Tom Crowley

A Senate committee report into the capital gains tax was authored by the Greens but littered with clues about Labor's plans. 

WA will get an extra $6.6 billion from taxpayers in the coming financial year under its special GST deal, despite being the only state with a budget surplus. 

New analysis shows five of the six electorates with the largest capital gains tax discount benefits are held by independents.

Treasury has advised the government that if the oil price averages $US100 per barrel for three months, there would be a temporary 0.5 percentage point spike to headline inflation.

The legislation comes as speculation builds that the federal government will pursue more ambitious tax changes in the May budget.

A new index compiled by the Business Council of Australia shows Australia in the middle of the pack as an investment destination.

A government source said it would make sense to consider changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax together, but that no decision was close to being made.

The hints are getting less subtle and Labor's plans on capital gains tax are becoming clearer, but a proposal laden with compromises risks undermining any intergenerational argument.

The federal opposition proposes a new criminal offence to punish those who help Australians with links to Islamic State to return home, accusing the government of being complacent about the possible return of 34 wives and children of former fighters.

Tony Burke has also provided an update on the cohort of 34 Australians seeking to leave a Syrian refugee camp.

Australia will cease to be a low-debt country and be more vulnerable in a future crisis without a combination of spending restraint and tax reform, a new report has warned.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says Philip Lowe was critical of the government over spending because it did not re-appoint him as RBA governor. 

Sussan Ley, the first female leader of the Liberal Party, is set to quit politics after losing a leadership vote today.

Sussan Ley announces she will quit the parliament after losing her leadership to Angus Taylor, setting up a by-election in her seat. 

The economics professor is the second academic economist added to the board since a review recommended boosting its expertise.

Parliament House has entered the spill zone, where politics is at its most primal. Here are the Liberals jostling for control of their much-reduced party.

Angus Taylor has confirmed he will challenge Opposition Leader Sussan Ley for the leadership at the meeting. 

A second attempt to raise taxes on high super balances has been presented to parliament, but will require the support of the Greens to secure Senate passage.

Sussan Ley could face a challenge to her leadership from Angus Taylor this week after a disastrous opinion poll showed the Coalition parties falling further behind One Nation.

Labor has not ruled out changes to the capital gains tax discount but wants any tax changes to improve housing affordability. 

After Jim Chalmers repeatedly refused to rule out changing the capital gains tax discount, a government source told the ABC that changes related to housing were being considered, with capital gains not ruled out.

Labor's Ed Husic says it is "hard to reconcile" a visit by Israeli President Isaac Herzog with comments he has made in relation to the war in Gaza.

The federal government has a variety of options available if it wants to do more to stave off inflation, but none are popular.

When the news broke that rates would increase, the treasurer's main priority was to prove it wasn't his fault. That won't satisfy voters.

The federal Liberal and National leaders held eleventh-hour crisis talks after David Littleproud survived an unlikely challenge from as disgruntled backbencher.