Senator David Shoebridge will unveil a $22bn plan to put “more than $1000 back in the pocket of almost every working Australian” in his first major speech as Greens leader.
His leadership has gotten off to a rocky start.
Taking up the mantle from predecessor Larissa Waters, his election fuelled factional friction while his controversial Ukraine comments drew international ire.
His handling of allegations of improper behaviour against Senator Jordon Steele-John has also opened a rift between them.
Senator Shoebridge will use his National Press Club address on Wednesday to refocus on the battle of ideas, presenting a costed pitch to “cut the tax on work and … raise the tax on the excessive wealth of the 1 per cent and big corporations”.
“We’re going to lift the tax-free threshold from $18,200 to $26,000,” he will say, according to advanced extracts of his speech.
“That’s more than $1000 back in the pocket of almost every working Australian.”
Anyone on income support would also get a bump of more than $1000.
“Pensioners, carers, students, jobseekers: millions of Australians who deserve cost-of-living relief too,” Senator Shoebridge will say.
“No matter who you are, whether you’re working, studying, looking for work or on a pension, you’ll get more than $1000.”
The proposed income support supplement put to the Parliamentary Budget Office was $1092, which would work out to $42 extra a fortnight.
The PBO’s costings, seen by NewsWire, found the combined package would slash the underlying cash and fiscal balances by $65.1bn over the forward estimates and $234.55bn over the decade.
Borrowing to support the package would also add up to $61.3bn in public debt interest over 10 years.
The PBO also noted that because the supplement is not income or asset-tested, a recipient would get the full $1092 as long as they qualify for at least $1 of income support.
Once their earnings increase enough to cancel their base payment completely, they immediately lose the entire $1092 supplement.
“This may discourage recipients from working additional hours,” the PBO said.
The Greens would pay for the policy “by making gas and mining corporations pay back $45 billion a year of their windfall profits”, according Senator Shoebridge’s speech.
“We are going to fund it by making the fossil fuel and resource industry pay what they owe us,” he will say.
That would include $17bn from taxing gas exports and $28bn from taxing miners.
“When the price of our resources goes up, the Australian people should get their fair share, after all the public owns the resources in the first place,” Senator Shoebridge will say.
“Right now, those windfall profits get scooped up by the ultra-wealthy.
“It’s time we secured a fair return on the resources that belong to all Australians.”