David Bushby (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Finance, Senator Cormann. Can the minister update the Senate on the government's plans to facilitate the successful transition of the Australian economy from recent resource investment driven growth to broader drivers of growth in a more diverse economy?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Bushby for a policy related question. The Turnbull government is getting on with the job of implementing our national economic plan for jobs and growth. Our economy is an economy in transition. After a period of unprecedented and historic record investment in construction activity related to our resource sector, we do need to transition into a more diversified economy with broader drivers of growth. A key component of our national economic plan for jobs and growth is to ensure that our tax system is more growth friendly.

Today the Senate voted to pass the Turnbull government's personal income tax cuts: tax cuts for hard-working families across Australia providing incentive for 3.1 million hard-working Australians to work harder and make that extra effort without being penalised by a higher tax burden. We would like to thank the Labor opposition, One Nation and other representatives in the Senate for joining in with the Liberal-National Party government's commitment for lower taxes for hard-working families. But there is more work to be done in order to ensure that our economy can successfully transition to a stronger, more diversified economy. We need to ensure that we have a more competitive business tax rate. We need to ensure that the parliament and the Senate also pass our Ten Year Enterprise Tax Plan, which will deliver tax cuts initially for 3.2 million small businesses that employ 5.5 million Australians. All businesses with an annual turnover of less than $10 million would, of course, benefit from a reduced corporate tax rate of 27.5 per cent from 1 July 2016 onwards, and over time that would be rolled out to more and more enterprises and larger businesses. (Time expired)

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Bushby, your supplementary question.

David Bushby (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Can the minister explain how the enterprise tax plan will stimulate investment, especially by small- and medium-sized businesses, in new jobs, higher wages and improved living standards for hard-working Australians.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is well understood by all credible economists that a lower, more competitive business tax rate will help attract additional investment into business activity in Australia. It will help to boost productivity. It will help to generate more jobs. And, over time, it will help to increase real wages. 'Do not take my word for it'—that is what the opposition leader, Bill Shorten, used to say. That is what the shadow Treasurer, Chris Bowen, used to say. That is what the shadow assistant Treasurer, Andrew Leigh, used to say. That is what Paul Keating used to say—and, indeed, that is what Paul Keating actually did. We know that for purely base political reasons—in the shadow of an election—the Labor Party took a different view, in the context of this election, but we call on the Labor Party to reconsider the national interest and to reflect on what they stood for in the past. In the past none other than Bill Shorten, Chris Bowen and, indeed, Senator Wong argued that a lower, more competitive business tax rate will help attract investment and generate more jobs. (Time expired)

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Bushby, a final supplementary question.

David Bushby (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. Can the minister update the Senate on any other measures the government is pursuing to create jobs and improve living standards for all Australians?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Turnbull government's efforts to make our tax system more growth friendly are of course only one component of an overall national economic plan. It also includes our commitment to support innovation and start-up businesses. It includes our very comprehensive Defence industry plan, which supports local high-end manufacturing, and which is competently led and implemented by my very good friend and colleague Senator Payne and her colleague, and our colleague, Minister Pyne.

We are continuing to roll out export trade deals with key countries around the world in order to help facilitate—in order to help Australian exporting businesses sell more Australian products and services into key markets around the world, helping to generate more jobs and, of course, drive stronger growth. Our record investment in productivity-enhancing infrastructure—all of these—our deregulation focus and, of course, Senator Sinodinos led the charge in relation to that— (Time expired)