Carbon tax price impact adds up to nothing much, according to Wayne Swan's shopping list

    by: Rob Kidd
    From: The Courier-Mail
    January 01, 2013


WAYNE Swan's maths may have been questioned when he predicted a Budget surplus - but when it comes to the carbon tax, things are adding up.    

On July 1, the day the controversial tax was introduced, the Federal Treasurer revealed amid much fanfare that the price of everyday items had not increased overnight.

Brandishing a box of Weet-Bix, which Opposition Leader Tony Abbott claimed would cost more under the tax, and a lamb roast, he asked: "Does anyone seriously think this (lamb) is going to go to $100 any time in the next month, two months, three months? Or that the price of Weet-Bix is going to double?"

The Courier-Mail yesterday repeated Mr Swan's shopping spree at his local Woolworths in Nundah to see what had changed six months on. The answer: not a lot.    


The treasury had predicted a "modest impact" on prices but yesterday's bill was 30 cents cheaper than in July.

While some items had increased a few cents, others were slightly cheaper. The price of Weet-Bix did not change.

Mr Swan was on leave yesterday but acting Treasurer David Bradbury told The Courier-Mail it was "further evidence Tony Abbott's shameless scare campaign on pricing pollution was complete and utter nonsense".
Wayne Swan.    



"When we brought in our Clean Energy Future reforms we were very clear that we didn't want to increase the cost of living for hard-working families, which is why we put in place a comprehensive package of tax cuts and family support," he said.    

"Of course, these tax cuts and family support will all be scrapped by Tony Abbott if he comes to office - a mindless example of putting negative politics ahead of families."    

Mr Swan said on July 1 the carbon tax would see average cost rises of 0.7 per cent, with many households receiving financial assistance to cover the increase.

In August, Mr Abbott admitted the introduction of the carbon tax had not immediately been "catastrophic". However, he likened its impact to a "python squeeze rather than a cobra strike".

"But it is going to hurt from day one and as time goes by it's just going to get worse and worse and worse," he said previously. He reaffirmed his commitment to abolishing the tax yesterday should the Coalition be elected this year.

Writing in The Courier-Mail, he said: "If elected this year, the Coalition will reduce the pressure on family budgets by abolishing the carbon tax."

And there are the vestiges of Abbott's economic credibility sinking without trace.

adelcrow wrote on Jan 1^st, 2013 at 7:17am:


It's unforgivable that he deliberately over cooked the impact of the carbon tax. At best he has no understanding of how the economy works, at worst he deliberately tried to talk down the economy for political gain.

Do any of his fanbois have evidence of his ability to make sound economic decisions.

adelcrow wrote on Jan 1^st, 2013 at 6:54am:


along with the billions in compensation while energy prices continue to rise.

The plan is to keep the compensation, just to remove the mechanism that pays for it.

We end up paying for our own compensation and the compensation to the polluters out of our tax dollars.

Abbotts plan means that instead of the polluters paying for our compensation we pay for there's and it all comes out of our tax, A real carbon tax that we will all be paying for in order to help out the polluters.

Dnarever wrote on Jan 1^st, 2013 at 8:10am:


I agree..an unfunded splash of cash directed at our biggest polluters and rapidly increasing energy prices...this is Abbotts plan so no one should expect relief when the price on carbon is scraped..in fact expect the opposite.

Maqqa wrote on Jan 1^st, 2013 at 8:11am:


It's obvious that you have no idea Gumpy ....