Business to pay price from Greens-Labor CGT deal

Media Release: 23 June 2026

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) has expressed its profound disappointment at Labor and the Greens for striking a deal to pass the damaging changes to capital gains tax (CGT) in the Senate.

ACCI Chief Executive Officer Andrew McKellar says the resulting tax increase will cause damage to business investment, productivity and economic growth.

"The government still hasn’t explained why it is targeting business investment with their CGT changes,” Mr McKellar said.

“Last week’s concessions on the changes were an attempt by government to ameliorate some of the damage to the business community, but significant unresolved issues remain.”

Mr McKellar said increasing tax on investment in Australian businesses would lead to less investment in businesses, with subsequent negative impacts on economic growth, innovation and jobs.

“There is a need to significantly strengthen its initial proposals for arrangements to cover so-called ‘innovative start-ups’ and to clarify the definition of a small business.

“We urge the government to redouble its efforts to work through the negative impacts of the proposed changes and to address those for a broader range of businesses and sectors,” said Mr McKellar.