This Month
- Opinion
- The AFR View
States extract NDIS pound of flesh from Canberra
The insatiable appetite of the political class for higher taxing and spending is not matched by any serious policy intent to boost growth.
- The AFR View
November
- Exclusive
- Federal budget
States demand at least $5b in return for NDIS help
The states want annual GST top-up payments made permanent, in return for taking pressure off the federal National Disability Insurance Scheme, where costs are $42 billion a year and rising rapidly.
- Phillip Coorey
- Opinion
- The AFR View
GST magic pudding shows there’s no appetite for tax reform
State and federal financial relations are a dog’s breakfast. But premiers are more interested in entrenching their own interests than reforming the mess.
- The AFR View
- Opinion
- Opinion
Danielle Wood must help undo GST deal
The new chairwoman of the Productivity Commission has an opportunity to help reverse one of the most ill-advised public policy decisions of this century.
- Saul Eslake
October
- Opinion
- Canberra Observed
The longer Chalmers leaves it, the harder EV charging will be to fix
What are the Greens going to demand be spent when the fuel excise runs out? And do they not realise that just because a car is battery powered, it will still need a road?
- Phillip Coorey
September
GST rise and income tax cuts ‘help high-income earners’
A 15 per cent GST to pay for income tax cuts and more welfare payments would benefit high-income households, according to economic modelling by ANU.
- John Kehoe
August
- Opinion
- Income tax
All of a sudden, the stage three tax cuts are the good guy
The government is backgrounding that the GST is a state tax. It is not. John Howard tried to make the same claim.
- Phillip Coorey
- Opinion
- The AFR View
There’s logic to the teal MPs tax reform push - just look at the IGR
Allegra Spender’s call to put a GST tax-mix switch on the table echoes calls by past treasurers Les Bury, John Howard and Paul Keating.
- The AFR View
Kylea Tink in kitchen reno ‘climate crime’
Her recently sold property featured a kitchen with gas stove, a picturesque gas fireplace and even a gas-heated pool.
- Myriam Robin
- Updated
- Tax reform
‘Be brave’: Six teal MPs urge GST debate
The politicians are pushing Jim Chalmers to consider hard reforms such as raising the goods and services tax, as experts warn young workers will suffer.
- Updated
- Michael Read
Criminals using dark web ‘kits’ for tax fraud
Amid surging digital GST fraud, the tax office is struggling to quickly refund legitimate businesses while cracking down on dark web tax fraud.
- Tom Burton
ATO secrecy review expanded to cover TikTok fraud
A Treasury review into secrecy laws that bind the Tax Office will consider the fallout from a $1.6 billion tax fraud scheme executed via TikTok.
- Tom McIlroy, Neil Chenoweth and Max Mason
- Exclusive
- Tax avoidance
‘Absolutely rampant’: How the ATO missed a $4.6b crime wave
Influencers on TikTok are being blamed for an explosion of fraudulent GST claims that banks and accountants say went unchallenged for years.
- Neil Chenoweth
- Exclusive
- Tax avoidance
TikTok GST fraud hit on Tax Office blows out to $4.6b
Banks had been warning since 2020 of a GST scam, which became the largest tax fraud in Australian history after it was promoted on the social media platform.
- Neil Chenoweth
June
- Opinion
- The AFR View
State debt addictions harder to add up
The least creditworthy jurisdictions face paying a higher risk premium on their borrowings unless they get their houses in order by bringing down debt.
- The AFR View
The post-COVID-19 mining boom creates two Australias
The mining boom and post-pandemic debt hangovers have created a major financial split between the states, with implications for services, infrastructure and cost-of-living handouts.
- John Kehoe
Sydney council loses High Court plea on GST
Hornsby Council, led by former Coalition minister Philip Ruddock, claimed GST paid since 2000 should be refunded because the tax did not apply to local governments.
- Michael Pelly
May
What the budget’s tax compliance crackdown means for you
Landlords, remote staff and workers taking a liberal approach when claiming travel expenses can all expect tougher scrutiny from the tax office this year.
- Hannah Wootton
April
Chalmers rejects IMF call for GST increase
A senior International Monetary Fund official says lifting the GST is a good idea to reduce Australia’s public debt.
- Matthew Cranston
March
The cost to taxpayers from WA’s GST deal is $10b - and rising
The cost to federal taxpayers to top up GST payments to Western Australia has hit $10 billion and is set to rise further under a 2018 deal struck by then treasurer Scott Morrison.
- John Kehoe
