Mr Nordmeyer Says Bill Unfair

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31380, 27 May 1967, Page 3

Mr Nordmeyer Says Bill Unfair

(New Zealand Preu Asjociation)

WELLINGTON, May 26. The former Labour Finance Minister, Mr A. H. Nordmeyer, criticised the Government today for introducing tax legislation without first giving Parliament a detailed and up-to-date survey of the country’s economic position.

He said the Government’s method of introducing the Customs Amendment Bill—which provides increased duty on spirits, tobacco and petrol and higher sales tax on motor-vehicles was “grossly unfair.”

Speaking during the resumed second reading of the bill, Mr Nordmeyer said: “The House is asked to pass a bill covering the major aspects introduced by the MiniBudget without any idea of what the Government has in mind for its yearly expenditure or how it hopes to raise the money.”

Earlier today, the Minister of Customs (Mr Shelton) told Parliament that for a full financial year the receipts from the increased duty on spirits would be £3.6 million, from tobacco £6.6 million, from sales tax on motor vehicles £4.1 million and from motor spirits £5.4 million. He said the Government had leaned over backwards to spread the impact of the recent economic measures equitably throughout the community. Mr Shelton said the decision to introduce increased taxation was made after the closest study of current economic trends. "The crucial factor in the present situation is the extent to which our payments abroad are in excess of our overseas receipts and the resulting pressure on the exchange reserves,” he said. The Minister said the gravity of the situation was well Illustrated by the fact that in the first four months of this year wool receipts were down by £21.5 million compared with the corresponding period in 1966. Mr Nordmeyer said what had been accorded the status

could not be solved by borrowing alone and he expressed pleasure that the Government had at last realised this. “It has become clear to the Government that its import policy over recent years was too lax and this is one of the reasons New Zealand finds itself in this unfortunate economic position today. "I am surprised if the Government thinks they have public opinion behind them on these measures. The Government and the Minister of Finance are deluding themselves if they think they have,” he said. “The measures in this bill are just as severe in their way as the 1958 Budget In 1958 National Party members took as much exception to measures which Labour is objecting to now,” he said.

of mini-budget by both the Government and the Opposition had not like other traditional budgets, been preceded by a detailed and up-to-date survey of the country’s economic situation. He doubted whether the measures would dampen expenditure on items with a sizeable overseas content The Government had already covered itself by the drop in reserves as a result of the fall in wool prices, he said. The earlier reference by the Minister of Customs to an anticipated loss of £45 million had been adequately covered by, first the mere bulk of the unsold wool. Added to this was a £10.5 million loan from the International Monetary Fund, a £lO.B million loan from the Bank of International Settlement and a further £lO million borrowed from the Midland Bank against London-based securities of the Treasury. Mr Nordmeyer said he was pleased to hear the Minister of Customs admit that the country’s economic problems