Sarah Henderson (Corangamite, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to join with the member for Corio in giving him support on the issues he has raised in this grievance debate. The opt-out option for those who are waiting on the transplant list I think is a very good initiative. I fully support the efforts to fundraise for the Geelong peacekeeping memorial. I also salute Michael Collins Persse, who is a real legend in Geelong but also, I think, more broadly in education in this country. Certainly it's a very sad day for the Geelong Grammar and broader Geelong community.

Regrettably for the member for Corio, who is still in the chamber, I have to end the congratulations there, because I want to turn to the announcement that Labor made today that it is going to reverse our company tax cuts for any company with a turnover of $10 million or more. That's fundamentally very disappointing. As we know, it was only a few years ago that Labor supported company tax cuts. The Leader of the Opposition, no less, is on the record very strongly supporting company tax cuts. In March 2012, he said:

Any student of Australian business and economic history since the mid-80s, knows part of Australia's success was derived through the reduction in the company tax rate.

He also said:

Cutting the company income tax rate increases domestic productivity and domestic investment. More capital means higher productivity and economic growth and leads to more jobs and higher wages.

That was in August 2011. As we know, the shadow Treasurer has written a book about this very topic, advocating in 2013 that cutting company taxes was 'a Labor thing'. Well, what a shame that we have seen this unprincipled reversal of Labor's position. If Labor were ever to be elected—and let's all keep our fingers and toes crossed that that never happens, for the sake of this nation—we know that that would drive more jobs offshore and drive our nation backwards. The member for Corio is a very close friend of the Leader of the Opposition; they work hand in hand in the same faction. It's very disappointing that the member for Corio did not counsel the Leader of the Opposition on this very regressive policy. I believe he's failed in his fundamental duty to put Geelong businesses and workers first.

Not only has Labor committed to ripping the Turnbull government's personal income tax cuts away from nine million Australians; Labor has now made a commitment to hit 20,000 businesses, employing 1.5 million Australians, with a tax sledgehammer. This is really going to hurt many businesses in my region that I proudly represent—businesses like Cotton On, Viva Energy, Air Radiators and many others—who turn over more than $10 million. What I think Labor has failed to appreciate is that a turnover of $10 million does not represent a profit of $10 million. A company with a turnover of $10 million may be making a profit of just a few hundred thousand dollars. So, fundamentally, Labor has really missed the mark.

Just half an hour ago, I was talking about Labor's plan to some businesspeople in my electorate who work in the surf industry in Torquay. Universally, they said: 'This is crazy stuff. This is absolutely crazy. Doesn't the Labor Party understand that cutting company tax puts us on a better footing to employ more people to grow our business and to grow the local economy?' Last year, of course, the Leader of the Opposition said, at a Business Council of Australia function, that he was going to declare war on business. That's a shocking proposition, and that's why the member for Grayndler has hit out so strongly against that principle. The Leader of the Opposition has declared war on business. It's got even worse today. It's very disappointing that the member for Corio has joined with the Leader of the Opposition in declaring war on so many successful Geelong and Corangamite businesses which employ hundreds and hundreds of people. I do condemn the member for Corio for the stance that he has taken, which is incredibly regrettable.

We are really, really proud of our policy to drive down the company tax rate for all companies across this nation to 25 per cent. If we don't do this, we won't be competitive on the global market. As the Treasurer has said and the Prime Minister has said today—

Honourable Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Andrew Gee (Calare, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The member is entitled to be heard in silence, so please show due professional respect and courtesy.

Sarah Henderson (Corangamite, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We're incredibly proud of our focus on driving down company tax for all companies across this nation. Yes, there are certainly some issues with many companies. We know some companies, including the banks, have done the wrong thing. We have a very strong regime of laws of enforcement and penalties—criminal laws, in some cases—to hold to account any company in this nation which does the wrong thing, but we should not be using tax policy to do that. As the Treasurer said in question time today, already we have imposed a levy on the banks which is raising a couple of billion dollars a year, and that's important reform, along with the many other reforms that we have made in the banking and financial services sector.

The member opposite referred to penalty rates. I think it's important to put on the record that the Labor Party, again, in a very unprincipled move, is now trying to unwind the Fair Work Commission—the very industrial relations system it put into place. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition, in another unprincipled move, reverse a position that he previously held very strongly. Perhaps the most alarming decision that has been made in relation to penalty rates is the infamous Cleanevent deal agreed to by the Leader of the Opposition in 2006, when workers were stripped of their penalty rates in a very grubby deal that the Leader of the Opposition did—

An opposition member: It's called enterprise bargaining.

oh, there's justification for it?—driving down the hourly rate for Cleanevent workers, without their knowledge, from $50 an hour to $18 an hour. The interjection from opposite was, 'That's enterprise bargaining.' No, that's not enterprise bargaining; that's wage theft. We've seen many other sleazy deals that unions have entered into, particularly the shoppies union. For instance, at McDonald's, young people working weekends for three years would be $15,000 worse off compared to the award rate; at Big W, they would be some $13,400 worse off—both deals done by the SDA. At Woolworths they would be over $9,600 worse off, and at KFC they would be over $13,000 worse off compared to the award. These are some of the sleazy deals that were done between the unions, endorsed by Labor. But, of course, as we know, the worst possible deal was done by the Leader of the Opposition himself, hitting some of the most vulnerable workers in our community, who, as I've made very clear, were not informed about what happened to their hourly rate of pay.

I want to place on the record very strongly my pride in our government, which is standing up for workers, driving investment across the economy and driving down company tax. There was previous bipartisan agreement on this very important policy for our nation, and Labor has deserted this, like they've deserted their own industrial relations system that they set up. We now know that with the announcement today another 20,000 businesses, employing 1.5 million Australians, will be hit. I condemn Labor and again I reiterate my very strong support and pride in our government for driving jobs growth and investment and the growth of this economy.