PRIME MINISTER
FOR PRESS A? RILL 18, 1976
ELECTORAL TALK
This week I want to talk with you about people and Government.
The damage of big government and its potentially great power
to the kind of life style that Australians want is far reaching.
It can effect every part of society.
The exercise of centralised power by big government removes
incentive; it stifles initiative; it encourages laziness;
it imposes uniformity and conformity and it greatly lessens
the opportunity for self respect.
Centralised power creates a society where people become servants
of a government, rather than masters.
The further away the decisions making proc ess takes place,
the less chance there is of correct decisions being made.
My Government and the Liberal National Country Parties in
all states is determined to reverse this trend.
We made a number of significant steps in ac'hieving this aim
at the last Premiers Conference.
First, all State Governments agreed with the Federal Government
on the operation of a new tax sharing arrangement.
After this reform, everyone will have a clear and precise
knowledge of which government State or Federal is
spending their money.. It is a much needed reform which will
give people i. greater control over Government spending.
Some people have suggested that this reform is double taxation.
That view is totally false. There will be one form, one
assessment, one set of tax rules and one system.
Let me be perfectly clear on t his Governments v iews on personal
income tax. A fundamental freedom Australians must have is control
over the income they earn.
Freedom to spend one's income is clearly a tangible expression
of the right to choose.
This freedom has in fact being eroded in Australia. Ever rising
inflation has fueled the taxation growth which has paid for
many socially irresponsible welfare programmes. / 2
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Last August the Labor Government budgeted for a net pay as you
earn tax of $ 8.7 billion. This is three times the size of the
1972/ 73 figure.
Frequently rising taxes create a vicious circle of dependence
where families can no longer cope adequately with their own
needs because so much of their income goes to centralised
government to finance extravagant, inefficient and often
wasteful programmes.
It is little wonder the person on average earnings has found
it difficult to save for a house, buy the best education for
his children and look after his ageing parents or relatives
as he would wish.
My Government is pledged to block this unlegislated tax grab
by Canberra.
We are going to introduce tax indexation the most important
tax reform in Australia's history.
Tax indexation will put earnings back into the hands of
individuals and will eliminate as far as possible total
dependence on big government programmes.
Our Parliamentary opponents shed crocodile tears about our
plans to put government responsiblity back into national
economic management. They seem incapable of understanding.
that it is not enough that programmes are worthy. Worthy goals
are limitless, but resources are limited.
There is no doubt that if government indulges all worthy
programmes, it would destroy utterly the freedom of individuals
to choose for themselves.
This Government's approach to welfare is to place emphasis
on directing assistance to those in real need. The. Government
does not believe that the poor and disadvantaged can be best
helped by increasing the dependence of everyone on what the
Government chooses to provide.
Our tax indexation reform will strongly reassert the right of
people to retain their own earnings so that wherever possible
they can meet their needs as they see fit.
Another of t-fundamental issues Lhat is concerned with the
relationship between government and people was also discussed
at the Premiers Conference.
The Conference agreed to set up an independent-council that will
examine the inter relationship between each level of Government.
The council will bring together representatives of each tier
of government and private citizens. Significantly the Chairman
of the council will be a private citizen.
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The Government believes that the effective interation between
the three tiers of government is crucial if we are to improve
the quality of representative government.
Communities are becoming more complex. Their demands on specialist
government services require more and more on the spot information
and expertise.
Only if government can operate where its effects are felt can
Australians truly claim to be part of a meaningful and
democratic political system.