Sir Vivor,

So why not simply tax everyone at 100% above $200 000 as they can afford it.

Simply because Australia like every country in the world is competing for skilled labor, and treating them as cash cows or ATMs is hardly an encouragement. When Labor pushed the peak tax rate to 66%, the skills fled, the tax revenue dropped, and the economy foundered. Random taxes tells these people that their income is not secure, and subject to the whim of the government.

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Shadow Minister, you say:
"When Labor pushed the peak tax rate to 66%, the skills fled, the tax revenue dropped, and the economy foundered."

It's hard for me to believe that the Australian economy vitally depends on an invisible posse of Paladins, with "Have Skills, Will Travel" cards that they can send ahead to whatever sunny clime has the most exciting job and the lowest tax rates of the day. Is it really this little-known band of quiet achievers that keeps our Australian unemployed stocked up with raspberry cordial?

And where did these Paladins flee to, with their skills? I'm curious. Once again, some text supporting your opinion will be gratefully received.

Never do any work for the well to do set, they are the worst people at paying their bills. Work for the little man anytime, they don,t order a job unless they have the money first.
People earning over 200,000 / yr and whining, not surprising at all.

They also had death duties, which I am suspect was supported by both sides of politics. This tax was something the low income did not have much to worry about, they had nothing to leave.

I wonder where Shadow Minister got his dream from, Harold Holt in the 1950's, found that the 66.6% tax on the top earners was a great way to stop obscene incomes, and there was a great improvement in the economy, and Harold Holt was the Liberal party Treasurer and later became our Prime Minister. I suggest that if you want to pick up information about the 1950's, or any other era, you might try asking someone who lived in that era, instead just grabbing someone’s raving. It really is a shame that he did not also place a no tax on an amount probably about $30,000 today. If you had lived during that era, you would have appreciated the lowering of prices of goods and services, the price of the water and electricity would have remained low, and the price of land and houses was protected, My father had a new two bedroom built and bought the land and house for the equivalent of $7,750 in 1964, in Clontarf, QlD and this was a normal situation with new houses ranging up to about $70,000. It wasn't until about 1986, that prices started to skyrocket, when the top tax was reduced down to about 55%, and prices kept going up with the tax reductions of the 50%, 47% and now 45%. The US is in a depression with their 35%tax. Look up “Tax history of the US”, also “Tax history of the UK”, and “Tax history of Australia” as well as this, look up”Taxes around the world”. If you remember that the US had a recession in the 1930's it might give you some idea why we have a bad “Global economy.