Let’s fix NSW, starting with Land Tax

Peter Debnam's Blog - Monday, 26th February 2007 

Most of us grew up in NSW when it was the Premier state. After twelve years of Labor in NSW we can’t say this any longer.

We’re in the midst of an economic crisis, a budget crisis, a housing crisis and a water crisis.

The state budget is in deficit to the tune of $500 million. New housing has flat-lined. And there is an acute shortage of rental accommodation in Sydney.

In two of the last three quarters, the NSW economy has gone backwards. And on March 7 we will find out whether NSW is in recession.

But Labor still says we’re heading in the right direction? If that’s true, where exactly is Labor taking NSW?

NSW lags the rest of the country on all the key economic indicators. But there is one economic statistic where NSW does lead the way.

In NSW, we pay more tax per person than in any other state. This needs to change.

That’s why yesterday I announced that a Liberal/Nationals Government will cut the NSW land tax burden for families and small business by $400 million over four years.

We will do this by raising the land tax threshold to $415,000 - and thereby exempt around 39,000 families, small businesses and other property owners from paying land tax in NSW.

This means almost one in three current land tax payers will be exempt from paying land tax in NSW under our plan. That’s what I call heading in the right direction.

And by raising the threshold we will reduce the land tax bills for another 90,000 families and small businesses.

Reducing the land tax burden will help kick start property investment, support families and small businesses who have invested for their future and help improve the affordability and supply of rental accommodation.

Under a Liberal/Nationals Government, NSW taxpayers will get a better deal because unlike Labor, we’ll be prepared to listen to the community on taxes.

Treasury bureaucrats should not be the only voice that the Government listens to when it comes to how much tax people and families in NSW should be paying. That’s how Labor’s idea of a Vendor Tax and abolishing the land tax threshold become a reality.

We need to give the community a voice in how tax policy is run in this state. That’s why yesterday I also announced we’ll appoint a Special Premier’s Community Advisory Panel on State Taxes.

The Panel will advise me directly on how we can reduce the tax burden on families and small business in NSW and make our state tax system fairer.

Unlike Morris Iemma, I remember the last twelve years, not just the last eighteen months. Morris Iemma has been an integral part of the Labor Government for 12 years.

After twelve years of a booming national economy, people and families in NSW have every right to ask Morris Iemma and his Labor Party - where has all the money gone?

At each election the list of things that we need to fix in NSW gets longer and more expensive.

If we don’t fix NSW now, then our problems will only get worse. So let’s fix NSW.

Regards,

Peter Debnam

PS. Yesterday we also announced a $120 million Community Trust for Stormwater Harvesting. Couldn’t have picked a better weekend to do it. Once again Sydney deluged rain and because of Labor’s failure to plan and act on issues like stormwater harvesting, 97% of the water once again rushed out to sea.

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