Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews insists there is nothing that will change his opposition to increasing the GST rate.
"This is not reform, it's simply hiking the rate," Mr Andrews told ABC radio on Wednesday when asked about a proposal by NSW Premier Mike Baird to increase the rate from 10 per cent to 15 per cent to plug future shortfalls in health funding.
He argues the GST has no regard for whether people could afford to pay and is not confident any attempts to compensate lower income earners would be enduring.
Hiking the GST would raise more money but fail to address any inefficiencies within the health system, he says.
Mr Andrews believes increasing the Medicare levy would be a more equitable way of raising money.
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr has urged his colleagues not to rule anything in or out on tax reform at a leaders' retreat in Sydney on Wednesday.
His preference is to raise the Medicare levy but he is open to the idea of raising the GST if the money goes toward health.
"We need to move beyond instantly ruling in and ruling out," he told Sky News.
Mr Andrews says he's not opposed to broadening the GST to cover overseas online purchases below $1000, although he thinks it's "a lot of set-up cost for not a lot of return".
ACTU president Ged Kearney said raising the GST was unfair to low and middle income earners.
She urged leaders to look at superannuation tax concessions, negative gearing and raising the Medicare levy instead.
"There's lots of other ways we can raise revenue before we go to a regressive tax like the GST," Ms Kearney told ABC radio.
Australian Industry Group boss Innes Willox says political courage is needed and believes raising the Medicare levy does not address problems in the tax system.
"We hope that reform isn't dead in Australia," he told ABC Radio.
Labor frontbencher Jason Clare said it was Prime Minister Tony Abbott who wanted to increase the GST.
"He just doesn't have the guts to say it himself," the MP told Sky News.
"He wants the state premiers to come with a begging bowl looking for money, whether its through the GST or something else."
There were fairer ways than increasing the GST, such as superannuation tax changes and requiring multinational corporations to pay their fair share of tax, Mr Clare said.
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