Page 3103 - Week 08 - Thursday, 16 August 2018
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
While it may be indicative of aspects of the books, it is not indicative of the complete state of the books which is why it is not audited by the Auditor-General.
As projected, the territory debt will reach $2.9 billion by 2022, with taxpayers forced to pay more than $200 million per year in interest. That is roughly two or three brand-new schools such as the one in Coombs and the new one being built in Taylor. Two and a half of those per year is our annual interest bill.
It is this net borrowing figure that best encapsulates the poor state of the territory’s finances. The last time the ACT had a fiscal surplus was in 2007-08, when John Stanhope was Chief Minister. And by fiscal surplus I mean all incomings and all outgoings: the very figure the Auditor-General actually audits. All incomings and all outgoings is what a real surplus or deficit should be based on, not this headline figure that excludes ACTION, Icon Water, land and other purchases.
Despite the claims of revenue diversification, the commonwealth remains the single largest source of funding for the ACT government and will continue to be so well into the future.
Mr Barr: It is for every state.
MR COE: The Chief Minister interjects that the commonwealth is the biggest contributor to all states, and that is spot on; that is exactly right. But the Chief Minister keeps talking about himself, keeps talking about his rates reform, keeps talking about being the great financial reformer of the territory, yet the reality is that while that has a massive impact on the households he is collecting it from, the majority of money that comes into the ACT coffers comes through the commonwealth. That is the reality.
Mr Barr: Tax reforms are revenue neutral, remember. You have just confirmed that that it is revenue neutral.
MR COE: To say that it is revenue neutral is such a stretch. I mean, tell someone who has got a rates bill that actually it is revenue neutral. The reality is that the majority of our money comes from the commonwealth and that the own-source revenue is increasing as well. It is increasing significantly and it is having a massive impact on the households of Canberra. That is why when the Canberra Liberals said in 2012 that rates would triple, the then Treasurer went on the attack on the Canberra Liberals, saying it was a lie. They said it would never happen. Guess what: it is happening all right. The vast majority of Canberrans know that all too well.
I believe that Canberrans have been betrayed by this Labor government. In 2012 the rates revenue was $200 million; by 2022 it will be over $600 million. In actual fact from 2012 to 2016 the rates revenue doubled. So the impact of this so-called rates reform is far from being revenue neutral for households. It is a gouge. It is a gouge for people who cannot afford it.
That is why former Chief Minister Jon Stanhope is spot on when he writes in today’s City News:
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video