Labor to spend $40 million selling Stage 3 ‘broken promise’ to voters

Taxpayers will be on the hook for as much as $40 million to help Labor sell its “broken promises” on Stage 3 tax cuts, it can be revealed.

Australians will be on the hook for as much as $40 million to help Labor sell its “broken promises” on Stage 3 tax cuts in what a leading taxpayer advocate has called a “slap in the face.”

Federal Finance Minister Katy Gallagher confirmed the figure on Wednesday, telling a Senate committee that it was “the decision of government was to agree to a campaign of up to $40 million over two financial years in relation to the tax campaign.”

“We haven’t of a campaign in place, it hasn’t been approved, so we’ve made a provision basically,” she said.

Ms Gallagher defended the spend, saying that it would be in line with campaigns to support changes to the tax system in 2019 and “economic response advertising” during the Covid pandemic.

The news comes a week after this masthead revealed that Treasury was seeking to ramp up its communications team to sell the tax changes, offering bureaucrats in the department the chance to earn $150,000 or more working with media managers and advertising agencies.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher.

Treasurer Angus Taylor slammed the government, saying “In a cost of living crisis, Australian taxpayers are paying twice for Labor’s broken promises on tax.”

“The government’s broken promise will see 4 million people worse off in the next 10 years,

and cost Australians an extra $28 billion in taxes.”

Opposition treasury spokesman Angus Taylor. Picture: NCA NewsWire

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese broke his election promise to bringing in the Stage 3 tax cuts due to cost-of-living pressures on those with lower incomes. Picture: NCA NewsWire

“After spending $450 million on a failed referendum and adding $209 billion of extra

spending, this government is spending $40 million on an advertising campaign for their lie to

the Australian people,” he said.

Brian Marlow, executive director of the Australian Taxpayers Alliance, said “After lying to every single Aussie taxpayer at the last election, they’re using $40m of our own money to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes and promote their big backflip ... i’s a slap in the face.”

“What’s even more egregious is they’ll use these taxpayer funds to promote a tax policy that does nothing to stop bracket creep and does nothing to offset the cost of living crisis Labor created”

Earlier in the hearing, Treasury secretary Steven Kennedy said that Treasurer Jim Chalmers knew that a request to determine ways to address cost of living pressures would involve changes to the Stage 3 tax cuts as early as December 11 last year.

Despite this, as late as ten days later, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government had “made no decisions along those lines (to change stage three tax cuts). We’re not reconsidering that position.”