Call to Increase the GST

Yes partially however its a flawed system.
One of many scenarios;
A small non licensed service provider (many with ABN but not registered for GST) will pay GST when purchasing materials for the job, phone, fuel etc to get/do to the job, doesn't issue a receipt to client, charge or pass on GST to the ATO, pays GST when buying food, elec, carton etc.
Something wrong in the middle there? without cash it would be drastically minimized = greater revenue to operate the country, even though it would still be managed poorly, but that's what we get when paying monkeys <500k to manage the country compared to others earning millions to manage a corporation.

 

Architect of the GST Peter Costello, commenting on negative gearing & property prices weighed into the debate calling "for the base of the tax to be broadened but warning that an increase in the rate would only lead to more wasteful government spending."

I couldn't agree more that raising the rate should be a last resort - only after governments have seriously curtailed spending and made to account for the waste that occurs at all levels.

Unfortunately as we saw in the federal budget last year despite the intentions of the Government to address spending, any serious progress gets held to ransom by the "unrepresentative swill" in the Senate.

 

GST will be increased
just a matter of time

these politicians wont be able to help themselves

 

Over the last 30 years both major political parties have been privatising public assets and services that our taxes are meant to provide. Take NSW for example. Baird has just sold off (leased for 99 years) public assets and then used the money to provide infrastructure, such as roads that will have toll fees. The GST flies in the face of the Liberal parties own ideology, which is supposed to be about reducing taxation and having a small Government etc. Looking at the situation objectively, the GST keeps the Government running without hassling large corporations too much. After all it is big business and large corporations who are enjoying being given public assets. In SA ETSA got privatisied and now the company makes billions in profits. SA Water, which hasn’t been privatised (yet) made $500 in revenue last year, yet the Federal Government was trying to pressure the SA State Government into selling it off. No doubt it will eventually get sold off for chump change like they do with everything they sell…

 

Governments should sell assets, especially utilities, where the private sector clearly can run them more efficiently. In fact they can be compromised when they are both the regulator and operator of such. And if you want to share in those profits you can always invest in those companies. Let the private sector run services and provide competition in the market place.

What the private sector doesn't do well is build public infrastructure which is what exactly Governments can do well and should be obligated to do. It creates jobs and contributes to the real economy in the longer term. Our lack of public infrastructure investment, especially over the last two decades during the good times is going to tell as more reliance is placed on the broader economy as the mining sector dwindles.

 

Provided it promotes competition rather than state agreeing to tie it up for their power-broker beer buddies, haven't seen much benefit of privatisation over here, lots of potential tho.

Whilst not privatisation related (a state gov bag-out) the exclusive deal Burswood/Crown has is a joke for a huge state like ours, whilst I don't want to see pokies etc in pubs (like east), non-profit sporting clubs, RSL's, bowls etc should have the option to compete, raise funds for facilities/entertainment etc, help generate tourism across the state (compared to just Burswood), like they do over east.
Gamblers will always find away to gamble, we have the TAB + internet.