Anthony Albanese has ridiculed Angus Taylor as a \u201cTemu [Tony] Abbott\u201d amid an increasingly bitter fight over tax changes in the budget, as the Greens raise concerns about key provisions of the government\u2019s proposal.<\/p>\n
Labor will speed the first tranche of its budget legislation through the lower house on Thursday, and hopes to pass it through the Senate within weeks.<\/p>\n
Greens support is required to pass the proposed changes to negative gearing, family trusts and capital gains tax through the Senate, but treasury spokesperson Nick McKim said his party were concerned about the government having sweeping discretionary powers to change tax rules.<\/p>\n
Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email<\/a><\/p>\n Albanese defended the changes in a speech to parliament on Wednesday, saying most workers had \u201cnever even heard of a discretionary trust\u201d.<\/p>\n The Coalition<\/a> opposes the changes and plans to move amendments to split the legislation in order to support the $250 Working Australians Tax Offset (Wato) while voting down the broader reform package \u2013 a move that is set to fail due to Labor\u2019s large parliamentary majority.<\/p>\n Taylor continued his criticism of the reforms in question time on Wednesday, pointing to the release of national accounts which showed a slowdown in GDP growth and claiming that Labor\u2019s \u201ceconomic strategy has failed Australians\u201d.<\/p>\n Albanese, who has been escalating his direct attacks on Taylor, described the opposition leader as \u201cTemu Abbott \u2026 trying to press buttons\u201d.<\/p>\n The former Liberal prime minister was elected unopposed as party president last week, and Liberal MPs have also noted the growing similarities<\/a> between Taylor\u2019s rhetoric and that of his predecessor.<\/p>\n