Regional Government Attacks Federal Authorities For Failure To Reform Tax System

by Mary Swire, Tax-News.com, Hong Kong

16 August 2002

According to a report in The Age on Thursday, Australia's federal government has been attacked for failing to reform the country's tax system in order to facilitate private investment in infrastructure.

Speaking at the National Infrastructure Summit in Melbourne, Victoria Treasurer, John Brumby - whose department chaired a heads of Treasuries working group on private sector involvement in public infrastructure provision - revealed that the development of key infrastructure in Australia is being held back by a lack of tax reform.

'The final Ralph Report was released to the public in September 1999, calling for reform of tax rules on leasing and the abolition of Sections 51D and 16D of the Tax Act,' the newspaper quoted the Victorian Treasurer as announcing.

'Nearly three years on, the Howard Government is yet to develop desperately needed new tax laws for privately provided infrastructure.'

President of the Australian Council for Infrastructure Development, Dennis O'Neill also condemned the federal authorities for their inaction, stating that:

'The issue is no longer about whether the Commonwealth is funding new infrastructure. It is about whether the Commonwealth and states and territories are collectively paving the way for private investment to work with them to fill the vacuum created by the reduction of government investment in infrastructure provision.'

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