Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Why has the government decided not to proceed with Labor's measures to repeal section 25-90, reforms to the offshore banking unit regime and other measures, that will cost the budget $1.1 billion?

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am happy to answer that question.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, the question was to the Prime Minister.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, I am able to take it. Don't fear.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for McMahon knows perfectly that under the standing orders it can be redirected.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister is absolutely right to be exasperated at the contemptuous hypocrisy of the Labor Party. When we came into government we were presented with 93 announced tax changes by Labor that were never legislated.

Ms Owens interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Parramatta will desist.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One of those included a crackdown on R&D rorts by business to the tune of $1.1 billion. Labor announced that and we thought, 'It is right to go after businesses that are rorting the R&D tax changes,' so we introduced the legislation to deal with it.

Opposition members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The members for Charlton and Wakefield will desist.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And you know what? The Labor Party opposed their own legislation. There is something magical about $1.1 billion, isn't there? The Labor Party cannot get tax right. We know that. The mining tax—what a monumental disaster that was. And there is the architect over there—well actually the architect is over in Perth as well.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. With great respect to the Treasurer, it was a detailed question in relation to section 25-90—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat. I remind the member for McMahon that, when you use the rhetoric that you do in question after question, it broadens the base of the question.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I rise on the point of order. You have consistently made a ruling that when we have rhetoric attached to a question the answer is allowed to be broader. No claim can be made that this question is anything other than a question of detail. There is not a single word of rhetoric within this question—not one.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, that is a matter of interpretation. The member will resume his seat.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Listen to the answer. Sit down.

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer has the call.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So there is something magical about $1.1 billion. Labor are voting against their own announced policy in relation to saving the budget $1.1 billion in relation to taxation abuse by major companies. The second thing is in relation to thin capitalisation, which is one of the issues that have previously been raised. The Labor Party said they want to do something about thin cap rules. We said there is some legitimacy to that but, when we asked the Treasury for advice on the impact of the announced but never legislated changes by Labor, Treasury advised us that it was going to punish Australian companies that wanted to expand offshore even when they were prohibited by competition policy from expanding in Australia. That is classic Labor.

Mr Conroy interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Charlton is warned!

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They make announcements, but they can never deliver in relation to tax policy. So we introduced legislation to crack down on thin capitalisation rules for larger businesses. That legislation has now passed through the House of Representatives and it has passed through the Senate. It is awaiting royal assent. The fundamental principle here is this: whenever the Labor Party talk about tax they screw it up, whether it be the mining tax, which was meant to bring bountiful money into the coffers of the Commonwealth and it delivered 2½c per Australian, whether it be the carbon tax, which was an absolute disaster for Australian business—and we got rid of that—or whether it be a raft of changes announced in the last budget that Labor never had the guts to legislate because they never could. They could not deliver on their words.