Bradbury must detail pre-Budget discussions

Today, the Assistant Treasurer has failed to rule out contacting selected businesses ahead of tonight’s Budget to advise them of Labor’s changes to Thin Capitalisation rules. The Assistant Treasurer failed to detail which businesses he may have contacted and why. Mr Bradbury did not explain why it was necessary for him to contact businesses to consult when the Federal Budget has already been printed, if indeed he did so. With hours to go until the Budget is handed down, and with markets still open, it is a dangerous precedent for a Senior Minister to be allegedly revealing key details to some businesses and not others. This could give some businesses a market advantage. The current Thin Capitalisation rules can have a significant impact on business decisions. The rules outline the maximum amount of deductable debt a business can use to fund its Australian operations. The rules are designed to prevent excessive allocation of debt to Australian operations. These rules affect how much tax these businesses pay in Australia. The flagged changes have the potential to raise hundreds of millions of dollars for the Government. The Assistant Treasurer is in a privileged position. If it is revealed tonight that the Government has made changes to the Thin Capitalisation rules, then the Assistant Treasurer must explain which businesses he is alleged to have contacted and why he contacted them. If any wrong doing has occurred the Assistant Treasurer must resign or be sacked. 14 May 2013