Media Centre - Labor's debt bomb
Labor's debt bomb
Published 15/5/2009
The Coalition has an alternative to Labor's record debt and deficit Budget. Our plan is built on four key principles to help Australia recover and grow:
1. Protecting and creating jobs for all Australians.
2. Keeping debt as low as possible.
3. Targeting spending at jobs and economic infrastructure.
4. Supporting private enterprise and small business - the drivers of economic growth.
As part of our plan for recovery and growth, the Coalition has proposed practical, affordable measures to support small business in its crucial role as the engine room of our economy:
- Tax loss carryback for business. If businesses make operating losses this year or next year, they should be able to carry them 'back' against previous years' profits and recover up to $100,000 of taxes paid over the past three years. This tax refund would bolster cash flows.
- Tax free savings for business. A change to our laws to emphasise the reconstruction of troubled businesses could save thousands of jobs that would otherwise have been lost.
- Cutting red tape. The Coalition would reduce this burden to the lowest in the OECD, and join state and local governments to deliver a one-stop online portal for filings.
- Helping employers provide training. Government funding for training should be directed to the first two years of an apprenticeship to ensureemployers are best able to meet wage costs and cash flow challenges.
In these challenging times, the Coalition is committed to responsible spending and ensuring future generations are not burdened by mountains of debt.
A Coalition Government will appoint an independent Commission of Sustainable Finances to help identify and cut the waste in Labor's excessive spending.
We will establish a Parliamentary Budget Office to provide the Parliament with independent fiscal analysis and measure the impact of government decisions on the economy, jobs, interest rates and debt levels.
Australians are now paying the price for Labor's reckless spending.
Australia needs a Coalition Government committed to keeping debt low, encouraging small business and securing jobs.
Find out more about our plans at www.liberal.org.au