TAX EXEMPTIONS

Taranaki Daily News, 18 February 1933, Page 9

TAX EXEMPTIONS

HOUSE TO DEBATE ORDERS WIDE POWERS FOR MINISTER OUTBURST BY MR. WRIGHT SUGGESTION OF PATRONAGE MINISTER AMENDS CLAUSE By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. Labour’s steady opposition to the Sales Tax Bill was continued throughout the day in the House of Representatives. Even clauses on which no division was forced were discussed at length and although the closure was not applied from the time the House resumed after breakfast until 11.45 p.m. no section of the Bill was allowed easy passage. . The debate, .which was not finished at 2 a.m., was'enlivened by a dispute between Mr. R. A. Wright and the Minister of Finance. When the House went into committee on the Bill at an early hour this morning, the Minister of Finance (the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates) announced that a number of clauses would be held over pending the completion of discussions with a number of businessmen who were co-operating in an endeavour to ensure the smooth working of the legislation. . The Minister stated that material for gold-dredging would not be subject to tax. The departmental ruling was that dredging machinery, if imported by a company for use by itself, would not be imported for sale, and aS the- Bill stood at present it would not be subject to the tax. Even if it were imported for sale it was ; possible that dredging machinery would be classified as being for use in industrial purposes and therefore exempt. Mr. J. O’Brien (Lab., Westland): What about general mining gear—explosives and tools? Mr. Coates thought it would be found that mining gear generally was exempt, and explosives were exempt. The clauses providing for the licensing of wholesalers and manufacturing retailers and fixing the penalty for offences in respect to the sale of goods were adopted on the voices .-but a division was taken on the provisions in regard to the surrender amendment and revocation of licenses. The clause was passed by 43 votes to 25. When the House resumed at 7.30 p.m. after the dinner adjournment it was agreed to postpone consideration >of Clause 11. DISPUTE ON EXEMPTIONS. Clause 12, dealing with exemptions, met with some objection from the Opposition. Mr. W. E. Barnard (Lab., Napier) opposed the granting of power to the Minister exempt certain goods from the tax by Order-in-Council and claimed that such power should be the prerogative of the House alone. He was supported in this view by Mr. E. J. Howard (Lab., Christchurch South) and Mr. J. A. Lee (Lab., Grey Lynn). Mr. R. A. Wright (Wellington urbs) also opposed the clause. He said such a measure would be all right if they had a perfect Minister, but if a strong party supporter came to the Minister, said he had been a strong supporter for many years and wanted the Minister to do something for him, namely, to grant exemption to a certain class of goods in which he was interested, where was the Minister with the strength to refuse the request? Mr. Coates: There are hundreds of them and you know it. Mr. Wright: I don’t know it. The Minister had better not say too much. Mr. Coates: You chatter like an old lady. ? Mr. Wright: T am not so much an old lady as is the Minister! The chairman: Order! Mr. Coates, in reply to Mr. Wright suggested he had no right to be sitting where he was in the House among members who were doing their best under very difficult conditions. He had no right to say what he had said and must know in -his heart- of hearts it was wrong. “DIRECT PERSONAL ATTACK.” Mr. Wright: The Minister has made a direct personal attack on me. He suggests I am eavesdropping. I have not done anything of the kind. I must point out that the Speaker arranges the seats in the House, .not the Minister, and a member once allotted a seat can hold it. The matter of a seat is of no consequence at all. I made no charges against the Minister. Mr. Coates: I accept the hon. gentleman’s word, but I understood he was prepared to tell tales against the Government. The Chairman: The Minister must accept the hon. gentleman's word unreservedly. Mr. Coates: I do. Mr. Wright explained his objection to granting powers of exemption to the Minister by Order-in-Council. Mr. F. Langstone (Lab., Waimarino) also objected to such a course and instanced the putting off of the liquor poll. The Government, he said, if granted such powers, could put people on the exemption list and then take them off in order to bring them to heel. If the Government was going to have those powers it was going to use them, too. The Leader of the Opposition (Mr. H. E. Holland) , expressed the opinion that if Clause 12 was passed the whole of the rest of 'the Bill would be unnecessary. The power the clause contained was too great to give any. 'Government. He moved that the portion of the clause be deleted giving the Minister power to grant exemptions to the tax by Order-in-Council. The debate was carried on until the supper adjournment by Messrs. C. Carr, D. W. Coleman, W. E. Parry, W. Nash, J. O’Brien, Lee and Langstone (Labour members) and Mr. E. T. Tirikatene (Ind.; Southam Maori). MINISTER’S AMENDMENT. After the supper adjournment Mr. Coates ‘said he realised the authority given in the clause was a powerful instrument for the Government to have in its hands, but he contended it was a necessary one. He instanced the case of competing industries where one might suffer great disadvantage through the imposition of the tax while the other escaped. He would have no objection to Orders-in-Council affecting this clause being placed on the tabte of the House after. the resumption and discussed at some suitable occasion. Mr. Nash: Why did you not ,s4y that two hours’ ago? .. Mr. Coates: ‘lt would not have made the slightest difference. I am not a chicken hi the House. I know what is behind this.’ The Leader of the Opposition: The Minister’S suggestion is this: He asks us to put . this , clause through on the voices and he will put an amendment through so-'that any alterations by Or-der-in-Council will be brought up for discussion. . Mr. Coates: Within 14 ciays of the

House’s resuming they will be laid on the table and submitted for discussion at some suitable time.

The Opposition’s amendment was not pressed and Clause 12 was passed on the voices. “TRAFFIC IN BARONETCIES.” Mr. P. Fraser (Lab., Wellington Central) said he had heard of a certain party organiser who tried to organise a regular traffic in justices of the peaceships and baronetcies. The Minister of Justice (the Hon. J. G. Cobbe) protested strongly against Mr. Fraser’s statement, which he characterised as scandalous and which he said should not be made in any decent gathering. Mr. Fraser told the Minister not to lose his temper. He had not been referring to him, and he knew the Minister had been absolutely impartial in carrying, out his duties. Discussing clause 13, Mr. Cobbe stated with reference to a suggestion that timber be exempted from the tax that he considered the high exchange would be of direct benefit in counteracting the competition of imported butte? boxes and similar packages. The clause was eventually held over and the House proceeded with discussion of Clause 14 (submission of monthly returns by wholesalers and manufacturing retailers). It was passed by 35 votes to 22 after the closure had been applied. The House was still sitting when the telegraph office closed at 2 a.m,