No new money in tax rebate

Labor's disappointing education announcement is all too late for working families struggling with cost of living pressures who purchased school uniforms back in February, Christopher Pyne, Shadow Minister for Education said today.

"Parents don't buy school uniforms in July, in fact families will have to wait until 2012 to see any benefit from this change," Mr Pyne said.

"The measure doesn't inject any new money into the budget at all, it merely increases the range of deductible items from a rebate fund that was been massively underutilised," he said.

Today's announcement is just more smoke and mirrors to try and distract people from the long litany of problems created by this Government.

It also highlights an alarming lack of new ideas in Labor's education policy cupboard in the lead up to the election. The Coalition education tax rebate policy before the 2007 election included schools uniforms amongst an expansive range of possible deductions.

If Labor is resorting to pilfering Coalition policies in their first term, and under a supposed new Leader, then maybe it is time for another 2020 summit?

Interestingly, if we are to apply the same standards Labor typically applies to the Coalition then more than a billion dollars has been cut from the education rebate by Julia Gillard.

Labor's own budget papers reveal that over the four years from 09/10 to 12/13 the scheme is forecast to cost $2.783 billion - far lower than the $4.4 originally promised over four years from 08/09 to 11/12 - representing a cut of $1.6 billion.

"This is of little surprise when dealing with the former Education Minister who oversaw record waste, policy bungles, back-flips and back-downs," Mr Pyne said.

July 13, 2010

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