Williams Andrew: Taxation (International Investment and Remedial Matters) Bill — In Committee 
Williams Andrew: Taxation (International Investment and Remedial Matters) Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:677;Page:455] 
ANDREW WILLIAMS (NZ First) 
: 
 I rise to take a call on behalf of New Zealand First in relation to the Taxation (International Investment and Remedial Matters) Bill. New Zealand First does support this bill but as we have said in this House we have certain reservations and there are some caveats.  
We heard from the Minister of Revenue that this is intended to tidy up some of the tax areas internationally to put New Zealand on a level footing with other countries and for there to be a fairer equitable system for our companies and corporates to operate both onshore and offshore in a globally competitive market. However we do have reservations and it has been seen in the past that often where there are such exemptions or allowances we the New Zealand taxpayer and we the New Zealand Government can sometimes be taken for a ride. We have previous instances where it has been convenient for companies to relocate to other tax jurisdictions to avoid paying their full dues and their full taxes here in New Zealand and New Zealand First certainly would not want to see this occurring as a result of this Taxation (International Investment and Remedial Matters) Bill.  
We can all recall or those who are old enough can recall in the 1990s what happened through the wine-box saga. It was our party New Zealand First as you will all recall—those of you who are old enough; some in the back rows of the Government perhaps are not old enough to remember it—and it was the Rt Hon Winston Peters who exposed these very loopholes in this Parliament and the New Zealand companies who were trying to evade paying their full dues to the New Zealand Treasury. We cannot go back to those days. We cannot go back to the days when companies hid behind the loopholes and the convenient bills before this Parliament and the Acts in this Parliament to secure a preferential situation for themselves in some other tax jurisdiction.  
Also as we have seen in recent weeks there are now more and more companies of course that operate in cyberspace that operate on the internet that operate in virtual reality—and I am not talking about the Government here; I am talking about real companies that are operating. In this respect we also have a situation in which of course where the actual company is located these days is often very questionable. Although it may be operating on a particular website on a particular internet site or in some particular cyberspace position it may not actually physically be within our jurisdiction but it may be using our jurisdiction for its own convenience.  
However New Zealand First is in favour of reformation of our taxation system. We have always said that the long-term objective must be to reduce taxation of New Zealanders. We would like to see all tax laws simplified. If you will bear with me Mr Chairman—you said that you did not wish to stray into these other areas but at the same time we must be fair to all taxpayers and although this bill is aimed at supporting our companies our exporters and our international trading organisations to be competitive and supporting investors investing in this country and overseas we must also ensure that we are being fair to the overall tax system. We must ensure that this is not undermining our tax system and is not undermining our Government’s ability to pay for the health welfare education and all the social security systems that are required by the people of New Zealand. So New Zealand First does support this but the caveats are that it must be fair and it must be a system where corporates are not using it as a convenience to avoid tax.  
I also note that in the commentary on the bill there is a reference to exemptions for new residents’ superannuation schemes and a recommendation from the Finance and Expenditure Committee in relation to that. This is another area that I raised in the House last week. This should not in future just be applying in terms of the corporates of New Zealand; in the future we need to also be mindful of taxes being paid by particularly many of our immigrants. We also have to be mindful of those who have immigrated to this country and perhaps have paid into pension schemes in other countries—particularly I am aware the UK the Netherlands and other countries. They have been long-term contributors to pension schemes and when they come to New Zealand there are difficulties with reciprocal arrangements under our pension schemes in New Zealand. They likewise are being treated unfairly and New Zealand First certainly will be following through on this. Perhaps we could add it to our SuperGold card which is hugely successful as the Government will be aware. Perhaps that could be another situation to be added to the SuperGold card whereby those pensioners who have paid their dues and have paid their rightful taxes in other tax jurisdictions around the world would have access to the same rights remedies and pensions through the New Zealand system and not be penalised and likewise in the Pacific so that they can perhaps take advantage of opportunities to be with their friends families and whanau and not be penalised as a result.  
Although we support this we do raise some flags of concern; we do say that we will be monitoring it. New Zealand First will be a party that will continue to look at situations like that. We do not want a repeat of the wine-box situation in the 1990s. We do not want New Zealand companies to see this as another way of the New Zealand Government or the National Government helping its mates to get a better deal somewhere else. We do not want to see its mates in some corporates getting a handout or a leg-up from this. National has already done very well by its mates with tax reductions for the select few. We do not want to see this as another situation where National Party mates are benefiting and redirecting their business investments to other jurisdictions where they might be able to save on tax. At the end of the day we do have to make sure that the coffers are full enough to pay for our health to pay for our welfare and to pay for our education. We cannot allow this to undermine it. Thank you.