Economy

Posts on the economy, work, business, income, and labour

Categories under Economy

Support Tax Fairness Reform

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, April 9th, 2019 - 16 comments

The Tax Justice Network has started a campaign to gain support for taxing capital as income to support and improve our public services. If you would like to support the campaign, you can sign the petition here or donate here. All funds donated will go to the campaign advertising.

Astroturf organisation accuses Tax Justice Aotearoa of being an astroturf organisation

Written By: - Date published: 12:13 pm, April 8th, 2019 - 18 comments

The Taxpayer’s Union (not a real union) has hit peak irony by accusing another organisation of being an astroturf organisation.

Tax Justice Aotearoa starts campaign in support of CGT

Written By: - Date published: 7:46 am, April 8th, 2019 - 168 comments

Tax Justice Aotearoa has started a public campaign in support of a capital gains tax.

This Is Who We Really Are

Written By: - Date published: 1:05 pm, April 5th, 2019 - 146 comments

As we prepare for ANZAC Day, the Kapiti RSA has been viciously attacked for wanting to show solidarity with NZ’s Muslim community. Maggie writes about what that means and suggests who we really are.

New Child Poverty statistics will provide a sound baseline for reduction targets

Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, April 4th, 2019 - 6 comments

Child Poverty Action Goup has provided comments about new child poverty measurements.

Life and Death in Aotearoa – Debating Euthanasia

Written By: - Date published: 9:48 am, April 3rd, 2019 - 210 comments

David Seymour’s Private Member’s Bill on euthanasia is back for debate in Parliament. Maggie looks at one of the great social issues of our time.

The benefits of a Labour led Government

Written By: - Date published: 12:18 pm, April 1st, 2019 - 67 comments

Today marks the day that the largest ever increase in the minimum wage will occur.

Rooting Out Racism

Written By: - Date published: 12:12 pm, March 30th, 2019 - 296 comments

TS regular Maggie with an excellent analysis of the challenges facing men in a society in transition and what that means for the fight against racism.

Xi-ing Jacinda

Written By: - Date published: 8:32 pm, March 29th, 2019 - 73 comments

Jacinda Ardern will get a very warm welcome in Beijing based on immense respect for her and for New Zealand.  Xi Jin-Ping has just returned from a very successful visit to Europe, joining Italy to the Belt and Road initiative and buying 300 jets from Airbus. Pepe Escobar outlines the implications for Eurasia. Much food for thought.

The Repentant Right

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, March 27th, 2019 - 121 comments

The former leader of various NZ neo Nazi groups reckons the kiwi far right are being driven underground. TRP argues they will instead look for another home.

We need more than capital gains tax to address inequality

Written By: - Date published: 2:41 pm, March 25th, 2019 - 46 comments

The most important comment in the Tax Working Group’s Final Report is that even the reasonably comprehensive capital gains tax proposed is likely to have only a minor impact on addressing inequality — what is needed is a more progressive income tax system that lifts the top marginal tax rate 

Power pricing not just a rip-off, it’s immoral

Written By: - Date published: 3:23 pm, March 22nd, 2019 - 43 comments

Submissions for the final report on the Electricity Price Review closed today at noon. My recent experience with Genesis Energy reveals pricing by power company majors not only rips customers off, but is immoral. The initial report of the EPR is unlikely to address this issue.

Westland Dairy sale

Written By: - Date published: 12:08 pm, March 20th, 2019 - 30 comments

Westland Dairy has done a deal to sell out to Yili industrial Group of Mongolia. This company is the third largest dairy company in New Zealand.

‘Heroes’

Written By: - Date published: 4:03 pm, March 17th, 2019 - 91 comments

A few musings on heroism.

More political interference on Huawei

Written By: - Date published: 4:00 pm, March 13th, 2019 - 24 comments

Here’s another one for the select committee reviewing foreign interference. Visitor from Britain Charlie Parton of the Royal United Services Institute was on Morning Report this morning telling us to avoid Huawei because they are Chinese and different from us. At least he does us a favour by making it clear the matter is political not technical.

Landlord advocates threatening rent increases if Labour wins next election

Written By: - Date published: 8:05 am, March 11th, 2019 - 288 comments

A landlord has advocated that all landlords should threaten to increase tenant’s rentals if Labour wins the next election.

No More Investing In Oil Exploration

Written By: - Date published: 10:47 am, March 10th, 2019 - 21 comments

Norway’s government has announced it is selling out of oil exploration although it will continue to invest in energy companies that have refineries and are engaged in distribution and retail sales of oil and gas products.

Chelsea Manning Jailed

Written By: - Date published: 9:58 am, March 9th, 2019 - 42 comments

Whistleblower Chelsea Manning has allowed herself to be jailed for contempt of court. She says it’s a matter of principle. But what principle?

Bad: The Michael Jackson Hysteria

Written By: - Date published: 9:32 pm, March 7th, 2019 - 187 comments

Radio stations around the world are banning the music of Michael Jackson. What have his records done wrong?

The tax debate – Dogwhistle time

Written By: - Date published: 8:07 am, March 7th, 2019 - 111 comments

National has resorted to race baiting in its attempt to denigrate the Tax Working Group’s proposed capital gains tax.

Jihadi Justice

Written By: - Date published: 1:31 pm, March 6th, 2019 - 87 comments

Should we let the ‘Bumbling Jihadi’ Mark Taylor back into NZ? What message do we send the world if we don’t?

National’s Tax review strategy

Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, March 5th, 2019 - 107 comments

The Government is not due to announce its response to the Tax Working Group’s recommendations for a few more weeks. It appears that National using outrageous assumptions will take the opportunity to raise horror stories in the media on how bad the tax could be.

MAFS National Style*

Written By: - Date published: 10:32 am, March 3rd, 2019 - 61 comments

National is grooming the voters for another dirty ACT.

National’s Maggie Barry problem

Written By: - Date published: 9:20 am, March 3rd, 2019 - 25 comments

The Herald has reported that there has been concerns at Maggie Barry’s behaviour towards staff has been raised on three separate occasions. And Parliamentary Services is at the suggestion of the Auditor General investigating claims of misuse of Parliamentary Services resources.

Lies damn lies and tax analysis

Written By: - Date published: 1:21 pm, March 2nd, 2019 - 67 comments

National’s claim that a capital gains tax would reduce the value of an average worker’s Kiwisaver account by $64,000 over a 45 year working life seems to be as valid as Steven Joyce’s claim there was an $11.5 billion dollar hole in Labour’s draft budget.

CGT as a Charitable Donation

Written By: - Date published: 12:44 pm, March 2nd, 2019 - 31 comments

Treat CGT like a semi-voluntary donation and give people a say in how it is spent.

The Gun Club 2

Written By: - Date published: 10:15 am, March 2nd, 2019 - 84 comments

Christchurch police have been ordered to carry guns until a wanted man is arrested. Is this a dry run for the permanent arming of our cops?

Brownlee forced to withdraw ad with fake data

Written By: - Date published: 8:15 am, February 28th, 2019 - 32 comments

Gerry Brownlee has been obliged to withdraw a Facebook ad about tax bracket creep after it was discovered he had used grossly overinflated figures.

Why New Zealand needs a capital gains tax

Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, February 27th, 2019 - 249 comments

Expert comment suggests that a capital gains tax will redress inequality, improve the economy and make housing more affordable.

‘Taxpayers union’ – too ‘stupid’ to understand tax?

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, February 26th, 2019 - 59 comments

There is a classic piece of waffle in the NZ Herald about when capital gains tax will apply to the family home. But the conditions when this applies are extremely simple and obvious. However professed experts on taxation like the so-called ‘taxpayers union’ can’t understand them. Probably because they are paid not to.

Spare a thought for our poor impoverished landlords

Written By: - Date published: 8:17 am, February 25th, 2019 - 225 comments

Spare a thought for poor landlords who are aghast at the thought that they should have to share capital gains on properties they have purchased with no intent of making a capital gain.