Page 2239 - Week 06 - Thursday, 6 June 2019
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Back in 2012 Andrew Barr said that rates would not triple. He said that his new system would be fairer. He said it would cost less than a cup of coffee a week. Seven years on we know that that was a lie. We know that rates went from $209 million in 2011-12 to $558 million today and will be $697 million in 2021-22. In fact, the total tax mix—residential and commercial rates, land tax, stamp duty, insurance and the fire levy—will have increased from $600 million in 2012 to $1.2 billion in 2020-21. This increase is considerably more than inflation and population growth combined. It is a rort.
Something has to be done. It is not going to happen from the Labor Party. We need to do it for the families, the workers, the retirees, the pensioners, those living in poverty and the young people. We need to do it for Canberra.
Andrew Barr said that his increases will keep on going. He said that at some point he will reduce it to just WPI. When is that decrease going to come? When is that WPI rate of growth going to kick in? If he has committed to rates reform, it has to keep on going by more than WPI until stamp duty is gone. If Mr Barr were serious about bringing in WPI, he would be abandoning the rates reform agenda.
The people of Canberra need relief. That is why, if elected, the Canberra Liberals will freeze rates. When we come into government, the rates that each Canberra household receives will not increase for the term of that government. This is a genuine cap on rates. Canberrans need relief, and the Liberals will deliver it. This will take the pressure off households, give certainty and end Labor’s punitive tax regime. Whether you are a home owner or a renter, you will benefit.
I am sure Andrew Barr will say that it is irresponsible. I say that it is harsh and reckless to keep on going with his agenda. Labor’s reforms are unjust; they are unethical; they are hurting the poor. Enough is enough. We will freeze rates and we will end Labor’s rip-off.
Canberrans are not getting value for money. This government is not governing well. There is a lack of direction in the public service and they do not feel valued. They are not empowered to do what they do best. Just as the government do not trust taxpayers, they do not trust and empower public servants. We have a professional service. They are capable and they are willing. We need to empower these public servants to make the sound decisions and the sound judgements that they can. Instead, they are forced to constantly second-guess what the Chief Minister wants.
The structure of government in the ACT is very unclear. Cabinet government has been thrown out the window. The significant work that was done by Dr Allan Hawke in the city state report has been lost.
Icon Water is one such example of an organisation losing its way. The point of the corporate structure, a territory corporation, is to bring about the efficiencies of the private sector at arm’s length from the government. At the moment, it seems that we have the business acumen of government but the largesse of a corporation. We are getting the worst of both worlds.
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