20 May, 2013
SKY NEWS AM AGENDA
With KIERAN GILBERT AND SENATOR MATT THISTLETHWAITE
20 May 2013
8:30am
E & OE
Subjects: Federal Budget, GST, Education
KIERAN GILBERT:
Thanks for your company this Monday morning and joining me now from Melbourne is the Shadow Minister for Disabilities Senator Mitch Fifield and in the Sky News centre the Minister, the Parliamentary Secretary I should say, for foreign affairs Senator Matt Thistlethwaite. Gents thank you for being there this morning. I want to ask you first of all Senator Fifield about this poll that shows a majority of people, nearly 70% of people surveyed in the Neilson poll think scrapping the baby bonus was a good idea, what do you make of that, and should that move have happened sooner?
MITCH FIFIELD:
Well Kieran the important thing to be reminded of when it comes to family payments and the baby bonus is that this government have consistently broken their word. We have the FTBA commitments from the last budget which didn’t see it through to this budget. So I think there is some cynicism out there about the Government whenever they make a commitment about the family tax benefits for families or baby bonuses. What is behind the public thinking in that poll, I’m not too sure, maybe they assume that with this government you can basically say goodbye to decent family payments regardless.
KIERAN GILBERT:
It does look like the Coalition might go further according to the Financial Review today its suggesting that the Coalition might not only support the scrapping of the baby bonus but then if you win in September as the polls suggest you will, scrap that additional payment in the family tax benefit system which was a 2000 dollar and 1000 dollar payment for subsequent children, it looks like the Coalition might take that ball and run with it?
MITCH FIFIELD:
Well Kieran each Labor budget has been a work of fiction and that’s equally true when it comes to announcements in relation to Family Tax Benefit Part A. We will have a plan for family payments and that will be detailed but you’ve also got to bear in mind Kieran that any commitments that this government makes and look they’ve morphed part of the FTBA from the baby bonus. You’ve got to assume if this government was re-elected that they wouldn’t follow through. That before the next election they would say gee forget what we said last budget we’ve changed our minds again. That’s the pattern of this government and that’s the pattern you would expect to be repeated if they were re-elected.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Senator Thistlethwaite doesn’t it show people are willing to cop tough decisions as long as they’re the right decisions but any credit that the Government gets from this is all too little, too late because you can hear from what Senator Fifield is saying this morning, the Coalition relentlessly targeting that lack of trust with the government. So any credit that you get from this budget as I say is all too little, too late.
MATT THISTLETHWAITE:
Well it demonstrates Kieran that Labor is getting it right in finding the right savings measures to ensure that we prioritise growth and jobs in our economy and what’s becoming clear as the Coalition begins to announce more and more of their policies is that there is a stark contrast between Labor and the Coalition when it comes to supporting families and the scenario that’s developing for families under the Coalition is very very scary indeed. Not only are they going to adopt all of the savings measures that we’ve announced in the budget last week, but they’re going to go much further, they are going to cut to the bone. What we know that’s been announced, they are going to scrap the low income superannuation contribution, a tax increase for three and a half million low paid workers, most of whom are women. They are going to get rid of the School Kids Bonus which assists families to meet the cost of sending their kids to school. And now we’ve got announced that they’re going to cut further family payments. And the cats out of the bag Kieran, the cats out of the bag. They’re going to look at increasing the rate of the GST. Liberal premiers are starting to say we’ve got an opportunity now to get them to lock in to increasing the GST.
KIERAN GILBERT:
On the GST, I want to pick you up there because surely this nation is mature enough to be able to have a decent debate about tax without reverting to a scare campaign which the Government, the Prime Minister has done straight off the bat here, why can’t a modern nation, modern economy look at the tax base particularly when most economists say we should.
MATT THISTLETHWAITE:
We have had a mature debate, we had the Henry tax review, we had the taxation summit.
KIERAN GILBERT:
The GST wasn’t on the table was it?
MATT THISTLETHWAITE:
Because increasing the rate of the GST hurts families, it hurts low to middle income workers and Labor is not in the business of hurting families, we found the necessary savings to fund our programs that promote jobs and growth, to fund a new school model for ensuring that there are increases to funding and resources for schools. The Liberals in opposition are saying that they will cut services, they will cut to the bone in health, in education to fund their priorities and that’s the difference, that’s the alternative that people will have on September 14.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Let me go to Senator Fifield on that very issue and the fact that Barry O’Farrell yesterday, at the weekend was saying that governments need to look at the rate and the base of the GST, he’s very clear on that. Tony Abbott is saying it will be part of the white paper, but not until the next election. I suppose Senator Fifield, how do you counter the campaign being waged by Labor on that front.
MITCH FIFIELD:
Well very simply Kieran we have absolutely no plans to increase the rate or broaden the base of the GST. When we put the GST into place and I know a bit about this Kieran because I was there working for Peter Costello at the time, we ensured that the rate and the base were essentially in the locked box. That you cannot touch those without the agreement of the eight state and territory governments. You cannot touch those without the agreement of the Australian government. You cannot touch those without the approval of the Australian Senate and the Australian House of Representatives. So there are ten institutions that have to agree if the GST is to be changed in those ways. Yes we’ve announced that we are going to have a tax review in the next term of Parliament, if we are successful in being elected. We will have a white paper. But anything, anything at all that comes out of that white paper that we would seek to legislate, we would take to the subsequent election to get a mandate. But let me repeat we have no plans to touch the base or the rate of the GST. Labor can run as much of a scare campaign as they like. But the facts are simple. We don’t have plans to do so. We are going to have a tax review. And if there are any proposals to change the tax system in any way, those will go to the people at the subsequent election.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Senator Fifield does that include not touching the GST when it comes to the threshold for imported goods bought online like the 1,000 dollar threshold that must be hit before the GST actually kicks in. This is something Mike Baird, the NSW Liberal Treasurer has been arguing, needs to change. Will the Coalition look at that at least in the first term of a Coalition government.
MITCH FIFIELD:
Kieran we have no plans to change the GST. There may be administrative issues which arise and every government, both this government and when we were in office did make changes in relation to administrative arrangements from time to time. But when it comes to the fundamentals of the GST, we have no plans for change. And any plans for change we would take to the next election.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Okay. I want to look at the schools debate now, the school funding debate. We know Barry O’Farrell has signed on, is the only state premier to do so to the federal government’s school funding model. Barry O’Farrell was on the Australian Agenda program yesterday, Paul Kelly was asking him some questions relating to what engagement he’s had with Tony Abbott on this matter let’s take a look.
PAUL KELLY (FILE FOOTAGE):
Isn’t it true that when Tony Abbott came to see you he asked you not to sign up?
BARRY O’FARRELL (FILE FOOTAGE):
Well he made clear his view and I made clear my view.
PAUL KELLY (FILE FOOTAGE):
Which was what?
BARRY O’FARRELL (FILE FOOTAGE):
He made clear his view that the system wasn’t broken, that the agreement shouldn’t be entered into. But I made clear that what the cabinet would do in New South Wales and as we did over two discussions, was to determine, a, whether or not it had benefits for New South Wales schools and, b, whether we could afford it on both issues. The cabinet came down on the side, we should proceed with it.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Barry O’Farrell’s cabinet did, no other state cabinets done that just yet, Senator Thistlethwaite, unless more states come on, doesn’t that undermine the Prime Minister’s argument that she’s got a national plan. It’s not much of a deal if you’ve only got one state, how do make that a convincing argument?
MATT THISTLETHWAITE:
Well, this national plan’s come about as a result of consultation. I visit a lot of schools Kieran and some of our schools are struggling, particularly in rural and regional areas. And we asked the experts to develop a plan and one of those experts included Kathryn Greiner, the wife of the former New South Wales Liberal Premier. She’s advocating this. Barry O’Farrell’s done a mature thing here, he’s put the interests of students in New South Wales above politics, in stark contrast to the federal leader of the Liberal party, Tony Abbott who is all about cutting funding for schools. By not signing up to this, if we don’t get this program up in New South Wales, schools stand to lose about 1.4 million dollars per school in New South Wales. That will leave students much worse off. It will also, over the longer term, harm the productivity of our nation. The other state premiers should do the mature thing as Barry O’Farrell has done and sign up to these reforms.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Okay. Senator Fifield your reaction to Barry O’Farrell’s comments and I suppose the Prime Minister, and Minister Garrett yesterday drilling down on the federal funding and the implications of that funding for each and every school, are you worried that that might be a potent case over coming months?
MITCH FIFIELD:
Well look, each state government have got to do what they think would be in the best interest of their jurisdiction. But the figures produced by the Prime Minister yesterday were essentially a fantasy. Over the forward estimates, according to our analysis the Governments going to be cutting back about 300 million dollars of school funding. Yet we’re meant to believe that beyond the forward estimates the government in going to richly endow Australia’s educational institutions. We don’t think that’s the case. We think that their numbers are a fantasy. But even if you did take the Governments figures at face value. Which I don’t. Even if you did take the proposition at face value. Which I don’t. Why is it that the government is pursuing an entirely different approach in relation to education funding to that which they are pursuing to disability funding? With the NDIS, the federal government expect each jurisdiction to come up to a national benchmark of funding, before they reach agreement. With education, rather than encouraging states to reach a national benchmark, they are actually seeking to punish those jurisdictions that have historically invested more in education. So I can totally understand why Western Australia is deeply cynical about this arrangement because this government is seeking to punish them because they’ve actually been investing more in education. It’s perverse whichever way you look at it Kieran.
MATT THISTLETHWAITE:
If these figures are fantasy then why did Barry O’Farrell sign up to them. Barry O’Farrell signed up because he knows it’s a better deal for schools in New South Wales. Are you saying that Barry O’Farrell’s adopted fantasy?
KIERAN GILBERT:
Lets quickly get Senator Fifield’s response, about ten seconds left Senator Fifield?
MITCH FIFIELD:
Look Kieran one jurisdiction has signed up, the rest haven’t as yet, I think that tells you something. You’ve got to have a national approach and you don’t develop a national approach by doing what the Prime Minister did at the weekend which is seeking to blackmail and berate jurisdictions. That’s not cooperative federalism.
KIERAN GILBERT:
Gentlemen thanks for your time, that’s all for AM Agenda thank you for your company this Monday, the latest Sky News is next.
ENDS