Abbott Government to deliver message that tax reform imminent — either higher GST or hike in income tax

    Renee Viellaris
    The Courier-Mail
    July 04, 2014


AUSTRALIANS will be softened up in the coming months to accept changes to the GST or face paying more income tax.

The Federal Treasury Department has exclusively told The Courier-Mail that if Australians wanted to keep receiving government services they needed to make a choice – pay more income and company tax or take more pain at the bowser and supermarkets.      




“If Australians continue to demand/expect the same or a greater level of services from government, revenue to fund these services will need to be found from somewhere,’’ a Treasury spokesman said.


“If we do not change our tax mix, Australians will need to pay more income tax. That is, given we are seeing a decline in the proportion of indirect taxes (such as) excises and the GST, and absent any other tax changes, income taxation will need to be larger.’’

The comments have gone further than the speech by Treasury Secretary Martin Parkinson to the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies on Wednesday.

Dr Parkinson urged for tax reform, signalling without change the system could have dire consequences for the states and the public. Speculation is mounting the Abbott Government’s white papers on tax and federation reform, due by the end of next year, will include broadening the GST, and encouraging the states to dump inefficient taxes such as stamp duty.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann told The Courier-Mail yesterday revenue had to be raised the most efficient way.



“We are also committed to a review of our tax system to ensure government revenue is raised in the most efficient way possible,’’ he said.


A spokeswoman for the Newman Government said, “The Premier has made it clear he believes Australians pay enough tax”.

“His push is to ensure a fair share of the tax Queenslanders pay comes back to the state to fund the infrastructure and services a growing state needs.’’

Dr Parkinson hinted in his speech on Wednesday that the public would be regularly massaged about the need for broader-based taxes.

He said without conscious change the economic cost of raising tax from the current tax mix would increase.

“For the community to embrace change in this area, the case for reform has to be compelling and well understood.

“Reform proposals should highlight medium-term economic pay-offs (such as) the positive impacts they will have on individual effort, investment and growth.’’
Originally published as Higher GST or income tax hike — you choose

Depends on what those 'government services' are they are discussing.  I get the more than distinct feeling that there are indeed some areas of 'government services' we could do without.

This is the same bullshit line offered by Scandal Newman in Queenslund -

>  we can sell off the farm

>  we can raise taxes

>  we can cut services

Not one word about generating revenue by putting people back into work and reducing their own expenditure on non-items, not one word about unnecessary politician perks that go on for life, not one word about overpriced public servants and 'privatised' corporations such as the submarine thing.... all digging deep enough into the public purse to feed 100-200 pensioners or unemployed at least.... and all just jobs for the cronies in reality.

Disgusting.

We need a REAL commission of audit and not the Ideas of March commission of idiots.

Cancel free trade deals that do not benefit us, impose a proper taxation regime on resources investment and a proper taxation regime on development, cancel the perks of the rich, mandatory local investment percentage in all such resource developments... you know the list by now....

I say boot the lot out now and let's start again....

has anyone ever asked..

can we eat our cake and have it too.??..

thats the way aussies think..

the real saying is..

you cannot have your cake

and eat it too...

get real we want more and more and more.....
but we want to do less and less to get it..

and we also dont want to pay for it...

$7 for a doctor visit... to save god knows how many from terminal illness...

and the world comes crashing in...

we are a nasty greedy  grabbing b unch of parasites.

We don't want a $7 GP co payment.  Mr Abbott, we don't want your doctor tax.      

cods wrote on Jul 4^th, 2014 at 6:36am:


Yes the Ochlocrats are indeed out in force with their sticky noses in the public trough.

Clive, the Greens, Labor are all offering political boiled lollies to con them over.



Suckers for pork barrelling.....



Clive, the Greens and Labor all want to sweep debt under the carpet so that future generations have to pay for it.   

The net tax-payer is in the minority.  The net tax payer is under represented in the parliament. 

The net tax-payers are slaves to the Ochlocrats, the eco-socialists and the bums. 

"The Federal Treasury Department has exclusively told The Courier-Mail that if Australians wanted to keep receiving government services they needed to make a choice – pay more income and company tax or take more pain at the bowser and supermarkets.  "

If that's true the head of dept should be made resign. That's an example of public servants making political statements in the press.

That's one issue, but making purposely misleading and self servicing political statements is a hanging offense - hang the bastard  .

The issue is the broadening gap between revenue and expenditure. And the govt  can close the gap in a number of ways other than more taxes including a broader and more equitable tax base - get rid of many of the concessions.

OldnCrusty wrote on Jul 4^th, 2014 at 10:29am:



That is not a political statement. A political statement would say "only the Coalition will do that for you'" or "only Labor can do it for you".

That statement is reality. You choose your level of taxation and budget for that level of taxation. You want more from your taxes- you have to increase them.

OldnCrusty wrote on Jul 4^th, 2014 at 10:34am:


The message is the same Crustyone.

Quote:


They didn't add going into more debt by paying the bills with the credit card.....