Submission to Senate Economics Committee Inquiry into Corporate Tax Avoidance

Corporate tax avoidance is an issue of some concern to the Australian community. However, many assertions made in the debate about tax avoidance are not supported by evidence; such as statements that company tax avoidance is widespread. Instead, the evidence shows that company tax revenue is above historical averages and is well above averages for the developed world. Tax payments by individual companies are not particularly informative about supposed tax avoidance, as there are numerous good reasons why specific companies can pay tax rates below 30%.