But while the Medicare levy increase proposal is now dead, Labor intends to persist for now in implementing a separate 2% deficit levy first imposed by the Coalition in the 2014 budget, with the rise applying to earnings above $180,000. In its 2017 budget, the government proposed a Medicare levy increase of 0.5%, affecting every Australian earning more than $21,655, to help plug a funding gap for the NDIS. He said the government would lay out in the budget the reasons it could now fund the NDIS without an increase in the Medicare levy. Government ditches planned $8bn rise in Medicare levy Read more“A year ago we took a conservative approach to what we believed the economic performance would be, and the receipts for taxes,” he said. The government has shifted on the Medicare levy increase to sharpen the tax debate for the next federal election.

Source: The Guardian April 25, 2018 23:03 UTC