A lift to the tax-free threshold would deliver a tax cut to all income-earning taxpayers and addconsiderable cost to the package,but the Greens’ demand sets up a fight between the government and key crossbench MPs to get the legislation through parliament.
Bandt said the Greens would push the government to do more than make additional changes to its income tax legislation,including increasing the low-income tax offset.
“As it comes to parliament,if the Liberals oppose it then Labor has to work with us. What we’ll be putting on the table is that there’s more that can be done in a cost-of-living crisis for low and middle-income earners,” Bandt said.
Independent senator David Pocock said the changes announced this week made the tax package fairer,and a better fit for the current economic environment.
“I would also like to see the government use the current and expected future surplus to lift the safety net for those doing it hardest and further increase Austudy,JobSeeker and other income support payments,” he said.
Allegra Spender,the independent MP for Wentworth,said the changes meant some of her constituents would get a bigger tax cut,while others would lose out.
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“These changes will have a real impact on take-home incomes in my electorate,so I’m consulting my community for their reaction,” she said.
Albanese said the government would speak with crossbenchers as it works to get the tax changes through parliament,but noted the Coalition has not yet said it would vote against the reform.
“We have put forward what is a calibrated,sensible package,” Albanese said on Friday.
“It has the same costs across the forward estimates,but it is a better package being put forward. And Peter Dutton,of course,has a choice.”
Dutton said the Coalition wanted to understand how much more the altered tax cuts will cost before deciding how to vote.
“But we went to the election with a promise to the Australian people on stage 3 tax cuts. We don’t break our promise in a way that the prime minister has,” he said on Nine’sToday show on Friday morning.
“So,we’ll have a lot more to say about our tax policy,but we need to understand what it is the prime minister’s announced yesterday.”
Cut through the noise of federal politics with news,views and expert analysis from Jacqueline Maley. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletterhere.