Peter Dutton has vowed to repeal Labor’s superannuation tax hike should the Coalition be returned to power, warning voters that they’ll be next on the government’s “hit list”.
Tax on superannuation earnings for balances with more than $3m will double from 15 per cent to 30 per cent in two years in a move to claw back $2bn in revenue each year.
The Opposition Leader said the Coalition would not support the changes given Labor had declared it would not tinker with superannuation during the election campaign.
Peter Dutton has issued a warning to ordinary Australians. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman
“We’re dead against it, and we will repeal it. We’re not going to stand by and watch Australians attacked,” Mr Dutton said at a press conference in Victoria.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers repeatedly defended the changes on Wednesday morning, arguing while there would be some “political cost” to the move, overall it was a “modest” reform.
Data released by Treasury on Tuesday revealed the cost of the 10 largest tax expenditures – revenue forgone due to concessional tax – had hit $150bn.
Superannuation tax concessions, the data showed, would be worth more than $50bn this financial year.
The government announced the changes on Tuesday. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman
Mr Dutton warned the changes, announced just half an hour after the release of the Treasury estimates, were just the start, listing the capital gains tax exemption and negative gearing as the government’s next targets.
“We’ve now seen the first change in what, I think, will be many changes in the superannuation and tax space over the term of this government and into the next term of government if they are re-elected,” he said.
The government expects just 88,000 people to be affected by the concession cap.
But Mr Dutton warned everyday Australians that they could be next.
“The next change will be on people on the next rung down, the next rung down after that, because they need to find areas where you have critical mass, large numbers of people, to get the sort of billions of dollars that Labor always needs,” he said.
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