Turnbull wants tax stoush before Super Saturday

Malcolm Turnbull will challenge Labor to vote down nearly $180 billion worth of tax cuts ahead of July’s by-elections.

Malcolm Turnbull in Sydney yesterday. Picture: Getty Images

Malcolm Turnbull will challenge Bill Shorten to vote down nearly $180 billion worth of company and personal income tax cuts ahead of the “Super Saturday” by-elections and transform the contest into a referendum on the major parties’ competing economic visions.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann yesterday confirmed the government would seek a Senate showdown with Labor and the crossbench by trying to ram both its corporate tax package and personal income tax cuts through the parliament by the end of June, ahead of the five by-elections being held on July 28.

“Our intention would be to deal both with the business tax reforms and the personal income tax ­reforms by the end of June,” Senator Cormann said. “We stand for the economic national interest. Anyone who wants to vote for less investment, lower growth, fewer jobs, higher unemployment and lower wages over time — vote for Bill Shorten.”

Senator Cormann said that workers increasingly understood their jobs and wages depended on the success of the businesses that employed them, after Newspoll ­revealed that 63 per cent of Australians supported the corporate tax cuts in principle — including 48 per cent of Labor voters, 50 per cent of Greens voters and 60 per cent of One Nation voters.

The government’s corporate tax cut plan would incrementally reduce the corporate rate to 25 per cent for all businesses by 2026-27, with the overhaul estimated to cost $35.6bn over the decade.

On the back of the Newspoll ­result, which showed a majority of her supporters back company tax cuts, Pauline Hanson — who controls three One Nation Senate seats — asked voters to call her ­office and express their views.

West Australian One Nation senator Peter Georgiou posted an online survey on Twitter asking followers whether they supported the corporate tax cuts.

Senator Hanson last week dealt a major blow to the government’s company tax cuts after withdrawing One Nation’s support.

Senator Hanson yesterday ­rejected suggestions she could ­accept a revised package for corporate tax cuts that limited relief for companies with turnovers of up to $500 million — a proposal being pushed by Victorian senator Derryn Hinch.

She instead argued for the company tax cuts to be delivered more swiftly, pushed for the construction of a new coal-fired power station and urged voters to contact her office if they wanted the business tax cuts to go ahead.

“If you’re going to bring in corporate tax cuts then do it from now,” she told the Seven Network. “Build a coal-fired power station. Reduce the prices of electricity.

“I will listen to what the people are saying. You are saying there are 60 per cent-plus want the tax cuts. Well, people can ring my ­office and they can actually put the message to me about whether they want the corporate tax cuts.”

Senator Cormann lacks the numbers in the upper house to pass either tax package in its current form but yesterday indicated a preparedness to put the legislation to a vote anyway.

The government’s personal income tax package, which is estimated to cost $143.95bn over 10 years, would make a series of changes culminating in the flattening of the tax rate at 32.5 per cent for those on incomes of ­between $41,000 to $200,000 by 2024-25.

“Our focus is on securing the passage of the business tax cuts through the Senate in full,” Senator Cormann told The Australian. “We will continue to work to achieve that objective. Families around Australia need the Senate to pass those business tax cuts in full.”

Mr Shorten currently opposes the corporate tax package and is contemplating repealing some of the already legislated tax cuts for businesses with a turnover of up to $50m.

The Opposition Leader yesterday warned the government its corporate tax package was “dead, buried and cremated”.

“There is a very clear choice for Australians,” Mr Shorten said. “If you want to hand away tens of billions of dollars to the top end of town in unjustified and discredited tax cuts, vote for Mr Turnbull.”

He dismissed yesterday’s Newspoll survey on the popularity of the corporate tax cuts, saying: “I don’t need a poll to tell me a dumb idea when I see one.”