Opposition Leader Bill Shorten revealed on Sunday that, if elected into power, he would commit $4 billion to subsidise childcare, $2.4 billion in dental care for aged pensioners and $537 million to fund an increase in childcare workers’ wages.
The spending comes on top of Labor’s previously announced $2.3 billion Medicare cancer plan, bringing up total spend to about $9.2 billion so far, well within Treasury’s costing of Labor’s proposed tax changes at $387 billion over 10 years.
Labor’s proposed tax changes include an end to cash refunds for excess franking credits, a limit to negative gearing, halving the capital gains tax discount, introducing a 30 per cent trusts tax rate, and opposing the government’s personal income tax cuts.
“It is time for us to draw the threads of our story together to end the intergenerational unfairness in our tax system,” Mr Shorten said on Sunday.
“The current government, the Liberals and the Nationals, cannot do what we have just promised.'”
Prime Minister Scott Morrison continued to focus on the increase in taxes under a Labor government.
“It’s a choice between a government that has demonstrated that it knows how to manage money and a Labor Party under Bill Shorten who has demonstrated that they can’t control what they spend, so it means they can’t control what they tax,” he said.
Jotham Lian
Jotham Lian is the news editor of Accountants Daily, the leading source of breaking news, analysis and insight for Australian accounting professionals.
With a focus on breaking news and exclusive analysis, Jotham keeps Accountants Daily readers up to date with company moves, tax updates and essential business and client strategy.
Before joining the team in 2017, Jotham wrote for a range of national mastheads including the Sydney Morning Herald, and Channel NewsAsia.
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