Imagine for a second that the State Governments get the GST revenue. In rough figures this will be about $39billion this financial year. OK. That's true so you don't need to imagine it.
Then imagine that the Victorian State Government put a tax on employers that forces them to pay an additional 5.05% tax when their total wages bill exceeds $550,000 per year. Employers paying $549,999 in salaries and bonuses and commissions and holiday pay do not have to pay this tax, but once they cross the magical line they have to pay the 5.05% tax on every dollar over $550,000. To quote the State Revenue Office (the taxman) "The definition of wages is very broad". Some items included are: "superannuation guarantee payments, salary sacrifice contributions...". So pretty much everything, including fringe benefits. This would even include employer-sponsored maternity leave and childcare!
This is a tax that says to an employer "We are going to penalise you for employing more people". This ridiculous tax looks even more stupid when one remembers that a person with a job pays income tax. Then they pay GST on the things they buy. They may even buy a house in which case they will also pay stamp duty (another argument for another day). If the employee was unemployed then they will stop claiming unemployment benefits and will lose their concession card. They will then pay more for other services such as public transport and utilities. So the Government is going to get more tax income and pay less benefits and be better off anyway.
Employing people is a big decision for small and medium sized businesses. It's a balancing act between retaining profit in the business, passing the profit to shareholders and directors and investing the profit in new people, new machinery or new resources. Why does the Government further complicate the task by penalising businesses for hiring more people? Isn't that what they're supposed to do? There is a cost to putting on a new employee and that's fair and reasonable. Successful growing businesses should pay tax (and they do, by the way). But why is there a tax that directly penalises a company for expanding and hiring past a certain level?
And it's not just the tax (which equates to around $3000 per employee over the threshold per year), but I can promise you that there's going to be more paperwork. More forms more time wasted. Less time growing the business, less time looking after the employees, customers and suppliers.
This week a business in Victoria will sit down and make a decision about hiring someone. They will be a growing business ready to take the next step. They will do a cost-benefit analysis and will have to factor in payroll tax. Some businesses will hire the extra person, others won't and will encourage their existing staff to work harder and share duties and pick up whatever slack there may be. Someone somewhere is going to miss out on a job.
Payroll tax is a tax on growth, on small and medium sized businesses and entrepreneurship. It's a tax that big business is routinely offered concessions on in an effort to encourage them to invest in Victoria. It's an unfair tax that punishes small successful companies that are often major contributors to the economy and to the community.
My apologies for using the cliche, but payroll tax is a tax on jobs. It's time for it to be abolished.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
ANZAC Day
Tomorrow is ANZAC Day. People from all over the country will spend some or all of the day commemorating the sacrifices made by soldiers in times of war and international conflict.
The focus will be on World Wars 1 & 2, and with good reason. The sheer number of men and women who sacrificed their lives for the good of others is overwhelming. Those who made it home should also be thanked.
This year there will also be a lot said about our soldiers currently serving overseas, particularly in Iraq, Afghanistan and Timor-Leste. All told there are currently approximately 3500 Australian Defence Force personnel serving overseas in the following countries:
Iraq
Afghanistan
Timor-Leste
Solomon Islands
Egypt
Sudan
There are also soldiers serving in various parts of the Middle East with UNTSO.
At any one time there are hundreds more men and women serving on exchange rotations with other nations as well.
Most of them will make it home alive and uninjured. Tragically some won't.
Sometimes there are obvious, visible signs of injury. Once upon a time soldiers returned from war suffering "shellshock". Soldiers returning from later wars were diagnosed with "combat stress disorder". Now soldiers are said to be suffering from "post-traumatic stress disorder". Whatever it is called and however it is described the seriousness and the longterm effects cannot be denied and must not be ignored.
Whether injured or not, whether suffering or not, returned service men and women must be taken care of and must be given as much support as possible by our government. There is nothing our politicians and public servants can do that can be labelled "too much".
All returning soldiers deserve and must receive our utmost respect and continued gratitude.
Lest we Forget
The focus will be on World Wars 1 & 2, and with good reason. The sheer number of men and women who sacrificed their lives for the good of others is overwhelming. Those who made it home should also be thanked.
This year there will also be a lot said about our soldiers currently serving overseas, particularly in Iraq, Afghanistan and Timor-Leste. All told there are currently approximately 3500 Australian Defence Force personnel serving overseas in the following countries:
Iraq
Afghanistan
Timor-Leste
Solomon Islands
Egypt
Sudan
There are also soldiers serving in various parts of the Middle East with UNTSO.
At any one time there are hundreds more men and women serving on exchange rotations with other nations as well.
Most of them will make it home alive and uninjured. Tragically some won't.
Sometimes there are obvious, visible signs of injury. Once upon a time soldiers returned from war suffering "shellshock". Soldiers returning from later wars were diagnosed with "combat stress disorder". Now soldiers are said to be suffering from "post-traumatic stress disorder". Whatever it is called and however it is described the seriousness and the longterm effects cannot be denied and must not be ignored.
Whether injured or not, whether suffering or not, returned service men and women must be taken care of and must be given as much support as possible by our government. There is nothing our politicians and public servants can do that can be labelled "too much".
All returning soldiers deserve and must receive our utmost respect and continued gratitude.
Lest we Forget
Monday, April 21, 2008
2020 Fallout
One of the most frightening thoughts to come out of the 2020 chatfest over the weekend is that it appears that Australians are now unanimous in their belief that the government should fix everything. All of the major ideas (both old and renewed) were about Government action, and what the government should do.
The Government is not the be all and end all of Australian thought and innovation and action. The Government is not an outback guide, showing the Australian people through the wilderness and making sure we don't take any unnecessary risks or make any stupid decisions. The government's role is to provide us with a map, a pair of shoes and a bottle of water and then say "right you are; off you go and see what you can make of this".
The Government is a massive unwieldy machine that makes decisions slowly, carefully and after years of risk analysis and opinion polls. That's OK for some things like foreign policy, defence, education curriculum and the like but it is less than useful in fields such as scientific innovation, creative arts and small business investment.
In the time it takes the government to analyse 12 years of trends in a particular field and formulate a policy document concerning "downward pressure on start up investment", a hundred small businesses have seen the market change and either got in, got out, or changed their business to survive.
Here's another one - the "bionic eye". One of the ideas from the chat was that there should be a national focus on a bionic eye, in an effort to "cure" blindness in much the same way as the cochlear implant has assisted lots of deaf people. Whilst this is an undoubtably noble goal, it must be pointed out that Graeme Clark didn't need a national effort and "1990 goal" to develop the cochlear implant. He had an idea, and went to work on making it real. What he did have was an educational system that gave him the freedom to make his vision a reality. What he did have was a flexible market environment that encouraged investment in his product to take it to the world.
Another theme out of the summit was the bemoaning of a lack of input into government policy. There was a view that there is not enough consultation with the Australian public. My question is: How many of the people at the summit were members of a political party? Do they really want to be involved? Join a political party and have real input into real decisions.
I could go on, and I will.
How about fining politicians when they lie or mislead the public? I've got a better idea - vote for the other guy next time! Make the politician responsible and vote him or her out of office. A couple of lying politicians out of office is going to send a pretty strong message to the rest of them that they will be held accountable for their actions.
A final question - Was the 2020 Summit carbon neutral?
The Government is not the be all and end all of Australian thought and innovation and action. The Government is not an outback guide, showing the Australian people through the wilderness and making sure we don't take any unnecessary risks or make any stupid decisions. The government's role is to provide us with a map, a pair of shoes and a bottle of water and then say "right you are; off you go and see what you can make of this".
The Government is a massive unwieldy machine that makes decisions slowly, carefully and after years of risk analysis and opinion polls. That's OK for some things like foreign policy, defence, education curriculum and the like but it is less than useful in fields such as scientific innovation, creative arts and small business investment.
In the time it takes the government to analyse 12 years of trends in a particular field and formulate a policy document concerning "downward pressure on start up investment", a hundred small businesses have seen the market change and either got in, got out, or changed their business to survive.
Here's another one - the "bionic eye". One of the ideas from the chat was that there should be a national focus on a bionic eye, in an effort to "cure" blindness in much the same way as the cochlear implant has assisted lots of deaf people. Whilst this is an undoubtably noble goal, it must be pointed out that Graeme Clark didn't need a national effort and "1990 goal" to develop the cochlear implant. He had an idea, and went to work on making it real. What he did have was an educational system that gave him the freedom to make his vision a reality. What he did have was a flexible market environment that encouraged investment in his product to take it to the world.
Another theme out of the summit was the bemoaning of a lack of input into government policy. There was a view that there is not enough consultation with the Australian public. My question is: How many of the people at the summit were members of a political party? Do they really want to be involved? Join a political party and have real input into real decisions.
I could go on, and I will.
How about fining politicians when they lie or mislead the public? I've got a better idea - vote for the other guy next time! Make the politician responsible and vote him or her out of office. A couple of lying politicians out of office is going to send a pretty strong message to the rest of them that they will be held accountable for their actions.
A final question - Was the 2020 Summit carbon neutral?
Thursday, April 17, 2008
2020 Summit
I'm sorry, but I can't support this headline-grabbing Talk Fest.
After the Government has finished handpicking who will choose who will attend, then handpicking who will attend, then throwing in a token number of "community members" we are faced with a large group of (mostly) intelligent, mostly well-meaning, mostly well intentioned individuals.
Their job is, in 2 days, to come up with some ideas for the future. The pay-off? Before the end of the year the Government will respond by saying which ideas it likes, and why, and which ideas it doesn't like, and why. There is no commitment from the Government to turn any of the ideas into policy or to investigate any of these ideas further.
I hope all the participants have a good time and I hope that they leave the summit feeling they have had an influence and their voice has been heard.
Meanwhile we should all be holding our own constant 2020 Summit. Talk with your friends, your family and work colleagues. Don't be afraid to ask people what they think about the future. It is through the sharing of ideas at local community level that the big changes in our society will come.
We have the power to make the future; it's up to us whether or not we exercise that power.
After the Government has finished handpicking who will choose who will attend, then handpicking who will attend, then throwing in a token number of "community members" we are faced with a large group of (mostly) intelligent, mostly well-meaning, mostly well intentioned individuals.
Their job is, in 2 days, to come up with some ideas for the future. The pay-off? Before the end of the year the Government will respond by saying which ideas it likes, and why, and which ideas it doesn't like, and why. There is no commitment from the Government to turn any of the ideas into policy or to investigate any of these ideas further.
I hope all the participants have a good time and I hope that they leave the summit feeling they have had an influence and their voice has been heard.
Meanwhile we should all be holding our own constant 2020 Summit. Talk with your friends, your family and work colleagues. Don't be afraid to ask people what they think about the future. It is through the sharing of ideas at local community level that the big changes in our society will come.
We have the power to make the future; it's up to us whether or not we exercise that power.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
When is a Plan not a Plan?
Answers.com defines a plan:
On the other hand, Kevin Rudd yesterday outlined his "plan" to provide centres that would "provide a broad mix of maternal and child health services, including feeding advice and vaccinations, long day care, preschool education and support for parents."
Great plan, Mr Rudd. But I have a couple of issues with it:
1) These centres already exist, or under construction (Karingal, Eltham and St Arnaud in Victoria to name a few).
2) There is no cost modelling, no idea of who would provide which services. Maternal Health, childcare, parental support are all provided by different levels of government. The Prime Minister suggests that some level of private sector management would be necessary.
So we don't have a plan, we have a "vision". Again, the media are so in love with Kevin Rudd that they are happy to give him a free kick when he announces a "vision" for something that already exists!
Don't get me wrong, this is a good idea. Such a good idea that several local communities have taken it upon themselves to put it in place. This idea does not suit every community. It doesn't suit rural areas with widespread populations where it is impractical to centralise all services. But that's ok - individual communities can make their own decisions. In fact - they already have! We don't need motherhood statements from our Federal Government - we need action and concrete decision making.
We need the Federal Government to stop talking and start acting.
update - Bernard Keane, writing on crikey.com.au today, has estimated the cost of this vision to be $11.9b per annum. That's a lot of vision.
-A scheme, program, or method worked out beforehand for the accomplishment of an objective: a plan of attack.
-A systematic arrangement of elements or important parts; a configuration or outline: a seating plan; the plan of a story.
-A drawing or diagram made to scale showing the structure or arrangement of something.
-In perspective rendering, one of several imaginary planes perpendicular to the line of vision between the viewer and the object being depicted.
-A program or policy stipulating a service or benefit: a pension plan.
On the other hand, Kevin Rudd yesterday outlined his "plan" to provide centres that would "provide a broad mix of maternal and child health services, including feeding advice and vaccinations, long day care, preschool education and support for parents."
Great plan, Mr Rudd. But I have a couple of issues with it:
1) These centres already exist, or under construction (Karingal, Eltham and St Arnaud in Victoria to name a few).
2) There is no cost modelling, no idea of who would provide which services. Maternal Health, childcare, parental support are all provided by different levels of government. The Prime Minister suggests that some level of private sector management would be necessary.
So we don't have a plan, we have a "vision". Again, the media are so in love with Kevin Rudd that they are happy to give him a free kick when he announces a "vision" for something that already exists!
Don't get me wrong, this is a good idea. Such a good idea that several local communities have taken it upon themselves to put it in place. This idea does not suit every community. It doesn't suit rural areas with widespread populations where it is impractical to centralise all services. But that's ok - individual communities can make their own decisions. In fact - they already have! We don't need motherhood statements from our Federal Government - we need action and concrete decision making.
We need the Federal Government to stop talking and start acting.
update - Bernard Keane, writing on crikey.com.au today, has estimated the cost of this vision to be $11.9b per annum. That's a lot of vision.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Stealing Water
I live in Frankston, a suburb of Melbourne in Victoria. I mention this on the off chance that someone reading this doesn't actually know me...
Last weekend I attended a conference and was astounded at the level of emotion coming from residents who are going to be affected by the Victorian Government's plan to pipe water from drought stricken farm lands north of the Great Dividing Range to Melbourne. Apparently this water is going to be a share of the water saved by more efficient irrigation and other means.
People in the city have absolutely no idea how hard this extended dry spell has been on country Victorians. Whether it's due to climate change or just a seasonal thing, these people are doing it hard. And we're going to take what little water they have and bring it to Melbourne so we can flush our toilets?
This folly, along with the ludicrously expensive, power hungry and environmentally disastrous desalination plant are totally and completely unnecessary.
There is plenty of water in Melbourne. We just need to recycle it.
Check out this site for some facts about recycled water:
http://www.choice.com.au/viewArticle.aspx?id=105654&catId=100285&tid=100008&p=1&title=Recycled+water+mythbuster
It's cheap and safe. End of story.
To stop this we need to hit the Victorian Government where it hurts the most - the ballot box. Write to your local member and tell her or him that this issue is a deal breaker, and that unless you hear that your local representative is standing up to this water piracy you'll be voting for the other guy.
You can find out more about the north south pipeline here:
http://www.plugthepipe.com/
I urge you to have a look, and take action!
Last weekend I attended a conference and was astounded at the level of emotion coming from residents who are going to be affected by the Victorian Government's plan to pipe water from drought stricken farm lands north of the Great Dividing Range to Melbourne. Apparently this water is going to be a share of the water saved by more efficient irrigation and other means.
People in the city have absolutely no idea how hard this extended dry spell has been on country Victorians. Whether it's due to climate change or just a seasonal thing, these people are doing it hard. And we're going to take what little water they have and bring it to Melbourne so we can flush our toilets?
This folly, along with the ludicrously expensive, power hungry and environmentally disastrous desalination plant are totally and completely unnecessary.
There is plenty of water in Melbourne. We just need to recycle it.
Check out this site for some facts about recycled water:
http://www.choice.com.au/viewArticle.aspx?id=105654&catId=100285&tid=100008&p=1&title=Recycled+water+mythbuster
It's cheap and safe. End of story.
To stop this we need to hit the Victorian Government where it hurts the most - the ballot box. Write to your local member and tell her or him that this issue is a deal breaker, and that unless you hear that your local representative is standing up to this water piracy you'll be voting for the other guy.
You can find out more about the north south pipeline here:
http://www.plugthepipe.com/
I urge you to have a look, and take action!
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Earth 24 Hours
Obviously Mother Earth didn't think much of the effort Melbournians made for Earth Hour last weekend.
With this week's storms causing in excess of 160,000 homes to lose power for anywhere from 5 minutes to 2 days, I'm sure there was a far more drastic reduction in greenhouse emissions this time around!
Personally I went with the candles and Scrabble option. Might make it a regular event.
Not only is it good for the environment, but good for the braincells and relationship with the assistant blogger!
With this week's storms causing in excess of 160,000 homes to lose power for anywhere from 5 minutes to 2 days, I'm sure there was a far more drastic reduction in greenhouse emissions this time around!
Personally I went with the candles and Scrabble option. Might make it a regular event.
Not only is it good for the environment, but good for the braincells and relationship with the assistant blogger!
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