David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to present a supplementary memorandum to the bill.

Leave granted.

I move the government amendment as circulated:

(1) Schedule 1, item 20, page 7 (lines 11 to 13), omit subsection 12 430(2), substitute:

(2) For the purpose of subsection (1):

(a) the construction of the building is taken to have commenced at the time the works on the lowest level (including any basement level) of the building commence; and

(b) the construction of the building is not taken to have commenced merely because works preparing the site for construction, or works undertaken below the lowest level of the building (including any basement level), have commenced.

Tony Smith (Casey, Liberal Party, Deputy Chairman , Coalition Policy Development Committee) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The coalition is supporting this amendment. As the Assistant Treasurer outlined, these flow from the relevant parliamentary committee, of which you, Madam Deputy Speaker O'Neill, are the chair and I am a member. They sought some clarifications that needed to be made, and the government has accepted those.

In the course of speaking on these amendments, with respect to the contribution from the member for Melbourne it needs to be pointed out that his support of the government's legislation in June doubled the relevant tax rate that we have been discussing in this debate from 7.5 to 15 per cent. He claimed credit for this legislation, which reduces the 15 per cent rate to 10 per cent. As we have said, we have not opposed that. The second reading has occurred. It is a tax reduction over and above the tax doubling. But as the member for Flinders pointed out, it is a tax increase from prior to June and it is a tax increase from the government's 7.5 per cent rate, which they introduced—the rate that the Assistant Treasurer says was too low.

The constituents in the electorate of Melbourne need to know of the great triumph of the member for Melbourne in representing that electorate as a member of the Greens—an electorate that has lots of buildings in it. His net contribution has been to increase the relevant tax rate for green buildings. Before the member for Melbourne entered this place the general rate was 7.5 per cent for all buildings. Now, as a result of his dealing with this tax-increasing government, his net contribution has been to increase the rate to 10 per cent for clean buildings, and, of course, the general rate to 15 per cent. In this debate the member for Melbourne is one of those who says he likes to see a lot of sunlight in the debate, and there will certainly be sunlight on this issue.

David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I note the comments of the member for Casey. I also draw attention not to what he said but to what he did not say. I was waiting for him to announce in front of us here today that, if elected, it would be coalition policy to restore the 15 per cent withholding rate to the 7.5 per cent that previously existed under this government. That would be a very significant contribution from a person who was a part of a government that, when they left government, left the rate at 30 per cent. But it is, of course, becoming commonplace in these debates that those opposite, conscious of the importance of us running a tight budget, jump up and down, whinge and complain but when it comes to the crunch you do not hear any announcement from them that they are going to restore the position as it was. In fact, perhaps the member for Casey would like to make such an announcement.

I am sure that the stakeholders that he referred to in his comments would very much welcome that contribution, but I would also suggest to the Australian people that, if one is listening to this debate, the absence of a commitment of that nature shows that this party, which in government delivered a 30 per cent rate, not 15 per cent and not the 10 per cent that we are debating today, is not serious about cutting rates. Of course, these rates relate to foreign investors and the contributions that they make to investment in Australia and the tax rates relate to the return that they receive. We believe 10 per cent in relation to clean buildings and 15 per cent in other respects is an appropriate balance. That is what we think strikes the balance appropriately.

Question agreed to.

Bill, as amended, agreed to.