Sky News Australia
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has not ruled out changes to the GST as part of his big reform agenda he is planning to take to the next election, according to Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell.
Prior to the COVD-19 crisis, Mr Morrison ruled out lifting the GST from 10 per cent to 12 per cent or broaden the base to include fresh food and other basics.
That is despite a 2015 Treasury paper finding that GST only takes 20 cents out of the economy for each dollar taxed, as opposed to stamp duty which takes 80 cents out and company tax that takes 50 cents.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet has lobbied his state and federal colleagues to consider changes to the GST in order to scrap less efficient taxes.
Mr Clennell said Prime Minister Scott Morrison is no longer ruling out changes to the GST.
“One big question around in federal circles at the moment is the big reform agenda Scott Morrison has been talking about and whether that will mean an early election in the second half of next year so Scott Morrison can sell that agenda,”he said.
“Now the PM has mentioned skills reform, IR reform and tax reform – this leads to the question, 20 years after the introduction of the GST in Australia, whether we will see the PM go to the next election with a policy to increase the GST or broaden its base to include food and education to allow other taxes to be cut and allow us to pay the pandemic debt back.
"I gave him the opportunity to rule this out today and he did not take it.”