Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the range of measures contained in the Tax Laws Amendment (2009 Measures No. 5) Bill 2009. Mr Deputy Speaker Andrews, I know you are particularly interested in this legislation. The bill implements a number of improvements to Australian tax law. I will move quickly through the first few amendments, which are largely to close loopholes and address unintended consequences in our tax system. I will then discuss the amendments which will have a real and direct impact on all Australians and on some special sectors that I am particularly sympathetic to—and that I think member for Werriwa will be particularly interested in, in light of his earlier comments about autism.

Firstly, this bill retrospectively amends GST law to ensure that a representative of a failed company is liable for GST transactions. In December last year, the Federal Court determined, in Deputy Commissioner of Taxation v PM Developments Pty Ltd, that a liquidator is not liable for the GST on transactions that occur during the liquidator’s appointment. The court said that the GST liability is with the company in liquidation. The court decision is at odds with the policy and administration of tax law since July 2000 and it puts at risk around $655 million of GST revenue. The bill amends the GST law from 1 July 2000 to ensure that the law achieves what was intended and what is logical. The change to the law will not affect taxpayers but will protect the government’s GST revenue. Obviously incapacitated companies would generally be unable to pay GST. The intention of the law has always been that liquidators are liable for the GST collected during the period of their appointment.

Secondly, this bill reverses the changes to the PAYG instalments system. It overturns recent changes to the taxation of financial arrangements which had the unintended consequence of potentially reducing PAYG instalments paid. These amendments address this unintended outcome. The government will develop a more appropriate method for dealing with PAYG and TOFA in consultation with industry. The bill also amends the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 to extend eligibility for exemption from interest withholding tax to debt issued by the Commonwealth.

This brings me to the aspects of the bill that will improve tax outcomes for some Australians, many of whom, I imagine, are doing it particularly tough. As the member for Werriwa said, people are often going to face extra costs if they have a child with autism. This first measure will deliver a better outcome for regional and remote Australian families who have a child with autism spectrum disorder. I declare a particular interest in that my great-nephews Leroy and Jamie Doran, from Roxby Downs in South Australia, and their parents Christine and Sean Doran; Christine is my niece. I am sure that Leroy and Jamie will be particularly keen to look at Hansard and see their names mentioned. They are the closest I have come to family members with autism, although in my 11 years as a school teacher I definitely taught kids with autism. Perhaps, early on, kids were not diagnosed because the DSM-IV, as I think it then was, did not list autism spectrum disorder and it was not as well-known, certainly in the teaching area.

The bill before the House will exempt payments made under the Helping Children with Autism package from income-tax. The payments help families access early intervention and education services for children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. It is important to exclude these payments from income tax to ensure that these families receive the full benefit for their children. It also ensures that they will not receive an unexpected tax bill when they lodge their return.

In a similar way, this bill also supports those who receive payments under the Continence Aids Payment Scheme. This bill will ensure that payments made under this scheme are exempt from income tax. This scheme helps individuals with the costs of continence products and ensures recipients have the flexibility they need to choose the products that suit them best. In a former life as a health adviser I had quite a lot to do with the medical aid subsidy scheme, which is the state-based equivalent of this. It is amazing how a little bit of support can change someone’s life, provide dignity and allow them to be a member of the mainstream community with just a little bit of help and support. With an ageing society this will become even more of a problem. I note that the first baby boomers will be retiring next year; they will be hitting 65 years. I think I am either at the end of the baby boomers or at the start of the next generation. We need to do what we can to ensure that as many people as possible have dignity when it comes to incontinence.

Finally, this bill ensures that the Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund Independent Advisory Panel has greater scope to support rebuilding efforts. Currently the panel is doing great work but is limited to spending appeal funds in a way that is restricted to what the law considers charitable—based on the legal precedents on the definition of charity from cases under tax law. The Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund Independent Advisory Panel and all charitable organisations need to adhere to these strict criteria when administering appeal funds, to uphold the integrity of the system. However, the Victorian bushfires were unprecedented in their damage and devastation and the panel needs greater flexibility to adequately support affected communities. This bill will allow the Red Cross to transfer donations to the appeal fund without losing its charitable status. As a Red Cross convener, a regular Red Cross blood donor and having close connections with the Australian Red Cross—its CEO, Robert Tickner, is a respected former member of this House and its General Manager, International Operations, Donna McSkimming, happens to be my cousin, this is just a coincidence—I am very supportive of this initiative to make sure that the Red Cross is able to do as much as possible in the areas affected by the Victorian bushfires. This bill will allow the funds in the appeal fund to be used for a broader range of purposes and will also ensure that charitable donations are used appropriately.

These allowable purposes include any purpose that is currently allowed under the Australian disaster relief category, any public benefit purpose that meets certain criteria and other allowable purposes, including: providing long-term assistance to orphan minors; reimbursing individuals or organisations who have paid for disaster relief or public benefit activities; providing support to individuals who have lived in transitional housing because of the bushfires; and assisting individuals who are primary producers. The appeal fund will be able to make grants of up to $10,000 to farmers to repair their farms. The appeal fund will also be able to provide assistance to families whose owner-occupied principal residence has been destroyed or damaged.

I can still recall my disbelief at the magnitude of the destruction I saw, safely in Queensland, as I watched footage of the Victorian bushfires beamed into my lounge room in February this year. I am sure that you as a Victorian, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker Andrews, would have experienced the horror so much more. The Red Cross bushfire appeal fund raised more than $380 million to support individuals and communities in towns and suburbs affected by the 2009 Victorian bushfires. It showed that all Australians are able to dig into our pockets when times are tough. The Victorian bushfire appeal fund independent advisory panel has done a remarkable job in helping to rebuild communities and will do much more. Obviously there is much more to be done. This bill will ensure that they can do what needs to be done while ensuring the integrity of the charitable donations that have been received through the Red Cross.

On a related note, I want to thank the Assistant Treasurer for his efforts to ensure that donations made to support relief efforts following the typhoon in Taiwan are tax deductible. I know you have a particular interest in that country. I know the Taiwanese community in my electorate have given generously to this relief effort, and tax-deductible donations ensure that this generosity goes that bit further. I support the range of the amendments in this bill and commend it to the House.

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