The Senate has approved the government's plan to cut income taxes by $144 billion over the next seven years.

Labor, the Greens, and independent Tim Storer came out on the short end of the 37-33 vote.  Labor's Senate leader Penny Wong said the highest income earners would get the mot benefits from the bill.  But Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull praised it as a "great day", saying the plan is "thoroughly fair".  He says when the plan is fully implemented in seven years, those earning more than $200,000 would pay a larger share of personal income tax than they do now.

These are the largest income tax cuts in Australian history, and will affect all taxpayers earning more than $19,000.  The first stage of the tax cuts is a rebate of up to $530 for the next financial year.  The plan means a tax cut of $7,225 a year for a person on $200,000 from 2024-25.  People earning $30,000 would get a tax cut of $200 a year.