Steven Kennedy said a crackdown on tax breaks worth billions of dollars to the wealthy and companies was needed to repair the budget and urged the Albanese government to control “significant spending pressures” on disabilities and aged care.
Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy has urged the Albanese government to control “significant spending pressures” on disabilities and aged care, while suggesting a crackdown on tax breaks worth billions of dollars to the wealthy and companies.and rebuild fiscal buffers for future economic downturns. He said that solely relying on economic growth to reduce the $1 trillion debt, as both sides of politics flagged during the election, was no longer the “prudent” course.
Dr Kennedy cautioned against increasing tax “disincentives” on wage and salary earners who already face rising average tax rates and could pay record amounts to fill the budget deficit.“There are substantial opportunities for tax planning for example, depending on where you derive your income from. I made a point in the speech of pointing out that it’s wages and salaries that will tend to pay those higher income taxes,” Dr Kennedy said in response to a question.
“If we want a better budget, and we should, then tax expenditures should sit near the top of the pile.”Dr Kennedy said inflation would rise “potentially well above 6 per cent” this year due to the soaring price of oil, in addition to the spike in household electricity prices posing a further “upside risk”.lifted the cash rate by a hefty 0.
“If the Chinese government persists with an extended zero-COVID strategy and does not make progress on vaccination and health preparedness for the ongoing presence of many cases, the outlook for the Chinese economy is bleak.“Global supply of manufactured goods would be curtailed, although weaker demand for commodities including energy could see a correction in commodity prices.
“If we were able to lift productivity growth and move closer to the global frontier, that would lead to a permanent lift in the level of income and higher living standards,” he said.More immediately, the rise in global interest rates would “translate directly into higher interest payments” on government debt, a cost blowout Dr Chalmers has also warned of.