Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

The government will be supporting the amendments. The amendments represent longstanding Labor policy and we appreciate the Greens' assistance, and eagerness, in working with us on delivering our policy commitment to tax transparency.

The amendments remove grandfathering arrangements that exempt certain large proprietary companies from submitting audited annual reports to ASIC. There is no clear economic or policy reason for continuing this exemption. The amendments will remove the exemption, improving transparency and removing an information asymmetry between exempt proprietary companies and their competitors who were not grandfathered. Removal of this was recommended by the Senate Economics References Committee in 2015 and in subsequent reports in 2016 and 2018.

We believe there was no clear economic or policy reason for continuing this exemption in 2015, when senators from the Greens political party, I'm advised, voted against the exact same amendments, as moved by Senator Ricky Muir. We appreciate that, in this case, the Greens have decided to change their position and vote in accordance with this amendment. The government, unlike our predecessors, will always stand up for greater transparency and accountability.