E&OE...
Listen to this Speech (MP3 - 1.21Mb - 79secs)
Good Morning,
The Government's overriding economic goal over the past 11 years has been to ensure that low-income people get a fair share of our national prosperity. New figures show that our policies have been doing just that.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures reveal that the Government's tax and welfare systems are redistributing our wealth in favour of low income earners.
It shows that only the top 40 per cent of Australian households are paying net tax after the value of all government benefits are counted.
That means average households receive more in government benefits than they pay in tax.
When I announced the Family Tax Initiative policy just prior to the 1996 election, I had in mind a tax system that would give low-income families a fairer share of our nation's wealth, and we have kept faith with that promise.
This has not been a rich man's government; this has been a government for the battlers of this country.
It is a government that will continue to ensure our prosperity is shared throughout the community.
Our economy is performing strongly and the Government's policies are ensuring that our prosperity is being shared. A Rudd Labor Government would put all of that at risk.
[ends]
Listen to this Speech (MP3 - 1.21Mb - 79secs)