Today's MYEFO has seen a massive blowout in the costs of maintaining Labor's handouts.
- Fossil fuel subsidies continue to grow, costing an unsustainable $44.3 billion over the estimates while gas companies will pay 23% less tax under the broken PRRT
- Property investors are blowing a hole in the budget, with negative gearing soaring 18% year after year to total $29.2bn this financial year
- For multi-millionaires, the Prime Minister's revised super tax break for them has cost the budget $4.2 billion across the forward Estimates.
Meanwhile, the Treasurer has warned of "difficult decisions to come", while boasting of banking all savings in this update, instead of funding services to bring down the cost of living and protect nature.
In the middle of a cost of living crisis, this shows the government continues to prioritise tax cuts for multimillionaires ahead of workers.
The government's weak reforms to the gas tax have also failed, drawing $500m less than anticipated, as corporations continue to evade the Petroleum Resources Rent Tax. With a 23% drop in gas tax revenue, the downgrade is as substantial as that seen on tobacco excise.
The Greens have again reiterated that a 25% flat levy on gas exports would solve the government's challenges of ensuring gas exporters don't just ship it all overseas, leaving Australians with higher energy bills.
Senator Larissa Waters, Leader of the Australian Greens said:
"We're in a cost of living crisis, but Labor continues to put handouts for wealthy property investors, fossil fuel subsidies and multimillionaires ahead of everyone else.
"This mini budget from Labor sees more money go towards wealthy property investors, while they're taking less and less from multimillionaires and giant gas corporations.
"People with a dozen houses or $15 million in their super don't need a helping hand from the government - but Labor's continuing to put them ahead of everyone who works for a living.
"Millions of people are doing it tough trying to find a home and keep their heads above water, but Labor is still refusing to tax multimillionaires fairly, to help raise revenue to fund more for housing or essential services."
Senator Nick McKim, Australian Greens economic spokesperson said:
"The increase in negative gearing is obscene and confirms that property speculators are the big winners from Labor's so-called housing reforms."
"Labor seems to have totally given up on demanding any tax from offshore oil and gas extraction."
"This is a slap in the face to ordinary Australians who are working hard and paying tax."
"There is so much more that could be done to make big corporations and the super wealthy pay their fair share of tax so we can invest in protecting nature and supporting the millions of Australians struggling to make ends meet."
"Labor may have given up on a fairer economic system, but the Greens will not."
