John Murphy (Lowe, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs and Minister for Small Business, Independent Contractors and the Service Economy, Dr Emerson. Will the minister advise the House of the impact of paid parental leave proposals on consumer prices?

Government Member:

No more Mr Nice Guy.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The cheer squad will quieten down.

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have been urged that there be no more Mr Nice Guy. I will do my best, Mr Speaker, to be as nice as I possibly can to the opposition. I thank the member for Lowe for his kind question and his concern for consumers in Strathfield, in Burwood and in all the suburbs in the inner-west of Sydney, including—I understand—the good people of Five Dock, and all those consumers about whom the Australian people and the Labor Party care but, of course, about whom the opposition has no interest and no compassion.

In response to the member for Lowe’s question, the government’s paid parental leave scheme is funded from the budget and involves no increase in taxation to be passed on to consumers. On the other hand, the coalition’s paid parental scheme is funded by a 1.7 percentage point slug in the company tax rate for larger companies. As the Treasurer pointed out, this is a $10.8 billion great big new tax to be passed on by large companies. This was confirmed today by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, when Greg Evans said that “the impact of a new tax or levy imposed on businesses cannot be quarantined and these changes end up having an impact on overall prices and employment”.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is right and the coalition is wrong. Yet the opposition leader persists with his argument that Australia’s largest companies would absorb this great big new tax. Hello, Leader of the Opposition? What planet are you on that you believe that Australia’s largest companies—Woolworths, Coles, BP, Shell, Mobil, Caltex—through the goodness of their hearts and in the national interest will absorb this great big new tax and say, ‘We’re not going to pass that onto consumers’?

Obviously the opposition leader is again treating the Australian people like mugs. Every working Australian and every young mother knows that these large companies will pass this tax hike on in the form of higher consumer prices, higher grocery prices, higher petrol prices and higher department store prices. We know that, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry knows that—and guess who else knows it? Well, it is my melancholy duty to advise the House that the member for O’Connor knows that, because he said today that it is a tax on profits and that if Coles and Woolworths intend to put up their prices they will increase their profits and they will therefore pay more tax from that particular arrangement.

I do not quite understand what he is going on about. It is sort of ‘Abbottonomics’ but as I far as I can understand, he says there will be this perpetual cycle of tax increases, increased profits and then further price increases. But his neighbour sitting there, the member for Triton, has actually come in and supported, as he should, the member for O’Connor because he said today that it is an impost on industry and that, any impost will ultimately flow through to consumers. That is a fact. I do not often agree with the member for Triton but on this occasion he is right.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The minister will refer to members by their parliamentary titles.

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Tangney; thank you, Mr Speaker. On this occasion the member for Tangney is right: of course it will be passed on to consumers. By conceding that grocery and petrol prices will go up, the coalition’s mad uncle and the member for Tangney have let the cat out of the bag. They have let the cat out of the bag again—and what a dirty, smelly animal it is! The Leader of the Opposition’s paid parental leave scheme is nothing but a great big new tax on everything.

This is an opposition leader who feigns concern for working families and mothers. It is a funny way to show your concern for working families and mothers—to whack them with a great big new tax on everything. The government’s paid parental leave scheme is affordable and it is responsible. If the opposition leader was fair dinkum he would support our responsible, affordable paid parental leave scheme instead of his great big new tax on everything.

Wilson Tuckey (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I raise a point of order. I ask that the minister table that document so I can better read his interpretation of my comments.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Was the minister quoting from a document?

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I pretty well winged it, Mr Speaker.