australian small business. I believe in Australian big business. I believe in innovation. I believe in superannuation, which that party over there would never ever have allowed even to become a thing in this country. They will stand up here and they will pretend over and over and over again that they're actually good money managers, but we know the truth. They are absolutely not. Labor believes in all Australians and the contribution every single one of you makes to our nation. We want you to earn more and keep more of what you earn, and that's why we're bringing in tax cuts.

If we can go to that last contribution, there were like two lines that were truthful in what we heard, and that was that the Liberal-National Party will support—now, get the bit that they're supporting—the real bit that's really going to happen which is the working Australian tax offset. We're calling it the WATO. It's a new thing, up to $250 a year off for every single worker. It's a tax cut. You'd never know that if you were listening to that last hyperbolic rant of mistruths. If you're a working Australian, the legislation we're talking about is going to give you up to $250 a year off. That is for every worker. That's 13 million Australians who get the benefit of that. It's not just a few; it's 13 million. It's a pretty solid representation of those who are working.

Plus, for those who have reasonably simple financial affairs, the whole concept of keeping things, deductibility, having an accountant to do your tax return for you et cetera—there are many Australians who don't engage in that at all. They just show up at work, give a good day's effort, get a fair and decent wage under the conditions that Labor is making sure are there for them, and then pay their tax. They do that year in, year out without a big whinge, without a big demand for special consideration, without a big push that costs millions of dollars in the media to get special consideration. They don't have that luxury. They just show up, work and pay their fair share of taxes, and they're great Australian citizens. We're going to make it a lot easier for those ordinary working people to get $1,000 as an instant tax deduction, and that's a good thing.

I will note that, in that blast of negativity, Senator Hume actually did say in one of those sentences, 'We will support the $1,000 instant tax deduction.' You had to listen really carefully to hear it. The way she's tried to construct it, you'd think there was absolutely nothing in this for Australians—but there is. For 13 million Australians, there is a tax cut. That is what this legislation is going to deliver.

Like much of the legislation in this place, it's not always clear to ordinary people what we're doing. What we're talking about is called the Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Bill 2026. It's a bill for workers. It's a bill for first home buyers. It's a bill for future generations. It's absolutely about helping Australians get ahead. It's absolutely, and unashamedly, about making the tax system fairer and better aligned with the reality of where tax from work should stand compared to tax from assets.

This tax package is also about ensuring that small businesses can continue to aspire and grow, that every worker is going to be supported and that investments are made for future generations. I'm very keen to acknowledge the great work of my colleague here in the Senate, Senator Darmanin, who chairs the economics committee so ably, and our colleague, Senator Charlotte Walker, also from this side, the youngest Senator in this place, who arrived in the Senate at just age 21. She's got some pretty good insights into what young people need and want. Like young people who are paying attention across the country, they're cheering on the Labor government helping them get into housing and helping them save for their future.

I met a whole lot of young working Australians today from the SDA union who were moving around the halls of this parliament. Those workers were here celebrating an achievement that this government made possible on the back of a fantastic campaign from the union and all its delegates for 'adult age, adult wage'. The changes that are coming in for those young people mean that they're going to be earning more money. They're taking on responsibilities; they're paying adult fees for everything else. Now they're going to get an adult wage. That's starting later in the year, and it's going to be coming in more and more over the next couple of years. Those young people are proud to stand here in the parliament to talk to Labor politicians, to acknowledge that their wages are going up and to say it's fantastic that they're going to get these tax cuts. I think it's really, really important to get those facts on the record in the midst of all this incredible fear and alarm.

One of the comments made by those opposite was that this is some sort of rushed process, but consultation has been happening before the budget and since the budget. It has continued right through the whole process, with this government continually consulting with different parts of the sector right across the country: workers, small business and large business. We make sure that those consultations go on. When we hear good ideas, we are responsive to those good ideas in the national interest, not just for self-interest. That's why the amendments that are going to be made come from that concern about making sure that we deliver legislation that is going to be enabling for the majority of Australians. We want to help more people earn more and keep more of what they earn.

Let's go through a couple of the amendments that the government is going to move because we are listening to the Australian people. We're listening to advocates who come to the government in good faith and who want to do their bit to help this country be better. We will extend the eligibility of the 50 per cent active asset reduction to more businesses by increasing the turnover threshold from $2 million to $10 million. That concession brings the eligibility in line with the turnover threshold for the instant asset write-off. It's very efficient, and it's something that's understood by small business. They spoke, they gave their advice, and the government has listened. This is a change that's a response to that. It's good to listen to other people who have expertise. It's good to make a change when there is something that's already good but you can do it better.

We have also taken on board the issue that was raised about tax deductibility for gifts and donations. We will ensure deductible gifts and donations reduce capital gains that are subject to the minimum tax, to maintain the tax incentives in relation to charitable giving. I know of, and I acknowledge, the contribution to fleshing that problem out in our public hearings. They were public hearings, with one held here in Canberra and one in Sydney. Senator Smith was a very good advocate for that sector. I acknowledge that contribution and, despite the fear, alarm and craziness of the contribution before mine, the reality is that the government listened. The government listened to advocates for the sector, and we've made that change.

The other thing that we heard when we were taking evidence under the leadership of our very good chair, Senator Darmanin, was some concern about a list of income support payments. People wanted to know exactly how it would affect them if they were on an income support payment, so, in response to that suggestion, even though it's always been our intention to make sure that people were protected, we'll provide a list of income support payments that qualify for an exemption from the minimum tax on capital gains. It seems a reasonable ask, and, of course, it's a sound amendment, which I support 100 per cent. It doesn't substantively change this bill in any negative way; it only improves it.

We're also going to deal with the issue of a calculation method for the working Australians tax offset and put that into legislation so people can see it, it's in there, it's legislated and it's clear. That's a response to information that we received while we were taking on the inquiry. We will also remove ministerial powers that are no longer needed to give effect to the government's policy intent.

These are all things that sensible governments have always done with legislation. That's why you go out, you get the information and you get the experts in. You have to discern between the chaff and the wheat. People were in there pumping the brakes really hard for their own personal gain. They were saying: 'Give me my money! Let me keep my money! I don't want to pay my fair share of tax! I've never had to pay a fair share of tax compared to the people working at Coles! Don't expect me to start paying now!' Vested interests like that were there. They were saying: 'Leave it exactly as it is. The way I earn my money from capital is much, much, much better, and so much more important, than the people who earn their money from their labour and their hard work!' That's not the kind of Australia that I grew up in. It's not the kind of Australia we think of ourselves as. This is a society where, if you work hard, you should be able to benefit in the same way as any other Australian, and you should also be expecting that you pay your fair share of tax. You don't get a special discount, because you didn't earn it in a job; you earned it through the money that you already have. That's not the Australian way. So this is simply a rebalancing of what has got completely out of kilter in the years since the changes were made to the capital gains tax.

One of the important things that we will be putting into this bill is an amendment to remove ministerial discretion in relation to a couple of aspects of the bill, with legislation that's going to be introduced later in the year. That will deal with a couple of things that people might have heard about, like what a new build is. What's the definition of a new build? That's going to be very important for young people.

I stand here as a part of the Boomer generation. Of course, like many people in my situation, I appreciate the fact that the government has decided to grandfather plans that my husband and I have made for our provision for our retirement, but to have people in the media deliberately misrepresent that the capital gains discount has been taken away is absolutely wrong. If you're a young person and you've seen your parents make wealth from investing in property, you can still invest in property—buy a new property, knock down an old one, put in duplexes, put that on the market. Keep growing your wealth that way. You'll be able to get a capital gains discount, and you'll be able to negatively gear. Remember there are still so many opportunities for you as young creative Australians to grow your wealth and also to earn more and keep more of what you earn. (Time expired)