Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

On the point of order, there is broad latitude given by the chair to allow us to cross areas such as those I am talking about. I am talking about tax and tax avoidance and I am talking about this government's lack of ability to hold a proper tax debate. But I am happy to listen to your ruling and come back to the point.

We have been talking about this government not having a plan for how they are going to implement the Common Reporting Standard. Today they want us to pass legislation and wait this huge time for the changes to be delivered. The reason they want to wait this huge time is that ultimately Mr Turnbull likes jetting around the world rather than putting his shoulder to the wheel to come up with a vision for Australia. The same can be said about Mr Morrison. The Tax Laws Amendment (Implementation of the Common Reporting Standard) Bill is a good example of where they just want to kick the can down the road and hope that it is implemented in three or four years time. It is the same plan Mr Morrison has—he does not have a plan today, I think he said at the Press Club; he said he would show us a few graphs and kick the can down the road, and 'Trust me, we will come up with a plan in due course.'

The rubber hits the road between now and the budget. It is remiss of this government not to consider how they are going to explain to the public what their plan is or is not. They have a steering wheel but the engine is not even running. This government does not have a purpose, apart from it apparently being the most exciting time to be an Australian, which is just a slightly longer catchphrase than Mr Abbott's 'stop the boats'. This government continues to be devoid of ideas, including how it is going to implement its tax policy. I think it is even devoid of a plan to implement the Tax Laws Amendment (Implementation of the Common Reporting Standard) Bill. When you look around the world, it is evident that this government has completely failed to explain, in a succinct and sensible way, why it can take so long for the implementation of tax administration in this country.

The Common Reporting Standard for the automatic exchange of financial accounting information is ultimately a good thing. It will ensure the collection of financial account information, it will ensure the reporting of that information to the jurisdiction's tax authority, and it will ensure the exchange of that information with the respective tax authorities of the nonresidents. All in all, it is beneficial. What is concerning are the time frames for implementation, as I have outlined, but ultimately this legislation underpins this government's inability to act quickly, decisively and with purpose. This bill highlights the inadequacy of this government to deliver anything. It concerns me that, when you look at their phrases, they will have a tax plan but they will rule out everything and anything they can possibly think is contentious. Ultimately, at the end of the day, they will not have a plan and they will simply use catchphrases such as Australia is a great place to live and why shouldn't you vote for the coalition. This bill highlights exactly the reason you would not vote for the coalition, why you would not continue to support the coalition. They do not have a plan for how to implement the international legal framework underpinning the CRS and countries covered by it. With the completion of those few words, I will allow the government time to answer the earlier questions I raised.