McNair Craig: Taxation (Annual Rates Venture Capital and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — In Committee 
McNair Craig: Taxation (Annual Rates Venture Capital and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:621;Page:16779] 
CRAIG McNAIR (NZ First) 
: 
 I am sorry to interrupt the member while he was on such a roll. 
Simon Power 
: Yield to him then. 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: I am probably not sorry enough to do that. 
Opposition Members 
: We would rather listen to you. 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: I thank the Opposition members who say that they would rather listen to New Zealand First than to National members. At least it shows that New Zealand First is the voice of reason in the Chamber. That is where I will leave that matter. I would like to speak to clause 132 “Payment of tax”. I will not take the same approach as other speakers from the Opposition side of the Chamber; I will take a different approach. I want to ask a question of the Minister in the chair the Hon David Cunliffe. When people pay their tax—whether it is 39c in the dollar or 30c in the dollar or whatever it is— 
Simon Power 
: Is this about GST? 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: Whether it is GST income tax or whatever it is—[ 
Interruption 
] I am speaking about GST but I am also speaking about taxes in general— 
Hon Richard Prebble 
: I raise a point of order Mr Chairperson. Mr McNair is trying to make a speech. I am trying to listen to him but his difficulty is that he is being interjected on by people who are sitting right behind him. It is breaking up his speech. It does not enable him to make a coherent speech and therefore I cannot follow it. I really think the members who are sitting closest to Mr McNair should give him a fair go— he gave them a fair go—so that we can hear him properly. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Clem Simich) 
: I thank the member for raising that point on the correct procedure in the Chamber. There should be no interjections from members sitting directly behind the member who is speaking. 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: Thank you Mr Chairman and I thank the member as well. It is a lot easier to speak when one does not have people interjecting from behind. I am very well aware that Part 4 deals with amendments to the Goods and Services Tax Act but I am trying to make the point that whatever that payment of tax—whether it is tax paid by a business by an individual or by whomever it is and whether it is GST income tax or another form of tax—I wonder whether a portion of that tax could be put into people’s savings for the future. That is the point I would like the Minister to comment on if he wishes. I want to know from the Minister’s end where the Government is at on that issue. Has it given thought to whether some tax could be channelled into individual accounts? I would like the Minister to tell us where the Government is at and what its view is on that. 
One of the biggest tragedies we are coming up against is the lack of savings by younger couples and by anybody else for that matter—the negative state whereby people do not have any savings. In fact most New Zealanders are in huge huge debt. My question to the Minister is about where the Government is at in terms of being able to channel some of— 
Lianne Dalziel 
: There was a referendum on that but the people voted against it. 
CRAIG McNAIR 
: A former Minister interjects. That is right; a referendum on that was lost. But I still think it is fair to ask that question because the Government does have a superannuation fund. It has gone one step in the right direction we would say but it is a long long way off from where we would like to see it go. I would like the Minister to tell us where the Government is at in terms of channelling certain amounts of tax into the savings area. No matter where that money comes from—whether it is from GST or whether as is more likely it is from income tax—it should go towards people’s long-term savings for their future. I think that is a very reasonable question. 
The Government says the country is experiencing an economic boom. I do not think it is because if it was the Government would be taking tax payments and using them for something that would really benefit people and especially young people. Superannuation payouts are not likely to be available to them especially if they happen to retire under a National Party regime and have to look after themselves. I say that we need to make life more certain for our younger people and younger couples. Not only do they have huge amounts of debt but just about every New Zealander is in that situation if we go by the statistics. 
Progress reported. 
Report adopted.