AUSTRALIA – POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Shorten, Swan sharpen class warfare attacks

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Original article by Tom McIlroy, Michael Bailey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 2-Jul-18

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has committed to reversing weekend penalty rate cuts within 100 days of taking office if Labor wins the next election. Penalty rate cuts in sectors such as retailing took effect on 1 July. However, Council of Small Business Organisations CEO Peter Strong argues that many large retailers already have lower penalty rates under enterprise agreements that were negotiated by unions. Meanwhile, Labor’s national president Wayne Swan has defended Shorten’s stance on reversing company tax cuts, but concedes that he should not have announced the policy before consulting with the shadow cabinet.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE AUSTRALIAN SMALL BUSINESS AND FAMILY ENTERPRISE OMBUDSMAN, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WOOLWORTHS SUPERMARKETS, McDONALD’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Rule Britannia as UK design wins $35b frigate deal

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 29-Jun-18

The federal government has selected UK-based BAE Systems to build Australia’s new frigates. BAE secured the $A35 billion contract ahead of Italy’s Fincantieri and Spanish company Navantia. The frigates will be known as the Hunter class and are expected to enter service in the late 2020s. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has indicated that the frigate program will create 4,000 jobs, while BAE has stated that the frigates will feature up to 70 per cent Australian content.

CORPORATES
BAE SYSTEMS PLC, FINCANTIERI CANTIERI NAVALI ITALIANI SPA, NAVANTIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, AUSTAL LIMITED – ASX ASB, ASC PTY LTD

Toughened laws take a bite from Apple and co

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Original article by Adam Creighton, Andrew White
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 29-Jun-18

Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Apple collectively paid Australian taxes of $A616 million in the most recent financial year. This represents an increase of 160 per cent over the previous corresponding period. Anthony Ting from the University of Sydney says the Multinational Anti-Avoidance Law appears to have resulted in the large US technology firms booking more of their revenue in Australia. However, he believes that there is scope for more tax to be recovered from them.

CORPORATES
MICROSOFT CORPORATION, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, APPLE INCORPORATED, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, KPMG AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ONE NATION PARTY

Divided Labor to test Shorten

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 29-Jun-18

Some members of the shadow cabinet are expected to urge Opposition Leader Bill Shorten to back down on his plan to reverse company tax cuts at a meeting on 29 June, amid a growing internal rift over the issue. Meanwhile, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has advised that the Federal Government will not pursue its full company tax cuts package in the Senate until after the five upcoming by-elections, which he says will be a referendum on Shorten’s tax policy. Shorten in turn has accused the Coalition of having a secret deal with One Nation to pass the tax package after the by-elections.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. PARLIAMENTARY BUDGET OFFICE

GST crackdown looms for online sales

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Original article by Nick Tabakoff
The Australian – Page: 7 : 28-Jun-18

The goods and services tax will apply to purchases of up to $A1,000 via overseas-based online marketplaces from 1 July. The Australian Taxation Office has signalled that it will use all of the tools at its disposal to ensure that multinational e-commerce groups comply with the new GST rules, including targeted audits and financial penalties. The ATO’s Tim Dyce says that about 3,200 international online marketplaces will have to be registered to collect and remit GST when the changes take effect.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, HARVEY NORMAN HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX HVN, AMAZON.COM INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Let voters decide on migration: Hanson

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 28-Jun-18

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson wants a plebiscite on the issue of immigration, arguing that the general public has had no input into Australia’s migrant intake. Hanson intends to introduce a bill when federal parliament resumes in August, and says any such plebiscite should be held in conjunction with the next election rather than via a postal ballot. Several Coalition MPs have called for a reduction in the annual migrant intake, including former prime minister Tony Abbott and Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton.

CORPORATES
ONE NATION PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE, LOWY INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL POLICY, AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS

Lawyers’ bills soar under Coalition

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Original article by Nicola Berkovic
The Australian – Page: 7 : 28-Jun-18

New figures show that the outsourcing of legal work to the private sector has significantly increased the federal government’s legal costs since the Coalition took office in 2013. Government expenditure on legal services topped $A825m in 2016-17, compared with $A689m in 2013-14. The proportion of legal work undertaken by in-house lawyers has fallen from 54 per cent to 49 per cent over the same period. Attorney-General Christian Porter has indicated that action will be taken to rein in legal costs.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT SOLICITOR, CLAYTON UTZ

$1bn increase in company tax take boosts the case for reform

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 6 : 28-Jun-18

The Federal Government has released data showing that company tax revenue for 2017-18 will be $A1.1bn higher than had been forecast in its May 2018 Budget. Finance Minister Mathias Cormann has also advised that company tax revenue for 2017-18 is expected to be $A9.2bn higher than the $A78.6bn that the government had forecast in its Budget update in late 2016. Cormann also revealed that a crackdown on tax avoidance has resulted in the recovery of $A2.7bn in unpaid taxes from multinationals.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Pressure on Shorten to fix tax split

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Original article by Simon Benson, Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 28-Jun-18

Dissent within Labor is continuing over plans to reverse tax cuts for companies with annual turnover of between $A10m and $A50m if Labor wins the next election. Labor’s leadership group is expected to endorse the policy at a meeting on 28 June, despite some Labor MPs expressing concern that Opposition Leader Bill Shorten announced the policy without consulting the shadow cabinet or caucus. The Federal Government remains hopeful of gaining the support of Senate crossbenchers for its full company tax cuts package.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, REACHTEL PTY LTD

Shorten’s $20bn tax clawback

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Original article by Simon Benson, Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 27-Jun-18

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has confirmed that Labor will reverse tax cuts for businesses with turnover of $A10m to $A50m if it wins the next federal election. A cut tax for firms with turnover of $A25m to $A50m is scheduled to take effect on 1 July. Shorten has indicated that Labor could also repeal previously legislated tax cuts for businesses with turnover of $A2m to $A10m. Employers’ groups have warned that Labor’s stance will create uncertainty for businesses, while some Labor MPs say Shorten did not consult shadow cabinet or caucus before announcing the policy.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY