Willis NicolaNICOLA WILLIS (National): I want to make a contribution on the title of this bill and I'm wary that members have heard these sorts of contributions before and sometimes they can be frivolous. This is not a frivolous matter because this bill is described as the Taxation (Income Tax Rate and Other Amendments) Bill and I think that title's misleading. I'd like to invite the Minister of Revenue the Hon David Parker to reconsider it. The reason I think it's misleading is that it describes other amendments" generically as if they're a matter of small administrative issues of no import—and of course that is absolutely not the case. The amendments in Part 2 of this bill which relate to administration of the tax system are hugely significant.First of all in clause 17GB we have a new power for the Commissioner of Inland Revenue to require information or production of documents for tax policy development. Now this requirement is a significant new requirement. It is a requirement that is of such significance that the Attorney-General has said "Well actually that's going to breach New Zealanders' rights to be free from unreasonable search and surveillance; it is going to breach New Zealanders' rights to freedom of expression and the right not to be compelled to say certain things or to provide certain information." So this is an extraordinary new power for the Commissioner of Inland Revenue to gather information for policy-creation purposes and I think that should be addressed in the title of the bill. Actually this isn't just a bill about increasing the top rate the "Income Tax Rate"; this is the "Income Tax Rate and New Information-gathering Powers Bill"—that is what it actually is and the Minister knows it.I think that is the bit that members on this side of the House have been particularly concerned by which is that the public thinks "Oh the Labour Government they've campaigned on a top tax rate; fair enough they're rushing it through under urgency." What the public didn't expect is that under urgency the Government would also rush through extensive new information-gathering powers that potentially impinge on the privacy of every New Zealander whose financial affairs can now be looked into by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue on the basis that it might help with potential policy development—this is an extensive power and it should be addressed in the title of this bill so as not to mislead. That's one power.The other two powers of course that are contained are around new requirements for annual returns for trusts. These are extensive. So actually this is not just an income tax bill; this is the income tax rate and new information-gathering powers and new information-disclosure requirements for trusts. The new information-disclosure requirements are not just for the future—they are extensive for the future in terms of the returns that must be filed—they're also retrospective. The commissioner in this bill is given the power to go back to 2013 to ask trusts to submit information in the prescribed form.So what I am highlighting to you Madam Chair is that we have here a title that I think is misleading to New Zealanders about what this bill actually does. I would invite the Minister as a gesture of good faith to demonstrate that he is prepared to be upfront and transparent about what he is doing in this House today to rename this bill so as to highlight these matters. I make a prediction: over the next couple of days tax lawyers around the country New Zealanders with trusts—and there are 240000 of them; so members opposite may laugh but this is going to have an extensive effect—anyone who has ever had a payment from a trust or who has been the beneficiary of a trust is going to find out that new filing requirements and new compliance is happening. Every single New Zealander not just those involved in trusts is going to wake up to the fact that under urgency in this House with no notice no submissions by the Privacy Commissioner no analysis by the Law Society no second look by the Attorney-General the Government has slipped through a bill to give the Commissioner of Inland Revenue the power to inquire into your personal financial affairs and all she or he has to do to justify that is to say "Well it will help the Minister create policy in the future." The only carve-out that that Minister has put forward is to say "Well it won't be able to be used to prosecute you but don't worry we're quite prepared to invade your privacy." So Minister I invite you to reconsider the title of the bill."