The 2 Cents on Flags, Tax Cuts and 99 cents

A mere 2 weeks into Parliament, and we have already seen 9 of the 11 bills introduced to Parliament fail. We have seen the government try to make tax cuts, such as the removal of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) on Electricity bills, and Income Tax reductions in all four tax brackets. They have also tried to ban the desecration of the Australian Flag, we even saw a bill to introduce a 99 cent coin. As of the writing of this article, the GST removal on electricity, Desecration of the flag and the 99 cent coin bill have all failed at their first vote.

The GST removal on electricity failed the second reading vote at 4 in favour, 7 against. Many people from all sides of the house debated for some time, with quotes such as "signal of some innocent incompetence" from the Member for Mayo, directed at the government, and "Australian Population can live and function without electricity, like a primitive civilization living in mud-brick shacks, contracting malaria, eating wheat and walking barefoot." from the Treasurer himself. Members from many sides of the house, and members of the public were able to keep the talking going for sometime, before the division occurred, and the bill thrown out. However as of the time of publication, the bill as it is was written at the start of the term, has been reintroduced by the Treasurer.

This GST removal only lowers electricity bills by 10%, which seems like a lot, but an electricity bill before GST, is $200, would only cost $220 with GST, which isn't much of an increase, and it would cost an extra $240 a year. As others in the debate also mentioned, the GST removal would also be a massive tax relief for companies, with them having to spend over $1000 less a year on electricity. The Treasurer, in his speech on this bill, mentioned that it would be an approximately $600 million loss in government income, which is very significant, and could put the country into a deep deficit, one not seen from previously, taking into account the governments other tax cuts.

The Independent approached both the Treasurer and Shadow Treasurer on this tax change, with the Treasurer telling us that, the "Tax Cuts were introduced [again] as they had the confidence of the house, however due to a self-quarantine by our government members..." and the Shadow Treasurer saying that "The removal of electricity from the GST would've enabled corporations to gain more profit out of the pockets of the Australian people."

Next up, the governments income tax cuts. For the lowest tax paying bracket, or people earning $18,001 to $37,000, will go from paying 19% in tax, lowering to 15% over the next 3 years. The next one up, $37,001 to $90,000, will have a reduction from paying 32.5% to 25% over the next 3 years. $90,001 to $180,000 will go  from 37% to 30%, and the highest bracket, $180,001+, will go from 47.5% to 40%. This essentially means the rich are going to have to pay even less in tax, while the poor will only have a minor decrease in tax payment.

This bill is currently in a division, having many debate it, with the opposition against it, and the parts of the crossbench voting against it in the division, which could possibly see the bill fail at the second reading, making it the sixth government bill to fail at this stage.

The Independent also got comments from the Shadow Treasurer and Treasurer on this, with the Treasurer saying to us that "I think income tax cuts are quite self explanatory; Australians are entitled to their hard earned money and especially in these times it is absolutely crucial that families and individuals have access to more funds to pay the bills..." and the Shadow Treasurer saying that "As I have said on those matters on the house of representatives chamber, I am completely against irresponsible economic mismanagement. These bills would've lead to either two situations: expenditure cuts, where programs for the Australian people were cut from some important funding, or there would've been a massive debt increase which is extremely counter-intuitive in a crisis like COVID-19."

Next up, the 99 cent coin. The 99c coin is something not needed by the Australian people, as many people who debated on it mentioned. Many said that companies would, rather than ending prices in .99, they would end it is .98, making the coin pointless. The bill, something that isn't needed because it can just be done through a Legislative Instrument, failed at the second reading, as the MPs voting on it saw how unnecessary it was. Members of the opposition, crossbench and even parts of the government voted against this bill.

The Treasurer, someone who initially advocated for such a coin, told the Independent, "I don’t necessarily believe it should be part of everyday life but as an avid coin collector, I’d be pleased to see it on the market as part of the Mint’s collections." At current, it is unknown if the government will still do this through a determination, something that Parliament can disallow if they want to.

Finally, possibly the most controversial of all of the bills, the bill to ban the desecration, or burning of the flag. The bill, failed at the second reading vote, with all off the opposition and crossbench voting against it. This bill, had a split of 7 Noes, 5 Ayes and 1 Abstain, with one person failing to vote.

This bill, in the words of the Leader of the Opposition, "Desecration of the Flag should be permitted in Australian society as a form of protest against the government and as a show of government discontent." and continued about the Liberal National Party, "The LNP are encouraging a very scary path down authoritarianism and it is not at all good for Australia whatsoever." We talked to a member of the crossbench, showstealer1829, who said about the bill "I believe the right to protest is one of the fundamental rights of a democracy and we shouldn't be banning things because we find it distasteful." The Independent could not get a comment from the author of the bill, My13InchDuck.