Agents Oppose Travel Tax

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31277, 25 January 1967, Page 10

Agents Oppose Travel Tax

The suggestion in the Monetary ® Economic Council’s report to the Government in December, that a tax be brought in to deter New Zealanders from travelling overseas, is being strongly opposed by the Travel Agents’ Association of New Zealand.

Mr K. O. M. St. John, of Christchurch, the president of the association, has written to the Prime Minister, the Minister of Tourism, and the Minister of Finance, setting out the asociation’s grounds for opposing the suggestion. The Prime Minister has replied, promising careful consideration of the association s point of view. Mr St. John, on January 13. wrote:

My association was perturbed at the recent suggestion by Mr E. D. Wilkinson of the Monetary and Economic Council that a tax should be brought in to deter New Zealanders from travelling overseas.

“We feel that this kind of deterrent, which has been considered and discarded at various times in many parts of the world, would be aimed at the ordinary man in the street, and would not penalise the business traveller whose overseas travel costs are a deductable item for taxation. “We also feel that, when allied to the unfortunate image which has been created in Australia and elsewhere by the inability of New Zealanders to exchange their New Zealand currency, this would present a very poor picture of New Zealanders as a whole, and would have an adverse effect on those

countries which supply us with our tourist intake. “Our association is keenly aware that the realistic approach to reducing the finan cial gap between our external travel expenditure and our earnings from incoming tourists must be the more positive one of encouraging more people from overseas to this country. “Inevitably all countries enjoying high material standards have a travel imbalance, and it is only in those more backward parts of the world that the earnings from tourism exceed the expenditure of the outgoing traveller.

“Our association sincerely hopes that the Government will not consider any abnormal measures such as those suggested by the Economic Council." The Prime Minister replied:

“Thank you for your letter of January 13 in which you were good enough to set out your association’s views at the suggestion of the Economic Council that a tax should be brought to deter New Zealanders from travelling overseas.

“It is noted that you have sent copies of your letter tn the Minister of Tourism and the Minister of Finance and you may rest assured that the representations you have made will be given careful consideration.”