Coddington Deborah: Taxation (Annual Rates Maori Organisations Taxpayer Compliance and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — In Committee 
Coddington Deborah: Taxation (Annual Rates Maori Organisations Taxpayer Compliance and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:607;Page:4244] 
DEBORAH CODDINGTON (ACT NZ) 
: 
 In talking to Part 4 of the Taxation (Annual Rates Maori Organisations Taxpayer Compliance and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill I want to refer in particular to the amendment to the Student Loan Scheme Act. I see that the amendment is to take in the other changes in this bill whereby there can be a PAYE intermediary. The Student Loan Scheme Act that was brought in was good legislation. This Government instead of just amending the Act to allow the inclusion of a PAYE intermediary has used its powers to change the purpose of that Act totally in terms of getting rid of the interest on student loans when students are still qualifying. That is putting a burden on all taxpayers in New Zealand. I say if it is not fair for students to pay the interest on their loans why is it fair for all the other taxpayers to pay that interest? Allowing students not to pay interest while they are studying is just deferring that payment further down the track although probably not for them but for their children and their grandchildren. 
This Government in getting rid of interest on student loans while people are studying was just trying to get the student vote. I have been visiting universities in the last couple of weeks during enrolment and I have been talking to students. Most of the students in this country who attend universities and tertiary institutions—that is Government institutions not private ones—come from middle to upper class families. These students are not stupid. They realise this is just income churning because the Government is taking money from the middle and upper class families in the form of income tax and corporate tax in the first place and then paying it out to them in terms of interest-free student loans while they are studying. The students are aware of that. They know it is just cynical vote-buying. They also know that capping tertiary fees is just a return to the Muldoonism of price controls and it is reducing the flexibility of universities to increase their income in terms of setting their own fees. I condemn this Government for its cynical ploy to try to buy the votes of students. It might well work with a few of them but there is no way that students are not aware of what is going on. 
The other thing I would like to talk about is clause 148 “Employer to make repayment deductions” or as provided by this bill the PAYE intermediary. Why should this burden be put on to employers? Why should the employer be the tax revenue gatherer for students who have taken out loans? Again it is just more income churning that this Government indulges in—taking from the corporate owners on the one hand and trying to give it back to the children of the corporate owners on the other. This just adds more compliance costs on to employers. 
Employers are the ones who are in the gun if they do not firstly gather it properly and secondly pass it on in the manner that is required by law. In fact there is no reason that employers should have to gather in this repayment of the student loans make the repayment deductions on behalf of the Government. Employers are not required to make repayment reductions for people who take out mortgages. When people take out a mortgage their employer does not take the loan reductions out of their pay packet. 
Hon John Tamihere 
: This is not about mortgages. 
DEBORAH CODDINGTON 
: That member is very lucky if he does not have a mortgage. Many of us are not in such a fortunate position as to be mortgage free. I suppose if people have been living off the taxpayer for most of their lives they would not be mortgage free.