South Australians will lose $554 million in funding for essential services after Nick Xenophon’s Centre Alliance voted with the Government and Pauline Hanson’s One Nation to give tax cuts to the wealthiest Australians, including politicians and millionaires.

“Centre Alliance has sold out South Australia and enabled the Government to dismantle our country’s progressive taxation system, making the rich richer, the poor poorer and inequality worse.

The Centre Alliance party has let down South Australians by voting with the Turnbull Government to force unfair tax cuts for high income earners including politicians and millionaires through the Senate tonight.

South Australia is set to lose $554 million in funding for essential services if the Turnbull Government’s income tax cuts pass the Senate this week.

Greens’ analysis of Government and Productivity Commission figures show South Australians and Tasmanians will be the biggest losers to essential services funding under income tax cuts.

The Senate Inquiry into Corporate Tax Avoidance report released today reveals the Labor Party is signing off on the Liberals' policy not to touch the tax system for existing petroleum resource projects. The Australian Greens said that this will allow hundreds of billions of dollars of petroleum resources to be extracted without a cent in royalties or taxes paid under the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax for decades to come. 

News today that the European Union and Australia are set to commence free trade agreement negotiations are notable for what is non-negotiable – specifically, any inclusion of investor-state dispute settlement provisions.

“These negotiations are an opportunity for Australia to break with the past and improve how trade deals are done. Australia should follow the EU’s example by committing to making the process more transparent and dropping our insistence on including insidious ISDS clauses,” Australian Greens trade spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.

Greens urge Labor to change tack and block Turnbull tax cuts in Senate

After Labor last night voted in the House to support Turnbull’s tax plan in full, Greens Deputy Leader Adam Bandt today said that the Greens wanted to stop the government’s assault on egalitarianism and that Labor should help.

“The Greens want to stop the Liberals’ assault on egalitarianism but right now, Labor’s complicit in these attacks,” said Mr Bandt.

“Every time Labor joins in the tax cuts arms race another piece of Whitlam’s welfare state dies.

The Australian Greens today ruled out supporting both the Coalition and Labor’s personal tax cuts, calling for greater public investment in essential services instead.

“These income tax cut are nothing more than a bribe to try get their massive company tax cuts over the line. People on minimum wage won’t even see $4 a week, with the wealthiest Australians benefiting the most.