Page 212 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 26 February 2014
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The government intends to identify $38 million worth of savings across the forward estimates period through initiatives such as staffing efficiencies—perhaps the minister would like to define what a “staffing efficiency” is—streamlining of services and cessation of projects. What is the low hanging fruit that the minister who closed all our schools is now looking for?
If you go to some of the reforms of this minister, if you go to things that he is in charge of now, things like the lease variation charge, you have only to look at the quarterly update to see yet again the litany of failure this government has in administering the tax system. Remember, this is the great reformer, and this is the government that wants to make sure that everybody pays their fair share. We have got the perfect tax! It is a tax designed by the Chief Minister and Mr Barr called the lease variation charge. It is the perfect tax because it does not affect anything. No-one loses, and the government will reap all this money from it. But we already hear that the community—perhaps it is the business community that is not stepping up to the plate with investment that Mr Barr belittled so much on the ABC radio—refuses to pay the lease variation charge because it affects every project that it is levied on.
Remember, members, in the first year, apart from the first quarter when there was some carryover from the previous scheme—there was a rush to pay—this tax has not reached its target ever. This is a failed tax reform. Indeed, if we look at it for the 2012-13 actual, we ended up with $15 million. That was revised down from $24 million, or was it $26 million, Treasurer? It is so hard to know as the numbers change. The annual budget for this year for the lease variation charge is $17.6 million, a long way short of the original forecast, which was something like $28 million. And how is it going? Well, the budget target was $8.8 million for the half year, of which the minister achieved $6 million, or a deficit of $2.7 million. The target is still there at $17 million; half of the way through the year we have only got $6 million or about a third of that number.
We know it is affecting business because business I know is telling the government through submissions to the budget and through pleas from business leaders and individuals that projects will not go ahead while this tax is in place. Again, this is the minister who thinks that business is not stepping up to the plate and not investing. But they are not doing it, minister, because of the regime you have put in place.
Of course, there was the extra hit they got when their commercial rates went up. Everybody thought the transfer was only to the residential sector, but it caught up this year and people are quite astounded. Of course, that compounds with your promise to remove the commence and complete charges at the Property Council luncheon to a large round of applause, which I know you enjoyed, Mr Barr, but then it never happened.
This is the environment in which your budget report is delivered, your half yearly update. We all know there are dilemmas and difficulties out there in the business community, but what they are not getting from you is a sense that you understand or that there is hope for them in the long run because of the taxes and the changes and
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