Andrew Leigh

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

RADIO INTERVIEW

RN DRIVE

THURSDAY, 17 DECEMBER 2015

SUBJECT/S: Tax transparency report; MYEFO; U.S. interest rates; polls.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Qantas, Virgin Australia and Vodafone – they're household names – and nearly 600 more of the largest companies in Australia paid zero tax the year before last. On top of that is a long list of big businesses that paid a far lower rate of tax than most of us mere mortals. All has been revealed in a tax transparency report handed down by the ATO today. Andrew Leigh is the Shadow Assistant Treasurer and he's been a regular on Drive for a long time. We're welcoming him back for the last time this year; how are you, Andrew?

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: Very well Patricia, how are you?

KARVELAS: I'm well. Are the rest of Australia's taxpayers getting ripped off by these big public and multinational companies?

LEIGH: Patricia, it certainly starts a conversation about tax fairness, which I think is the important thing about transparency. When the Liberal Party voted against tax transparency in 2013, they said: it doesn't matter, the tax office has the information so the public doesn't need to see it. But I think the advantage of having this information out in the public is that we get to have a conversation about whether our tax laws are keeping up with the very well-paid accountants who are looking for the next tax loophole, and whether there are tax loopholes that we ought to be looking to close.

KARVELAS: Assistant Treasurer Kelly O'Dwyer says that just because these companies didn't pay tax, it doesn't mean they're avoiding tax – is she right?

LEIGH: I was a little surprised that Kelly O'Dwyer's first instinct was to jump to the defence of these firms. I think you need to recognise that you can be strongly supportive of business without necessarily being supportive of loopholes. When firms are taking advantage of loopholes, that's more tax the rest of us have to pay. It's more tax that small businesses have to pay, and more tax that working Australians have to pay. With the plans that Labor has on the table, one of the ways in which we would look at budget repair is through our multinational tax plan which would raise $7.2 billion over the course of the next decade by closing down debt deduction loopholes that multinationals are using. That's one of the ways in which some of these firms have reduced their tax bill: by having internal debts and internal borrowings, whereas they owe very little to the banks. They're just borrowing between different arms of the same multinational entity. We don't believe you should be able to do that if you don't owe any debt to the banks.

Putting the spotlight on company tax dodgers, Business Spectator, 18 December

Every year, the International Tax Review nominates its ‘Global Tax 50’ – the people and organisations who are most influential in improving tax systems around the world. Two years ago, David Bradbury made the list, for being ‘a vocal and pro-active voice on a variety of tax issues’.

One of Bradbury’s award-winning reforms was tax transparency – laws that required the tax office to report the tax paid by firms with total income above $100 million. The Liberals didn’t like the change, and voted against it at the time. After winning government, they set about trying to repeal it – first by warning of kidnap risk, and then by suggesting that it might embarrass some firms if the public knew how little tax they paid. 

Farcically, the government said that it wouldn’t pass its own multinational tax package unless the parliament agreed to wind back secrecy. In effect, Scott Morrison was holding a gun to his own head, but the Greens Party fell for it. On the last day of parliament for 2015, the Greens Party agreed to amendments that kept two in three private companies out of the tax transparency net. 

This week’s release of tax transparency data has shown the value of letting the sunlight in. The 1300 economic groups covered by the report had a combined taxable income of $170 billion, and contributed $40 billion in tax towards funding Australia’s schools, hospitals and roads.

 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

 

DOORSTOP

 

PARLIAMENT HOUSE, CANBERRA

 

THURSDAY, 17 DECEMBER 2015

 

SUBJECT/S: Tax paid by $100 million companies; Government in hiding on tax secrecy 

 

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: On Tuesday this week we saw the Government bring down a mini-budget which contained cuts so harsh that even Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey wouldn't countenance them. We saw cuts to aged care; to childcare; to family daycare; we saw cuts to the Federal Police's international deployments; and we saw cuts to Medicare bulk billing.

In bringing down those cuts, Scott Morrison said, "Well, if you don't like these, show us your alternative." Today's release of tax data on Australia's largest firms points to exactly where that alternative might be. 

The tax data that has been released today is data the Liberal Party didn't want you to see. The Liberal Party voted against the tax transparency laws when Labor announced them in 2013. Then, when they got into office they tried every excuse to wind them back, including suggesting this would lead to kidnap risk - an explanation described by one tax expert as the stupidest excuse for non-disclosure he'd ever heard. 

ATO REPORT HIGHLIGHTS NEED FOR BETTER TAX TRANSPARENCY

For the first time ever today, Australians have the opportunity to see how much tax some of Australia’s largest publically listed companies pay thanks to laws introduced by Labor in 2013.

 

The Australian Tax Office’s reportpublished this morning detailed the tax contribution of over 1500 major multinational and Australian public companies.

 

The Liberals voted against Labor’s laws back in 2013. If they had their way, none of today’s information would have been published.

 

Worse still, the Liberal deal with the Greens last month to reduce tax transparency means that large private companies will not be subject to the same scrutiny we’ve seen today

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

RADIO INTERVIEW

ABC NEWSRADIO

WEDNESDAY, 16 DECEMBER 2015

SUBJECT/S: Government fails on debt and deficit with MYEFO. 

MARIUS BENSON: Andrew Leigh, the Treasurer was not claiming they were great figures he was dealing with yesterday but do you claim that Labor would be delivering better figures on debt and surplus?

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: Marius, you could hardly do worse than this. Debt and deficits were set as the main task of economic management by the Coalition from opposition. Most economists wouldn't say that was the hallmark of great economic management, but they did. On that mark they are failing spectacularly. This year's budget deficit has blown out by $33 billion. Total debt, when the Government came to office, was projected to peak at 13 per cent of national income and now it is projected to peak at nearly 19 per cent. So the debt and deficit blowout has been spectacular. I was struck by the fact that Joe Hockey kept on blaming Wayne Swan, and now Scott Morrison seems to be adopting a budget strategy of putting everything on to Joe Hockey. Australians just want a government that stops the blame game and starts acting to make sensible decisions in the long-term national interest.

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

RADIO INTERVIEW

RADIO NATIONAL BREAKFAST

WEDNESDAY, 16 DECEMBER 201

SUBJECT/S: Government fails its own economic test with MYEFO. 

ALISON CARABINE: Andrew Leigh, good morning.

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: Good morning Alison, how are you?

CARABINE: Very well, thank you. Scott Morrison is trying to be positive; you are an economist so with the deficit increasing to $37 billion and the return to surplus pushed out by yet another year, how much trouble are we actually in here?

LEIGH: Alison, economists wouldn't argue that debt and deficit is the number one test of economic management. Most economists would talk about things like growth or inequality or jobs. But the Coalition did say that this was their signal test of economic management from opposition. They said they'd have the budget in surplus in their first year and every year after that. On that call, they've spectacularly failed. We can see that peak debt was forecast, when the Government came to office, to peak at 13 per cent of national income but now it is forecast to peak at nearly 19 per cent of national income. When the Government came to office, the budget was forecast to be back in surplus in the next fiscal year; now it is deficits as far as the eye can see. 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

DOORSTOP

MELBOURNE

MONDAY, 14 DECEMBER 2015

SUBJECT/S: Labor’s positive plans for the sharing economy; government set to fail its own economic test with MYEFO 

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: It's a real pleasure to be here today with Labor's candidate for the seat of Melbourne, Sophie Ismail. We've been here at Uber talking about Labor's ideas for the sharing economy.

Labor's plan for the sharing economy recognises the value that building innovative companies has for Australia. Bill Shorten and I announced this plan at an incubator centre in Canberra back in October, and it focuses principles such as the idea that primary property is yours to share; that the sharing economy should support good wages and conditions; that all firms should pay their fair share of tax and that we make sure that the sharing economy assists vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities.

Unfortunately, the sharing economy has been entirely left out from the Government's Innovation Statement which means it also misses the potential that comes from the growth of local sharing economy businesses in Australia - companies such as Camplify, Parkhound and many others.

I might just make a couple of comments on MYEFO before I throw to Sophie. The Government's economic update tomorrow will likely fail both its own test for the economy and Labor's test for the economy. When they came to office, the Abbott-Turnbull Government said that they would pay down debt faster and make sure that Australia was running a surplus in the first year and every year after that. Well we've seen deficits blowing out; doubled over the course of the last year alone. And the mini-budget is also likely to fail Labor's test and that of the Australian community. With sluggish growth, falling living standards, and high inequality, Australia now has a Prime Minister and a Treasurer that are looking to slash the best-targeted social safety net in the world. We know that this will not only hurt the most vulnerable but will also potentially impede growth because those in the middle and bottom of the distribution spend all of their pay packets. So the cuts to family support that remain on the table are a signal threat to growth in the years to come. I'll hand over now to Sophie. 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

TV INTERVIEW

SKY AM AGENDA

MONDAY, 14 DECEMBER 2015

SUBJECT/S: Paris climate conference; savage cuts ahead in MYEFO; John Bannon.

DAVID LIPSON: Joining me now, Shadow Assistant Treasurer Andrew Leigh. Thank you very much for your time. 

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TRASURER: Pleasure, David.

LIPSON: Was the deal in Paris a good one?

LEIGH: I think it is. I think it sets that target of 1.5 degrees which we know is absolutely vital to keeping the Great Barrier Reef.

LIPSON: Well 2 degrees, but an ambition, I suppose, of one and a half.

LEIGH: Yes that's right. Certainly though it leaves Australia out from the pack with the rest. We know Australia's targets are now well in excess of what other countries have. We're failing to demonstrate the level of ambition that Britain, the United States, and now Canada - with their change of government - are showing. We're going to have the highest emissions per head amongst developed countries, and that really is going to challenge Australia's ability to make the change in a way that is economically responsible. We know that if we put off the task of dealing with dangerous climate change, it will hurt the economy more and it will hurt the environment more. 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

RADIO INTERVIEW

ABC NEWSRADIO

WEDNESDAY, 9 DECEMBER 2015

SUBJECT/S: Government options to raise the GST.

MARIUS BENSON: Andrew Leigh, there are lots of kites on economic policy flying in Canberra today. None of them are Government policy so this is a fairly theoretical basis for any comment, but the Government has said it won't rule things out at the moment. There are options reportedly including a 15 per cent GST.

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: Marius, today Australia's premiers are considering an options paper prepared by the Treasury at the request of Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison. One of those options includes raising the GST to 15 per cent, and expanding it to include all food and all drinks as well as to water and sewerage bills. The total impact of that on Australian households would be $4,500 every single year. This, from a party that ran a scare campaign on a carbon price, seems pretty rich to me.

BENSON: But it's only an option. Isn't that the way you should conduct reasonable negotiations – put everything on the table, including the things that you don't agree with yourself, just so you can clarify the lines of debate?

LEIGH: Well if the Turnbull Government doesn't want to go ahead with this, they shouldn't be preparing options papers on it for consideration by the states and territories. The fact is, Marius, we know that smart tax reform involves looking at those taxes that have the biggest drag on economic activity. We know from all the sensible economic analysis which has been done that this involves first looking at taxes such as insurance taxes and stamp duties. Yet they don't even seem to be in the mix. What's in the mix is a huge hit to low and middle income households in Australia, which would make inequality worse at a time when it is as high as it's been in three-quarters of a century.

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

RADIO INTERVIEW

RN BREAKFAST

WEDNESDAY, 9 DECEMBER 2015

SUBJECT/S: Government options to raise the GST; Tony Abbott becomes the Australian Donald Trump.

ALISON CARABINE: Andrew Leigh, good morning.

ANDREW LEIGH, SHADOW ASSISTANT TREASURER: Good morning Alison.

CARABINE: Now we learned today that the Treasury has modelled eight separate options for increasing the GST and/or extending the base – where does that take the debate on tax reform?

LEIGH: Alison, the Prime Minister has spent this week talking about the importance of being innovative and agile, but I don't see anything innovative or agile about whacking up the GST to 15 per cent and putting it onto bread and bananas. If you're raising $45 billion then that is effectively saying to every Australian household: you're going to pay $4,500 more tax every year. It's a bit strange given the Treasurer was telling us we don't have a revenue problem.

CARABINE: But the Government is not increasing the GST to 15 per cent. The Government commissioned this modelling at the behest of the states, and as Scott Morrison has put it: the debate is still in the discovery process. It's all about the provision of information and the Government is not signing up to any of these options at this stage.

LEIGH: I don't think Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison need much arm-twisting in order to start looking at raising the GST. It's been pretty clear that this has been their number one tax reform option. What troubles me, Alison, is that there's nothing particularly innovative or agile about raising the price of a loaf of bread by 50 cents. Labor has a range of reform options which would see us meet the gap between what the Government brings in and what it spends – which is currently running at about 1.5 per cent of GDP – but without slugging those at the bottom.