There is no other way to put it than a complete sellout. The AFR is piling on the pressure:
Senior Labor figures are leaning towards waving through the Morrison government’s full $158 billion income tax cut package but only after trying to split the legislation so the party can symbolically vote against relief for high income earners.
With Opposition leader Anthony Albanese calling a shadow cabinet meeting for Monday in a bid to settle on a position, frontbenchers are canvassing the option as a way to make a political point that the stage three tax cuts are fiscally reckless while also allowing Labor to neutralise the issue and move on.
Along with its businomics sister at The Australian:
Anthony Albanese has been warned Labor would “further tarnish” its reputation with corporate Australia if it opposes Scott Morrison’s income tax cut package, as business leaders across the nation urge the opposition to accept the government’s election mandate to implement its $158 billion plan in full.
Energy Australia chairman Graham Bradley told The Weekend Australian that it was essential to business confidence that Labor delivered bipartisan support for the Prime Minister’s three-tiered tax package. “It is absolutely critical that there is money put into consumers’ pockets at this time,” Mr Bradley said.
The former Business Council of Australia president, who is also the chairman of GrainCorp and HSBC Australia, said the Coalition had a “clear election mandate” on the policy. “I believe business fully supports both the direction and the urgency of implementing these cuts,” he said. “I think (Labor) will further tarnish their reputation (with business) if they don’t support them.”
Bradley has never seen a Labor policy that he liked. Why would it listen to him?
The Coalition’s tax cut package is massively regressive and would reduce the annual tax bill of people on the highest incomes by more than $11,000 from 2024-25 if the third stage proceeds.
This is irreconcilable with any notion of “labour” politics. It is also stupid politics. The Government will be blamed for any broken promise not Labor.
Moreover, if it folds, the current leverage in the senate enjoyed by Centre Alliance, which is being deployed as a weapon to crush the gas cartel and prevent the destruction of 200k manufacturing jobs, will be lost.
Labor must hold the line or it might as well disband.
Update. It has folded:
Australia is set to legislate a 30-cents-in-the-dollar tax rate for all workers earning under $200,000, with the Labor Party preparing to announce it will not block the tax cuts.
The New Daily has confirmed the strategy, to be discussed at shadow cabinet on Monday, leaves open the door to a future Labor government repealing the 2024 tax cuts for high-income earners, which it regards as regressive and unaffordable.
But crucially, the ALP would not insist on amendments so it cannot be accused of delaying $1080 tax cuts for 10 million workers from July 1.
