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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2008-11-26 Daily Xml
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LAND TAX

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (15:10): My question is to the Treasurer. What impact is the government's land tax regime having on rents, jobs, retirees, pensioners and working families? One taxpayer from Mount Barker, who has written to the opposition, reports a land tax bill which increased from $1,500 to $7,300 in one year. The constituent states:

I have learnt that land tax rates are lower in other states and have decided that if rates are not lowered here I shall invest interstate in the future and possibly sell my properties here. I imagine if others do the same the state will have a rental supply problem.

Another constituent from Adelaide, whose land tax bill increased from $45,000 to $145,000, states:

I also have bank loans to pay on the properties. My question to you is, how is this increase justified? How can a person willing to go out on a limb and invest in South Australia be expected to pay an exorbitant tax?

A third voter from Hillbank, whose ownership includes, 'a run down old shed'—

The SPEAKER: Order! I think the explanation has gone past what is necessary.

Mr GRIFFITHS: There are a variety of instances here, Mr Speaker.

The SPEAKER: They might be examples of a point that the member for Goyder is trying to make but they are not necessary to explain the question. If the member for Goyder wants to use those examples then he would be best advised to do it by way of a grievance.

Mr GRIFFITHS: I am trying to demonstrate the numerous examples that we are receiving.

The SPEAKER: I understand that but that is not what the explanation is meant to do. The Treasurer.

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY (Port Adelaide—Deputy Premier, Treasurer, Minister for Industry and Trade, Minister for Federal/State Relations) (15:12): Nobody likes to pay tax, that is a reality of—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: Whether people choose to invest in South Australia or elsewhere is a decision each individual will make, but I will say this: when one looks at the property markets around Australia, when one looks at the economic performance and economic prospects around Australia, South Australia stacks up pretty well, if not the best jurisdiction in all of Australia. The reason people are paying more for their land tax bill is because they have clearly enjoyed substantial capital gain.

I would have thought, particularly in the current financial crisis that is engulfing the world, that being able to extract capital gain out of an investment is a very good thing. I wonder how those people would feel if their properties were to devalue to such an extent that they did not have an increase in land tax value but had seen a substantial reduction in capital gain. People invest for capital gain and as long as our economy is able to deliver capital gain then that is a good thing.

Clearly, we are going into an environment where South Australia will be affected by economic conditions, and I guess we will see reduced growth, if not a flat-lining, and perhaps in some areas a softening in land values, as we go through this very difficult period.

The government has its land tax position. I challenge the shadow finance minister. It is easy to pick points where you can demonstrate that people are unhappy about a government decision, but as you count down now to an election you really have to be honest with the people and put your position, because if you wish—

Mr Hamilton-Smith interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: Is that when you will do it?

Mr Hamilton-Smith interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The leader will come to order.

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: You are talking about your package?

Mr Hamilton-Smith interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! I have called the house to order. I have called the leader to order.

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: The leader is being disingenuous, because the government's land tax position was well known in the lead-up to the last state election. I took a fair bit of heat on it. Remember what the opposition's policy was: we are going to give, I think it was about $70 million of land tax relief. But the genius who has been dumped from the shadow treasury by the leader—the genius in another place—said, 'We can't tell you which rates of land tax we are going to cut; we can't tell you what properties we're going to cut, because we haven't got that information.' The genius from another place who had been a minister for eight years and a treasurer for four would have us believe that he could not work out what to offer a land tax cut on. He just simply said—

Mr Koutsantonis: What's the threshold.

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: Threshold. It was such a bizarre and pathetically constructed policy, it was laughable.

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson: Is that the same genius who was going to cut 4,000 jobs at the start of the election?

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: I can accept that the genius in another place, who was such an expert on everything but substantial policy—

Ms CHAPMAN: Point of order, Mr Speaker. This is not only a personal reflection on another member in another place but—

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, the Attorney will come to order!

Ms CHAPMAN: —clearly he is also debating the answer.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! I do not think calling someone a genius is a personal reflection.

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: The genius in another place, of course, enjoys the petty politics of nasty vilification of individuals on this side of the house without actually doing any hard work. As everyone says—arguably the laziest minister and member that this parliament has ever seen. But I say to the shadow finance minister, the easy stuff in politics is to highlight people's concerns with what government is doing. The great challenge of an opposition member is to come up with an alternative policy. If you cut land tax, who will pay more tax, what service will you cut, or are you going to borrow more money?

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