Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says Labor taxes on alcopops and cigarettes are overwhelmingly slugging less well-off families.
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In a broadranging attack on the government for failing to address cost of living pressures on ordinary Australians, Mr Abbott said Labor had turned the working families of 2007 into the forgotten families of 2011.
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Rather than doing something about cost of living pressures, Labor had made a succession of tax grabs, reaching its long hand into the pockets of every single Australian to rip out their hard-earned incomes, he said.
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"There's the alcopops tax which is going to rip $3.1 billion out of the pockets of Australian families over four years. There's the cigarette tax which is going to rip $5 billion out over four years," he said in parliament.
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"Let's face it, I don't like smoking any more than the next person but overwhelmingly these are some of the least privileged, least well-off people in our community."
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Mr Abbott said the government was set to make a bad situation even worse with its carbon tax.
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"This carbon tax, based on a lie, is going to be another nail in the way of life of the Australian families," he said.
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Assistant treasurer Bill Shorten said the best way to address cost of living pressures was to have a good job and fair pay and conditions.
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He said the government passed that test by creating 750,000 jobs with another 500,000 predicted to be created over the next two years.
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"If you have a job in this country you have a chance to pay the bills. If you don't have a job in this country, life is that much harder."
i'd be interested to hear a smokers perspective on this
Anyone?
