Tax working group has its work cut out

Given that the terms of reference for the tax working group include issues of fairness and integrity, I hope that the work of the numerous tax reviews since the Ross Committee in 1967 will be reviewed and consideration given to recommendations that are as valid today, in particular the inequity of large-scale commercial trading undertaken by charities where that activity is unrelated to a charity’s charitable purposes.

Another anomaly that the National government had no interest in is the income tax exemption claimed by some veterinary practices thatg claim they are vet clubs, a concept introduced in post-WWII New Zealand which even the OECD has said is outdated.

There are numerous other exemption categories in the Income Tax Act 2007 which I hope the group will also review to bring our income tax legislation into the 21st century.

Concerning chairman choice

Dr Michael Cullen’s maiden speech to Parliament on April 23, 1982, finished up as follows: ‘‘I affirm my loyalty to the Queen, and her heirs and successors, whoever they may be.’’

Mr East: ‘‘And to your old school, Christ’s College.’’

Dr Cullen: ‘‘And to my old school, Christ’s College. I am proud of the fact that my secondary education was not paid for by the taxpayers of New Zealand but by the farmers of Canterbury and Hawke’s Bay. I ripped them off for five years then, and I shall get stuck into them again in the next few years, so the honourable member should not bring that subject up too often.’’

And this is the man whom the Labour-led Government has chosen to chair their tax working group.

Be very afraid!

Cullen a good fit

Some breathtaking hypocrisy from Steven Joyce: If it’s good enough for the National Party to appoint an avowed anti-euthanasia Catholic MP to lead the health select committee appointed to look at the issues around voluntary euthanasia, it should be perfectly fine for former Labour finance minister to chair the current government’s tax working group.