New laws to repeal Labor's mining tax could save the government $13 billion over the next four years, Treasurer Joe Hockey says.
Mr Hockey on Thursday released draft legislation, open for comment until October 31, to abolish the minerals resource rent tax from July 1, 2014.
"The MRRT is a complex and unnecessary tax which struggled to raise the substantial revenue predicted by the former government," Mr Hockey said in a statement.
"This failed tax imposed significant compliance costs on one of our most important industries, while damaging business confidence which is critical to future investment and jobs."
While many of the measures linked to the tax will also be scrapped, the coalition government will keep the increase in compulsory superannuation from nine per cent to 12 per cent, currently paused for two years.
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Mr Hockey said the government was still considering the issue of the "onshore administration" of the petroleum resource rent tax.
The draft laws repeal a range of Labor policies including the SchoolKids Bonus, the business loss carry-back, accelerated depreciation for motor vehicles, geothermal exploration provisions, the low income superannuation contribution and the income support bonus.
The bill also gets rid of the reduction in the small business instant asset write-off threshold.
The Labor government had planned to use the tax revenue to raise the superannuation contribution rate from 9.25 per cent to 9.5 per cent for the year starting July 1, 2014, gradually increasing it by half a percentage point each year until it reaches 12 per cent for the period starting from July 1, 2019.
But the coalition will pause the rate at 9.25 per cent for the 2014/15 and 2015/16 financial years, and increase it to 9.5 per cent from July 1, 2016.
It would then be gradually increased by half a percentage point each year until it reaches 12 per cent starting on July 1, 2021.
In the explanatory notes, the government says the superannuation changes will "boost near-term economic activity".
"Any reductions in businesses' overall wages bills would lower their operating costs, while employees could also receive more take-home pay in the near term," the note says.
