18 November 2013
Kate Stephens
ABC News
Mount Isa Mayor Tony McGrady says changes are needed if governments are going to encourage more people to live in northern Australia.
Councillor McGrady says he has requested a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss ahead of the Federal Government finalising its white paper on the development of the region.
He says the council has also started a petition, calling for a change to tax zone allowances, to ensure that only permanent residents can claim the rebates.
“The Deputy Mayor and myself will be seeking a meeting in the Deputy Prime Minister’s office so we can sit down out of the glare of other issues and simply discuss with him the merits of our case and by this time I would certainly hope that we’ve got feedback from other councils right across northern Australia, so this is one gigantic team effort,” he said.
Councillor McGrady says he would like to see permanent residents in remote areas earn $10,000 before they have to pay tax.
“People are living in the coastal areas and they are flying in, they are earning money in these areas and taking it away and spending, and what we are saying [is that] the original purpose of zone allowance was to compensate people who lived in remote areas but people who fly-in, fly-out are receiving them,” he said.
Courtesy of ABC News