Politics

Turnbull: ‘Mean-spirited Labor attacks me for making a quid’

Jun 25, 2018

Turnbull described the Labor Party ad as "mean-spirited". Source: Getty.

The Labor party released a new television advert last week which singled out Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and questioned the motives behind his bill to reduce tax for big businesses, which will be debated in the Senate this week.

The 30-second ad took aim at the PM’s personal wealth and the financial gain he stands to inherit if his bill to lower corporate taxes passes the Senate, posing the question “who exactly is he looking after?”

However, the prime minister hit back on Monday and said the advert, released this week as part of the opposition’s “Super Saturday” by-election campaigning, proves that the Labor party has “abandoned everything it stands for”, claiming that the opposition do not want people to be successful.

Turnbull, 63, described the campaign as “mean spirited” and said: “They just appear to be an example of how the Labor Party is just abandoning everything it used to stand for. They want to attack me for having a quid, they want to attack me and Lucy for working hard, investing, having a go, making money, paying tax, paying plenty of tax, giving back to the community, which we do.

“That is apparently not the Labor way anymore. You are not allowed to have a go or be successful. It used to be a Party that supported aspiration, people getting ahead, people aspiring to build businesses, get on, employ people, you make a buck, pay your tax all that, Luce and I have done that all our lives. Absolutely all our lives. So, now they want to attack that.”

The advert also came under fire from coalition politicians who branded the move by Bill Shorten’s party “appalling” and “grubby”.

Labor's attack on the Federal Government's proposed company tax cuts has turned personal tonight. The ALP will start airing ads for the five upcoming by elections and they target the Prime Minister's wealth. @telester #7News pic.twitter.com/l68TeO5J16

— 7NEWS Sydney (@7NewsSydney) June 24, 2018

Senator for Western Australia, Mathias Cormann, told 7 News: “This is just another demonstration of how low the Labor party has sank under Bill Shorten.” He also said that Labor’s “anti-business, anti-growth agenda” would lead to less investment and lower wages in the future.

While Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack told ABC Radio: “It is just typical Labor and the fact is many nurses, many police officers, many emergency workers, many school teachers, they have all got share portfolios. They are all relying on the banks and big business to do well.”

The advert attacks the Prime Minister, whose wealth is no secret, over his investments. It says: “Turnbull has millions invested in funds which hold shares in dozens of big businesses that would benefit from the tax cuts. Why is former banker Malcolm Turnbull so keen to give big business a tax cut instead of properly funding our schools and hospitals?

“Who exactly is he looking after? Is he just for the top end of town?”

While Shadow Minister for Finance, Jim Chalmers, defended the ad. He said: “Malcolm Turnbull always sides with the top end of town. One of the reasons that we have this system of disclosure is so that people can make an assessment of the various influences that someone like Malcolm Turnbull brings to the policy debate.

“He brings a certain background, certain influences to his job as the Prime Minister. He has been an investment banker. I’m not making, necessarily, a judgement on that, except to say that he always sides with the millionaires and the multinationals over middle Australia. That’s the main point the ad is making, and I’m entirely comfortable with that.”

Company tax cuts for businesses with a turnover of up to $50 million per annum have already passed, but proposed tax cuts for all businesses will be debated in parliament again this week. If passed, the legislation would see tax rates for all companies gradually lowered from 30 per cent, to 25 per cent.