Victorian teal says Prime Minister should ‘scrap’ WA GST deal as state and federal budgets loom
One of Victoria’s federal independents says Anthony Albanese should scrap the state’s tax deal as the state’s budget looms.
Teal independent Zoe Daniel says Anthony Albanese’s government should scrap Western Australia’s “unjustified” GST deal among other economic changes to help fix the nation’s “fiscal shortcomings”, while Victoria’s state budget looms and as debt is projected to reach $165bn by 2025-26.
The comments came on Thursday as Daniel Andrews declared he will continue to and has “always” fought for more federal funding but denied his government was in talks with Anthony Albanese over a budget bailout. As well, Victoria’s public sector union launched a campaign attacking plans to slash workers from the public service amid concerns about the state’s $115bn debt.
Independent member for the Victorian seat of Goldstein Ms Daniel said the upcoming federal and state budgets, due to be handed down in May, are “an opportunity not to be missed”.
“Most budgets, state and federal, are under pressure,” she said.
“It is time to address a number of immediate priorities and fiscal shortcomings that will jeopardise our prosperity and blight our children’s futures.
“For a start, as the Grattan Institute has reminded us, the Albanese government should end the special and unjustified GST deal with WA that is costing taxpayers around the rest of the nation $5bn when that state's budget is in good shape.”
Ms Daniel also said a national road user charge should be implemented to make up for the decline in revenue from the petroleum resource rent tax.
“This federal budget should also be imposing a windfall tax on the war profits of our largely multinational gas producers to provide some immediate relief to low and middle income earners in Victoria and elsewhere struggling amid the cost of living crisis and paring back the $12b of subsidies on fossil fuels,” she said.
“As I have been saying for a year now, we need a root and branch, independent and well resourced review of our tax system to address the structural weaknesses in budgets, both state and federal, and ensure the community in Victoria and the rest of the country gets the services all people in a prosperous society have the right to expect.”
It came as Mr Andrews hosed down claims he is actively lobbying the Albanese government for extra funding ahead of the federal budget, instead saying he has consistently pushed for more money for the state and will continue to do so.
“We have been dudded by Liberal National governments for the best part of a decade,” he said.
“I'll always advocate to Commonwealth ministers and to the Commonwealth, the leader of the Commonwealth Government to … that Victoria needs more. Always.”
The Premier said it was put to him at an earlier press conference that Scott Morrison — and the Liberal party — had “ripped us off for nine years” and he “simply agreed with that”.
Asked to clarify if he would be lobbying the federal government for extra cash before the federal budget in May, Mr Andrews said: “the answer to your question is every day, every week, every month, every year, we push for a fair share for Victorian students, for Victorian patients, for Victorian taxpayers and Victorian motorists.”
The Victorian union for public sector workers launched an ad campaign to be played across TV, radio and social media on Thursday, targeting postcodes, overlaying Mr Andrews’ statements he made as opposition leader in 2014 when he slammed jobs cuts.
“When governments like the current one are all about cuts, all about cutting the things that matter most, people suffer,” he said at the time.
“I’ll never cut the things that families rely on.”
The CPSU has estimated about 6000 jobs in the public sector will be lost after Victorian Department of Treasury and Finance secretary David Martine wrote to government department heads last month telling them to cut their budgets by 10 per cent.
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