❓ The minister acknowledges concerns about the impact of the GST on business bankruptcies, citing an article in The Australian and a survey by the Small Business Development Corporation. The minister criticizes the federal government's handling of the GST and accuses them of hypocrisy.
AnsweredQoN 213Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
BANKRUPTCIES, IMPACT OF GOODS AND SERVICES TAX
Is the minister aware of an article that appeared in The Australian dealing with business bankruptcies and, if so, can the minister offer any explanation for the increase since the introduction of the goods and services tax? Mr BROWN
Is the minister aware of an article that appeared in The Australian dealing with business bankruptcies and, if so, can the minister offer any explanation for the increase since the introduction of the goods and services tax? Mr BROWN
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for his question and his interest in business matters, particularly in the concerns that have arisen in the business community since the introduction of the goods and services tax. An article appeared in The Australian on 5 June entitled “Surge in bankruptcies refuels GST row”. It compared the number of business bankruptcies before and after the introduction of the GST. I quote from the article - While bankruptcies for the whole financial year are up only slightly on the previous one, business failures have jumped in the past three months from 1089 to 1517 - a rise of almost 40 per cent. The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia. This is a very serious matter because, when in opposition, Labor said in this House that the goods and services tax would not be good for business. Time and time again, Labor raised concerns about the goods and services tax. Some of the concerns of the business community are now being picked up by the Prime Minister and, despite the fact that he has said that he does not agree with Kim Beazley’s rollback, he is rolling back the tax. I love the Prime Minister’s hypocrisy. He says on one hand that the goods and services tax is absolute, it cannot be changed and there cannot be a rollback, yet, on the other hand, every week that he goes out and gets a whipping from the business community he comes out with another announcement about rolling it back. When he is asked if he is rolling back the GST he says he is not and that he is only finetuning the tax. The Prime Minister is very interested in the term “finetuning”. The article in The Australian reinforces the survey carried out by the Small Business Development Corporation earlier this year conducted by Patterson Market Research. It showed that, since the introduction of the goods and services tax, the profit margin for more than 58 small business respondents has been negatively affected. It showed that the workload for record-keeping has increased for 82 per cent of respondents, and, for a further 81 per cent of respondents, additional costs were incurred. The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
Mr BROWN replied: I thank the member for his question and his interest in business matters, particularly in the concerns that have arisen in the business community since the introduction of the goods and services tax. An article appeared in The Australian on 5 June entitled “Surge in bankruptcies refuels GST row”. It compared the number of business bankruptcies before and after the introduction of the GST. I quote from the article - While bankruptcies for the whole financial year are up only slightly on the previous one, business failures have jumped in the past three months from 1089 to 1517 - a rise of almost 40 per cent. The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia. This is a very serious matter because, when in opposition, Labor said in this House that the goods and services tax would not be good for business. Time and time again, Labor raised concerns about the goods and services tax. Some of the concerns of the business community are now being picked up by the Prime Minister and, despite the fact that he has said that he does not agree with Kim Beazley’s rollback, he is rolling back the tax. I love the Prime Minister’s hypocrisy. He says on one hand that the goods and services tax is absolute, it cannot be changed and there cannot be a rollback, yet, on the other hand, every week that he goes out and gets a whipping from the business community he comes out with another announcement about rolling it back. When he is asked if he is rolling back the GST he says he is not and that he is only finetuning the tax. The Prime Minister is very interested in the term “finetuning”. The article in The Australian reinforces the survey carried out by the Small Business Development Corporation earlier this year conducted by Patterson Market Research. It showed that, since the introduction of the goods and services tax, the profit margin for more than 58 small business respondents has been negatively affected. It showed that the workload for record-keeping has increased for 82 per cent of respondents, and, for a further 81 per cent of respondents, additional costs were incurred. The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
I thank the member for his question and his interest in business matters, particularly in the concerns that have arisen in the business community since the introduction of the goods and services tax. An article appeared in The Australian on 5 June entitled “Surge in bankruptcies refuels GST row”. It compared the number of business bankruptcies before and after the introduction of the GST. I quote from the article - While bankruptcies for the whole financial year are up only slightly on the previous one, business failures have jumped in the past three months from 1089 to 1517 - a rise of almost 40 per cent. The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia. This is a very serious matter because, when in opposition, Labor said in this House that the goods and services tax would not be good for business. Time and time again, Labor raised concerns about the goods and services tax. Some of the concerns of the business community are now being picked up by the Prime Minister and, despite the fact that he has said that he does not agree with Kim Beazley’s rollback, he is rolling back the tax. I love the Prime Minister’s hypocrisy. He says on one hand that the goods and services tax is absolute, it cannot be changed and there cannot be a rollback, yet, on the other hand, every week that he goes out and gets a whipping from the business community he comes out with another announcement about rolling it back. When he is asked if he is rolling back the GST he says he is not and that he is only finetuning the tax. The Prime Minister is very interested in the term “finetuning”. The article in The Australian reinforces the survey carried out by the Small Business Development Corporation earlier this year conducted by Patterson Market Research. It showed that, since the introduction of the goods and services tax, the profit margin for more than 58 small business respondents has been negatively affected. It showed that the workload for record-keeping has increased for 82 per cent of respondents, and, for a further 81 per cent of respondents, additional costs were incurred. The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia.
The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
Mr BROWN replied: I thank the member for his question and his interest in business matters, particularly in the concerns that have arisen in the business community since the introduction of the goods and services tax. An article appeared in The Australian on 5 June entitled “Surge in bankruptcies refuels GST row”. It compared the number of business bankruptcies before and after the introduction of the GST. I quote from the article - While bankruptcies for the whole financial year are up only slightly on the previous one, business failures have jumped in the past three months from 1089 to 1517 - a rise of almost 40 per cent. The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia. This is a very serious matter because, when in opposition, Labor said in this House that the goods and services tax would not be good for business. Time and time again, Labor raised concerns about the goods and services tax. Some of the concerns of the business community are now being picked up by the Prime Minister and, despite the fact that he has said that he does not agree with Kim Beazley’s rollback, he is rolling back the tax. I love the Prime Minister’s hypocrisy. He says on one hand that the goods and services tax is absolute, it cannot be changed and there cannot be a rollback, yet, on the other hand, every week that he goes out and gets a whipping from the business community he comes out with another announcement about rolling it back. When he is asked if he is rolling back the GST he says he is not and that he is only finetuning the tax. The Prime Minister is very interested in the term “finetuning”. The article in The Australian reinforces the survey carried out by the Small Business Development Corporation earlier this year conducted by Patterson Market Research. It showed that, since the introduction of the goods and services tax, the profit margin for more than 58 small business respondents has been negatively affected. It showed that the workload for record-keeping has increased for 82 per cent of respondents, and, for a further 81 per cent of respondents, additional costs were incurred. The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
I thank the member for his question and his interest in business matters, particularly in the concerns that have arisen in the business community since the introduction of the goods and services tax. An article appeared in The Australian on 5 June entitled “Surge in bankruptcies refuels GST row”. It compared the number of business bankruptcies before and after the introduction of the GST. I quote from the article - While bankruptcies for the whole financial year are up only slightly on the previous one, business failures have jumped in the past three months from 1089 to 1517 - a rise of almost 40 per cent. The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia. This is a very serious matter because, when in opposition, Labor said in this House that the goods and services tax would not be good for business. Time and time again, Labor raised concerns about the goods and services tax. Some of the concerns of the business community are now being picked up by the Prime Minister and, despite the fact that he has said that he does not agree with Kim Beazley’s rollback, he is rolling back the tax. I love the Prime Minister’s hypocrisy. He says on one hand that the goods and services tax is absolute, it cannot be changed and there cannot be a rollback, yet, on the other hand, every week that he goes out and gets a whipping from the business community he comes out with another announcement about rolling it back. When he is asked if he is rolling back the GST he says he is not and that he is only finetuning the tax. The Prime Minister is very interested in the term “finetuning”. The article in The Australian reinforces the survey carried out by the Small Business Development Corporation earlier this year conducted by Patterson Market Research. It showed that, since the introduction of the goods and services tax, the profit margin for more than 58 small business respondents has been negatively affected. It showed that the workload for record-keeping has increased for 82 per cent of respondents, and, for a further 81 per cent of respondents, additional costs were incurred. The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
The surge is unusual for this time of year and means bankruptcies are 78 per cent higher than in the same period in 2000. Individual bankruptcies have increased by 30 per cent in the past six months, according to figures released yesterday by the Insolvency and Trustee Service of Australia.
The federal coalition Government came to office on the mandate that it would reduce red tape, but it has increased the size of the tax Act unbelievably. If previously the tax Act was not big enough to be a doorstop, it is now big enough to stop a bank’s door. It is so large and complex that most small businesses turn to accountants to work through the mess that has been created. Despite small business people raising their concerns, what have members on the other side done? Members opposite are meant to be the champions of the small business sector, but they have said nothing. They go out every week and tell small businesses that the tax is good for them. They know small business people are spending more time at home doing administrative functions instead of working in their businesses. They know small business people are spending more on accountants to complete the tax returns that are required, but they tell them it is good for them. If I were a small business, conservative voter I would give up and look somewhere else.
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