Sepuloni Carmel: Taxation (Budget Measures) Bill — In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Sepuloni Carmel: Taxation (Budget Measures) Bill — In Committee 
[Sitting date: 20 May 2010. Volume:663;Page:11130. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
CARMEL SEPULONI (Labour) 
: 
 I go back to something that the Hon Lianne Dalziel brought up last night. A taxi driver had pointed out something to her. It was the fact that John Key with regard to this Budget was basically saying to New Zealanders: “Let them eat cake. They can’t afford bread but let them eat cake.” We have heard from Mr Key that he does not value people who are on low incomes. He does not value those who earn the least amount of money even though they are hard-working New Zealanders. We have heard him say in the House that those people do not contribute because they do not pay tax. Because they get Working for Families they are not contributing members of our society. He does not value them. Whom does he value? He values those who are just like him those who are earning high incomes in this country. 
Carol Beaumont 
: Money traders. 
CARMEL SEPULONI 
: Money traders. When we look at what these tax cuts mean for New Zealand we see that we new backbench MPs will get an extra $120 a fortnight. Quite frankly when I watched TV last night and saw the struggling family on  
Tagata Pasifika 
 trying to raise four kids and feed them on $80 a week—to feed a family of six on $80 a week—I felt embarrassed by the fact that our New Zealand Government has just given us a tax cut of $120 a fortnight. 
David Bennett 
: Well give him your money then. Give him your money. Let’s see you give your money away eh? Give your money to them. 
CARMEL SEPULONI 
: Mr David Bennett over there is screaming out because he thinks he deserves an extra $120 a fortnight. His attitude to people who feed a family of six on $80 a week is who cares about them; it is all about him and making sure that he has an extra $120 a fortnight in his pocket. We on this side of the House are about fairness and we do not agree with what this Government has done with regard to tax. We do not agree with the fact that the only people who will profit from those tax cuts are the people on high incomes. We have had to sit here and listen to Mr Key and the others on that side of the House say that it is all about rebalancing the economy. Well actually there is no balance in these tax cuts because they are all in favour of the people who already have money and all they do is make a bigger divide between people in New Zealand—between the haves and the have-nots. 
Paul Quinn 
: Get past the rhetoric. 
CARMEL SEPULONI 
: There goes Mr Quinn again shooting off and yelling out very loudly. He does not care about poor people. He does not care about the people who are struggling to feed their family of six on $80 a week. Mr Quinn does not care. He just wants to make sure that his wallet is better lined. 
We have been told by Mr Key—and it has been repeated in the media over and over again—that we should not be envious of those who receive high tax cuts from this Budget. Quite frankly from all of the things that I have seen in the papers and online most New Zealanders think that is quite offensive. One person said: “John Key the Overlord says: ‘Don’t be jealous you poor peasants.’ ” That is basically the impression that the Government is giving. It still relies on the trickle-down effect. National members still think that if they give all the money to the rich people it will somehow trickle down. But what will it mean? It will not necessarily mean the creation of new jobs. All it will mean is that a millionaire who is already getting a lot of money can go on an even more expensive holiday than he or she would have done otherwise. It will not mean that the people he or she employs will get better wages—it will not mean that at all. All it will mean is that the millionaire will be able to afford to buy another property. 
So quite frankly this country has a right to be angry at the Government. New Zealanders will realise as the detail comes out how this Budget will hurt their families and how it will hurt our country. In the meantime the Government will have probably a 2 to 3-day honeymoon period over this Budget. But it will not last because alongside the tax cuts New Zealanders will realise that the cuts to early childhood education will affect them they will realise that the increase in GST will affect them they will realise that the increase in inflation will affect them and very quickly they will realise that actually these tax cuts mean nothing and they will get nothing extra in their pockets—and in fact they will be paying more.