Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast Why are the major parties dodging serious tax reform?
Apr 30, 2025
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Challenges of Tax Reform
- Tax reform in Australia is challenging due to political, economic, and social factors combined with the toxic nature of tax.
- Successful reforms require political champions and a willingness to push broadly based tax changes beyond minor tweaks.
Tax Generosity to Wealthy
- Australia's tax system is remarkably generous towards the wealthy, with high benefits going to the top 10% from capital gains tax discounts.
- The GST is regressive, burdening lower income earners proportionally more than wealthier groups.
Family Home as Tax Shelter
- The family home is Australia's largest tax shelter, costing the government about $50 billion in foregone revenue annually.
- Political realities make abolishing this exemption impossible, but capping the tax-free capital gains at a high threshold could improve fairness.