*Key says that we will get to vote on his Kiwisaver cuts in the election. Truth is, they passed the law last week and the tax credits are cut from July 1.
The Herald has a good piece on this today. Key says that the tax credits won’t be paid until July 2012 but they are calculated on our contributions from this July. Key is simply being a smart arse trying to say the cut doesn’t happen until the payment date.
Don’t forget the sneaky tax grab on your employer contribution too. Was tax-free. Now up to 33% will be clawed back by the government. Hartevelt notes: “the tax is so powerful that as income levels rise and higher marginal tax rates kick in, the tax take effectively overtakes the Government contribution, making KiwiSaver a money spinner for the Government.”
Key talks about boosting savings but his Budget was all about taxing savings more.
*What’s up with the dodgy Kiwibank numbers? Plans for sale?
The Budget’s numbers on Kiwibank make no sense. For a couple of years it lends billions more than normal. Then, suddenly its lending nothing. And its mortgage book increases dollar for dollar with its deposits. That’s not how banking works.
Treasury says they got the numbers from Kiwibank. The bank says that’s bollocks.
Speculation is the figures project Kiwibank selling off its mortgage book. A way of privatising the company without privatising it. We’re left with a hollow shell of a company. The govt walks away with the cash to pay for tax cuts.
They’ve already done this with their ‘electricity reforms’. Forced Genesis (run by Jenny Shipley) to borrow half a billion to buy dams from Meridian. Then made Meridian pay the Crown a half billion special dividend. Net result – SOEs net worth less half a billion, and more cash to cover tax cuts. Just like selling but not. Magic.
*The govt is importing World Cup workers while 270K are jobless.
Us taxpayers are being made to fork over tens of millions to underwrite the World Cup that most of us can’t afford to attend. But at least there’s some more jobs out of it, eh? Nup. The Nats are importing foreigners to do the work, TVNZ reveals.
*Key’s jokes falling flat with pissed off voters.
Young Hartevelt has been following Key on his budget-selling exercise:
John Key is nothing if not brave – though cocky may be more accurate…
…He boasted about easing the tax burden on the wealthiest New Zealanders [thought the tax switch was revenue neutral – Eddie], not mentioning the $175 million a year in revenue his Government will start taking when it stops the tax waiver on employer contributions.
Mr Key got into dangerous territory when he started mocking Labour’s proposed research and development tax credit.
Employers like the tax credit idea and not many at the Upper Hutt luncheon were laughing when Mr Key joked that they would abuse the credit by somehow engineering a trip to Fiji…
…”He’s very personable, he has a very effective personality, but as a swinging voter, I’m a little bit sceptical. The Budget doesn’t seem to have had a great deal of imagination in it.”…
Powered by WPtouch Mobile Suite for WordPress