Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Hansard source

That's a very important question. We knew in April, when we delivered the budget, that we were facing these global economic headwinds. We knew about some of the downside risks in the domestic economy, and that is, of course, why we put forward a balanced and disciplined economic plan to support our economy and create jobs by delivering lower taxes. The Senate has helped pass $300 billion of income tax relief, putting more money into the pockets of hardworking Australians and ensuring that hardworking Australians have a higher amount of take-home pay—something the Labor Party clearly is not interested in. The tax cuts are already flowing through. More than $20 billion in tax refunds have been put back into the pockets of hardworking Australians over the past 2½ months. Our plan also backs small and medium sized businesses. We have reduced the corporate tax rate for small and medium sized businesses with a turnover of up to $50 million. Indeed, providing— (Time expired)