McNair Craig: Taxation (Annual Rates GST Trans-Tasman Imputation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
McNair Craig: Taxation (Annual Rates GST Trans-Tasman Imputation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
[Volume:613;Page:10088] 
CRAIG McNAIR (NZ First) 
: 
 I take pleasure in speaking on behalf of New Zealand First on the title of this bill which is a bit of a mouthful. In speaking to the title clause I want to briefly come up with some different names that could be used in relation to this bill. 
We could call this bill the “Predominantly Sensible Taxation (Annual Rates GST Trans-Tasman Imputation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill”. I have two reasons for suggesting that as a new name. The first reason is that this bill changes the imputation laws to address the problem of triangular taxation which involves the double-taxation of certain trans-Tasman investments and it allows Australian companies to allocate imputation credits for New Zealand tax paid to their shareholders in proportion to their ownership of the company. I note that that arrangement is reciprocal and requires both countries to pass the relevant legislation. The necessary legislation was introduced in Australia—to recap a little on why we are doing this—on 29 May as the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill (No 6). The bill also seeks to mitigate a problem that imputation credits cannot pass through companies resident in neither Australia nor New Zealand by introducing a new form of grouping for imputation purposes that Australian companies may also join. 
Secondly I suggest “Predominantly Sensible” be added to the beginning of the title “Taxation (Annual Rates GST Trans-Tasman Imputation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill” because of the annual income tax rates. This legislation confirms the annual income tax rates for the 2003-04 year. In light of that issue we could even call this bill the “Taxation (Misuse of Taxpayers’ Money GST Trans-Tasman Imputation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill”. New Zealand First believes that this Government should reprioritise its social spending so as to place greater focus on the real needs of New Zealanders. It should do that rather than spend its income from taxpayers on its politically correct agenda which includes as I mentioned earlier on in the second reading prostitution reform and abolishing the Privy Council. Those are both examples of that agenda. 
 Another title that we could use which relates to the annual taxation part of the bill—and as I said in the second reading New Zealand First supports all the other parts of this bill—could be the “Taxation (Lack of Vision for Taxes GST Trans-Tasman Imputation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill”. I say that because I feel very strongly that there is a lack of vision on the Government’s behalf in the way it addresses taxation. In the run-up to the general election in 2002 we in New Zealand First talked about how we could make and produce a stronger economy by addressing the taxation area—not so much by addressing the annual income tax rates but by addressing taxation incentives for exporters for research and development and so on to really produce a strong economy.