Leader of The Nationals David Littleproud said farmers have had an enormous win, after Labor retreated on its poorly conceived, reckless and cruel plan to tax unrealised gains on farms held in self-managed super funds (SMSFs).
David Littleproud said Labor had been embarrassingly forced to give in, after The Nationals and industry campaigned against the terrible plan and Labor faced a backlash across regional Australia.
“Labor’s plan to punish Australia’s hardest workers and attack their unrealised gains in superannuation was shocking from the start and never should have happened,” Mr Littleproud said.
“Many families previously set up SMSFs as their future retirement and for succession planning, unaware Labor could come for their assets every single year.
“Labor could never even tell us how many primary producers, small and family business owners would have been impacted. In what parallel universe does a Government think it’s okay to tax on-paper, unrealised gains?
“Throughout the process, Labor also demonstrated they have no understanding of the vagaries of farmers’ cash loss that are impacted by not just weather but commodity prices during bad seasons.
“Labor’s plan would have forced farmers to sell their land, instead of passing it on to their families. We are relieved Labor has backflipped, but this policy never should have seen the light of day.
“Labor should apologise to the farming community for the stress and uncertainty they have caused.
“Our farmers who produce the nation’s food and fibre must be protected from Labor’s tax grabs. The Nationals will always stand up for our farmers, and that includes their assets,” David Littleproud concluded.
More details to come
Watch for the full details of the changes in a feature story coming up that explains how 15% tax will be applicable for funds valued up to $3 million, including indexation, and then 30% tax on balances over $3 million and up to $10 million, with 40% tax payable on funds valued at over $10 million.
If passed through parliament, the changes will take effect from 1 July 2026 and will apply to the 2026-27 financial year.
It is estimated that the $3m threshold will apply to around 90,000 SMSFs, while the $10m threshold will apply to about 8,000 funds.
Even with these more digestible changes, the opposition still has to decide its position, prompting the treasurer to make a point that the government was prepared to rework the bill to ensure it makes its way through parliament and into taxation law.
