Today marks the last day of the current Financial Year, and with July the 1st not only brings tax time for Australians, but it also heralds the official arrival of the much maligned, much criticised, in parts pathologically nasty Federal Budget 2014 that was handed down by Treasurer Joe Hockey and the Abbott Government in early May. We all know that it doesn’t exactly paint the rosiest picture, particularly if you young, old, sick, unemployed, in University, thinking about going to University, or generally in the middle class or below. But what parts of the budget actually come into effect from 12:01am tonight?
The short answer is that some things are good, some things aren’t so great. But the sky isn’t going to fall down.
The most significant, and the one that immediately affects thousands upon thousands of people – particularly young people – is that the national minimum wage rises from tomorrow, to $16.87 per hour, or $640.90 per week. This includes an end to the transition period between old and modern awards, meaning pay rates and loadings and things of that nature should, in theory, be a bit easier to calculate.
The National Insurance Disability Scheme also begins to roll out from tomorrow, with the ACT, the Barkly region of the Northern Territory, and the Perth Hills in Western Australia the first areas to benefit. The scheme is scheduled to be available to the entire country by 2019.
There’s a change coming on the roads in New South Wales too. Motorcyclists will now legally be able to weave in and out of traffic jams, in a practice to be known as “lane filtering.” Bikes are now permitted to do so at a maximum speed of 30km/h, and exceeding this will attract a new fine under the name of “lane splitting.” I don’t really understand the difference between the two terms either.
Perhaps the most significant change is that the new Senate officially forms, and the balance of power in the upper house officially switches to a motley crew of crossbenchers, headed up by the voting bloc formed by Clive Palmer and the Palmer United Party, which could prove to be, at the very least, an unpredictable senatorial term.
The balance of power means that the Abbott Government will be successful in passing legislation that effectively scraps the Carbon Tax, but Palmer has thrown more than a few spanners in the works of that plan. The ensuing political landscape that follows is sure to be interesting to say the least.
Elsewhere, high income earners will be slugged with the 2% debt levy – meaning they’ll pay 2% extra tax on income earned above $180,000 for the next three years. Superannuation gets a bump as well, with the minimum employer contribution rising to 9.5% from tomorrow.
Though aged care costs could go up for some Australians, depending on your existing personal income.
One last interesting quirk that comes into play from the 2014-15 Financial Year is that Australians will be issued with a “tax receipt,” meaning those with an annual taxable income of $100 or more who lodge a return will receive a report showing exactly where your tax dollars have been spent. The idea behind this is to make the system slightly more transparent.
So there you have it. For the moment, you’re going to be OK. In the coming months, the pinch could start being felt. But when you wake up tomorrow, at least, everything’s going to be fine.
Photo: Madeline Coorey via Getty Images.
via SMH.
