Prebble Richard: Taxation (Annual Rates Venture Capital and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — In Committee 
Prebble Richard: Taxation (Annual Rates Venture Capital and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:621;Page:16589] 
Hon RICHARD PREBBLE (ACT) 
: 
 Let me put my question to the Minister of Revenue in terms that I think he should think very seriously about. The question that was asked by myself and then by Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith was whether these clauses actually—from the facts that we have seen in the newspapers and from the facts that have been given in this House—result in a change in the tax position of the Waipareira Trust and make a change to the tax position of one of his colleagues Mr John Tamihere. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: No. 
Hon RICHARD PREBBLE 
: The Minister says “No” and I just invite him to take another look. We have clause 105 “Late filing penalties”. That would appear to me to be applicable. We have clause 106 “Tax shortfalls”. In clause 108 we have section 141FB “Reduction of penalties for previous behaviour”. I think that might actually apply in this case. Then we go on to the clauses that I drew to his attention before: clause 113 “Employer or PAYE intermediaries failing to make tax deductions” and clause 114 “Unpaid tax deductions etc. to constitute charge on employer’s or PAYE intermediary’s property”. Then we get to clause 116 “Write-off of tax by Commissioner” which Dr Lockwood Smith thought was not retrospective but I think that when one reads it ones finds that it does not say that. What subclause (2) actually states is “Subsection (1) applies to tax that is written off on and after the date on which this Act receives the Royal assent.” So it could well be that the Commissioner of Inland Revenue is having to look at the facts we are seeing and deciding whether to write off taxes. 
Then we come clause 117 which has the interesting section 181D “Remission of late payment penalties and interest incurred due to obligation by Maori authority to pay further income tax”. Well I am not sure but maybe the Minister knows whether the Waipareira Trust is a Maori authority. I think it is. It would appear to me that that new section might well apply. Then we get to clause 118 “Remission for reasonable cause” which states: “Section 183A(1) is replaced by the following: (1) This section applies to—(a) a late filing penalty: (b) a non-electronic filing penalty: (c) a late payment penalty:”. It appears to me that they all might possibly apply. 
The point I am making to the Minister is this. He should understand the position he finds himself in. Here he is a Minister of Finance saying to the country that the Government is levying tax and that every citizen company trust and Maori authority has a duty to pay tax yet we all witnessed earlier today his party applauding a person who apparently now does concede that no tax was paid. The Minister said he believes Mr Tamihere. Did he believe Mr Tamihere earlier when he failed to tell the whole country that he had in fact received a golden handshake? Does not the Minister’s confidence at some point get shaken? Is not a more serious point that the confidence of this House and the country in the tax legislation that we are being asked to pass is questioned? When members ask whether it could be that the tax legislation we are passing today affects a member of Parliament who has had to resign as Minister and who has a peculiar tax position—I hope it is peculiar—in that he has not paid it and nor has his employer surely the Minister can see the impossibility of the position he is in. Of course we all know that he thinks that too but a thing called the foreshore and seabed legislation means that he is prepared to embrace anyone even a person who has failed to pay his tax.