Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Robertson for her question and for her tireless advocacy for low- and middle-income earners in her electorate, because she understands. She is from an electorate that understands aspiration, and she has been championing aspiration all her life and in this place on top of that.

In the budget we announced a comprehensive and responsible plan for personal tax reform. A plan is when you're actually dealing with problems in the tax system. Yes, our personal tax plan goes first to provide relief to low- and middle-income earners, but in steps 2 and 3 of that plan, it begins the work of dealing with problems in our tax system, such as the problem of bracket creep. If you don't deal with bracket creep, as people's incomes creep up, they get taxed more and more and more, and that puts a stymie on aspiration and on their incentive to get ahead. Stage 2 of the plan sees the second threshold go from $37,000 to $41,000—that's hardly a millionaire—and stage 3 go from $90,000 to $120,000—also hardly a millionaire, as I'm sure the residents of Robertson would understand. So it's a plan that deals with problems.

The Labor Party doesn't have a tax plan at all. They don't have a plan. They have no plan. I'll tell you what they've got a plan for, and that's to oppose $70 billion of tax relief for hardworking Australians; as Australians' incomes creep up, Labor will tax them more. What they've announced today is a creep tax. A creep tax is taxing people's income as it creeps up. As incomes creep up, they will tax people more. Labor's plan for low- to middle-income earners is to ensure they stay low- to middle-income earners by not supporting the plans for a stronger economy that we champion.

But as the Prime Minister has already referred to today, we understand why. The member for Sydney has regrettably had to leave the chamber, but she was asked this earlier today:

… [it's] part of a broader plan and it's about ensuring aspiration within the economy as well.

As the Prime Minister reminded us, what did the member for Sydney say? 'W, w, I—honestly this aspiration term, it mystifies me.' That is what she said. I know a lot of things mystify the member for Sydney: government living within its means, economics, finance; even geography is a great challenge to the member for Sydney, who thought Africa was a country! Well, aspiration isn't in a country; aspiration isn't a continent even. But I can tell you what: it can drive a nation forward, and that's why we believe in aspiration. And the Labor Party have turned their backs on aspiration as they turn their backs on Australians. (Time expired)

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