Tim Wilson (Goldstein, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

1. recognises the positive effect of the Government's measures to ensure that it lives within its means, in particular by:

a. legislating tough measures against multinational tax avoidance;

b. delivering disciplined financial management, including through a tax-to-GDP cap of 23.9 per cent and the lowest rate of spending growth of any government in more than 50 years; and

c. maintaining the integrity of the welfare system so that support goes to those who need it most; and

2. notes with deep concern that the Opposition:

a. opposed our multinational anti-avoidance legislation in Parliament;

b. refuses to commit to spending restraint or a tax cap so that the economy is not burdened with higher taxes; and

c. has no plan to support Australians to get off welfare and into work.

Today I rise to move a motion that talks about what the government is getting right, but I do so with sadness. Frankly, it disappoints me that this motion needs to be moved in this parliament. The Turnbull coalition government is not just meeting the expectations and challenges of the Australian people; it is seeking to lead the nation in dealing with the economic challenges and headwinds that are before us. This Turnbull coalition government understands acutely the challenges Australia faces economically and, critically, understands what needs to be done to help us manage the change that is occurring in our economy. The government is addressing the international factors that drive and influence matters like tax and tax contributions but is also making sure that we're a competitive nation in the international marketplace, by making sure there is a limit to how much of a tax burden the government places on the nation and, critically, in the process, making sure we get people into positions of employment so that they can stand on their own two feet and support themselves, their families and their communities, so that they are not dependent on other taxpayers.

The reason I said I moved this motion with sadness, despite the incredible record of this government, is that at every point that agenda has been obstructed by the opposition. At every point, they claim and hark about the idea that they want to crack down on the top end of town, but in practice they vote against multinational tax avoidance. It's the most absurd situation anybody could put before this parliament to claim you're against the top end of town and you want to demonise businesses that are successful in employing Australians and contributing to our nation. But where there's avoidance and where there are multinationals who are not contributing their fair share, the appropriate thing to do according to Bill Shorten—the Leader of the Opposition, I should say more correctly—and the opposition is to oppose the government's agenda to crack down on tax avoidance.

But that isn't the only thing that they've voted against. They've opposed the government's sensible tax cap limiting the amount of money that is taken out of the hip pockets of average Australians to contribute to the overall welfare of the nation, to say and understand that their money is theirs first. Yes, everybody has a responsibility to carry and contribute to the balance sheet of this nation—everyone. But a critical part of that is that there has to be a limit so that people have an ambition, an interest in being able to earn more money and that they're able to go on and make choices and decisions for their lives. In this federal budget we put in a tax cap of 23.9 per cent of tax to GDP. That is a simple and measured response in order to make sure that government does not become bloated any more than is necessary and also that we are not hitting people's hip pockets any more than is necessary.

But, most critically, we are focusing on what we need to do to get people from welfare into work. Everybody in the place, I would hope, understands the pride and dignity that come with people standing on their own two feet, the pride and dignity that come with having a job, the pride and dignity that come with being able to support not just yourself but your family and to be able to help others who are less well off.

The record of this government is quite clear. Since it was elected there are 140,000 fewer people on welfare. That is a huge reversal from the legacy of the previous government, which led to a growth of nearly a quarter of a million Australians living on some sort of welfare. But, most critically, when we take people off welfare—when we take 140,000 people off—it isn't just that they stand on their own two feet. They cease to be consumers of the tax system and become contributors to it. I've always said that one of the critical things for any person to do is take care of themselves, not out of selfishness but because when you are not taking care of yourself you are dependent on somebody else, and, more critically, it denies your capacity to help others. If we want a civil society, if we want a society that's just and fair, then people who can stand on their own two feet must have the chance to do so. But, more critically, we should look at the policy of the opposition, at the fact that they voted against the efforts of this government to crack down on tax avoidance. Since this government has been elected and since the tax avoidance task force and the Australian taxation commission have been introduced we have raised over $5.2 billion income tax liabilities against large public groups and multinationals, and the ATO has collected a further $3 billion in cash, with $2.4 billion coming from multinational enterprises. This government, at every point, is making sure that everyone pays their fair share but also is able to stand on their own two feet.

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