The tax applied to women’s sanitary products – otherwise known as the tampon tax – will be ditched from January 1.
State and territory treasurers unanimously backed the change during a meeting with federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg in Melbourne on Wednesday.
It means the 10 per cent GST impost will be gone in less than three months, and women will finally be paying less for tampons and pads from 2019.
A 32-pack of Carefree Procomfort tampons which is currently priced at $7 should cost $6.36 next year – a small saving of $0.64 that will add up over time.
“Millions of Australian women will benefit,” Federal Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer told Seven Network earlier on Wednesday while discussing the plan.
But the Federal Government may have a harder time convincing some states and territories to back its plan to change how the GST is carved up.
Treasurers are discussing the planned introduction of a 75 cent floor in GST payments, and the eastern states are concerned they will be worse off.
The plan was hatched to protect Western Australia from its share crashing to the mining boom lows of less than 30 cents in the dollar.
Victorian Labor Treasurer Tim Pallas says the plan’s more about fixing a “political problem” for the federal coalition in WA rather than making the distribution of the GST fairer.
“The prime minister claimed that no states will be worse off – but they’ve provided no mechanism to ensure this is the case,” he told AAP.
But Mr Frydenberg said the changes are based on data from the Productivity Commission and will leave all states and territories better off, with Victoria set to get $425 million more under the plan.
“We’re putting in an additional $9 billion to support the states and territories,” he told Sky.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet told Sky News he will push for an amendment to the proposal to guarantee states a better deal.
Federal Labor is broadly supportive of the GST changes but is concerned there are no protections for states contained in the government’s draft legislation.
But Mr Frydenberg said the government won’t put a guarantee into law because it would create “parallel systems”.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison is pressuring Labor leader Bill Shorten to back the changes.
“He will back down, he will fall in line because it is the right thing to do,” Mr Morrison told Perth’s Nova 93.7 on Wednesday.
Top Comments
Am I the only woman that doesn't see the argument regarding 'necessity'? And I say all this as a woman who uses them. Toilet paper is also a necessity. Will that have the GST removed? So many things are a necessity. I think removing the GST from toilet paper would be a much more pressing issue and one with valid argument in it's favour. If we eliminate on the basis of necessity, then not much would be left to tax. It's a saving of 60 cents, for goodness sake, can't even buy a bloody postage stamp for that much. Can't even buy mixed lollies at the corner shop for that much anymore. Most of us women buy tampons and also buy coffees and various other indulgences daily during work. And we whinge over this?
I am concerned at what this will do, will the govt now find something else to tax to cover the shortfall? I just think the argument for it's removal is flimsy. Many things are a necessity, what makes this more important? And in an era of moon cups and re-usable/washable pads, it's not like tampons/pads are as needed as they were say two decades ago. In this day of alternatives.
About time. Didn't half take long enough.