Signing of Intergovernmental Agreement on Commonwealth-State finances

9/4/99
Premier Richard Court today said that the signing of the Intergovernmental Agreement on Commonwealth-State finances showed that the State and Territory leaders were able to adopt a co-operative approach on this key national issue of tax reform.
"It also marks a major step forward in the States and Territories gaining access to a major growth tax which the Western Australian Government has been working hard to achieve since 1993," Mr Court said.
He said that gaining access to a growth tax would be the most significant reform in Federal-State finances since the second world war.
"It is encouraging that all State and Territory leaders were able to see the long-term importance of this reform to the revitalisation of the Federation and put aside party political differences," the Premier said.
"I sincerely hope that the Senate, which is supposed to represent the wishes of the States, fully takes into account the significance of this agreement.
"The Senate should now put aside party political positions and support this package which will strengthen the Australian Federation."
Mr Court said he believed that yesterday's Leaders' Forum, comprising the State and Territory leaders, had played an important role in the success of the Premiers' Conference.
"Not only were the State and Territory leaders able to adopt a co-operative approach on tax reform but also on the key national issue of health reform," he said.
"The fact that the Leaders' Forum agreed to develop policy options on health reform and review these options in July underlines this constructive spirit of co-operation.
"The events of the last two days have displayed again that the States and Territories have a capacity to forge a consensus on major national issues.
"The success of the Leaders' Forum, in tandem with the future implementation of the Intergovernmental Agreement on Commonwealth-State finances, augurs well for a more dynamic Federation as we enter the 21st century.
"All the States and Territories were able to reach agreement on the transitional arrangements for the GST with the Commonwealth addressing the key concerns outlined at yesterday's Leaders' Forum.
"These concerns covered key areas such as the Commonwealth's ability to make unilateral changes to the GST base and compensation for the cost of the GST on public housing and loss of wholesale sales tax equivalents, extending the transitional guarantee beyond three years if necessary and attaching the Intergovernmental Agreement to the Commonwealth legislation."

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