Greens push millionaires' tax to spare single parents

Date
    December 29, 2012


THE Greens' proposed ''millionaires' tax'' increase of 5¢ in the dollar would generate at least $790 million over three years, according to a Treasury costing of the policy.

The party has thrown down the gauntlet to Labor, arguing that a boost to the top tax rate on income above $1 million from 45 to 50 per cent would raise enough money to restore payments to single parents cut in this year's budget.    

The revenue boost could be higher, closer to $500 million a year, but Treasury has assumed some people on high incomes will not earn as much if their top tax rate is lifted.

The acting leader of the Greens, Adam Bandt, compared the money raised by the tax increase to a similar amount saved by the government when it cut payments to some single parents, which take effect from the start of next year.


''What possible justification could Labor have for hurting single parents and yet not touching millionaires? The Treasurer said he's been listening to Bruce Springsteen but he must've been listening to the records backwards.''

This is the second Greens policy to be costed by Treasury's Parliamentary Budget Office, established by the government as a price of securing the Greens' support in Parliament.    

The party plans to release at least two dozen more policies in time for the next election.

This week, it announced a party platform portraying many core beliefs as ''aims and principles'' rather than explicit policies, in a bid to present a smaller target to critics.

The tax increase would bring the top marginal rate to a level it previously sat at in 1987, but would affect only about 8000 people listed by the Australian Taxation Office as recording yearly incomes above $1 million. The expected revenue would double from about $800 million to $1.6 billion in the next four years if Treasury dropped its assumption of ''tax-income elasticity'', which says that growth in tax revenue will fall if tax rates are lifted.

The Greens are framing the policy in the context of cuts that kick in next week to single parents. From January 1, single parents on the parenting payment with a youngest child over the age of eight will be moved onto the lower Newstart allowance, costing them about $60 a week. The measure will save the government about $700 million in the next four years, but it has been criticised by the welfare sector and by some backbench Labor MPs.

The Gillard government argues the benefit of the measure is in encouraging parents back into the workforce.

Mr Bandt said: ''If the government is wanting to improve the budget position by somewhere around $300 million a year, it has a choice: it could either increase taxes on the wealthiest Australians or it could hurt single parents.''    

In the 1950s, our top marginal tax rate was 75 per cent. It was above 65 per cent for most of the '60s, and was above 60 per cent for most of the '70s and '80s. It now sits at 45 per cent for each additional dollar earned above $180,000 a year.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/national/greens-push-millionaires-tax-to-spare-single-parents-20121228-2bzeo.html#ixzz2GNQHk64K

I have no problem with that proposal at all. That's exactly how it should be.

You've never been one for rewarding success though have you Comrade?

Yes Andrei I know, its terrible that millionaires should pay more tax.  It makes me very upset.    

Imcrook, the Greens would see us all pay more tax and have a higher cost of living.

They are fringe dwelling nut bags.

Just like labor, the greens have voted in far too expensive and wasteful policy.

Typical that it would want more taxes as labor do. Maybe the greens could be economically responsible instead of putting their hand out for more taxes. I will not hold my breath.

adelcrow wrote on Dec 29^th, 2012 at 6:47am:


The Greens would have my demographic, the working middle income family on higher tax.
That's stated fact.

so we can spend $50B on an NBN, $17B on school halls (wanted, needed or niether) umpteen billion on an unfunded NDIS and yet the argument is about a tax on a relative few which will raise next to bugger-all in the schem of things???

another dopey Greens policy which as usual fails to meet the actual need.