Thursday, 15 May 2025

 Brad BATTIN (Berwick – Leader of the Opposition) (14:19): My question is to the Premier. Angie Romas has run his steelwork, sandblasting and painting business for more than 20 years. Mr Romas is looking at closing his business after his land tax bill spiked from $8700 to more than $203,000 in the past decade. He has raised these issues with the Treasurer but is yet to receive a response. Why is the government’s only plan for the economy to close businesses and axe the jobs of their hardworking employees through these stifling taxes?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:20): In thanking the Leader of the Opposition for his question, it is interesting to note that the Leader of the Opposition is not proposing an alternative to how we collect revenue in this state. While we are hearing a lot about the alternative proposals that might be coming from the Shadow Treasurer, I do wonder if we have been given a sneak peak at what is going to come. The revenue that is collected through this mechanism goes directly into supporting our teachers, nurses, police and child protection workers.

Jade Benham interjected.

The SPEAKER: The member for Mildura can leave the chamber for half an hour.

Member for Mildura withdrew from chamber.

Jacinta ALLAN: If the Leader of the Opposition has an alternative proposal to this revenue mechanism, we look forward to hearing it, because the alternative will just be all about cuts. When it comes to supporting businesses, we will continue to do that – for example, through increasing the payroll tax free threshold to $1 million, up from $700,000 from two years ago. We are constantly looking at ways that we can adjust the settings to provide support to those great small and medium-sized businesses that make up the engine room of our economy. We are providing them with support through TAFE –

Brad Battin: On a point of order, Speaker, in relation to relevance on this, we are talking about a business whose tax has gone from $8700 to $203,000. The collection of tax should this business close will be zero – nothing coming in. It is time that the government started to support these small businesses rather than taxing them out.

The SPEAKER: Order! The Premier was being relevant to the question that was asked.

Jacinta ALLAN: I was just making the point exactly about how we are providing support to small businesses through that payroll tax free threshold. We understand that there is a need to continue to invest in those frontline services, and that is why the revenue that is collected through these mechanisms is directly invested in our teachers, nurses and police.

 Brad BATTIN (Berwick – Leader of the Opposition) (14:22): Mr Romas’s tax bill has increased by 2300 per cent. He asked the Treasurer:

Why are business owners being extorted to pay for major projects and debt the state government has incurred …

It is a good question. Premier, why are honest manufacturing businesses and their hardworking employees paying the price for Labor’s financial mismanagement?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:23): The Leader of the Opposition is wrong. What we have seen is that business investment in this state has been increasing – the highest in the nation, 3.7 per cent. Indeed I gave this data yesterday for the benefit of the Leader of the National Party. We are creating jobs in this state. We are supporting businesses – small, medium and large – to help them employ skilled workers through our investments in TAFE. I say this clearly: the alternative put forward by the Leader of the Opposition was all about cuts – cutting into airport rail, cheering on the federal Liberal Party while they announced his policy, his commitment to cuts. He did not even have the courage to stand in front of that press release that was put out by his federal colleagues announcing his cuts to airport rail. We will continue to invest in our frontline services and continue to look at where we can provide that economic support to our great business community.