Ley flags future tax cuts as sweetener for voters
Tax breaks will be given to low- and middle-income Australians under a future coalition government.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley will say personal income tax cuts will be at the heart of the coalition’s policy proposals to voters in a major economic speech in Sydney on Monday.
Future tax cuts will focus on areas where the financial burden is felt most, he said.
“We’ll start where the pressure is greatest: low- and middle-income people who are feeling the pinch of higher prices and rising costs of living,” he told the Center for Independent Studies.
“This is not a temporary policy choice. This is more than just a commitment to lower taxes.”
But the size of the potential tax cuts to voters has not yet been determined, and exact details will only be revealed closer to the election.
The promise of tax cuts was one of the first policy priorities Ms Ley announced since taking over as opposition leader after the coalition’s worst-ever election defeat.
The May election saw the coalition under then leader Peter Dutton not promising tax cuts in its policy platform, instead opposing only the modest cuts put forward by Labor in its March budget.
Since the election defeat, coalition policies have been reviewed; Areas such as energy and climate remain undecided amid intra-party tensions.
Ms Ley will say that any economic policy towards the next election will be a top-of-mind focus.
“Every time we say no to waste of labour, we will first look at returning those savings to taxpayers or strengthening the country’s fiscal position,” he will say.
“Every instinct in my being tells me that Australians should keep more than they earn.”
The opposition leader will also use his economic speech to call for intergenerational justice for young Australians and set priorities in industrial relations.
He will say that flexibility for workers will remain important.
“Flexibility doesn’t mean stripping away employee protections; it means giving employees more options for balancing work and life and giving businesses the ability to test new ideas, attract talent and reward merit,” he will say.
“A fair and balanced industrial relations system will create more jobs and greater productivity growth.”
