Andrew Leigh

MAKE UP YOUR MIND, MR MORRISON

Scott Morrison is again refusing to stand by his own Budget figures, this time hiding behind the Treasury as he dodges calls to release year-by-year costings of his income tax measures beyond the forward estimates.

Scott Morrison told ABC’s Insiders yesterday that:

Barrie Cassidy: So you are saying to the Parliament that it’s unreasonable to ask for year-on-year costings?

Scott Morrison: No, the Treasury in fact say that the within year estimates beyond the Forward Estimates are not reliable.

But if the figures are unreliable, why is the Budget website spruiking a tax relief calculator providing estimates to people beyond that four year period?

The website says someone earning $1 million a year will get an ongoing benefit of $7225 a year from 2024-25. Why don’t we get to know how much it will cost the budget per year?

In the absence of official Government figures, independent analysis by the Grattan Institute shows that once the income tax package is fully implemented in 2028, $15 billion of the annual $25 billion cost of the plan:

will result from collecting less tax from the top 20 per cent of income earners.

It’s not just economists, commentators and Labor finding faults with the plan. Even former Liberal Treasurer Peter Costello said:

But the trouble is that that’s the plan for 2024 and you’ve got to survive two elections to get there.

Scott Morrison can’t pick and choose when he gets to use his numbers.

If he stands by his figures, he should make them public.

MONDAY, 14 MAY 2018

Authorised by Noah Carroll, ALP, Canberra