PM Transcripts

Subjects: illegal immigration; taxation; superannuation; fuel pricing
BYNER:
The fight against terrorism, according to Kim Beazley, and the protection of our borders are largely common ground in this election. Do you go along with that?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, it wasn';t common ground, the border protection was not common ground when it really mattered. I mean, it suits Mr Beazley to say that now, but when we first put up the Border Protection Bill he voted against it and he then changed his position, and he changed back again, and some of his people are saying that if they win the election, they don';t guarantee not to change it further. In relation to Australia';s military contribution, he has expressed strong support for that and I accept that, and it';s important that when Australian military forces are overseas they have, to the maximum extent possible, bipartisan support, and I accept what he says on that. But in relation to border protection and the treatment of the whole asylum seeker problem, the Labor Party has kept changing its mind. It suits it now, so it believes, to say that there is no difference between us, but when it really mattered, there was a big difference between us.
BYNER:
Prime Minister, on domestic matters, as you know, taxation has become quite a big talking point for people as they decide who they';re going to vote for on the 10th of November; a lot of people have been talking to me and indeed I';ve been engendering some of the discussion on the concept of having an indexed tax system, because as you know we';re all victims of bracket creep. Are there any plans by your Government, should you be re-elected, to attack this problem?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, Leon, we';re not going to this election with a proposal to do that. We';re going to this election with a proposal to have a first child tax rebate, colloquially called ‘the baby bonus.'; That is our specific proposal on taxation because we don';t in the three-year period ahead and the predictions about the state of our Budget, we don';t really have the capacity to offer more. But can I say in relation to bracket creep, that one of the benefits of the new tax system is that because the income tax rate between an income of 20,000 and 50,000 is the same, that means 80% of people are on a top rate of no more than 30c in the dollar, the frequency with which people move into higher tax brackets is a lot less now than what it was. Because if you';re earning $25,000 a year and you go up to 30,000 your marginal tax rate doesn';t change. If you go to 35,000 it doesn';t change, if you go to 40,000 it doesn';t change, if you go to 45,000 it doesn';t change your marginal rate, and that';s what bracket creep is all about. And one of the reasons why I wanted to have that band so that people didn';t go into a higher bracket was because of bracket creep. So whilst I agree that you still have bracket creep if you go over 50,000, I acknowledge that, but the reality is that 80% of Australian taxpayers earn $50,000 a year or less and the great bulk of them are between twenty and a half thousand dollars and 50,000, and they don';t go into a higher bracket.
BYNER:
These are things which…
PRIME MINISTER:
But I certainly, I mean, the issue, I acknowledge that it is an issue with a lot of people but because we don';t see ourselves having a capacity to commit to doing anything there - I have to be open with you and say we';re not committing to do anything there, obviously if the opportunity arose we would love to do so but I can';t at the moment see that I';ve got room to move in that area - therefore I';m going to mislead people by saying: ‘oh, yes, I';ll have a look at it,'; because you';re fudging it when you say in the middle of an election campaign you';ll have a look at something. You';re hoping that people will see it as an indication you';ll do it, when in reality you';re not committing to it. So, I have to be very transparent and say I can';t commit to it, obviously if the opportunity arose we';d be positive.
BYNER:
So, Prime Minister, I suppose the same thing might apply for any kind of reform of our superannuation system where there';s been a lot of criticism that it';s taxed when it goes in, when it';s there, and indeed when it comes out?
PRIME MINISTER:
We are releasing a policy on savings and superannuation a little later on in the campaign, it';ll be in a few days time, and we have a number of things to say about that whole issue, so I don';t think I will add to that comment at the moment. We have got something to say in that general area.
BYNER:
I';ll be very interested to hear it, Prime Minister. The other thing, just quickly, I';d like to ask you about is fuel pricing. As you know, there';s been much discussion and we';ve had many inquiries. Are you confident that if you are re-elected on the 10th of November, we might actually be able to get better transparency within the oil industry so that we don';t get these enormous price fluctuations, where on one hand, you';ve got a 16-year low for the barrel price of oil, and yet in many areas and depending on what day it is, you can be paying 93, 94c a litre?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I can';t guarantee…(inaudible due to reception problems)…the inquiry into the whole taxation structure of fuel will examine that issue, that issue is going to be examined, but I am wary about giving a hard and fast commitment as to what the outcome of that will be. I do realise it';s a big issue with people. We, of course, have tried in that area to cut excise by one and half cents a litre and we have abolished the half-yearly indexation of excise, and that has meant a significant saving. August of this year is the first August for 18 years that the tax on petrol hasn';t automatically gone up because of an increase in the cost of living, so it';s quite an important structural reform that to the taxation system. It';s one of the things that we spent money on and I notice Mr Beazley keeps complaining that we spent money but he never complains about the things we spent the money on.
BYNER:
Well, Prime Minister, thanks for joining us this morning. I hope we';ll have the opportunity of talking with you in better detail when you come back to Adelaide before the 10th of November.
PRIME MINISTER:
Thank you for talking to me.
[ends]
u for talking to me.
[ends]