28 September 2012

Liberal joy on rates in Standard and Poor's report

| johnboy
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Yesterday Andrew Barr was celebrating Standard and Poor’s AAA credit rating of the ACT Government.

But the Liberals have found things to like in it too:

In an embarrassing disclosure for ACT Labor today, ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has confirmed that the ACT Labor Government is proposing to phase out duties over a 10 year time frame and replace them with a ‘broad-based land tax,’ according to the ACT Deputy Opposition Leader Brendan Smyth.

“Despite all the denials from Katy Gallagher and Andrew Barr, the report from Standard & Poor’s states clearly that Labor’s tax reforms will be phased out over 10 years and the revenue that is lost will be replaced by increases in general rates,” Mr Smyth said.

“The statement from Standard & Poor’s validates the claim that has been made by the Canberra Liberals that any loss of revenue from tax reform will be made up by increasing general rates – and this will result in rates tripling.


UPDATE 28/09/12 11:20: Andrew Barr is tweeting his dudgeon:

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pepmeup said :

So mr Barr is my latest rates notice a lie as well, or did my rates go up 20.2% in one year?? Since 2001 when labor took gov my rates have gone up 108%. Plus water up 37% next year I’m glade my boss is increasing my pay at the same rate

Unless I am mistaken the current method of rates calculation was put in place by the Carnell (Liberal) Government.

I think if people have a look at Standards and Poor’s role in the GFC, sub prime mortgage crisis etc. and their attitude when facing congressional hearings afterwards over these events, no one would be paying any attention to them let alone employing them in any capacity.

arescarti42 said :

davo101 said :

Seriously WTF? The phase in period is 20 years (p.14), not 10 and certainly not 5 years as claimed by S&P in a correction they put up yesterday. Should we be taking investment advice from a company that appears to be unable to hire analysts that can use Google?

S&P are pretty useless. Mere weeks before Lehman Brothers collapsed and took out the world financial system, S&P rated them AAA. The incredible thing is that S&P were defending their rating as justified because Lehman had a strong core and adequate liquidity…two weeks after the firm went bankrupt.

I’m an engineer, so every day, in order to make a living, I’m forced to deal with reality. The laws of physics and stuff like that.

Over the last four years or so, I’ve wondered almost every day why anybody pays the slightest bit of notice to S&P and the other international ratings agencies whose work products seem to have nothing to do with reality, as Arescarti42 has so correctly pointed out.. The most positive assessment of these organisations is that they are profoundly misguided or simply dim. The less kind among us might start thinking along the lines of “conflict of interest”, and “who is gonna profit from this?” and similar phrases when considering their work.

You’re much more likely to get valid macroeconomic assessments from poking in the entrails of a goose than you are from an international ratings agency.

pepmeup said :

But what do you get for living in a house with a ucv that is 500k compared with someone living in a house with a ucv of 210k

Bigger block, closer to facilities, leafier suburb…..

Maybe Zed should reply with “your hit is below the belt”

Getting tax/rates from a more depict able means is a good idea. Problem with the new progressive rates table is that as your property becomes more valuable the higher the rate that is multiplied to it to come up with your rates.

But what do you get for living in a house with a ucv that is 500k compared with someone living in a house with a ucv of 210k

Nothing

I’m actually annoyed with Labor not owning their policy.

It’s a good one and removes inefficient and restrictive stamp duty.

They’re doing a good thing;

stand up, give us the policy, the reasons for doing it and then accept the people’s view. Stop weaseling around the issue.

dpm said :

I’d contend that the Libs ‘Vote Labor/greens = triple our rates’ advertising trailers are doing a good job of propaganda.
And if it *is* a lie, Labor aren’t doing much to change the perception people are getting….

It’s a lie in so much as they are quoting some modelling that assumed a 10 year phase in. What Labor is too scared/stupid to explain is that rates are going to go up. Rates and conveyance duties both collect about $300 million each per year, if you get rid of one then the other will have to double (unless you cut spending by the same amount) and adding on some inflation over the period you assume that the change over happens you get to the tripling.

The weaselling from the Liberals is that they don’t explain that under their plan you’ll still be paying the same amount of tax it will just be in the form of rates and conveyance duty.

So mr Barr is my latest rates notice a lie as well, or did my rates go up 20.2% in one year?? Since 2001 when labor took gov my rates have gone up 108%. Plus water up 37% next year I’m glade my boss is increasing my pay at the same rate

davo101 said :

Seriously WTF? The phase in period is 20 years (p.14), not 10 and certainly not 5 years as claimed by S&P in a correction they put up yesterday. Should we be taking investment advice from a company that appears to be unable to hire analysts that can use Google?

S&P are pretty useless. Mere weeks before Lehman Brothers collapsed and took out the world financial system, S&P rated them AAA. The incredible thing is that S&P were defending their rating as justified because Lehman had a strong core and adequate liquidity…two weeks after the firm went bankrupt.

“The Liberal lie, no matter how often repeated, is still a lie.”

If it is as you say, a lie, are they allowed to get away with it?
I’d contend that the Libs ‘Vote Labor/greens = triple our rates’ advertising trailers are doing a good job of propaganda.
And if it *is* a lie, Labor aren’t doing much to change the perception people are getting….

I can see the interview at Zed’s victory party now:
Interviewer: ‘Zed, you are now the CM! How did you win the hearts and minds of the ACT voters? What brilliant strategy did you use?’
Zed: ‘Well, we put up about 100,000 signs on Canberra roads with our candidates name and pic on them! We thought that would do the trick, and it did!’
Interviewer: ‘But, did you also win them with some powerful and compelling direction and vision for Canberra’s future? What do you think was your strongest policy announcement?’
Zed: “….Policy……? Um,…. (long pause)…. we told everyone rates would triple if they picked the other guys…. Does that count??’
Buckle down Canberra! Hahahaha! 🙂

Seriously WTF? The phase in period is 20 years (p.14), not 10 and certainly not 5 years as claimed by S&P in a correction they put up yesterday. Should we be taking investment advice from a company that appears to be unable to hire analysts that can use Google?

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