David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer ) Share this | Hansard source

But it is not just the old guard. We know the member for Mayo supports jacking up the GST. The member for Stirling was out there recently saying it should be on the table. Just yesterday we heard from the former WA Treasurer and the soon-to-be Liberal candidate for Pearce, and he was out there saying we should jack up the GST as well. Not only was he saying that; he said, 'We need to rip money away from states like Tasmania and South Australia to pay for it.' That is what they believe in.

So we have this chorus of conservatives out there all calling for an increase in the GST, and what do we hear from the Leader of the Opposition? All we get from the Leader of the Opposition is, 'I won't rule that out.' Of course he will not rule it out. He will not rule it out, because that is exactly what he intends to do. He says he wants a GST review. We all know the tax review he calls for will be a GST review. It will be a vehicle to jack up the GST. We are a government that will stand up against the Liberal state premiers. The coalition, on the other hand, introduced it. It is in their DNA, and they are just champing at the bit, hoping to get an opportunity to come back and finish the job.

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