Extract from The Guardian
Christine Milne seeks compensation for those hardest hit by the proposed reindexation of the fuel excise
- Lenore Taylor political editor
Christine Milne cannot nominate a single budget measure the Greens
will definitely support in the Senate as parliamentary opposition
hardens. Only appropriations bills and the deficit levy on high income
earners are certain to pass.
The Greens had said they were likely to support the reindexation of the fuel excise, but Milne now says she is “extremely sceptical of a government that sees fuel excise purely as a revenue raiser, not as a transformative price signal”.
She said that before she would agree to the reintroduction of fuel excise indexation – set to reap $2.15bn over the next four years – she would want to see “compensation for the people who have no choices, the people who have no access to public transport, the people who live far away from the city and can only afford the old, fuel-inefficient cars”.
“In order to be equitable any excise increase needs to go to offset that, and that is where the connection to public transport comes in. We are looking at how to do it … it could be more investment in public transport, or there are also other ways to do it,” she said.
Milne is also concerned that compensating big miners and farmers for fuel excise, including the increases in that excise due to the reintroduction of indexation, meant the “subsidies” paid by the taxpayer would increase every year.
“We are also looking at that seriously … there are so many other decisions that hang off the decision to reintroduce indexation of fuel excise.”
The leader of the Palmer United party, Clive Palmer, told Guardian Australia on Monday that he and his three senators had met over the weekend and resolved they would not negotiate in any way or even speak to the government about any budget measures.
“This is an attack on Australia’s way of life. Our party room resolved not to talk to the Liberal and National parties at all,” he said.
Asked whether a carte blanche refusal to negotiate was not an unusual tactic for a party holding balance-of-power votes in the Senate, he said: “Well, we are unusual, we don’t like them, we don’t like this budget and we aren’t going to talk to them.”
And Labor, despite having indicated it was likely to back a freeze in the rates at which family benefits are paid, this week announced it would oppose the move, which would save $2.6bn over the next four years.
The hardening parliamentary resistance to the budget poses a huge challenge for the government, which has vowed not to “flinch” or back down on decisions it says are necessary to “repair” the deficit and pay down national debt.
As the government slumps in the opinion polls, Coalition MPs and senators are privately nervous, but few have gone public with their concerns, and both the prime minister and treasurer praised the backbench on Monday for its resolve.
But one backbencher, West Australian Liberal Dennis Jensen, has said it is foolish to set up a $20bn medical research fund at the same time as the government is cutting money from scientific agencies, including the CSIRO and the Australian Research Council.
The temporary deficit levy, imposing an additional 2% tax on those earning over $180,000 for the next three years, passed the lower house on Wednesday and is set to pass the Senate with the support of the ALP.
Labor and the Greens are also likely to pass at least some of the proposed freezing of thresholds for family benefits and other payments, but have not yet taken decisions.
Milne said the budget was “trickery from start to finish” and was evidence that “the Tea party has taken over the Liberal party.”
The Greens had said they were likely to support the reindexation of the fuel excise, but Milne now says she is “extremely sceptical of a government that sees fuel excise purely as a revenue raiser, not as a transformative price signal”.
She said that before she would agree to the reintroduction of fuel excise indexation – set to reap $2.15bn over the next four years – she would want to see “compensation for the people who have no choices, the people who have no access to public transport, the people who live far away from the city and can only afford the old, fuel-inefficient cars”.
“In order to be equitable any excise increase needs to go to offset that, and that is where the connection to public transport comes in. We are looking at how to do it … it could be more investment in public transport, or there are also other ways to do it,” she said.
Milne is also concerned that compensating big miners and farmers for fuel excise, including the increases in that excise due to the reintroduction of indexation, meant the “subsidies” paid by the taxpayer would increase every year.
“We are also looking at that seriously … there are so many other decisions that hang off the decision to reintroduce indexation of fuel excise.”
The leader of the Palmer United party, Clive Palmer, told Guardian Australia on Monday that he and his three senators had met over the weekend and resolved they would not negotiate in any way or even speak to the government about any budget measures.
“This is an attack on Australia’s way of life. Our party room resolved not to talk to the Liberal and National parties at all,” he said.
Asked whether a carte blanche refusal to negotiate was not an unusual tactic for a party holding balance-of-power votes in the Senate, he said: “Well, we are unusual, we don’t like them, we don’t like this budget and we aren’t going to talk to them.”
And Labor, despite having indicated it was likely to back a freeze in the rates at which family benefits are paid, this week announced it would oppose the move, which would save $2.6bn over the next four years.
The hardening parliamentary resistance to the budget poses a huge challenge for the government, which has vowed not to “flinch” or back down on decisions it says are necessary to “repair” the deficit and pay down national debt.
As the government slumps in the opinion polls, Coalition MPs and senators are privately nervous, but few have gone public with their concerns, and both the prime minister and treasurer praised the backbench on Monday for its resolve.
But one backbencher, West Australian Liberal Dennis Jensen, has said it is foolish to set up a $20bn medical research fund at the same time as the government is cutting money from scientific agencies, including the CSIRO and the Australian Research Council.
The temporary deficit levy, imposing an additional 2% tax on those earning over $180,000 for the next three years, passed the lower house on Wednesday and is set to pass the Senate with the support of the ALP.
Labor and the Greens are also likely to pass at least some of the proposed freezing of thresholds for family benefits and other payments, but have not yet taken decisions.
Milne said the budget was “trickery from start to finish” and was evidence that “the Tea party has taken over the Liberal party.”
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