Smith Lockwood: Taxation (Annual Rates Maori Organisations Taxpayer Compliance and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Smith Lockwood: Taxation (Annual Rates Maori Organisations Taxpayer Compliance and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:606;Page:4094] 
Dr the Hon LOCKWOOD SMITH (NZ National—Rodney) 
: 
 This is quite a complex commencement clause. The Minister could assist the Committee a bit in its consideration of some areas of this clause by explaining why there are so many different commencement dates. Let us start with clause 2(1) which states: “This Act comes into force on the date on which it receives the Royal assent except as provided in this section.” That is rather different from usual because bills normally come into effect on the day after the date on which they receive the royal assent. Maybe the Minister can explain why this particular bill does not come into effect the day after the date on which it receives the royal assent. I am not sure why that would be. 
I will now go on to clause 2(1B). Interestingly that contains a reference to the special provision the Government has put in for the superyachts that I guess came to New Zealand for the America’s Cup. They would have come to New Zealand at about the middle of last year so I suppose it makes sense that the commencement date for that provision is 28 May last year. It is a retrospective provision which confers a benefit on those superyachts and luxury pleasure craft. I guess that is a priority for this Labour Government. We have serious child poverty in New Zealand but this Labour Government wants to enact retrospective legislation that excuses from taxation the superyachts and pleasure craft that came here for the America’s Cup. I guess that is why that provision has a retrospective commencement date. That is a demonstration of Labour’s priorities: New Zealand has children living in poverty but the Government is giving tax away in respect of the superyachts. That would appear to be why that provision has a commencement date of 28 May 2002. 
If we then go on to clause 2(2) we see that clause 45 is to come into force not last year but on 15 January 2004. It does not come into effect until almost a whole year from now. One has to explore what clause 45 is all about. Clause 45 does confer benefit. It establishes the new PAYE intermediaries system and that will be helpful to some taxpayers. One fully accepts that but one has to ask the Minister in the chair about its commencement date and it would be helpful if he could answer the question. It would be helpful if the Minister tried to address these commencement dates seriously and actually listened to us instead of talking to the Chair. I am trying to find out why 15 January 2004 is the commencement date for the new PAYE intermediaries. It would seem to me that the start of a financial year would make more sense than that. One could accept that maybe that provision should not come into effect immediately because a whole new system has to be set up. But why is the commencement date for that 15 January 2004? That is not the start of a tax year so it would seem to me that that would add compliance costs. Maybe the Minister could explain the reason for that date. Maybe it has been chosen because 15 January may be the start of the work year. If that is the argument in favour of that date maybe it will add complexity because it does not have anything to do with any tax year. But maybe that is the reason for it. 
I am interested in the clauses that commence on 1 April 2003 because that is just 3 weeks away. We go into an adjournment next week and that does not leave this Parliament much time to pass this bill. If those clauses are to come into effect on 1 April 2003 there is not a lot of time to get this legislation through Parliament. Interestingly those clauses that are to come into effect on 1 April 2003 will enable the Government to take all the tax where a taxpayer has a dispute with the Inland Revenue Department. At the moment a taxpayer can hang on to 50 percent of the tax where there is a dispute but clauses 101 to 103 which come into effect on 1 April this year will enable the Inland Revenue Department to take all the tax that is in dispute. Of course the amount of interest paid on it is way below commercial rates. It is interesting that the Government is being pretty tough on taxpayers by having that provision start on 1 April 2003 although I do accept that that is the start of the new financial year. It means that this Government will have to get off its butt and get this legislation through Parliament because 1 April 2003 is not far away. 
Then there are a number of other clauses that come into force on 1 July 2003. Again it would be helpful if the Minister could advise us why that date has been chosen. I do accept that for some businesses 30 June is the end of the financial year. But we could do with an explanation as to why the Minister has chosen 15 January for the commencement of some provisions and also 1 April—which is the start of the normal financial year—and 1 July for other provisions.