Hanson questions WA GST share legality

The One Nation leader has flagged challenging the legality of Western Australia's share of the GST.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson campaigning in Mandurah

The One Nation leader has flagged challenging the legality of Western Australia's share of the GST. (AAP)

Pauline Hanson says she's keen to investigate whether the federal government is breaching the constitution in the way it distributes the GST.

Section 99 of the constitution states: "The commonwealth shall not, by any law or regulation of trade, commerce, or revenue, give preference to one state or any part thereof over another state or any part thereof".

"This is something I thought about investigating further - maybe the state, for the GST, is being treated unfairly under the constitution," the One Nation leader told reporters in Perth on Monday.

Constitutional expert George Williams said it was true the commonwealth could not discriminate when it came to levying tax, but there were no limitations on granting money to the states.

He said section 96 of the constitution stated: "The (federal) parliament may grant financial assistance to any state on such terms and conditions as the parliament thinks fit."

Section 99 primarily related to commerce and trade not granting money, he said.


Share

1 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world