In defending the Stage 3 tax cuts in parliament, Angus Taylor inadvertently highlighted the real benefits for low-middle income earners comes from Stages 1 and 2.

The latest enterprise agreements figures show small signs of wage growth and once again the benefits of being in a union

In 2020-21 the biggest companies in Australia were able to reduce their taxable income to just 12% of their total income

In the past 7 months, the Reserve Bank has increased the cash rate by 275 basis points. That is as fast as any time since the RBA became independent. Given the pace of inflation growth, the rises are not wholly without cause, but as policy director, Greg Jericho notes in his Guardian Australia column the main drivers of inflation are now easing, and wages are yet to take off. In that case, should the RBA continue to raise rates given it will only slow the economy further?

People around Australia have been seeing the advertised prices of rents increasing, now the inflation figures are catching up.

On Wednesday the latest inflation figures showed that in the 12 months to September prices across Australia grew by 7.3% – the fastest rate since 1990.

The Government acknowledges the need to get wages growing again, but the budget reveals just how big the task is

The latest data from the Bureau of Statistics on families shows that more than ever before couples with dependants are both working.

This week the IMF released its latest World Economic Outlook. And the outlook is dire. Economic growth around the world was downgraded with recession-like conditions being predicted for many advanced economies including the USA, UK and much of the EU.

The Stage 3 tax cuts will only balance out the tax increase from the end of the low-middle income tax offset for those earning above $97,000

The end of the Low-Middle Income Tax Offset will deliver a tax increase of up to $1,500 for people earning under $90,000 – a 3% tax rise for someone on $50,000

Taxation data shows which occupations will get the biggest cuts – and how few people work in them

If you wanted to address bracket creep, the Stage 3 tax cuts would be the worst way to do it.

Enterprise agreements in June averaged just 2.8% annual wage growth – well below inflation.

This week the UK government introduced massive high-income tax cuts – cuts that are not even as bad as the Stage 3 tax cuts here in Australia. And the reaction by the market was brutal. Investors saw the tax cuts for what they were – a redistribution of national income from the poorest to the wealthiest, that provided no economic growth. As a result the value of the UK Pound plunged.

Enterprise bargaining agreements deliver better wages, but union backed ones deliver the best.

Last week before the House Economics Committee, the Governor of the Reserve Bank made it clear that the current rise in inflation has nothing to do with wages growth. And yet he also made it clear he expects workers to bear the brunt of the cost that comes from slowing inflation.

Since the Reserve Bank began raising interest rates in May, the housing market has very much come off the boil.

The past 2 years has seen a surge in the number of people working multiple jobs

Ten years of productivity gains has resulted in a zero increase in real hourly wages

The June quarter GDP figures released by the Bureau of Statistics showed that over the past year the economy grew a seemingly strong 3.6%.

The latest GDP figures show more than ever before workers are getting less than their fair share

Profits continue to soar ahead of wages

The Stage 3 tax cuts, which will essentially create a flat income tax system, have always been clearly biased towards high-income earners. For those earning over $200,000, the tax cuts represent a 4.5% cut compared to just 0.6% for someone on the median income of $60,000. But this week, the Parliamentary Budget Office has released costings that detail just how skewed the allocation of money is to the richest in our society.

77% of the benefits of the Stage 3 tax cuts will go to the richest 25%

When you count earnings per waged hours it is very clear that real wages have not kept up with productivity

For most of the past 40 years whenever the discussion turns to the need to lift productivity, invariably the conversation is dominated by business groups and various media commentators who suggest the solution is more labour market flexibility. Just a bit more flexibility and productivity will improve!