Malcolm Turnbull confident his tax cut plan will get enough support in the Senate

MALCOLM Turnbull appears set for a win on $144 billion in income tax cuts, with Finance Minister Mathias Cormann cutting off debate in a sign the government is confident it has enough support in the Senate to pass its tax reform plan unchanged.

MALCOLM Turnbull appears set for a win on $144 billion in income tax cuts, with Finance Minister Mathias Cormann cutting off debate in a sign the government is confident it has enough support in the Senate to pass its entire tax reform plan unchanged.

Pauline Hanson gave the strongest indication yet One Nation would support the entire package after telling The Daily Telegraph yesterday she did not want to deprive Australians of extra money.

Labor successfully pushed the Senate to separate the third part of the plan — which would create one mega-tax bracket in 2024 for all workers earning between $41,000 and $200,000 — because it wants to support only the first part of the package, a $530 a year rebate for low and middle-income earners.

PM Malcolm Turnbull in Question Time on Wednesday where he continued his attack on Labor. Picture: Kym Smith

Those changes will today be rejected by the House of Representatives, where the government has the numbers, and be sent back to the Senate where key crossbenchers will have to decide whether to support the entire package or reject it.

Mr Turnbull yesterday continued his Question Time attack on Labor, and said the government would today simply refuse to agree to changes made by the Senate.

“The Labor Party are smug in their big taxpayer funded salaries,” he said.

“Let me tell you come in the real world, 90 per cent of Australians work and they want to be encouraged, they want to be supported, aspiration isn’t a mystery to them, it’s what drives our nation.”

The government needs 39 votes — including One Nation and Centre Alliance, with both minor parties leaning toward supporting the entire tax cut plan.

Labor has vowed to repeal the second two stages if elected — hitting workers who earn more than $95,000 a year — and instead implement its own plans.