John Watson (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Sherry, you have missed the point. The point is that these payments would not have been itemised separately. They would have been included in an overall price. In the absence of correspondence and other documentation, the tax office in any circumstances would find audit activity along the lines that you are suggesting very difficult. I think it is important to clarify these two points. The first point is that the tax office does not have a consumer role in relation to protection of the members of small superannuation funds. The second point is that bribes or facilitation payments are not and have never been tax deductible.