April 11, 2017 Liberals to oppose payroll tax changes The Liberal Opposition will not support the Government’s proposed changes to the Pay-roll Tax Assessment Amendment (Exemption for Trainees) Bill 2018. Shadow Treasurer Dean Nalder said the amendment was a tax grab, at the expense of training, by the McGowan Government to pay for its $5 billion in unfunded election commitments. “It beggars belief that at a time when the WA economy is refocusing in the wake of the mining boom, and the workforce is needing to adapt to that new focus, this Government wants to cut back on funding for training,” Mr Nalder said. Mr Nalder said the Government’s arguments for the change lacked credibility and could disrupt training and employment opportunities for thousands of Western Australians. “The Government has not sufficiently consulted with industry and therefore is unaware of the impact its proposed changes will have on training and jobs,” Mr Nalder said. “It says the changes are necessary because of rorting of the existing system but has not made public any detail to back up that claim or justify dismantling the existing system. “It’s difficult to understand how the systemic rorting being claimed by the Government can be happening when reports show training and apprenticeship numbers have been declining over the past six years. “What is required is for the Government to deal with any individual businesses that may be doing the wrong thing rather than rush into wholesale changes that jeopardise legitimate training programs.” The Shadow Treasurer said Western Australian businesses already pay the highest payroll tax per employee in Australia. “Businesses in WA are paying an average of $2,408 per employee in payroll tax, compared with an average of $1839 across the rest of Australia,” Mr Nalder said. The Shadow Treasurer said any attempt by the McGowan Government to shift the blame for removing the training exemption to a lack of Federal funding for training ignored the fact that $1.5 billion worth of funding was currently available to the States and Territories through the Skilling Australians Fund. “All the McGowan Government has to do to access this funding is submit a proposal which clearly outlines how they are achieving industry outcomes and apprenticeship numbers,” Mr Nalder said. “If this Government is doing what it said it would, that is prioritising jobs and training, it will have no trouble accessing its share of that $1.5 billion from the Skilling Australia Fund.” Media Contact |
