It's not often I find myself agreeing with Tasmania's Liberal Treasurer Eric Abetz, but debate on GST distribution places us on the side of an important principle.

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Our Federation is grounded on the promise that every Australian should be able to access public services of a comparable standard regardless of where they live. How this has been put into effect when it comes to GST is horizontal fiscal equalisation (HFE).

For decades, Australia's HFE architecture was arguably globally leading but, in 2018, former prime minister Scott Morrison's so-called GST reforms undermined this system.

Now the public debate risks further eroding it.

The debate on changes to the GST has been cast as a fight between Western Australia and the east coast states and territories to retain special treatment for mining royalties.

NSW and Queensland have advanced an argument that the GST should be allocated on a per capita basis, as that would significantly benefit these states with large populations.

These loud voices in the debate have lost sight of the bigger picture: that Australians should not be disadvantaged in their access to essential public services simply because of where they live.

This principle is not just a complex bureaucratic or accounting formula (although it is); it is the practical expression of fairness, equality of opportunity, and national cohesion. Ultimately, it is one of the defining characteristics of Australia.

To understand the true value of the principle of........

© Canberra Times