A plebiscite is a “national vote to decide a question” (Parliamentary Education Office), in this case: "should Australia introduce a minimum 25% gas export tax?" 

The government would choose the exact wording of the question. 

A plebiscite measures the level of public support on a matter – and gives every Australian a chance to have their say. 

If most Australians voted "Yes" to a gas export tax, that would be an undeniable mandate for the Government.

An example of a plebiscite is the 2017 postal survey on marriage equality, in which 62% of Australians voted yes. Later that year, Parliament respected the majority by voting to allow same-sex marriage.

The Petroleum Resource Rent Tax (PRRT) is the current system used to try and tax gas exports, but it has utterly failed to deliver for Australia. Riddled with massive loopholes, it collects virtually no meaningful revenue from the multi-billion dollar gas industry.

The result is a national scandal: the government collects more money from things like beer excise and student HECS debt repayments than it does from all gas exports combined. It's a broken system that must be replaced.

Multinational gas corporations pay less tax on their billions in exports than many everyday Australians, including:

1. Nurses
2. Teachers
3. Students with HECS debt
4. Retail workers