Domesticating Tax Reform: The Family in Australian Tax and Transfer Law

Abstract

The family has lately taken on a new significance in tax law and policy discourse in Australia. It has been a primary focus of all participants in the debate about the tax reform proposed by Prime Minister Howard in the package A New Tax System, which became law on 8 July 1999. The Government's pitch for the tax reform package is tied to the consequences for families of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and of the accompanying income tax cuts and transfer reforms, which are aimed both at compensating families for the GST and at improving the economic position of lower- and middle-income families.