MATTERS OF PUBLIC IMPORTANCE
Senator MARIELLE SMITH (South Australia) (17:44): Our government has been clear that the proposed minimum tax will not apply to charitable trusts, and donations to organisations with deductible gift recipient status will continue to be tax deductible for discretionary trusts. Labor believes deeply in the contribution of Australia's charities across the sector.
These are organisations that are creating stronger, more connected communities. That's why we've been reforming Australia's deductible gift recipient system, to make it fairer and simpler and to better support giving. We've streamlined the DGR system, created a new community charity category to encourage more local and place based giving, strengthened the role of the charities commissioner and expanded the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission advisory board to be more representative of the sector.
We're also continuing to consider the Productivity Commission's recommendations for broader DGR reform, with the goal of encouraging more Australians to give. The same principle applies to our sporting communities. Sport is where children grow up in confidence, develop skills and build friendships, and sporting clubs are where families come together and where, for so many Australians, a sense of belonging is found.
That's why we're providing certainty and support for sporting communities through programs like Play Our Way, our $200 million flagship sport inclusion program. I was so honoured to witness the tangible changes this program has made to clubs like the Jervois Bluds Netball Club in my home state of South Australia. This grant funding has meant so much to this community, and it is an important example of the way the Play Our Way program is supporting local communities.
Whether it's investing in local sporting clubs, reforming the tax system so a young family can afford their first home or helping workers keep more of what they earn, these sorts of investments matter, and these are the sorts of investments being prioritised by our government. Indeed, these investments reflect the values of the Albanese Labor government and our value as it rests in investing in people.
That's what the broader tax reforms are all about. They are about building a fairer tax system that works for working Australians, a tax system that supports homeownership and a tax system that backs Australian businesses and strengthens the communities that we all call home. Our reforms will reduce the tax burden for more than 13 million Australians.
They will help an estimated 75,000 more people into the housing market and deliver more than $3.8 billion in new measures to lower taxes for businesses and start-ups. This builds on what we've already delivered as a government—three rounds of tax cuts for every Australian taxpayer, making super fairer from top to bottom and ensuring multinational companies pay their fair share of tax.
On 1 July, more than 14 million Australians received another tax cut of up to $268. Under our combined tax cuts, a worker on an average income will pay up to $2,800 less tax than they otherwise would have. This is real money in people's pockets making a real difference.
It is money that can go towards paying the mortgage, groceries, utility bills or just giving Australian families a little bit more breathing room. Our tax reform plan is about something much bigger; it's also about bringing homeownership within reach. It's about trying to ensure that more young Australians can realise the opportunity of homeownership, as the generations before them were able to do.
We know this is important to Australians and we know Australians are doing it tough. That's why our government is very focused on cost-of-living delivery. We've rolled out a tax cut for every taxpayer this year and next.
We're investing in cheaper medicines, we're investing in more bulk-billing—which we're seeing increase across Australia—and we're investing in record hospital funding. We're helping Australians earn more by getting wages moving. We're providing support for parents, including extending to a full six months of paid parental leave.
We're boosting social and affordable housing. We're providing relief for students, including through paid prac and free TAFE. We're slashing student debt, and we're expanding a fair go for consumers at the checkout with more power for the competition watchdog and making the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct mandatory—all at the same time as responsibly managing the budget, tackling key challenges including inflation and global volatility, and strengthening our economy.
Under Labor, 1.25 million jobs have been created. We have the lowest average unemployment for any government in under— (Time expired)