Senator Nampijinpa Price talks to Paul Murray, Sky News

22 June 2026

Subjects: Capital Gains Tax Changes; Small Business; Cost of Living; Northern Territory Tourism.

E&OE……………

PAUL MURRAY:

No sooks, no lefties, cherry on top, none other than the great Jacinta Nampijinpa Price who joins us right now. Lovely to see you, mate. Good to see you are kicking arse in the Senate as always and you are going hot and hard and rightly so about these tax changes that the Greens are going to help wave in and become law. Of course you're also the Shadow Small Business Minister, I'll get to a visit you had with them today, but what was the point you were making in the Senate today? 

SENATOR JACINTA NAMPIJINPA PRICE:

Oh, that it's an absolute kick in the guts for small business, not just small businesses, I mean, it's families across this country because predominantly that's who runs small businesses, and the fact that the Greens are going to do a dirty deal with the Labor government means they simply just don't care. This government, the Greens, they just simply do not care for small businesses who support our country. And I've visited many small businesses, those that obviously provide sponsorship for Little League teams and things like that for their communities that offer apprenticeships. Often, when a young person goes into their first job, it's with a small business. When they obtain an apprenticeship, it's with a small business. And what this government is doing is kicking these small businesses in the guts. They're making sure that they dampen aspiration. It's got nothing to do with encouraging aspiration in this country. It's ensuring that they're dampening aspiration. These tax changes, these carve-outs, this legislation doesn't need a tweak. It doesn't need a carve-out. It needs to be taken to with an axe. I said it before, I'll say it again. It's poop rolled in glitter, and Aussies are seeing right through it. 

PAUL MURRAY:

Yeah, I mean, even again, opinion polls released as late as tonight show that as unpopular as this all was at budget time, it's even worse now for them. The support numbers have gone down, the disapproval numbers have gone up, which is why they want to get to this dirty deal as fast as possible. Because the thinking of this government is, get the deal done, get it through and everyone forgets. But isn't the reality that once it becomes law we'll sit, watch and wait until the 1st of July next year and then the pain kicks in. Nothing goes away when this passes the parliament. 

SENATOR JACINTA NAMPIJINPA PRICE:

That's precisely right. I haven't spoken to a single small business that supports it in any way, shape or form. But what I have heard them say is because of the uncertainty, the environment of uncertainty that this government has created and will continue to create, these businesses will take their business offshore. They will go to places like Singapore or the Middle East. I mean, I've heard of people who've already taken those steps and they're gone. They're leaving our country. And what does that say for, you know, the fact that we need opportunities here? We need people to be skilled. Who's going to build our homes when, you know, it's just too difficult for builders to take on apprentices, to invest in their business when this government is ensuring that there is absolute uncertainty and things are going to get even bloody tougher? It's almost criminal, Paul. It's almost criminal. 

PAUL MURRAY:

I'm with you. You went to a small business today, Tracks Adventure Gear. I think they're in the ACT. They look like they were involved in tricking up four-wheel drives and camping gear and all the rest of it. What did you learn or what did they tell you about the experience? Because clearly there's a price sometimes businesses pay when they put their head above the parapet, but they've decided, no bugger this, we're willing to stand with people like yourself, like Angus Taylor, who want to defeat these ideas. 

SENATOR JACINTA NAMPIJINPA PRICE:

Totally. And, look, this kind of business is the kind of business that gets me excited, being a Territorian girl, being a girl who's practically born in the back of a Hilux. I have a Hilux to this day and a Landcruiser. These are the sorts of vehicles that Australians love because for recreational purposes, there’s nothing better we like to do than get out and camp and go four-wheel driving. Then there are those who use these vehicles for their farm work. And this particular business is absolutely talking about the fact that the cost of everything has gone up, the cost of fuel has gone up, they fork out $25,000 a year in insurance and they have experienced an increase in crime, in break-ins, in firebombings, in ram raids of their business. And now they're being told they could possibly risk losing insurance altogether because of this. So there are so many challenges that they're faced with, not just the cost of everything, but the fact that because of the cost of living crisis, it has increased criminal behaviour and activity. So, businesses like this are doing it tough. I mean, there's so much that we covered. The fact that, you know, for those that purchase vehicles like the vehicles that they do up, and if they want to get their dealer to put their extras onto those vehicles, that pushes up the value of their cars, which are family cars, which then puts them into the luxury vehicle bracket, which means that ultimately they have to pay a luxury vehicle tax on their car. So it's just crazy.

PAUL MURRAY:

Yeah. I mean, look, the luxury car tax stuff, it does my head in, right, is that obviously this is this leftover time from a different time in Australian manufacturing when we were trying to protect that Australian industry. Again, I'm not asking you to make a policy on the run, but this seems to be one of those so over the top things that get put in place. And again, as you say, it's not the raw value of the car. It's the extras. You know, oh, just the roof racks will be the difference between up or down, the height and the ride up and down, the size of the tyres up and down in terms of these extra taxes. Hey, one last one before we're done. We're going to Darwin this weekend for Our Town. You know how much I love the Territory, love being able to either visit the good people of Alice like your good self or obviously the big smoke way up north. This time of year is such a great time, and I want people to think about this with their July school holidays, wherever they are in the country, come to the Northern Territory. It is the time of the year, because the weather — it ain't stinkin' hot — it's lovely and warm, right? 

SENATOR JACINTA NAMPIJINPA PRICE:

It's beautiful and you've got the markets and you’ve got the laksa. We've got the best laksa in the country in Darwin. You've got Litchfield National Park, which has the beautiful waterfalls, you know, a range of waterfalls that you can go and swim at. The water is — it's my favourite place to go swimming. I'm sorry. Yeah, there's so much to do up in the top end, but so many great markets, such great food, such great people. You know, us Territorians, we love to see more people come and see our part of the world. 

PAUL MURRAY:

Looking forward to it. We're doing it on the weekend and celebrating it on Sunday. Thank you so much, Senator. Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, again, top of the tree. How good is she?

[ENDS]