Mild tax tweaks are not a Marxist takeover

DEAR News Of The Area,

MORE rubbish rhetoric! Well, Albo and the current Labor Government are apparently “redistributing wealth” and “anti-opportunity”, and their recent mild tax tweaks are “Communist, Socialist and/or Marxist” depending on who you listen to; or, in the case of Pauline, all three – presumably because she doesn’t know the difference.

I don’t recall anyone accusing PM Howard of “re-distributing wealth” when he and his sidekick Costello first introduced the tax changes to negative gearing and capital gains back in the early 2000s.

As predicted by those with any sense, these changes would come to turbo-charge the property speculation industry and saw a frenzy of Howard’s ‘Ordinary Australians’ get on board the passive wealth creation train.

I do recall attending an investment symposium where we listened to investors who were working to build property portfolios which totally negated their annual tax bill.

Apparently, there was a caller on a Brisbane talkback radio segment who challenged the PM at the time of the announcement on the grounds that the changes would lead to future generations being unable to afford their own property.

Howard, of course, dismissed it on the grounds that no-one had ever complained to him that their property value had increased.

Perhaps we should have.

Regards,

Dave Wood.