Treasurer Joe Hockey's suggestion that poor people don't drive much wasn't a smart thing to say, Palmer United Party senator Dio Wang says.
Mr Wang says he is pleased the treasurer made the effort to visit him in Western Australia on Wednesday.
He says he told Mr Hockey the government should encourage economic growth rather than spending cuts, which had the greatest impact on the poor.
"Many people can't afford to live closer to the CBD because you know, they can't afford the properties," Mr Wang told the ABC on Thursday.
"They're driving down to the city every day to work, to make a hard living, and yet if this fuel excise went through they would be punished."
Mr Wang said the treasurer "painted the picture" that if nothing was done about the deficit, then the country would be in serious financial trouble.
But the WA senator made the point that if the state had more GST coming in over the past few years, it could have helped the government by investing in mining and agricultural infrastructure.
"If we had $1 today, we might be able to contribute $10 back in a few years time," Mr Wang said.
He said Mr Hockey acknowledged WA's population was growing rapidly and it might be a good idea to look at weighting the GST by the rate of population growth.
However, Mr Wang also looked out for Tasmania, which WA Premier Colin Barnett has said does not pull its weight, and told Mr Hockey they needed a greater share of GST too.
"Tasmania is at the other end of the spectrum, they definitely need help, and as a country we should help them," Mr Wang said.
Share
