Senator MARGETTS (4:10 PM) —I want to add something in response to Senator Cook's answer to my question, and I thank Senator Cook for responding. I was talking in my contribution—and I am sure this has been reported to Senator Cook—about the position taken in relation to the government's compliance concerns for some elements of business and, as Senator Cook would be well aware, how little that concern seems to extend to community groups and charity groups in relation to the new ANTS tax package. I also compared it to some of the elements of compliance cost that have been shovelled onto social security recipients, otherwise known these days, or hidden, as clients.

I have a list from 1994, but I guess that was a previous government. But, from 1996, the list reads like a nightmare. There were changes in July 1996, January 1997, March 1997, July 1997, September 1997, several changes in January 1998, several changes in July 1998 and March 1998. These changes have added to the complexity and onerous nature of compliance for people on all sorts of social security benefits. I wonder whether we are being asked to take concern for only one group of people—that is, certain groups within industry—and say, `Okay, even if what you are doing is basically tax avoidance, we will overlook that provided there is a compliance cost involved.'

I can see that I am not going to win on this one, but I felt it was necessary to put on the record that we have two ways of dealing with people. If you are in business, we will be concerned about your time and compliance costs. If you are already struggling, and if you are already in difficulties in relation to being a recipient of some kind of social security payment, then that compliance cost is irrelevant or is just seen to be an issue of accountability. Here we have an issue of accountability which is passed over simply because it is a business cost and considered to be a compliance cost. I believe that really is double standards, to say the least. But I can count and I realise what the result will be.