Wine inquiry called

Western Australian Liberal Senator Dean Smith made the call following this week's release of the WET rebate discussion paper.

Senator Smith co-sponsored the motion to establish a Senate inquiry into the Australian grape and wine industry.

"The WET rebate was established in 2004 to support regional winemakers, particularly smaller niche producers in the domestic market, by allowing them to claim up to $500,000 a year in WET tax rebates " monies that went into employing local people and supporting regional communities," Senator Smith said.

"However, the reality is we now have massive multinational and foreign owned conglomerates receiving the same rebate, much to the detriment of the same small producers it was designed to assist," he said.

The closing date for submissions is Friday, September 11.

A copy of the WET rebate paper and details of how to make a submission is available under consultations and reviews at www.treasury.gov.au.