With just a month to go til Christmas, I want to update Australian families about what your Government is doing to reduce the pressure on your household budget.
The best way to help families is of course to build a stronger economy with lower taxes, more job security and stronger small businesses.
The Government is already making decisions that will make your lives easier.
We’ve scrapped Labor’s $1.8 billion fringe benefits tax hit on cars.
We’ve saved teachers, nurses and salespeople from the cap on self-education expenses – because people who want to study or retrain should be encouraged – after all, they are working hard to improve their lives and to make our economy stronger.
We’ve also declared that nearly one hundred announced, but not enacted, tax changes won’t go ahead.
And this week, you’ll be pleased to know, the House of Representatives passed the Carbon Tax Repeal Bill – this is our bill, to reduce your bills.
Scrapping the carbon tax will save households an average of $550 every year. On average, household electricity bills will fall by $200 a year and gas bills will fall by $70 a year.
But scrapping the carbon tax won’t just help families, it will also help Australia’s businesses and that means better job security for everyone.
You voted to scrap the carbon tax, the House of Representatives has voted to scrap the carbon tax, and now it’s up to the Senate to do the same, and I want this done by Christmas.
Joe Hockey and I are also working to bring the budget under control, because that will take the pressure off other taxes. We have to do this because the interest payments on our national debt are expected to reach $10 billion a year in the years ahead. That’s dead money that can’t be used to improve your services, or cut your taxes.
So, our plan is to lower taxes, create more jobs and strengthen the economy and that is what this Government is striving to deliver, every day.