LAND AND INCOME TAXES

Taranaki Daily News, 16 October 1931, Page 9

LAND AND INCOME TAXES

HOUSE PASSES BOTH BILLS . I i. r.-» * gold-mining clause delayed? EPTENSION PERIOD INCREASED. GRADUATED LAND TAX ABOLISHED By Telegraph—Press Association. Wellington,' Oct. 15. The Land .and Income Tax Amendment Bill and the Laqd an. Income Tax Annual Bill, which were introduced. yesterday, were passed this morning by the House of Representatives. The debate lasted from early yesterday afternoon till ..Imost daybreak to-day. Replying in the debate on the second reading of the Amendment Bill, the Hon. W. Downie ’tewart, Minister bf Finance, said the members of the Government had received a telegram from the Waihi Goldmjinng Company stating that great hardship would be caused in the whole of the Waihi district if the clause relating to the assessment of golfi-mhiing and scheelite win- . iiig companies was put into operation, 'lie had agreed to hold this clause over in the meantime, to give the company ■an opportunity of making immediate representations to the Government on the subject. It appeared to him that as assessment was' to be based on dividends, it must necessarily be fair. He 'had been urged not to be bluffed by the company, and he could assure members that, unless he was convinced that the clause was unfair, it would fie included •in the Finance Bill- to be introduced later in the session. He did not wish to delay the pissage of the present Bill, •because until 'it became operative the ■work of the Taxation Department was being held up. When the Hoqse was in committee •on the Bill, Mr. W. P. Endcan (Reform, iPariiell) urged that the Government should explore other avenues before •bleeding the taxpayers white. He suggested, as an alternative, that it should tax the profits of municipal trading corporations and gas companies. The Prime Minister said the difficulty of taxing municipal trading corpora-, tions would be that once a tax was imposed it woujd be found that the •profits would disappear and would be substituted by reduced rates to the consumers. PROTEST AT RUSHING?' Air. A. Harris (Reform, Waitemata)-, protested against the Bill being put through all stages at such short notice. Members should have been allowed more time to consider its provisions, and they should have been supplied ■with, more detailed information as to the effect of tiie alterations in the incidence of taxation. Air. Al. J- Savage (Labour, Auckland West) moved an amendment to the clause providing for an extension of ■tifne for the payipent oUland tax or ■income tax where an extension was rendered necessary by the Hawke’s Bay earthquake. His amendment’- sought to grant this concession also in cades where it was rendered necessary on account of economic conditions. It was defeated by 41 votes to IS. Air. W. E. Barnard (Napier) suggested that the maxim yip period of extension should be increased from two to three years. .Mr. Stewart agreed to this, and the clause was amended accordingly. When the House was -in committee on tile Annual Bill, Air. Savage moved to retain the graduated land tax in operation. _ This was rejected.by 33 votes to -6. The division list, was:— For the Amendment (26). j Armstrong Jull Atmore Langstone — Barnard Lye Black McCombs Carr ' AlcDoiiald Dickie Alinns Fraser W. Nash Harris O’Brien Hogan Parry H. Holland Savage FL E. Holland Sullivan Howard Wilkinson Jordan Wright Against the Amendment (33); Ansell Alacmillan . , Bitchener AlcPherson ■ Broadfoot Afakitanara Burnett J. N. Alassey Campbell Murdoch Clinkard J. A. Nash Coates Ngata Oobbe Ransom Donald Rush worth ; - Endean Samuel Field Smith ■ Forbes Stewart Hamilton Sykes , Hawke Waite Jones Williams Kyle Young Linklater Both Bills were then reported to the House, read a third time and passed. The House rose at 4.35 a.in.