Doorstop Interview

Ministerial Entrance

Parliament House, Canberra

Thursday, 12 May 2005
8.45 am

SUBJECTS: Tax cuts

TREASURER:

The Government will be introducing legislation this morning to cut taxes from

1 July next (financial) year. To cut taxes for every Australian income taxpayer.

If this Bill is passed through the Parliament, everyone will get a tax cut on

1 July of 2005. The Labor Party opposes this tax cut. The Labor Party wants

people to pay higher taxes. Labor stands for higher taxes. But I say this to

Mr Beazley, the tax cut will go through one way or another. Labor can’t

stop this tax cut. The only thing Labor can do is delay this tax cut. I am calling

on Labor not to delay the tax cut, to give people their tax cut from 1 July

2005. This is a futile stand by Labor for higher taxes. They can’t keep

them higher. Eventually we will be able to pass this tax cut through the new

Senate. All Labor can do is spread confusion and try and delay tax cuts from

1 July 2005. There is no sense in doing that, Australians should be entitled

to their full tax cut on 1 July of this year.

JOURNALIST:

If they do delay the legislation would you recall Parliament and how soon would

the tax cuts be implemented if that was the case?

TREASURER:

Well, the first plan here is to have the tax cut passed, there is no reason

why it can’t be passed. It could be passed by Mr Beazley, giving up his

futile attempt to inflict higher taxes on Australians, or by members of the

Labor Party absenting themselves from the vote. There is a suggestion that some

of them may absent themselves from the vote and if they do that in the Senate

it can be passed. I have also had talks overnight with the Commissioner of Taxation

to try and see if there is some interim position that could be put in place

to give people tax cuts until the legislation goes through. He is getting me

advice on that today and until I have that advice I don’t know whether

that is legally possible. But you know, there is a long way and there is a short

way of getting this tax cut. The short way is for Labor to give up its opposition.

Labor stands for higher taxes but they shouldn’t get in the way of this

tax cut.

JOURNALIST:

Kim Beazley said this morning that he is fighting for the millions that are

only getting that $6 a week tax cut, that you just haven’t got the balance

right. Would you consider perhaps re-looking at that balance at all?

TREASURER:

Kim Beazley is proposing to vote against a tax cut for people on the lowest

income tax rate. In 10 minutes I am introducing a Bill which will cut the 17

cent to the 15 cent rate. He is voting against it. He is voting against tax

cuts for everybody. Now, why he is doing this is beyond me because it will go

through, eventually it will go through. Eventually taxes will be cut. The only

thing he can do is try and delay the cutting of taxes.

JOURNALIST:

So you are saying he should just give up then and not fight for these people?

TREASURER:

No, I don’t think he should give up. I think he should support tax cuts.

I don’t think Kim Beazley should give up, he should support tax cuts.

These are tax cuts for every Australian. Now, I have never seen such a blatant

attempt to impose higher taxes on the Australian public than Kim Beazley is

currently engaged in.

JOURNALIST:

But is bringing the Senate back early an option?

TREASURER:

Well I hope, look bringing a Senate back would cost the Australian public millions,

millions and millions of dollars. So what, Mr Beazley denies them a tax cut,

then incurs millions of dollars for the bringing back of the Senate. I am not

ruling anything out I will tell you that, but there is an easy way and there

is a hard way, and the easy way is just to pass the legislation. Thanks.