Tax cuts part of wage deal?

Press, 30 January 1981, Page 4

Tax cuts part of wage deal?

■ PA Wellington ; Hefty income tax cuts' [from October 1 will almost: 11 certainly form part of a fjwage package being worked ,out by the Federation of; 11 Labour, the Employers’ Fed-; > eration, and the Government.; i The wage talks, which the[Government salvaged from tithe ashes of last year’s, ■icrippling Kinleith strike, i ■iwill reopen at an officials’! t!level on Monday when a; [working party will meet for »-the first time'this year. Reports from this meeting! ywill go to another round-: "j table conference of the three b parties’ policymakers, prob[lably next month. ; | Throughout the long-run-, ; ning wages talks, the Gov-:

,ernment has maintained that! (acceptance of the principle (that a tax cut is equal to a i wage rise is important to its effort to control inflation. : i Agreement on that point 'was reached last in a forImula allowing the Feder--ation of Labour to approach 'the Arbitration Court for a general wage order early, [this vear. i But it is believed that! there is still a big area of disagreement between the; [Government and the F.O.L.i [on how the principle can bei [fairly recognised in the con-! text of the yearly round of; award negotiations. Whether the Arbitration! Court becomes the referee in; [this context is a matter fori 'negotiation.