Tasmania was the only state to vote against a motion urging the federal government to review GST distribution at the Federal Liberals Council this weekend.
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Western Australia put forward the motion calling on the federal government to conduct a full review of how the Commonwealth Grants Commission calculates GST funding redistribution.
The motion originally emphasised WA’s call for “a more equitable share” but was altered to include all states and territories.
Tasmania treasurer Peter Gutwein said the state government would always fight against changes to the GST.
“The GST was designed to ensure everyone receives their fair share through the horizontal fiscal equalisation system,” he said.
“Tasmanians can rest assured we will fight any proposal that seeks to change it.”
The move follows disagreement between the two states’ Premiers on the equality of GST distribution, with WA Premier Mark McGowan accusing Tasmania of receiving more than its fair share.
Mr McGowan has described the GST distribution formula as “crippling” his state.
Opposition treasury spokesman Scott Bacon said the Liberals were “coming for Tasmania’s share of the GST” and described a potential change to GST as “disastrous” for the state.
"We've got the Liberals across Australia gunning for our share and a sympathetic Prime Minister open to change,” Mr Bacon said.
"It's telling that the Liberal Party would back in Western Australia over a state led by a fellow Liberal.”
Mr Bacon reiterated Labor’s original push for a bipartisan submission on GST that was rejected by the state government.
Mr Gutwein recently released a public explanation paper on GST dispersal that directly targeted Western Australia as a case study of poor GST management based on lack of fore-thought during the mining boom.
It followed Premier McGowan’s complaints at a recent Council of Australian Governments meeting in Hobart that WA was poorly treated in the GST carve-up.