Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, it is the tax act. Senator Coonan is trying to assist. I am at a loss to explain something that is as straightforward as that. Maybe I am just doing it really badly, Senator Milne, and if I am I apologise. But self-assessment is self-assessment. If you sign a document that legally says, ‘Here is what my opinion is,’ and it is subsequently discovered that you have falsely declared that, you are fined. That is the way self-assessment works. Once again, I apologise if I am not explaining it clearly, but I am not sure that I am going to be able to explain it any more clearly than that.