Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Spence very much for that question and, particularly, for his ongoing support for the members of his community and his lifelong commitment to those in the transport sector. In the member's electorate alone, 74,000 taxpayers will receive an average tax cut of $1,207 from 1 July. We are delivering better tax cuts for the people of Spence, just as we are delivering better tax cuts for the transport and construction workers who are the backbone of this country and who are building our future—hauling freight in regional Australia, driving road trains across the Nullarbor, building Western Sydney Airport, filling potholes on local roads and building affordable housing across the country. Those workers kept Australia moving during the pandemic and they underpin our economy today. That is why our tax cuts will deliver better benefits to them and their families.

We know that 87 per cent of taxpayers in Queensland will get a bigger tax cut under Labor's plan starting on 1 July. We know that 81 per cent of taxpayers in Western Australia will get a bigger tax cut under Labor's plan and 90 per cent of taxpayers in Tasmania will get a bigger tax cut under our plan. Every taxpayer gets a tax cut, and the 90 per cent in Tasmania get a bigger tax cut. Under our plan, every Australian taxpayer—13.6 million Australian taxpayers—will be receiving a tax cut on 1 July. A construction worker on $110,000 a year will get a tax cut of $2,429. A truckie earning $77,000 will get a tax cut of $1,604. An apprentice—one of our desperately needed apprentices—on $53,000 a year will receive a tax cut of $1,000. And, of course, a worker earning $40,000 will get a tax cut of $654, compared to absolutely nothing under those opposite. An Australian on the average income of $73,000 will get a tax cut of $1,504, which is $804 more than they were going to receive under those opposite.

We know, of course, what the opposition would do in relation to these tax cuts. We had the Deputy Leader of the Opposition saying: 'Our position is to roll it back. That is absolutely—'

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