Matt Thistlethwaite (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

In fact, Senator Williams, during the global financial crisis when debt markets were frozen, when access to liquidity was difficult to come by, it was Australian superannuation funds that were invested in businesses, many in the mining industry. CBus, the construction industry superannuation fund, is one big investor in BHP and Rio. They are putting back into the mining industry, ensuring that there are sufficient investment funds for growth. Those opposite always oppose superannuation and up until a few weeks ago, they were opposing the increases in the superannuation guarantee from nine to 12 per cent being funded by this important reform. These reforms are supported broadly by the funds management industry and by the superannuation industry. A recent report by the Allen Consulting Group—a very enlightening insight into the state of superannuation in this country—highlights the fact that the increase from nine per cent to 12 per cent over the course of the next eight years will increase our nation's gross domestic product, our income, by 0.33 per cent to 2025. That means in 2010 dollars there will be an extra $5.4 billion in our economy because of this reform. That $5.4 billion will fund the retirement incomes of working Australians and provide an important pool of investment sources for business growth.

The other aspect of the revenue generated from this reform will be to provide assistance to companies in the form of an instant asset write-off, increasing from $1,000 to $6,500 over the course of the coming year. That will benefit 2.7 million small businesses throughout the country. The company tax rate will fall from 30 per cent to 29 per cent, funded by the minerals resource rent tax revenue—again, opposed by those opposite, those who claim to be advocates and supporters of the growth of small businesses.

We have often heard of the infrastructure bottlenecks that exist in our economy. The revenue generated from this tax reform will ensure that we invest in rural and regional communities, most notably in freight lines and overcoming bottlenecks associated with port infrastructure. Overwhelmingly, the revenue used from this tax will ensure a more healthy, stable economy into the future. It will boost retirement incomes, which is important for our ageing population, and it will provide tax breaks for small businesses. What a great shame that the mighty Liberal Party, the party of the free market, of business enterprise, of government getting out of the way, is opposing these reforms that will provide a big boost to retirement incomes, secure our economic growth into the future and ensure assistance for small businesses in our economy.

Those opposite come into this place and seek to make points about modelling. Senator Cormann made some comments about the modelling associated with this. Indeed, he has been one of the principal opposition critics of the Treasury modelling on the carbon price. Let us have a look at the Liberal Party's record on modelling. At the last election they refused to submit their election costings to independent expert analysis. Why was that? When they did, the costings came up $11 billion short—an $11 billion black hole. They said that they had their costings independently audited by a group of auditors from the North Shore of Sydney who signed off on them. When we had a look at the costings, we saw that those auditors would not give an unqualified audit of the Liberal Party's election costings. Yet the Liberal Party comes in here and criticises the government's modelling, when all the facts associated with the carbon price and this important reform are on the table.

We have had leaks from the shadow cabinet which indicate that there will be cuts of $70 billion to services under a coalition government. Then we had the almighty backflip on occupational superannuation a couple of weeks ago when the shadow finance minister Andrew Robb was not told that the coalition would not repeal the increases in superannuation. This will add an extra $12 billion to their budget bottom line costings. Ours is a sensible reform, it is costed and the Australian public needs it. (Time expired)