NRMA lashes out at petrol tax increase

The National Roads & Motorists’ Association (NRMA) will launch a grassroots campaign across NSW and the ACT to oppose the Australian Government’s decision to reintroduce indexation on the Petrol Tax.

The campaign will aim to mobilise NRMA’s 2.4 million members across NSW and the ACT. Elements of the campaign will include advertising across the North Coast, social and traditional media and community organising to target local members of parliament.

Reintroducing indexation will raise $167 million this year and $2 billion over four years. It will raise an alarming $19 billion from motorists over the next 10 years.

Remarkably, if the Senate does not pass the necessary legislation in 12 months’ time, the revenue raised will be returned - not to the motorists who paid the tax - but to the oil companies that collected it.

NRMA Deputy President Wendy Machin said poor policy was made worse when the Australian Government decided to sneak the tax increase through the parliament through a special tariff proposal.

“There’s a reason why the Petrol Tax increase has not gone through the Australian Senate - it’s an example of poor policy that will hurt families who already pay their fair share in tax at the bowser,” Machin said.

“It will particularly affect our members in the North Coast as many don’t have access to public transport and need to drive longer distances than those people living in cities like Sydney.

“The NRMA rejects the government’s argument that reintroducing indexation is necessary to ensure the tax keeps up with inflation.

“The reason former Prime Minister John Howard put the cap on indexation in 2001 was because petrol doesn’t just attract GST on the product - it also attracts GST on the petrol tax component as well.

 “The NRMA was created in 1920 as a voice to stand up for motorists. Fighting this unfair tax is a prime example of why our work is important. We need to stop this tax increase, make it clear to every MP that the community is opposed to this tax hike and ensure the money raised over the next 12 months goes back to the motorists who paid it.”

The NRMA will release further details about the campaign in coming days.