The Australian Council of Trade Union (ACTU) proposed a millionaire's tax on wealthy Aussies such as Gina Rinehart, Clive Palmer and Andrew Forrest. The proposed levy is similar to the Buffett Rule in the U.S.

In justifying the millionaire's tax, ACTU Assistant Secretary Tim Lyons pointed out that the country's income tax system is no equitable when it comes to taxing the super wealthy since most of the rich people's income from investments which result in billionaires paying a much lower proportional tax rate than the average Aussie family.

The U.S. mandates Americans who earn more than $1 million annually to pay at least 30 per cent of their income in taxes. The Buffett Rule actually was rejected by the U.S. Senate in April. It was proposed by Democrats to improve fairness of America's tax code and was named after billionaire investor Warren Buffett who spoke out publicly about the lower tax rate he pays compared to his staff due to tax loopholes.

The targets of the ACTU proposal are millionaires who get their main income from capital gains. Mr Lyons said the unions would vote on the millionaire's tax proposal in the coming weeks.

However, this early, the idea was rejected by Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese who said there is no need for a millionaire's tax because the government has raised the tax-free threshold to $18,000 from $6,000.

"The Minerals Rent Resource Tax and the tax loss 'carry back' are good policy, but further change are needed to the business tax system to support jobs and growth, while ensuring business pays its fair share," Mr Lyons said in a statement.

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