Barnett backs GST on fresh food
Colin Barnett believes people would not notice too much if the GST was put on fresh food.
The Premier's comments came as he positioned WA for its next battle over getting a bigger slice of the national GST pie.
_The Weekend West _revealed Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey has sought advice to end the "lag" that would penalise WA through falling GST grants even as mining royalties also fell.
Mr Barnett said the move was a "good first step" but the main game was reform of the system to move towards sharing the GST on a per capita basis.
He said 10-15 per cent of GST revenue could be set aside to assist struggling Tasmania and South Australia.
Mr Barnett signalled WA would also support a push from other States and Australian retailers for a cut in the GST-free threshold for overseas online purchases but only if distribution was reformed in WA's favour.
But applying the GST to fresh food - an exemption written into the GST law on its introduction in 2001 to satisfy Democrat senators - should come first.
"I think the exemptions for food really just unnecessarily complicate matters," Mr Barnett said yesterday. "They are not big ticket items like school fees or health expenses and the like. I don't think people would really notice it to any great extent."
Shadow treasurer Ben Wyatt said he would wait to see whether Mr Hockey acted on any recommendations from the Commonwealth Grants Commission.
"Any change to the GST, whether it's the base, the rate, or online purchases, the very firm WA view . . . is that you have to get the distribution sorted before West Australians see any more of their taxation revenue sent to other States," Mr Wyatt said.
The WA Chamber of Commerce and Industry welcomed Mr Hockey's push to ensure States with volatile revenue bases were not penalised under the GST system.
But it said the Barnett Government still had to cut spending and get the Budget in order.
The chamber said reducing tax for business could only come with the State Budget returned to surplus and that public sector cuts and more equitable GST distributions were key steps.
Mr Barnett said he was pleased Mr Hockey seemed to be acting to fix GST distribution before the next State Budget, due in May.
"We've gone hard this decade, I don't resile from that, but we do now need to correct our finances," Mr Barnett said.
