Terry Young (Longman, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'm proud to be standing here today in support of this government's plan to bring Australia out of the COVID-19 recession. I'm proud to be part of a government that understands the health, social and economic impacts of this pandemic. We are in the midst of a one-in-100-year health and economic crisis that demands real leadership and decisive action. The budget that this government has delivered is the budget that Australia needed. In the days that followed the Treasurer's budget delivery a couple of weeks ago confidence surged 12 per cent, to its highest level in more than two years. Business owners recognise that this is a budget that will deliver the jobs and the economic conditions that are needed to help us bounce back.

But there are people in my electorate of Longman who are still doing it tough. In fact, more than 12,000 people in my electorate received the coronavirus supplement to provide additional support through this crisis. Businesses and many industries, particularly those in events, tourism and hospitality, have been hit hard. But, when the pandemic struck, the government acted quickly and decisively to firstly protect the health of Australians. To combat the devastating economic impacts that followed, we introduced safeguards for many businesses, families and individuals who were affected. It is thanks to these measures that Australia has achieved some of the best health and economic outcomes in the world, despite the exceptionally difficult period we found ourselves in. Many businesses in Longman and indeed across the country were able to keep people in jobs because this government acted decisively.

The JobKeeper payment has supported 2,700 businesses in Longman, helping them through the pandemic and keeping them connected to their staff. I've heard first hand from business owners in my electorate about how the JobKeeper payment saved jobs. Ian Wust, at Caboolture Crash Repairs, told me that, in the days before JobKeeper was announced, he had made the decision to let several of his staff members go because work had dried up to such an extent. He had the letters of termination drafted and ready to be handed over. Then the government announced the JobKeeper program and those termination letters were torn up and thrown in the bin. Since then, as work has picked up again, Ian has not only maintained that level of staff but also put on new staff members. For him and many other businesses in my electorate, JobKeeper was a game changer.

But now, as businesses like Caboolture Crash Repairs kick on, they no longer need that level of support. That's why the JobKeeper program has been extended for businesses that still need it and pulled back for businesses that have moved on. This is called responsible economic management. This is how we reduce financial waste—by giving support where and when it is needed but also recognising when and where it is no longer vital. Under this budget we have extended the JobKeeper payment until March next year for those businesses that can show they still need some help.

But that's not all. Through the JobMaker hiring credit and the supporting apprentices and trainees wage subsidy, we are creating the conditions that will help young people get work and learn new skills to carry them into the future. Youth unemployment across the country is almost double the national unemployment rate, and that is what this government with this budget is seeking to address. The JobMaker hiring credit will provide incentives for businesses to take on young jobseekers. It is expected that around 450,000 positions for young Australians will be supported through this program.

Apprenticeships and traineeships are another key pathway into the workforce, particularly for young jobseekers and school leavers. Under this program, eligible small- and medium-sized businesses can apply for a wage subsidy of 50 per cent paid from now until 31 March next year, up to a cap of $7,000 per quarter. I spoke to a local business owner the other day and he is going to put on six apprentices next week. This measure will support around 90,000 small- and medium-sized businesses in Australia, employing around 180,000 apprentices. While this government recognises the plight of young people through this COVID recession, we continue to support mature-age workers as well. The Restart program offers a financial incentive of $10,000 to encourage businesses to hire and retrain mature-age employees who are 50 years of age and over.

To support new investment and increase business cash flow, the government is providing a temporary tax incentive that will allow around 9,300 businesses in Longman to write off the full value of any eligible asset they purchase. Already I have heard from businesses in my electorate like Caboolture Bus Lines, Loveday Electrical and Dossel's Engineering, who say they will benefit from this initiative. Until 30 June 2022, businesses with a turnover of up to $5 million can deduct the full cost of depreciable assets of any value. The cost of improvements made to any existing assets during this period can also be fully deducted. This supports businesses that invest. It also creates a strong incentive for businesses to bring forward investment before this temporary tax incentive ends.

The government will also allow companies with a turnover of up to $5 billion to offset tax losses against previous profits. This loss carry-back will help companies that were profitable and taxpaying but now find themselves in a loss position due to the COVID-19 pandemic. By allowing them to access their losses earlier, this will provide a much-needed cash flow boost to keep their businesses running, retain their workers and invest with confidence in the future. It will be available to around one million companies.

The government has also delivered cash flow boost payments to small and medium-sized businesses and not-for-profit entities to support them to keep operating, to pay rent, electricity and other bills and to retain staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. To date the cash flow boost has helped around 2,400 small and medium-sized businesses in my electorate of Longman. We estimate that these temporary tax incentives for businesses will create around 50,000 jobs by the end of the 2021-22 financial year.

This government also understands the importance of local manufacturing and has a plan to help local business grow and become more resilient and to boost global competitiveness. Manufacturing employs almost 5,000 people in my electorate, making up 7.4 per cent of all people in Longman who are employed in local industry jobs. The $1.5 billion Modern Manufacturing Strategy will benefit manufacturing businesses in Longman, harnessing their capability to help drive our economic recovery and future resilience. This strategy also recognises that we must play to our strengths and target sectors that allow us to achieve scale and generate future growth.

Instead of increasing taxes, this government wants Australians to keep more of their hard-earned wages to spend on those things that are important to them. Around 4,100 taxpayers in Longman will benefit from tax relief of up to $2,745 this year as a result of the government's tax relief measures. The Personal Income Tax Plan is delivering lower taxes and a simpler tax system that benefits all Australians. The Treasury estimates that reducing the personal income tax burden on hardworking Australians through this measure will boost GDP by around $3.5 billion in 2020-21 and $9 billion in 2021-22 and will create an additional 50,000 jobs by the end of 2021-22. By putting more money in their pockets, families will keep more of what they earn, allowing them to spend more on what they need. Low- and middle-income earners will also benefit, with an additional one-off tax offset this financial year. This offset is worth up to $1,080 for individuals and $2,160 for dual-income couples, and will benefit around 10.1 million people. When combined with the stage 2 tax cuts a single person earning $120,000 will receive a tax cut of $2,745 in 2020-21. A dual-income family with both people on $60,000 a year will receive a combined tax cut of $4,320.

Australians expect the tax system to be fair. This government is committed to delivering a simpler tax system that remains progressive, fosters aspiration and rewards effort. When the government's plan is fully implemented in 2024-25, a person who earns $200,000—or 4.4 times more than a person who earns $45,000—will pay around 10 times more tax. Around 95 per cent of taxpayers will have a marginal tax rate of 30 per cent or less in 2024-25. The extra spending that this tax system generates will help keep businesses trading and keep staff in jobs. As their sales increase, this will further improve business confidence and encourage them to create more jobs and invest. This grows our economy now and in the future.

But it's not just businesses and their employees in my electorate who will benefit from this budget. The government wants to improve the wellbeing of individuals and families in my electorate of Longman. We will continue to deliver the essential social services that people in Longman depend on, while providing a safety net in response to the pandemic. Around 23,064 aged pensioners in Longman will receive a $250 support payment in December and March. This is in addition to the two support payments of $750 they have already received this year, which means that, in total, they will have received an extra $2,000. In April and July, 3,311 carers in Longman received support payments of $750. They will receive a further $250 payment in December and a further $250 from March next year. These payments will assist pensioners and carers through the financial challenges they continue to face as a result of COVID-19.

The government is also making a temporary change to the eligibility criteria for Youth Allowance and Abstudy. From 1 January next year, all Youth Allowance and Abstudy applicants will automatically be deemed to have worked over the six-month period, from 25 March to 24 September. This change will make it easier for young people to be deemed independent of their parents and not subject to the parental income test. The government is also supporting new parents whose employment was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic by introducing an alternative paid parental leave work test period.

This government also has a plan to improve transport infrastructure in my electorate of Longman, making our roads safer, improving traffic congestion and supporting jobs. The $662 million project to widen the Bruce Highway, from four to six lanes, between Bribie Island Road and Steve Irwin Way received $38,400,000 in this budget. The federal government is contributing $530 million to this project, and major construction will begin soon. Work on the $163 million New Settlement Road overpass upgrade has begun, with $35 million included in this budget. These upgrades, along with the other safety improvements and planning for future projects, amount to more than $333 million spent in this budget alone. The total spend by the federal government over the lifetime of these Bruce Highway projects will be around $2.8 billion. The Bribie Island Road upgrade at Old Toorbul Point Road intersection received $500,000 funding in this budget. Work on this project, costing just over $30 million, is well underway. The federal government's contribution is $20 million. The black spot upgrade at Sylvan Beach Esplanade in Bellara will begin this year at a cost of around $365,000.

Also included in this budget is around $5 million for Moreton Bay Regional Council from the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program. This program supports councils to deliver priority local road and community infrastructure, supporting local jobs. The council will receive a further $5 million from the Road to Recovery program to assist in maintaining and upgrading local roads. It has also been allocated more than $17 million from the Financial Assistance Grant program this financial year to deliver infrastructure, health, recreation, employment and environmental projects.

And speaking of the environment, this government is delivering crucial environmental recovery and restoration activities with an additional $1.8 billion investment over five years. We are making unprecedented investments to reduce waste, increase recycling and build capacity in our waste and recycling industries. This includes progressively banning the export of waste, glass, plastic, tyres and paper starting on 1 January next year. Native wildlife and habitat recovery remain a critical focus for this government, as we continue to roll out our more than $200 million commitment to bushfire wildlife and habitat recovery. We will develop a new 10-year strategy to protect Australia's threatened species. To protect our oceans and marine ecosystems, we are tackling the impacts of ghost nets and plastic litter, as well as investing in compliance, enforcement and monitoring across marine parks. Our national parks will receive record investment for new upgrades as well as funding to replace lost revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are also supporting farmers in communities that experience drought, with $155.6 million over four years for a package of new measures.

This budget was made possible because of the solid grounding and strong financial position Australia was in before the pandemic hit. I'm proud to be part of a government which understands that by empowering people to seek employment, by creating new jobs, by establishing a fairer tax system and by investing in areas that need it most, Australia will come out of this COVID recession strongly. We want businesses to grow beyond being dependent on the government. We want to create the conditions that help businesses rebuild from this pandemic, allow them to grow and expand into the future. We are supporting our pensioners and carers. We are building the infrastructure that will ensure people in my electorate are safer on local roads and highways, and spend less time stuck in traffic. We're looking after our wildlife, oceans, waterways and national parks. This budget is our plan to achieve these outcomes. How good is this budget?

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