Australia Decides Not to Implement Bank Deposit Tax

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Treasurer Joe Hockey have announced that a proposed bank deposit tax will not be implemented. The controversial tax was initially proposed in 2013 and would have been levied at a rate of 0.05%. Observers had expected the tax to be implemented, as its projected revenue of AUD 1.5 billion was included in the most recent Budget issued in May 2015. However, it was ultimately decided that the negative impacts of its implementation would be too great.