Tuesday 12 May 2026

Transcript - Interview on ABC Radio, PM

Topics: Federal Budget

E&OE...

Samantha Donovan: As mentioned, the shadow treasurer Tim Wilson is with me now in the studio. Mr Wilson, thanks very much for being with us on PM this evening.

Tim Wilson: Thank you for having me.

Samantha Donovan: I know you don't have a lot of time, let's start with the government's planned changes to the property tax breaks. What do you think?

Tim Wilson: Well, we've said very clearly that we don't support these—these new taxes. They've built on a house of broken promises. We have higher taxes, lower living standards, and fewer homes in this budget. And we know explicitly that the measures the government is introducing is going to reduce the volume of housing supply by 35,000 over the next decade. That's not how you get young Australians into new homes.

Samantha Donovan: No doubt there will be plenty of voters pretty angry that their property tax breaks are being cut. But don't you think they're going to be outnumbered by younger Australians and indeed anyone trying to buy a home who thinks, "Well at least the government is doing something to make it easier for me to get a house"?

Tim Wilson: Except for the fact that it won't. The government's own documents say that there'll be rental increases as a consequence of the measures they're introducing today. You know, I tend to find that before people buy a home, they tend to be renters. And if they're going to be paying higher rents as a consequence of this government's measures, it's not likely to make them enthusiastic. More than that, the government's own numbers show that there'll be 35,000 fewer homes built as a consequence of these new taxes built on a house of broken promises. And consequently, younger Australians are being ripped off.

Samantha Donovan: So if the opposition were to win office, would it axe these Labour government changes to these property tax breaks?

Tim Wilson: We are going to fight these new taxes every step of the way because they have not been legislated and we are not convinced that they have the support, least of all because they were not taken to the last election. By not being taken to the last election, the government has come forward with new taxes on Australians that are going to reduce the volume of housing supply and increase rents. And I think we need to be very realistic because if the government starts with things like capital gains tax increases as they have on new house deposits that are invested, they're going to go after other things and you can't trust them.

Samantha Donovan: As Isabelle Roe just mentioned a short time ago before you came in, voters 45 and under are now the biggest voting block and of course that group is only going to grow. So how would the opposition have any chance of winning office if it decided to reverse those measures helping—aimed at helping young voters buy their first home?

Tim Wilson: Well our focus is on how we actually build and grow the economy for every Australian and it's not just simply based on feeding division where the Prime Minister wants to start fights over the kitchen table. We know that young Australians often invest their deposits before they go on to buy their first home and they're going to see essentially a doubling in the tax rate that's applied to them. So I think young Australians have woken up very clearly to a budget that not just taxes their deposits, it then reduces the volume of housing supply and increases the costs of their rent.

Samantha Donovan: I know you've got about 30 seconds Mr Wilson, just quickly, your reaction to the tax offset for workers, the two payments coming up in the next couple of financial years, will it send inflation up?

Tim Wilson: Well, that—that is up for the government ultimately to decide, but in terms of what offsets they might provide. They keep boasting about how they're providing savings as an aggregate for the economy, but they aren't actually delivering. So if they get their spending down, it will do so, but at the moment they just keep spending because they're the most—the highest taxing government in Australian history.

Samantha Donovan: Tim Wilson, thanks very much for coming in to join us on the PM budget special this evening. We really appreciate your time.

Tim Wilson: Thank you.

[ENDS]