MEDIA RELEASE - AN UNFAIR BUDGET FOR GREENWAY - 4 MAY 2016

04 May 2016

The Turnbull Government’s Budget is a win for big business but a kick in the guts for the people of Greenway.

Instead of investing in schools, Medicare and higher education, the Liberals are delivering tax cuts for big multinational companies at the expense of Australian families.

 

For the thousands of people in Greenway who earn between $37,000 and $80,000, this Budget contains absolutely nothing. In fact, it takes them backwards.

 

Here are some examples of the unfairness in the Budget for the people of Greenway:

 

  • A couple with a single income of $65,000 with three children in primary school are $3,034 worse off a year and receive no tax cuts.

 

  • A single mother with an income of $87,000 with two children in high school is $4,463 worse off per year.

 

  • A couple with a single income of $87,000 with a baby under one and a two year old will be worse off.

 

  • New single pensioners will be $366 a year worse off and couple pensioners will be $550 a year worse off.

 

Contrast these examples with someone who earns $1 million. They are set to receive a tax cut worth $16,715.

 

How is this fair to residents of Greenway whose average income is approximately $53,700?

 

At the same time, big businesses and multinational companies are looking forward to their tax cuts, worth billions of dollars into the future.

 

This is a Budget that is out of touch with everyday Australians. It does nothing for housing affordability and has a list of cuts to health care, totalling billions of dollars:

 

  • Almost $1 billion cut from crucial health programs tackling drug and alcohol abuse, chronic disease, communicable diseases and rural health.
  • Abolished the Child Dental Benefits Scheme, ripping $1 billion from Commonwealth Dental spending.
  • Increased the price of prescription charges by $5 for general patients and $0.80 for Health Care Card Holders.

 

The cuts to pensions, family payments, and health care show the Turnbull Government is out of touch and does not understand what it’s like for people on average incomes.

 

This proves what an unfair Budget Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison have cooked up. Nothing has changed since 2014 when Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey tried to slash and burn Australia’s social safety net.

WEDNESDAY 4 MAY 2016