Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

The minister is interjecting across the table that he said it all. I invite him to get up again and say it so that not only the whole of Australia can hear it but, most importantly, so all those international investors can hear it. I have just been handed a press release from TTF Australia. TTF Australia was headed by Chris Brown, who was well known to the Labor Party—he was even a member of the Labor Party. It is now headed by Mr John Lee, the brother of Michael Lee. I would not necessarily say John Lee was a card-carrying member of the Liberal Party. In fact, I seriously doubt he is anything other than a card-carrying member of the Labor Party. Perhaps he has torn up his card because he says that the decision not to proceed with a doubling of the withholding tax rate for managed investment trusts will go some way, not all the way, to restoring foreign investor confidence. He said:

The proposal to double the withholding tax rate for managed investment trusts stopped foreign investment in tourism in its tracks.

That is exactly what we said.

As investors were suddenly facing a tax bill twice the size jeopardising their returns. This announcement in the federal budget came as a complete surprise to industry—

it has obviously come as a complete surprise to the Assistant Treasurer as well—

as there was no consultation on this issue despite repeated requests for any changes to at least be flagged with the sector.

It also flew in the face of the release less than a week earlier of the tourism investment guide, which detailed 100 investment opportunities to improve Australia's tourism product offering. Following consultation with members, TTF raised its concerns about the impact this would have on tourism investment and has been actively pursuing this issue with MPs.

This is the part—get ready ladies and gentlemen—where he said:

Thanks must go to the coalition for its recognition of the impact this measure has caused and will continue to cause in the future.

This is from a strong Labor member.

While some damage has been done to Australia's reputation as an investment destination, the decision not to proceed with doubling the withholding tax rate will help to restore investor confidence and renew interest in Australian tourism products.

We welcome this amendment because it dumps it. But you know what? The Assistant Treasurer now says it is not dumped. He now says it is coming back. What is it? Is it morning or night or afternoon or evening? I do not understand where the Labor Party is going. But what I do understand is it is not the Liberal Party, Tony Abbott, Joe Hockey or Andrew Robb who are raising these concerns; it is in fact the Ivan Glasenbergs, the Marius Kloppers and the Jac Nassers. It is the Gerry Harveys, the John Symons and the John Singletons and now the John Lees. These are the people who, by their own words, are saying this government is incompetent.

This is a government that is inconsistent. This is a government that simply does not understand that what investors are crying out for are stability and certainty and predictability and reliability. So when the Treasurer stands at the dispatch box and gives a budget speech, Australia and the world do not expect that within six weeks three key components of the budget will be dumped before the financial year has even started. And yet our Prime Minister has the gall to go overseas and give them a sermon on the mount about the Australian way. The Australian way, as Labor defines it, is to have three different policies in three days and to have a budget that does not last six weeks. It is their policy to dump and rebirth leaders from time to time and now it is their policy to add to the sovereign risk of investment in Australia.

So I say to you: do not start giving us a lecture about negativity. Do not give us a lecture about poor consumer confidence. Do not give us a lecture about poor business confidence. It comes back directly to the actions of this incompetent government, a government that cannot hold the policy, a government that cannot be consistent, a government that deliberately and intentionally misleads people when it comes to core policy responsibilities of a day-to-day government in Australia. Shame, Labor, shame! Shame on you for being incompetent. Get out of the way and give us an election so we can give Australia a predictable, stable, reliable and trustworthy government again. (Time expired)

Question agreed to.

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