Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says business tax cuts would put money back in workers’ pockets

MALCOLM Turnbull believes Australia needs to emulate Donald Trump’s company tax cuts to boost investment and put $750 back in workers’ pockets.

THE Prime Minister has proposed cutting the company tax rate from 30 per cent to 25 per cent to stimulate investment in business during his speech to the National Press Club today.

The PM’s proposal follows data which shows the Australian economy unexpectedly shrank 0.5 per cent in the September quarter, and a further decline when the December quarter figures are released on March 1 would constitute a technical recession.

“I’m not expecting that outcome,” Mr Turnbull told the National Press Club today when questioned by reporters.

He said US President Donald Trump’s proposed company tax cuts were one reason Australia needed to commit to cutting the corporate tax rate.

Malcolm Turnbull believes a cut in company tax would stimulate his jobs and growth mantra. Picture: Stefan Postles/Getty Images

“It’s not because of some sort of philanthropic focus on companies large or small, we’re being very hard-headed about this — they are the engines of growth in jobs,” Mr Turnbull said.

“The more they invest, the more they hire, the more they can pay their employees.

“That has been a proven formula here and around the world and we are in a competitive environment.”

The Turnbull Government faces an uphill battle in the senate to pass these measures as Labor, the Greens and the Nick Xenophon team do not support them.

Senator Xenophon has indicated support for the first phase of cuts which would reduce the company tax rate for small and medium businesses with a turnover of less than $10 million to 27.5 per cent.

“If we had a 25 per cent business tax rate today, fulltime workers on average weekly earnings would have an extra $750 in their pockets each and every year,” Mr Turnbull said.

TIME TO CLEAN-UP EXPENSES SYSTEM

The PM and Labor leader Bill Shorten have agreed on one thing before Parliament kicks off next week — the need to clean up the entitlements system for politicians.

Both major party leaders have listed the need to make politicians more accountable to taxpayers among their top priorities for 2017.

It comes after revelations about travel expenses over summer prompted former Health Minister Sussan Ley to resign earlier this month.

Meanwhile, the key battlegrounds for 2017 are shaping up to be jobs, energy policy and how to repair the budget.

Sussan Ley lost her job over travel expenses, prompting a promise from the PM to clean up the system. Picture: Mick Tsikas/AAP

“The Australian people are entitled to expect that politicians spend their money appropriately and feel let down when politicians have not,” Mr Turnbull said in a major speech to the National Press Club today spelling out his agenda for the year.

Mr Turnbull reiterated his commitments to a major reform of the entitlements system this year, announced in the wake of Ms Ley’s resignation, and also indicated support for making the system for disclosing donations to political parties more transparent.

But energy would be a “defining” debate in politics this year, he said.

Mr Turnbull vowed to have a “clear-eyed, pragmatic and objective” approach to energy policy.

Eight years ago he was rolled as leader of the Liberal Party by Tony Abbott for his stance on climate change and an emissions trading scheme but today the Prime Minister took a swipe at Labor for being too ideological in the energy debate.

The PM does not agree that the Australian economy is headed for recession. Picture: Mick Tsikas/AAP

“The battlelines have been drawn — it’s clear that the Coalition stands for cheaper energy,” Mr Turnbull said.

“We are approaching this issue clear-eyed, pragmatic and objective.

“Labor’s approach is driven simply by ideology, heedless of cost or the thousands of jobs that it will destroy.”

Mr Turnbull also made the case for corporate tax cuts as a way to boost employment, which the Government aims to get through Parliament before the May budget.

SOCIAL REFORMS

The Turnbull Government will also press ahead with education, health and childcare reforms.

Labor has accused the government of using Australia’s declining spot in world education rankings due to stagnant student outcomes to make a case for education funding cuts.

But today the Prime Minister said the measures were about boosting student outcomes.

“How can it be that funding is increasing but results are going backwards,” he said.

“So our focus must be, at all times, on improving outcomes.

“That includes implementing our measures to improve teacher quality.”

The Government would also have a new focus on preventive health care this year and push ahead with phasing-out family tax benefits supplements to ensure the highest rate of child care subsidies go “to those who most need it”.