Bill Shorten talks a big game when it comes to multinational tax avoidance, but Labor has never backed this up with action. His latest policy shows Labor is confused and can't be trusted.
Today's ill-conceived grab-bag of announcements is Labor's third attempt at a multinational tax policy. Labor first promised $4.6 billion in revenue from its debt-deduction policy in May 2017, then $4 billion in February 2018 and today $3 billion.
Bill Shorten might like to forget Labor's record on multinationals, but Australians certainly won't:
- While in Opposition, Labor voted against our changes to multinational tax avoidance. These measures are bringing in an extra $7 billion of sales revenue into the tax net each year. If Labor had its way, this revenue would have been foregone;
- Labor voted in 2017 to delay by 12 months the GST applying to foreign multinationals for low value goods they ship to Australia; and
- When last in Government, Labor introduced the mining tax which raised no revenue and damaged business confidence in Australia.
In contrast, our Government has been getting on with the job, having:
- Implemented more than a dozen measures in the past two years to address corporate and multinational tax avoidance;
- Cracked down on foreign investors, introducing tough new laws to close a loop-hole that will see hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue kept in Australia;
- Introduced new Diverted Profits Tax laws to prevent multinationals shifting profits made in Australia offshore, which is expected to raise $100 million a year;
- Successfully legislated new laws that make sure the rules tackling multinational tax avoidance apply to all relevant entities; and
- Established a Tax Avoidance Taskforce within the ATO. Since it commenced in 2016, the Taskforce has raised around $11.3 billion in tax liabilities.
Making sure foreign investors and multinationals pay their fair share of tax is part of our Government's plan for a stronger Australian economy to guarantee the essential services that Australians rely on. Labor has only ever sought to block and delay our actions.