Bank Tax: For and Against

The Treasurer and the Opposition Leader provide their arguments for and against the bank tax. 

Opposition Leader Steven Marshall

THE State Liberal Team has drawn a line in the sand.

We are going to stop the Labor wrecking ball from continuing to smash the South Australian economy by taking decisive action and blocking the Weatherill Labor Government’s state bank tax.

Labor’s state bank tax is a desperate move from a tired and arrogant government that has mismanaged taxpayers’ money for fifteen years. My decision to block Labor’s new tax puts South Australians first.

Make no mistake, if Labor get their way and introduce their toxic state bank tax, South Australians will end up paying for it. People will pay for Labor’s new tax through their home loans, bank deposits, superannuation, and ultimately through reduced investment and job creation in our state.

South Australians are already battling the highest unemployment rate in the nation, crushing power bills and devastating state taxes like Labor’s ESL tax. Households and businesses simply cannot afford to keep paying new taxes to fund the Weatherill Labor Government’s wasteful spending.

Even the Labor Government’s economic advisers are worried about the new tax. Labor’s hand-picked head of the Investment Attraction Agency has refused to back the tax, saying it is naive to think it is not going to have an impact. If people want an example of the level of incompetence and wasteful spending that is rife within the Weatherill Labor Government, there it is. The Weatherill Government pays millions of dollars for economic advice every year and yet they did not even ask for the opinion of their advisers before introducing their new tax. In fact, Labor did not undertake any economic modelling of the bank tax.

This is a Government that has built a reputation for its lack of transparency, secrecy, and disregard for public opinion. Major employers and industry leaders do not support Labor’s tax but typically, Jay Weatherill and Tom Koutsantonis are defying common sense and arrogantly dismissing their opinions.

With the closure of Holden and massive job losses on the horizon, we need to create the right conditions to attract investment and grow the economy. Driving away investors with a toxic bank tax will not do that and will put South Australians at a competitive disadvantage.

The State Liberal Team has a very different vision for SA to the Weatherill Labor Government. We will lower taxes and put money back into the pockets of South Australian households and employers. We already plan to cut Labor’s ESL tax by $360 million. We know this will drive job creation and ease the burden of increasing household bills.

South Australians have a clear choice at the next state election. A choice between high taxes and wasteful spending under Labor, or lower taxes under a Liberal Government that will create the right conditions for South Australians to succeed.

Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis

STEVEN Marshall now finds himself in the position where he will be going to the next election advocating for the east coast big banks at the expense of South Australian businesses and jobs.

After changing position on this matter three times in 12 days, his decision to capitulate to the big banks after just one meeting with their bosses demonstrates his weakness as a leader.

The bank levy announced in our State Budget equates to just one third of 1 per cent of the big banks’ $30 billion super profits. The big banks have admitted they can easily afford this.

Put simply, this is a tax on five big east coast businesses that will fund thousands of South Australian small businesses. We know that the big banks are undertaxed to the tune of $4 billion ” they do not pay GST on their financial services. This levy is about getting the big banks to pay their fair share.

Importantly, we are investing what we raise from the major banks into job creation programs. This includes our $15,000 grants for new apprentices, and our $200 million Future Jobs Fund to support new jobs in growing industries, like defence, food and renewable energy.

With the closure of Holden a mere 107 days away, our state needs these employment programs to support automotive workers as they transition. The bank levy also goes towards funding our payroll tax cuts, which will benefit thousands of South

Australian small businesses, allowing them to employ more people. Importantly, the banks will not be able to pass this levy on to their customers. The Federal Government imposed the exact same levy on the banks earlier this year and the big banks have not passed the cost onto customers.

To ensure the banks cannot pass on the cost, the State Government is legislating to make it unlawful for them to put in place specific fees or charges in South Australia. Unsurprisingly, the banks are merely seeking to protect their super profits.

While enjoying super profits, the big banks have been closing branches and cutting jobs. For example, Westpac, which owns BankSA, has cut 387 jobs and closed 21 branches across South Australia in recent years. The banks are also guaranteed by the taxpayer ” a benefit not enjoyed by other industries.

By siding with the banks over South Australian jobs, Steven Marshall has once again sold out our state. He sold out South Australians on Holden. He sold out South Australians on Federal Liberal Government cuts to hospitals and schools. He sold out South Australians on the submarines, going silent when Tony Abbott wanted to build them in Japan. He sold out South Australians on energy ” defending Liberal privatisation.

Now, he’s sold out South Australians to the big banks. We all know that when it comes to the Liberals, the big banks and big business call the shots. The Liberals will always put profits before people.

Labor will always put people first.