WHY IT’S HARD TO FIRE UP ON TAX

SORRY. I should be on top of this tax debate, especially with federal politicians treating this as a savage war for this country’s future.

“Snob!” shouts Labor leader Bill Shorten. “Sycophant!” bellows Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Honestly, I know I should care. But how can I take this seriously – whether it’s the rival plans or some of the clowns who’ll decide which one we get?

Had the Turnbull government wanted, it could have got its planned $530-a-year tax offset for lower-income Australians through Parliament yesterday. Labor said it would vote for it even though its own plan promises cuts almost twice that size for workers on up to $125,000. So what’s the hold-up? Well, the government says Labor can’t vote for just that part of its tax plan. It must accept the whole deal, including tax cuts for richer Australians bigger than Labor is offering. And to which Labor says no.

That’s the stalemate. Normally I’d say that’s a battle worth fighting, especially when the government plans to scrap the 37 per cent tax bracket so people keep paying just 32.5 per cent until they hit $200,000 a year.

But not this time. Not when we are talking about changes that won’t kick in for years.

That’s right. Yes, that $530 rebate for lowerincome Australians is meant to start next financial year, but the rest of the tax cuts won’t come until 2022 (for people earning up to $120,000) or 2024 (for people earning more).