A Victorian Labor MP has privately argued that a policy change stripping private schools of a payroll tax exemption, introduced by his own government, would have “detrimental consequences” for a school in his electorate, despite voting for it in parliament.
But Richardson, who is parliamentary secretary for mental health, wrote to Pallas twice and then Education Minister Natalie Hutchins seeking an exemption for Cornish College, arguing it would be “extremely difficult and detrimental to the school community” if it was forced to pay the tax.he argued the tax hike could drive up fees and potentially cause students to leave, increasing the burden on the public school sector.
Mordialloc MP Tim Richardson lobbied against Labor’s own tax, saying it would have “detrimental consequences” on the operations of an independent school in his electorate“Most schools hit by the tax, which has never been imposed on schools in the past and is not imposed in any other state, have had to increase fees paid by parents to cover the cost.
Arguing in favour of Labor’s budget in May last year, when the payroll tax change was introduced, Richardson said the legislation was “important”, “temporary” and put in place “to make sure that we can pay down debt, and that is important”.Under party rules, Labor MPs are expected to vote with the party or face potential expulsion for crossing the floor.