Category: Tax / Government and Politics / Business, Economics and Finance

Morrison reveals company tax cut 'blowout'

14:44 UTC+8 May 11, 2017 | Henry Belot

The Federal Government's full company tax plan will cost the budget more than $15 billion per year once fully implemented.

The revised figures were outlined by Treasurer Scott Morrison during Question Time, prompting Labor MPs to accuse the Government of a multi-billion-dollar blowout.

In May last year, Treasury secretary John Fraser told a Senate hearing the cost of cutting taxes for all businesses to 25 per cent would cost $48.2 billion over the 2016-27 period.

But Mr Morrison has revised that figure to $65.4 billion for the decade starting a year later, on July 1, 2017 (2017-28).

The increase takes into account forecast economic growth and increasing company tax profits, which would be paid if the tax cut is not passed for all businesses.

The Government has already passed the first tranche of the tax cuts for businesses with an annual turnover of up to $50 million, in exchange for energy reviews and one-off payments for pensioners.

It has committed to passing the tax cuts for all businesses at a later stage.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten called on Government to explain how it would fund a $65 billion "corporate tax give-away" and accused the Government of having five different versions of the total cost.

But Mr Turnbull sought to "clear up what appeared to be some confusion", saying the tax cuts had been fully funded and insisted the budget would return to surplus in 2020/21.

The Prime Minister accused Mr Shorten of persistently and desperately misrepresenting his statements on the total cost of the plan.

"He asked me what the tax plan was from its beginning, from 2016," he said.

"Then he asked me what it cost over 10 years from 2017.

"In each case he was given the accurate answer".

Mr Shorten will use his budget reply speech tonight to argue the Government is taxing middle Australia, while providing tax cuts to companies and millionaires.

More to come.



 

Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

沪公网安备 31010602000204号

Email this to your friend