ABC News Radio

SUBJECTS:  Parliamentary sitting week; superannuation

E&OE................................

Marius Benson: Christopher Pyne at the beginning of the Parliamentary week you said there would be a different approach from the Opposition and it was in evidence. Tony Abbott asking just one question in Question Time, then generally staying mute and there were no questions from anyone on some of those personal issues like Craig Thomson or the Prime Minister’s alleged role in a slush fund 20 years ago; quite a different approach.

Hon Christopher Pyne MP: Well Marius we’ve entered the third phase of the Parliamentary cycle which is the last phase obviously the election campaign period and the questions that we want to ask about are how we want to hold the Government to account of course is to talk about the things that are concerning Australians, cost of living, job security, border protection and economic management. This week we focussed on the Government’s disappearing surplus, the broken promise about the surplus and what that means for the economy and of course about the fears that people have about the Government increasing taxes on superannuation.

Benson: Labor has made it clear that, fairly clear that in the budget the richest contributors to super will be paying more tax, while you the Coalition you’re hitting the lowest paid by reinstating the 15% tax on people earning less than $37,000. Matthias Cormann your colleague has characterised that debate as class warfare, is that an accurate picture of it?

Pyne: Well Labor promised before the 2007 election that they wouldn’t change super. In fact Kevin Rudd said not one jot, not one piddle and then of course as soon as they are elected they started to increase taxes on superannuation because they’re a Labor government.

In fact they reduced the benefit that the Howard Government introduced of $1,500 for low-income earners, to $500. So in fact they ripped $3.2 billion away from low-income earners. Now what we’ve said is that we won’t make any detrimental, unexpected changes to superannuation. Labor has not made that promise. Labor of course need to find money somewhere Marius because they have $120 billion of unfunded promises that they’ve made and I think that they are eyeing off superannuation, now the idea that we would be hurting low-income earners and that they will be hurting high income earners is just part of their campaign to divide Australia rather than bring it together and I think people are sick of the division that this Government is creating.

Benson: But you present yourself as the low tax party and you are increasing tax in this case on superannuation contributions and the people who are going to be paying more are those on the lowest income, below $37,000 a year.

Pyne: No Marius because the, that change to superannuation is part of a compensation package for the mining tax and that…

Benson: Sure that’s understood but the effect if it is you are increasing the tax burden on lowest paid.

Pyne: We’re reducing the tax burden by abolishing a $14 billion mining tax…

Benson: You’re reducing the tax burden on the mining companies, but increasing it on the lowest paid Australians contributing to super.

Pyne: Well if you increase taxes on the mining industry that flows through to every other aspect of our economy, these things don’t live in isolation. And of course we’re also abolishing the carbon tax which will also save billions of dollars and reduce the cost of living so we are reducing taxes massively in areas like the carbon tax and the mining tax and when you do that, some of the other benefits that the Government is handing out to people like so many baubles, can’t afford to be done.

Benson: Your draft plan to develop the tropical north, it’s only a draft plan, but one element in that was that you’re going to take $800 million from the foreign aid budget. Does the Opposition have foreign aid targeted as an area where it will make cuts?

Pyne: Marius that is a draft discussion paper and I think it was a perfectly good discussion paper. Whether it ends up in terms of a policy, that’s a matter for the process over the next few months in this election campaign, but we’re not, we are yet to earmarked particular areas for cuts yet. All of those proposals and fiscal policy will be announced at the appropriate time.

Benson: Christopher Pyne thanks very much.

Pyne: It’s a pleasure, thank you.

Presenter: The Manager of Opposition Business in the House, Christopher Pyne speaking to Marius Benson.

ENDS.