Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Cormann. This morning the ABC reported that one in five companies operating in Australia have not paid a single cent in corporate tax for the last three years. Can the minister confirm that, despite generating revenue of $1.84 billion over three years, the Prime Minister's former employer, Goldman Sachs, has paid no net corporate tax in that period?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Watt for that question. No wonder the Labor Party are so shocking at managing the economy when they are in government, because they clearly don't understand that company tax, business tax, is imposed on profits, not revenue. Let me tell you, the consequences for investment, jobs, wages and the future prosperity of Australian families will be devastating. If Labor want to introduce a tax on revenue, they should say so. If Labor's policy is to introduce a tax on revenue, they should say so.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order on my left!

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is of course—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order on my left! Senator Hinch? Sorry; I didn't see you back there.

Derryn Hinch (Victoria, Derryn Hinch's Justice Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You can't hear a damn thing back here.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's only taken two minutes, and it's only Wednesday, so can we have some order in the chamber so our Senate colleagues down at the rear of it can hear the answer.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The truth is that shifty, socialist Bill wants to rack up taxes. He wants to increase the tax burden on the economy, which of course would be bad for every working Australian because it would lead to—

Opposition senators interjecting—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Sterle on a point of order.

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, a point of order under standing order 193: that is not tolerable; you have to refer to members in the other place by their proper title.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I actually couldn't hear what the minister was saying. Minister, if there is something you wish to withdraw please do so. I did not actually hear it with the noise in the chamber—as Senator Hinch outlined.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Clearly Senator Sterle knows who I'm talking about when I say 'shifty, socialist Bill'.

Senator Wong interjecting—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the point of order, Senator Wong? Senator Cormann, to assist the chamber I'd ask you to withdraw the term reflecting on a member of the other chamber.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the point of order, Mr President—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've asked the minister.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the point of order: I wasn't aware that thinking a company that generated $1.84 billion in revenue should pay some tax was a socialist position.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Wong, you know that is not a point of order.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sterle requested that I refer to him by his proper title, so I'm happy, of course, to do this. The Leader of the Opposition wants to increase the tax burden on business, making it harder for businesses to be successful and profitable so that they can hire more Australians and pay them better wages and pay more tax—because more profitable businesses will pay more tax.

This is what Mr Shorten, as Assistant Treasurer, said when it came to company tax cuts. I'll just read it out to you:

Cutting the company income tax rate increases domestic productivity and domestic investment. More capital means higher productivity and economic growth and leads to more jobs and higher wages.

That was Bill Shorten on 23 August 2011.

Jacinta Collins (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Trickle-down isn't working, Mathias; you know that.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We now have Senator Collins criticising what Mr Shorten said when he was Assistant Treasurer in the Gillard government. The Labor Party doesn't understand that if we want Australians to be as successful as possible we need the businesses that employ them to be as successful as possible. Nine out of 10 working Australians work for private sector businesses. Their future job security, their future career prospects and their future wage increases depend on the future profitability of those businesses, and do you know what? The future government revenue from business depends on the future profitability of those businesses, so we can continue to fund sustainably the public services of Australia— (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Watt.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

EnergyAustralia is the nation's leading energy retailer, with 1.7 million electricity and gas customers across eastern Australia. Can the minister confirm that EnergyAustralia has paid no net corporate tax for the decade to 2016?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I don't talk about the individual tax affairs of individual businesses, but let me tell you this: every business in Australia—

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order on my left! Senator Cameron!

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Every business in Australia pays their tax on their profits. Bigger businesses right now have to pay 30 per cent tax on their profits, whereas businesses in the US have to pay 21 per cent; in the UK, 19 per cent, soon to be 17 per cent; in France, soon to be 25 per cent. The Australian Labor Party want to hold Australian business back. They don't want Australian businesses to have the best possible opportunity to succeed, because the Australian Labor Party don't understand that the future prosperity of Australians and the future job security of every Australian worker depend on the future success and profitability of Australian businesses.

Now, if the Labor Party is proposing to impose a tax on turnover in the future, if the Labor Party under the socialist agenda pursued by Bill Shorten— (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Watt, a final supplementary question.

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know it's hard to stop the minister when he's on a socialist rant, but we'll try again. Despite posting a $71 million profit in 2014-15, News Corp has paid no net corporate tax in four years. Given that some of Australia's largest companies are not paying any corporate tax, why is the government forcing working- and middle-class Australians to pay an additional $300 a year in tax while pressing ahead with a $65 billion tax cut for big business?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is actually the Australian Labor Party that wants to increase the tax burden on hardworking Australians. You want to take $1 out of every $2 earned from any Australian earning more than $180,000 a year. You want to take permanently, on an ongoing basis, nearly $1 out of $2, out of their pocket. The Labor Party wants to increase the tax burden on the Australian economy by $165 billion. That will lead to less investment, to lower growth, to fewer jobs and to lower wages. The unemployment queues under the Labor Party will blow out, and no amount of misleading statements in the Senate will mislead the Australian people from the fact that, under Labor, the economy would be worse off and Australian workers would be worse off because there would be fewer jobs, more unemployment and lower wages.

Opposition Senators:

Opposition senators interjecting—

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Can I remind colleagues of the request from Senator Hinch that the senators down at the rear of the chamber might be able to hear the questions and the answers.