E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TV INTERVIEW
TODAY SHOW
Wednesday, 24 june 2026
Topics: TAX REFORM; PAID PARENTAL LEAVE
TOM STEINFORT: Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek joins us live from Canberra. Minister, thanks for your time.
MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SERVICES, TANYA PLIBERSEK: Morning Tom.
STEINFORT: Finally, a breakthrough on this front is the hope now for the government that the public focus on the government's broken promises will just blow over.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, this is a great tax package for Australia. This is a tax package that gives 13 million Australians a tax cut. In fact, it's one of the five tax cuts that we're providing Australians. We've got the instant tax write off, we’ve got the $250 working Australian tax offset, that’ll be annual. It also levels the playing field so that young Australians actually have a hope of owning a home of their own. Our budget also includes $3.8 billion now for business tax supports. This is a good package and I'm very pleased that The Greens have been prepared to support it. I'd also be delighted if the Liberals and Nationals and One Nation got on board. Because truly, when you've got cut for every Australian, you've got business tax cuts and you've got levelling the playing field to help young Australians into a home of their own, this is something that people should get on board with. You know, every time governments have made big tax changes, there's been pushback and this is no different. But I am confident when Australians see those young Australians getting into a home of their own, their kids and grandkids having a shot at the housing market, they'll see why we've done this and they'll back it.
STEINFORT: Let's drill down on this deal done with The Greens because part of it is making changes that they requested to the way that self-managed super funds can be used to invest in property. You know, if we wind the clock back a month ago, Labor, the Treasurer said, was not considering clipping the wings of self managed super funds. A lot of voters will now look at this and say this is starting to become a pattern of behaviour about changing policies, lies, backflips, however you want to put it. What do you say to that?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, I'd say this is what negotiation looks like. Australians voted for a Senate where Labor doesn’t have a majority. We have to work with the Liberals or the Nationals or One Nation or The Greens to get-
STEINFORT: Yes, but that's negotiation-
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: -things supported.
STEINFORT: But what about saying to the public this is these are our policies and then, oh, well, hang on, if we have to do deals with other people, those policies actually we don't mean what we said on that front.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: What's your proposition, that we don't get anything through the Senate? I mean-
STEINFORT: I mean the question though is clearly can the public take you at your word? If you're telling them this is our policy, that's to say it won't change a month,a year later.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: This is the Senate that the Australian people elected. That's what democracy looks like. We think our original package was terrific, but we have negotiated with The Greens a small change that affects a fraction of self-managed super funds and housing purchases. What we've said is you can't borrow money if you've got a self-managed super fund, you can't borrow money to invest in residential housing, very few people will be affected by this and very few properties will be affected. And by the way, if you're already doing it, of course it's grandfathered like all of the measures that we've taken. If you're already doing something, no change to what you're already doing. This is a small reasonable change in order to get through the parliament, 13 million Australians getting that working Australian tax offset, an additional million people who are self-employed also getting it the $1,000 instant tax write off and changes to the housing market which mean for the first time in a couple of generations, if you go to an auction on the weekend, you see first home buyers there able to bid, able to get into a home of their own. When you combine these tax changes that we're making around negative gearing and capital gains tax on existing housing, the way they are helping young first home buyers and putting that 5% deposit policy that we've also got that's helped 260,000 Australians into a home of their own we are going back to a time when an ordinary Australian earning an ordinary wage could afford an ordinary home that they could look forward to putting a roof over-
STEINFORT: So are you happy to see house prices come down, then that's what's happening. Are you happy with that?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: What we anticipate is that house prices will grow more slowly and-
STEINFORT: But they're coming down-
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: - and they have to, they have to grow more slowly because too many young people completely locked out of the housing market. I've got three kids. A lot of people my age would stop me on the street on the weekend when I'm out there doing street stalls in my electorate and say what are you going to do for the young people? My kids, my grandkids can't afford a home of their own. We know that house prices were growing much faster than wages. That's unsustainable. We want to be a nation of people where an ordinary family can afford to put a roof over their head, that they can invest in a home of their own that's what we're going back to that's what we're going back
STEINFORT: Of course, a huge issue, no doubt. Just quickly on your portfolio, Labor now extending Paid Parental Leave from July 1st take us through those changes.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well I'm very pleased about this. From the 1st of July Australians will get the full six months to have home with their tiny beautiful new baby. As well as getting those extra weeks of Paid Parental Leave the rate of Paid Parental Leave is going up so it'll be more than $1,000 a week. That means it's $30,000 in total that Paid Parental Leave benefit that people will get with their little new bundle of joy. So they get more time at home, more money, more people will be eligible because the thresholds are being raised so more people will be eligible. That's good for mums, it's good for dads and it's very good of course for little babies.
STEINFORT: Yep, fantastic. Alright Minister, appreciate your time this morning.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: It’s a pleasure to be with you.
ENDS
