Support calls after GST advertisement

Press, 1 September 1986, Page 9

Support calls after GST advertisement

More than 35 telephone calls opposing the proposed goods and services tax were reported to have been received on Saturday by the man who organised a full-page advertisement opposing the tax, which appeared that day in "The Press.” Mr Wayne Boyd said test evening that he was one of several small business owners in Christchurch who had decided that the advertisement was an effective way to show the strength of opposition to the tax.

“GST is going to lead to small business wind-ups and more unemployment because of the expense in administering it,” Mr Boyd said.

“Most of these telephone calls were from people with small businesses including tamers and all of them totally supported what we were trying to say in the advertisement,” he said. “When the value added tax was introduced to England about 3000 small companies folded up be-

cause of the expense involved- The Government appears to be not thinking about the small firm and favouring large companies instead.” The advertisement described GST as a “Ge Stapo Tax” which most New Zealanders did net want. Those against the tax were asked in the advertisement to send a donation to help fund similar newspaper and radio advertisements. Mr Boyd slid that the advertisement was not likely to stop the introduction of GST in its tracks. It was one of several public statements he and other small business owners wanted to make to show their disapproval of the Government’s proposal. “For months we have written to politicians to try to stop the GST. “During the last six months we have been steadily planning this public campaign kicked off by ‘The Pres* advertisement"