‘No consideration’: Anthony Albanese rejects GST increase in ambitious outline of Labor’s second term agenda 
The Prime Minister has made a huge call on whether he will change the GST tax rate as part of Labor’s ambitious second-term agenda.   

News.com.au
July 4, 2025

Anthony Albanese has ruled out increasing to the goods and services tax (GST), as Labor says it will champion small business and the private sector to boost productivity and encourage economic growth

Outlining his economic vision for his second term of government at Australia’s Economic Outlook in Sydney, which was co-hosted by The Australian and Sky News, the Prime Minister said consumption taxes like GST did not fit in with Labor’s agenda.   

The 10 per cent tax is applied to most goods and services and remained at that level since it was introduced in 2000.

“It’s not something that we have given any consideration to,” he told Sky’s Andrew Clennell.

“I’m a supporter of progressive taxation. Consumption taxes, by definition, are regressive in their nature. So that’s something that you know doesn’t fit with the agenda.”

While he didn’t commit to specific changes on income tax, Mr Albanese said it would also be his preference that “income taxes (are) as low as possible, and wages (are) as high as possible”.

Mr Albanese also said tax reform would play an “important part” in ensuring the private sector and small business was equipped to drive economic growth and jobs, with the Labor acknowledging that “government should be a driver of growth – but not the driver of growth”.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese shared his economic outlook for Labor’s second term on Friday.

Adapting and developing new technologies like AI, “eliminating frustrating overlap” between local, state and federal regulations, strengthening domestic supply chains and ensuring female participation in the workforce were other key priorities.

“Our government wants you to be able to resume your rightful place as the primary source of growth in our economy,” he said.


The renewed commitment follows criticisms from the business community that Labor’s first-term industrial relations policies like Same Job Same Pay had hampered businesses growth.

However Mr Albanese called on business leaders, civil society and union chiefs, to work together at Labor’s upcoming productivity round table in August in order to “build broad agreement for action”.

“Because very often the public debate about change in our economy is conducted only in terms of dire warnings about what the consequences for Australia will be if we get it wrong,” he said.

“In order to build the broadest possible support for substantive economic reform, we should focus on what we can achieve by getting it right.”

Mr Albanese said Labor had not considered increasing GST to over 10 per cent. 

Mr Albanese was also asked about the progress on Australia seeking a tariff exemption, and said that he does not believe levees on general Australian imports to the US would exceed 10 per cent.

Australia has also been subjected to blanket aluminium tariffs of 25 per cent and a recently doubled 50 per cent levy on aluminium.

Asked if the general tariff of 10 per cent would remain on Mr Trump’s July 9 deadline for negotiations, Mr Albanese said: “I assume that would be the case”.

While his highly-anticipated face-to-face meeting with US President Donald Trump will likely not occur until September, when he travels to India for a meeting with Quad leaders.

Mr Albanese said he was “confidence” or a “constructive” meeting.

Tariffs remain high on the agenda ahead of Mr Albanese’s possible meeting with US President Donald Trump in September.

“We know that no country has a better tariff… level than 10 per cent. We’ll continue to put our case as we do, as I did,” he said.

“We continue to be engaged with our American friends, but they have a different position on tariffs. I have said that’s an act of economic self harm. I stick to that.”

Mr Albanese also doubled down on beliefs that the AUKUS security pact with the US would be honoured, despite the current review undertaken by the US administration.

“AUKUS is a good deal for Australia, and it’s a good deal for the United States. We are contributing to the industrial capacity in the United States right now, we need to, I think, be really proud of ourselves,” he said.

“We’re not people who don’t pay our own way.”

He has no real choice - one more stuff-up and he knows he's gone - if the 'opposition' hadn't been so piss poor last time - Labor would be foundering in the Eternal Darkness with a third of the primary vote...

Contrary to the madness of OUR 'preference voting' - shady deals done behind closed doors - the people remain adamant that they do not want any 'voice' under any circumstances.

When our political SYSTEM is so far out of touch with The People and the righteous requirements The People place upon governments, then clearly the need for change is right there in front of us all, and governments must be stripped of their self-created Divine Right of imposing upon the people whatever ideology takes government's fancy today ...

Already many are talking revolution.... marching on Canberra ... overthrowing the Bolsheviki (34.7% of the vote makes of them 'those of the minority party') by force ... and any number of other things.....

Cloistered in a shady mews in Canberra, surrounded by pink fluffy clouds pf padding - renders most politicians incapable of doing anything more than sucking on their ideological hookah like some Alice In Wonderland caterpillar - only without any real possibility of blooming into any beautiful butterfly... but instead only capable of collapsing into an opium dream of 'reality, man' .... and bringing to ruin the world of the real people with them....

But they'll be right!  Their retirement package is in a tax haven - the stolen now $335Bn 'future fund' for some...

I wonder what has happened here?

A month ago Chamers was talking it up and now Albo rules it out completely.

Power games between the two?

What happens in the future is another thing.  At least at this point of time their will be no increase in the GST.   

greggerypeccary wrote Yesterday at 2:22pm:


I never thought like that, I think you are correct.
Cheers

Daves2017 wrote Yesterday at 6:49pm:


Ah, yes - the old 'now that you mention it' thing ..... next year it will be 'in response to public outcry to raise the GST ....'