Leave shares and small businesses out of CGT crackdown, says Westpac boss
Exclusive: Westpac CEO Anthony Miller is calling on the Albanese government to rethink its capital gains tax overhaul – and he’s got young investors in mind.
The lower house has passed the first tranche of the federal government’s budget measures, banning negative gearing on existing homes and winding back capital gains tax discounts for properties, shares and businesses. But Miller has added his voice to the growing calls for carve-outs.
Speaking exclusively to The Pay Off podcast with Sylvia Jeffreys, the Big Four boss argued that penalising young Australians for investing in shares sends exactly the wrong message.
″Until you can buy a house, what are those other investment vehicles that you might pursue? Shares are one of them. I’d love to see some further thinking on that and some sort of carve out to solve for that.″
It’s a pointed intervention from one of Australia’s most powerful bankers. If the government is serious about intergenerational equity, Miller says, it shouldn’t be disincentivising the very behaviour it claims to want more of.
The son of two small business owners, Miller is equally blunt about protecting start ups and family enterprises from the CGT changes.
“I think there’s a broad base of consensus forming around that. The bias has to be how do we get behind small business in Australia? It is the largest employer. It is one of the cornerstones of innovation. If they’re supported and they’re doing well, there’s a knock on effect for the community. ”
In the wide ranging conversation on The Pay Off, which kicks off a special series in partnership with Westpac, Miller acknowledges the government deserves credit for some small business measures in the budget - but says there’s room to go further.
For the 26,000 first home buyers Westpac approved through the Home Guarantee Scheme over the last year - many potentially sitting on properties worth less than what they paid - Miller has a measured message: Don’t panic.
“When you buy a house, I think you’ve got to be thinking very long term. And so, you know, one year into a 30-year investment programme, you should not be judging yourself as a success or failure.
The 5 per cent deposit scheme hasn’t failed them, he insists, as it was never designed to be judged on a 12-month window.
Banking bosses fear the government's budget changes will impact property prices. Getty Images/iStockphoto
Three consecutive rate rises. A cooling market. Weak consumer sentiment. The conditions for a mortgage stress blow-up have arrived - But Miller says Westpac isn’t seeing that play out in the numbers.
″The stress levels we’ve seen in the books have not moved over the last three months. And up until three months ago, they had continued to improve consistently over the last three years.
85 per cent of the mortgages that Westpac customers hold are at least one month and upwards of two years ahead in their payments… (which is a credit to) the prudence and the common sense and the discipline of home owners in Australia.”
He’s not concerned. For now.
Anthony Miller joined Sylvia Jeffreys on The Pay Off podcast as part of a special 8-part series in partnership with Westpac, covering housing, fraud and scams, small business, female leadership and more. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.
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