OTHER CENTRES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26771, 14 May 1948, Page 6

OTHER CENTRES

COMMENT UNFAVOURABLE P.A. WELLINGTON. May 13. “ Our assessment for the 1946-47 season was £3045,” said Mr Len Stewart, chairman of the Hutt Valley Boxing Association to-day when confirming the Auckland report that professional sports bodies had been advised that they were liable for income tax and social security payments. Mr Stewart said that the demand for payment had not yet been received but that when it was, the association would make every endeavour to have the department’s ruling varied. Otherwise, he could see no alternative to his association’s going out of existence. “ They placed us in the same category as an ordinary business, even though all our activities are directed towards the welfare of the boys of our district," he said. , , Representations had been made to Mr Nash, but. apart from the fact that no demand had followed the assessment, nothing had been heard from the Minister. The association had been asked to furnish an assessment for 1947-48. Mr Stewart pointed out that in the past financial year his association had suffered a loss of £2197. The chairman of the Wellington Rugby League, Mr V. M. Simpson, said that the league had been askqp to supply details of its accounts for the past year. He did not anticipate, however, that the league would be required to pay income tax. The Dominion Wrestling Union and the Wellington Wrestling Association, according to the secretary of the union, Mr J. Steel, are in a rather ironic position. Both organisations paid income tax for a number of years, but when they learned some months ago that boxing associations were not being taxed, they decided to seek exemption. A remit that the matter be taken up was passed at the last conference of the Dominion Union, but since then it had been found that other professional sports . bodies had been asked to pay tax. Mr G. O. Sutton, secretary of the New Zealand Golf Council, said that the council had not been asked to supply an income tax assessment. Mr C L. Mullany, chairman of the Wellington Boxing Association, confirmed that his association had also been asked to pay income tax. and was at present engaged in making out its assessment. The arguments which had been advanced by Mr Farrell on behalf of the Auckland Association, added Mr Mullany, had all been included in the representations which the Wellington Boxing Association had made to the Income Tax Department, but it did not appear that they had been successful. However, a legal opinion was being obtained on- the matter.

“The ruling, as we are glvep to understand it,” he said, “is that If a sports body pays any participants in that sport, all its takings for the year are liable to taxation. It also seems to be immaterial whether the year’s operations result in a profit or a deficit.”

The general view in boxing circles is that if the position remains as at present the only obvious solution will be to divorce amateur boxing in New Zealand completely from the professional side.