Brooking RachelRACHEL BROOKING (Labour): Thank you Mr Speaker for this opportunity to talk on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2022–23 Platform Economy and Remedial Matters) Bill (No 2). I want to touch on all three of those headings and I'll start with the annual rates. We've just heard from the previous speaker Nicola Willis that the bill does indeed address the annual rates and that is at clause 3. So it's a very simple provision saying that the income tax imposed by section BB of the Income Tax Act 2007 is to be paid at the basic rate specified in Schedule 1 of that Act. So that Act is not changing; there is no change to the rates.Then we've heard also from the previous speakers some talk about this platform economy. So what the bill does is it does require digital-platform operators to provide information about the providers in New Zealand to Inland Revenue and it does now mean that GST applies to accommodation and some transportation services.There are some important definitions in the bill and I'll go to one at clause 103 and that is the definition of electronic marketplace". That is "a marketplace that is operated by electronic means by which a person (the underlying supplier) makes one or more of the following supplies by electronic means for another person (the operator of the marketplace) to a third person (the recipient): (i) a supply of goods: (ii) a supply of remote services: (iii) a supply of listed services;".So as the previous speakers have said this is new to New Zealand tax Acts and what it will do is that the Goods and Services Tax Act—the amendments in this bill—will apply from 1 April 2024 so that there is an equitable application of GST on this electronic marketplace—that is that it is equitable to those taxi drivers to the hotels and motels that currently also pay GST. Now I'll touch on some other matters that are also covered in the bill. We heard from the Minister of Revenue about fringe benefit tax and exemptions to that. He referred to the car-parking exemption. In my previous life I was a beneficiary of this law that exempts car parks. I had a very good centrally located car park in the fine city of Dunedin and of course now when I'm in Wellington there's no need for a car park. But as the Minister said this is going to be extended. This exemption to fringe benefit tax has been extended to public transport and that we can find at clause 27—I'm going to need some tags—so that certain public transport if it's travel between home and work so that can be for a bus service a rail vehicle a ferry a cable car or if it's partly funded by a Total Mobility scheme administered by Waka Kotahi—this is what we're talking about that will be exempted. And what was I think a very exciting development in the committee of the whole House stage of this bill was a SOP—Supplementary Order Paper—from the Government but very much taking the lead from Julie Anne Genter's work and that is to include certain self-powered and low-powered vehicles and vehicle-share services to be also exempt from this fringe benefit tax.We heard from the Minister just then that there are going to be regulations so if we go back to clause 27—which inserts new section CX19(d)—it names the vehicles that have been talked about that will have this exemption applied and that is a bicycle an electric bicycle a scooter an electric scooter or any other vehicle declared under section 168(a) of the Land Transport Act to be a mobility device or not a motor vehicle.As the Minister said he noted that it might be that there is a gold-plated scooter somewhere in the world and perhaps we don't want the fringe benefit tax exemption to apply to that. Well if that does appear to be a real issue then regulations can be made and these can specify the maximum allowable cost of the vehicle and requirements for any vehicles.I note of course that a number of members of this House cycle around the great cities of Dunedin and Wellington on cargo bikes and that they can cost a reasonable amount of money but so too can centrally located car parks. So those regulations are there that ability to meet the regulations is there should they be needed. Then of course the Minister also mentioned the other significant change that came through in the committee of the whole House stage which was exempting income because of the North Island flooding events. There's quite a lot in the bill about definitions of those flooding events. Really the purpose here is that where an employee has made a payment for relief that's not to be subject to fringe benefit tax. This I believe has been derived from other emergency legislation in the past where things have happened—earthquakes for instance in Canterbury—where people need to buy some new things very quickly and often that will be funded by good employers. Then also another thing that I think is interesting and I am very pleased to see is this build-to-rent exemption from interest limitation rules. So for that to apply there has to be a 10-year tenancy and it does apply to bigger developments as well and there is a definition of "build-to-rent" in clause 98(3). So I think this is a good bill. I'm pleased that the changes were made to it at the committee stage and I commend it to the House."