Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I certainly thank the shadow Treasurer for that question. When big changes are made to the tax system, there is always a need for a public information campaign. We have in place some very big changes to the Australian taxation system—not just the modernisation of our taxation of minerals but also cuts to the company tax rate, accelerated cuts to the company tax rate for small businesses and changes to the treatment of interest income, with a 50 per cent tax discount and a standard deduction. There are a whole set of very complex changes which are a very big economic reform for Australia, and the only responsible thing to do in preparing for that change is in fact to put in place a public information campaign.

Of course, we funded this public information campaign in the budget. I do not recall anyone from the opposition, either at budget time and/or subsequently in estimates, being remotely concerned about the fact that there was going to be a public information campaign, because it is entirely legitimate to have a public information campaign in these circumstances. And it is entirely legitimate to do it without legislation, because those opposite know they have done that as well—they have put in place public information campaigns when big and complex changes have been in prospect. The government, as the Prime Minister said before, was contemplating a public information campaign from early this year, as we came to the decision to put in place these very big changes to our tax system.

Now, of course, that brings us through to the period when we launched these proposals. I launched them in Parliament House with the Prime Minister and other ministers on 2 May and just prior to that we had the beginnings of the scare campaign, from the likes of Clive Palmer and all of the mates of those opposite, about the prospect of us having a superprofits tax in the mining industry. But even I was shocked by how brazen some of these people in the mining industry were, because after we launched—

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