The Centre for Future Work’s submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Economic Legislation, Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Bill 2026 and a related bill, written by Dr Ben Spies-Butcher and Emeritus Professor David Peetz, examines the proposed reforms from the perspective of working people.
The submission supports the Bill’s core logic: that the tax system has long favoured income from capital over income from labour, and that correcting this imbalance is both fair and economically sensible. Changes to capital gains tax, negative gearing, and discretionary trusts would reduce incentives for speculative investment – particularly in housing – and direct more investment toward productive activity. The modest tax offset for wage and salary earners follows the same principle.
The submission also notes that the reforms, while welcome, do not fully address Australia’s housing crisis or the deeper imbalance between the taxation of income and wealth.