Portfolio — 3 June 2026

Assistant Minister Ged Kearney used a House debate on 3 June to articulate a broad cost-of-living and structural reform agenda spanning tax, wages, and housing. The centrepiece announcements were a $250 Working Australians tax offset and a $1,000 instant tax deduction, accompanied by a fuel tax cut of more than half and removal of the heavy-vehicle road user charge — measures framed as permanent, sustainable relief rather than one-off transfers.

On wages, Kearney pointed to the Fair Work Commission's 2026 annual wage review, which lifted modern award wages by 4.75% and the national minimum wage by 6% to just over $1,000 per week, describing the cumulative effect as a $12,000 annual increase for workers since Labor took office [TA-260603-house-804d9cb5f6e1:s055]. The housing component of the package carries the most structural weight: negative gearing will be limited to new-build homes, and the existing 50% capital gains tax discount will be replaced with inflation-adjusted indexation and a minimum tax on realised gains, a combination the government projects will enable around 75,000 additional Australians to purchase a home over the next decade [TA-260603-house-804d9cb5f6e1:s055].

Together, the tax and housing reforms signal a deliberate effort to redirect investment toward new supply rather than existing stock — the animating logic connecting the CGT and negative gearing changes. The observations flag that the specific mechanisms of inflation-adjusted indexation and the minimum tax on realised gains are not yet captured in standard topic tagging, suggesting these are newly articulated instruments that will warrant close monitoring as legislative detail emerges.

The single source record for this Note means the full parliamentary exchange — including any opposition response to these proposals — is not available; this account reflects Kearney's contribution only.