Parker David: Taxation (Urgent Measures and Annual Rates) Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
Parker David: Taxation (Urgent Measures and Annual Rates) Bill — In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:651;Page:225] 
Hon DAVID PARKER (Labour) 
: 
 Not so long ago when it was in Opposition the National Party came down to this House and repeatedly accused us of communism by stealth. That was about Working for Families. National opposed Working for Families. National members said it introduced too much complexity into the tax system that it made beneficiaries out of taxpayers who had to fill in a form in order to get some sort of entitlement. Now in Part 3 National introduces an independent earner tax credit which is probably the most difficult to administer wrinkle in the income tax system that any Government has been silly enough to put into the tax legislation for a long long time. It means more bureaucrats and more cost to taxpayers as they have to file tax returns to get their entitlements and less certainty for taxpayers who will not know what they are entitled to. This tax credit that National talks up ad infinitum has a very narrow ambit. It applies only to people who are earning between $24000 and $44000. The abatement rates are confusing for people. It will cause additional cost to the Inland Revenue Department and additional compliance costs to taxpayers—and this from the party that said it was all for tax simplification. 
Well if taxpayers want tax simplification that means they simply want to know whether they will go forwards or backwards as a consequence of legislation. Of course that is what Dr Cullen’s Supplementary Order Paper would give people. It would give them the certainty that this legislation would not reduce their incomes by increasing their taxes. It is a very simple Supplementary Order Paper. It says exactly that. The motion is “to ensure no taxpayer is disadvantaged by the new rate and threshold changes in this Bill.” This is exactly what the Government said not just in this House but during the election. No one would be worse off—those were National’s words. This is exactly what the Supplementary Order Paper would achieve. Bill English had the temerity to say that this should be vetoed. He would not even let it be put to the vote in this Chamber. He used the very rarely used veto powers that are able to be exercised if there is a substantial financial effect from the Supplementary Order Paper. 
National exercised the right of veto on this occasion because truth be known it now says it would cost $730 million over 4 years. In other words the effect of this tax bill is to take $730 million of tax off people. They are being taxed more not less to the tune of $730 million. If Working for Families was communism by stealth it appears that this bill is Robin Hood in reverse—taking from the poor and giving to the rich. That is the effect of this legislation. 
This legislation decreases the wealth of those who are most vulnerable and it is being voted upon by the Maori Party which is supporting the National Party in this legislation to raise taxes on the lowest income people in the country and that disproportionately affects Maoridom. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: The Maori Party the Maori Party. 
Hon DAVID PARKER 
: We have Tau Henare over there. Tau spent many years in a prior failed allegiance with the National Party which ended in tears for his members and which party spent lots of money on underpants but not much on the people he was meant to be representing. 
This legislation is an outrage. It increases compliance costs for taxpayers. There will be more money wasted within the Inland Revenue Department. It takes money from those who can least afford it.