Tax reform in the wake of the Federal Budget was front and centre for the nation’s agricultural leaders at a meeting of the National Farmers’ Federation’s Members’ Council in Canberra this week.
Bringing together state farming organisations and commodity groups from across Australia, the Council passed a clear resolution calling on the Australian Government to safeguard farm businesses from unintended consequences arising from proposed changes to Capital Gains Tax and their potential impact on intergenerational farm succession.
NFF President Hamish McIntyre said while the Government’s decision to retain small business CGT concessions was important, more work was needed to ensure those settings remained fit for purpose.
“The current thresholds are badly outdated and no longer reflect the reality of family farming today, so our immediate focus is ensuring those settings are reviewed to protect farm succession and prevent unintended consequences for the next generation of farmers.
“Family farms often represent farmers’ life savings, carefully invested in over decades to support their retirement and to provide a succession pathway for their children to enter the sector.”
“We need to ensure changes to CGT don’t unintentionally compromise the future of Australian farmers – something that has been positively recognised through the primary production income exemption in the proposed tax on discretionary trusts.
“We welcome the constructive engagement we’ve had with Government so far and look forward to continuing this work to deliver practical solutions that allow the next generation of farmers take on the family business.”
Stacey Davidson
Ashleigh Whittaker