Via The Guardian:
With the major parties set to use budget week as a staging post for a tax battle to play out between now and the next election, the Greens have entered the field, proposing a “Buffett rule” for high earners and a super profits tax for the mining industry.
In a policy to be unveiled on Wednesday, the Greens will seek to outbid Labor on progressivity, proposing a Buffett rule for wealthy Australians favoured by some in the ALP left but opposed by the leadership, and scrapping negative gearing for any future purchases.
The policy also contains a commitment to end fossil fuel subsidies and introduce a mining super profits tax at a rate of 40%, as well as taking action on the petroleum resource rent tax – which the government has in its sights in next week’s budget.
The resources giants expect the Coalition will use the budget to adjust the PRRT’s uplift rate, a shift that will impact deductions that gas companies can carry forward, but reports suggest that existing projects will be quarantined.
The Australian is no doubt about it with some kid called Greg Brown editorialising his way to success:
The Greens’ march to the uber left will continue today with the party to unveil a policy that would cap the amount of money an Australian arm of a multinational company can borrow from its international operations.
What? Take away transfer pricing? You commie!
Fact is, the Fake Greens are nowhere near Left enough and this tax package does not do a whole lot to prove otherwise. These are classic centrist plugs for tax loopholes. The 40% super profits tax is long overdue for miners which are still operating on obscene margins exploiting a depleting national resource. The Buffett Tax is a good move but, again, at 30% would hardly set the Leninist pulse racing. If the gas tax is not retrospective then its useless.
We need to see more yet but in principle these measure look pretty good.
