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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 7 Hansard (27 June) . . Page.. 2060 ..

MR QUINLAN (continuing):

system was released. I wonder how much those little stunts cost the taxpayers of Canberra.

Not long after the election we had the genesis of today's legislation-the Special Premiers Conference of 9 April 1999 at which it was agreed that certain taxes would be removed and fully-fledged support for the GST came from the Liberal-led states.

Mr Humphries: Backed by the Labor states as well.

MR QUINLAN: I do not think that they had a choice, Mr Humphries. Mrs Carnell chanted the mantra again, as did Mr Humphries, with no idea of how it would work, what it would cost and who would truly be affected. Then along came the Democrats to offer their support.

The premiers ratified the system and accepted additional compensation payments at a further Special Premiers Conference on 28 May 1999. Thus, the intergovernmental agreement on taxation reform was born. It is the one that we intend to put in place today.

With hindsight, I think we can reflect upon some of the impacts of the GST. There has been nothing but chaos in terms of its implementation. There is a prediction by even our own chamber of commerce in the ACT-let us get down to the ACT-that some 15 per cent of small businesses are at extreme risk of going out backwards simply because of the introduction of the GST. It was, I think, considered by the representative of the chamber of commerce as a good thing that fewer businesses in the ACT-15 per cent-will go out backwards than is predicted for the states.

That, in itself, is a savage indictment of the GST. The fact that the federal government has had to introduce compensatory payments here and there over a limited span to soften the introduction of the GST means that people in less fortunate circumstances will be worse off under this pernicious tax. The fact that high income earners will be receiving an extra $50, $60, $70 or $80 a pay, whereas at the lower end there will be very little absolute difference in what people will get in their hand, while we will be seeing many of the necessities of life increasing in price by margins of up to 10 per cent and even looking like going beyond as a result of this GST, means that it is an inequitable tax.

Not only is it an inequitable tax for Australia, but also there has been the most appalling exercise in ineptitude on the part of the federal government in trying to introduce it. If you have watched over the last few days or so as we have had bits of legislation coming down for the implementation of the GST in the ACT, you will have seen that even in this level of ineptitude our Liberal government is prepared to follow big brother on the hill.

Mr Speaker, the ALP's position on the GST is fairly clear. Every day that goes by further confirms the wisdom of that position and, as a function of that, the ACT ALP cannot support this bill, which goes to the core of the facilitation of the GST.

MS TUCKER (8.21): The Greens also have been opposed to the federal government's new tax system right from the start. We believe that the GST is a regressive tax and that the compensation provided to low income earners will be insufficient to cover the imposts of the GST. The Greens are also opposed on environmental grounds to the reduction in the price of diesel included in the federal government's package.

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