A CRACKDOWN on federal government waste and unfair tax breaks is needed to help fund vital social and economic reforms without derailing the promised budget surplus, a new analysis says. The Australian Council of Social Service has called for the abolition of some tax breaks for older Australians, which it says are based on age rather than ability to pay and discriminate against younger people. As well, it has called for reform of private trusts to stem their use for tax avoidance, a practice it says costs the budget $1 billion a year.
