In their first budget of the term, Labor has chosen corporate profits over people, by delivering real cuts to services while allowing corporate profits to grow unchecked.
Labor’s fifth budget fails to include a tax on gas exports, which would have been worth at least $17b in revenue to the bottom line. Instead, Labor has chosen to gut critical services including the NDIS, climate, clean energy manufacturing, and to keep people on poverty level income support.
The changes to tax breaks for wealthy property investors tinker at the margins, when the housing crisis is compounding in urgency and requires significant reform. The Labor government has quarantined all of the tax handouts for existing property investments. This is a capitulation to the 1% and a missed opportunity that is unlikely to ease the housing crisis.
Labor’s self-proclaimed biggest cost of living relief measure in this budget, the Working Australians Tax Offset, equates to $4.81 a week and won’t hit people’s pockets until 2028.
While people are bearing the cost of inflation they didn’t cause, big corporations push up the cost of living and get special treatment from Labor.
People will be set back by Labor’s budget by:
- The “biggest cost of living relief measure in this budget”, the $250 WATO, equates to $4.81 a week and people won’t see a cent of this until 2028
- $37.8 billion in cuts to the NDIS, which will see at least 160,000 people lose critical disability supports
- Nothing for renters or people experiencing homelessness
- No new money to actually build housing, except for $110m for defence housing for US and UK troops under AUKUS
- $4 billion in deep cuts to climate transition – the biggest rollback since the Morrison government, including:
- $1.7b from electric vehicles
- $2.2b of cuts to climate and the environment:
- $255m cut from ARENA
- Cuts to the domestic manufacturing of solar, batteries and hydrogen
- No increase to any income support payments – Jobseeker, Youth Allowance, Age Pension or any other payment
- No funding for the National Anti Racism Framework
Whereas Labor has backed big corporations and the 1% by:
- Refusing to tax the exports of gas corporations, forgoing at least $17 billion in revenue
- Over the last decade, corporate profits in Australia have grown at almost double the rate of wages
- Leaving intact tens of billions in existing tax handouts for wealthy property investors through grandfathering, and including tax minimisation loopholes for property investment going forward
- $53 billion in additional defence spending, a significant amount of which will go to AUKUS
- $46 billion over the forwards for fossil fuel subsidies and $5 million this year to support new gas projects
- Almost $1b on offshore processing last year, nearly $400m than previously budgeted, and a further $600m budgeted for the coming year, all to brutalise around 100 people
Senator Larissa Waters, Australian Greens Leader said:
“Tinkering around the edges of a broken system and spending billions for corporations and the 1%: that will be the legacy of the Albanese-Labor government.
“Labor should have used this budget to claw back the obscene profits of big corporations to pay for the things we all need. Instead they’re leaving $17 billion a year in the pockets of big gas corporations.
“This budget contains nothing for renters, no new money to build housing except for US and UK troops, and their biggest cost of living measure will add up to $4.81 a week that you’ll see in 2028.
“And because Labor blinked on taxing big corporations and the wealthiest 1%, at least 160,000 people will lose access to critical, lifesaving disability support through the NDIS.
“This budget should have taxed gas exports. Instead they’ve cut $4 billion from the climate transition, and allocated $46 billion to fossil fuel subsidies.
“The government’s planned changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax discount look like little more than tinkering around the edges of a broken system. These changes will still give tens of billions of dollars in handouts to wealthy property investors to outbid renters at auctions around the country every weekend. This should have been a significant reform but instead it’s a damp squib.
“With this Budget, Labor have made their priorities clear. Instead of delivering for people, Labor has been captured by big corporations and the wealthiest 1%.
“Only the Greens are fighting for people over profits. Only the Greens will put the interests of renters, first homebuyers and mortgage holders, disabled people and people on income support, and the climate first, while Labor continues to deliver for the profits of their corporate donors and the wealthiest 1%.”
Senator Nick McKim, Greens Economic Justice spokesperson said:
“Labor has chosen to back big corporations and the 1% over everyday Australians and young people who are being ripped off by the tax system.
“Jim Chalmers clearly has a different definition of ‘ambitious’ than millions of Australians.
“In the face of a generational opportunity to respond to inequality and the housing crisis, Labor’s changes to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount are abjectly lacking in courage and ambition.
“This budget betrays the overwhelming majority of Australians. By refusing to impose a gas export tax to fund essential services, Labor will fuel people’s anger at a system that isn’t working for them.
“We had a rare political opportunity to fix property investor tax breaks, capture massive gas export profits and rebuild a fairer country, but Labor’s corporate donors have won out once again.
“It’s getting harder to get ahead in Australia, but if you’re one of Australia’s 161 billionaires who are making $29 million a day, you’re having a great time.
“While most of us work harder trying to get ahead, the ultra-wealthy buy up assets, and their wealth grows in their sleep. This budget keeps on growing the gap between the 1% and the 99%.”
Senator Barbara Pocock, Greens Finance, Housing and Homelessness spokesperson said:
“This budget does nothing for ordinary people – renters, first-home buyers and mortgage holders – who are struggling to keep a roof over their heads. It does nothing for the homeless.
“The housing tax changes grandfather inequality. They protect the unfair wealth hoarding of wealthy multi-property investors and the 1%.
“Once again, Labor has over-promised and under-delivered on housing for young people, for renters, and for first-home buyers.
“This budget contains nothing for people on income support, and no new money to build housing except $110m for defence housing for US and UK troops under AUKUS.
“In this budget, Labor’s chosen to make ordinary people bear the brunt of the economic and housing crisis.
“Corporate profits are driving up inflation and the cost of living, but Labor hasn’t taxed them – instead, they’re giving corporations tax breaks if their profits go backwards.
“This budget reveals Labor’s mindset. Protect wealthy property investors, even if that leaves everyone else worse off.
“The Greens will fight against Labor’s cuts to essential services, public service jobs and the NDIS – people shouldn’t have to pay for inflation while big corporations continue to make obscene profits.”