The Tax Working Group, which is a group of experts, gave their report this week. They have been looking at our tax laws to see if they are fair to everyone and if they help the economy to grow. The Working Group said that at the moment some rich people find legal ways to hide their income so they don’t pay so much tax. The group suggested increasing GST to 15% or 17.5%. This means that people who spend more, pay more tax.
In 2007, the average family spent about $950 a week. An increase in GST would add an extra $21. The government wants to make tax cuts on personal income tax especially for high income earners.
The Working Group also thought that company tax should be reduced. This would be good for business. However, the group suggested a land tax, for people who own land, and a property tax for people like landlords who own more than one house. The group said that investing in land or property is not the best way to help the economy.
A capital gains tax is another suggestion from the group but we know that the government does not want this tax on the family home. For more information about this tax, listen to Sept 14th 2009.
Bill English, the Minster of Finance, now has this report to read, and he will decide what tax changes he wants to make. He said he wants to listen to other people also. We now have to wait for the Budget in May to find out what changes Bill English will make.