Hansard source. Provided by OpenAustralia.org
Joe Hockey (North Sydney Liberal Party Shadow Treasurer)
My question is to the Treasurer. How many Australians will have to pay the flood levy and how many Australians who would normally be responsible for paying the flood levy will not have to because of specific circumstances?
Wayne Swan (Lilley Australian Labor Party Treasurer)
I thank the Shadow Treasurer for this very important question. It really goes to the core of who will pay this levy and who will not. We know for example that everybody under $50000 will not pay this levy. We also know that those over $100000 will pay more. We also know that those that are receiving payments under our disaster relief arrangements—
Peter Dutton (Dickson Liberal Party Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing)
What about the figures?
Wayne Swan (Lilley Australian Labor Party Treasurer)
I am going through them. We also know that those that are receiving payments under our disaster relief arrangements—those adults that have received the $1000 and those with children the $400—will not be paying that amount of money. I cannot tell you how many of those there are. I cannot tell you but the Prime Minister before did give you a quantum. Of course we cannot give you a final figure about that. I am more than happy to provide you with estimates later on. I cannot give you a final figure and neither is it realistic to give one. But this levy will raise $1.8 billion and it will be predominantly raised by those on higher incomes. It will be predominantly raised by people like the shadow Treasurer and me. That is where the great bulk of the revenue will come from. About 50 per cent of it will come from higher income earners. Of course those under $50000 will not pay anything at all. We will exempt those that have received the disaster payments in Queensland. We will exempt them in Victoria in northern New South Wales in Western Australia and elsewhere in the country.