MEDIA RELEASE
8 May 2023
INFLATIONARY TRUCKIE TAX LOCKED AND LOADED
On Budget eve Federal Labor have announced a 6 per cent increase in fuel taxes and registration charges on the Australian truck and bus industry.
Shadow Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development, Senator Bridget McKenzie said the announcement was a huge blow to the industry and everyday Australians who are already struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
“The Albanese Government have been preaching that tomorrow’s Budget will bring cost of living relief and now it’s clear to us that is a false narrative,” Senator McKenzie said.
“Everything we make in this country and every good we buy gets to a shop by travelling on a truck, whether it originates on a farm, from a factory, or enters the country via a port.
“It’s our trucking industry that delivers product to market, as well as goods from ports and warehouses to our doorsteps.
“Now the Labor Government see fit to impose an excessive tax hike which will result in costs being passed onto Aussie consumers.
“This is a special kind of economic recklessness.”
The nation’s truck and bus industry will be slugged an additional $1.6 billion over three years. The Heavy Vehicle Road User Charge will increase from 27.2 cpl up to 32.4 cpl by 1 July 2025..
Since fears of the ‘truckie tax’ sparked earlier this year, the Coalition have been calling for Labor to scrap the tax alongside industry stakeholders such as the Australian Trucking Association, the National Farmers’ Federation, NatRoads and the National Road Freighters Association.
“Our calls have fallen on deaf ears, it’s clear Labor does not care about our heavy vehicle industry, nor the flow on effects to everyday Australians because of this tax hike,” Senator McKenzie said.