Senator CORMANN (Western Australia—Minister for Finance and Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) (14:01): I thank Senator Cameron for that question. I guess the modelling he is referring to is the modelling that has been put into the public domain by the Australian Council of Social Services. The government welcomes and has welcomed their contribution to what is a very important debate about the way our tax system can be improved, moving forward. Right now, the government is involved in a good faith public consultation about how we can improve our tax system, moving forward. It is about how we can ensure—by a better, more efficient and less distorting tax system and by a tax system that encourages people to work more, save more and invest more—that we can strengthen growth in a way that will help deliver lifts in living standards for people across Australia and help increase the level opportunity for people across Australia, and, of course, deliver a growth dividend for government, which will help us continue to afford the social safety net and all of the important benefits and services. Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Order on my left. I call Senator Cameron. Senator Cameron: I rise on a point of order. My question was very specific. It went to the issue of the modelling and whether that would require people in the lowest 20 per cent of income brackets to pay seven per cent more in tax. The minister has not gone to that point and his attention should be drawn to the question. The PRESIDENT: I will draw the minister's attention to the question that was asked. Minister, you have 48 seconds in which to answer. Senator Cormann: As I said, the government welcomes the contribution that ACOSS has made to the tax reform debate. The NATSEM modelling prepared for ACOSS is not realistic. It is not accurate. It ignores, entirely, the fact that welfare payments, for example, are automatically indexed for price increases. For the ACOSS stylised scenario to occur, the parliament would have to pass legislation to switch off the automatic CPI indexation of transfer payments in order to prevent welfare recipients from automatically receiving increased payments. That would be contrary to the government's commitment to ensure fairness, and we will not ever do it. But the more fundamental point is that we are engaged in good faith in that process—in a public conversation—about how our tax system can be improved, so we can strengthen growth and opportunity for all. (Time expired)