Wealth gap on the increase
WA spread the wealth of the mining boom among poor and rich better than anywhere else in the country, a new report has found.
But the report for the Australian Council of Social Service also warns that inequality across the nation has grown on the back of Australia’s tax system. ACOSS believes tax concessions for the rich have come at the expense of the poor. The report into who owns Australia’s national wealth found people in the richest 20 per cent have about five times the income of someone in the bottom 20 per cent.
In the 25 years to 2010, real wages increased about 50 per cent but for those in the bottom 10 per cent, incomes rose just 14 per cent. The richest 10 per cent took in 72 per cent more.
Across the nation, the wealth of the richest 20 per cent grew 28 per cent between 2004 and 2012 while the wealth of the poorest 20 per cent rose just 3 per cent.
A person in the top 20 per cent holds 70 times the wealth of someone in the bottom 20.
That wealthiest 20 per cent own 45 per cent of all wealth, which includes 80 per cent of all investment properties and shares plus 60 per cent of all superannuation. The bottom 40 per cent hold just 5 per cent of total wealth.
ACOSS says only Israel and Germany have become more unequal over recent decades but despite this, inequality in Australia is still lower than in nations such as Britain and the US.
In a sign the mining boom delivered benefits across WA, just one-third of West Australians are in the two lowest income groups — well below the national average, which is closer to half.
WA has the smallest proportion of lowest-paid and a small percentage of the group between the very poor and those on “modest incomes”. WA also has by far the biggest share of Australians with incomes in the top 20 per cent.
ACOSS chief executive Cassandra Goldie said all governments had to look at ways to address the growing disparity in wealth and income. She said despite rising wages and relatively low unemployment for two decades, wealth and income were growing strongly for those at the top but barely moving for those at the bottom.
Dr Goldie said generous tax concessions, particularly for real estate and superannuation, consolidated and increased the wealth of the richest while doing nothing for the poor.
