Tax insights set to be released today could restart the debate on whether the country should introduce a capital gains tax.
Figures from Inland Revenue, to be released at 12.30pm today, will showcase how much tax the wealthiest New Zealanders pay.
A report from Treasury will also focus on effective tax rates across income and wealth distributions.
Economic and political commentator Bernard Hickey told Breakfast the debate around capital gains hasn't moved since 2019.
"We're trying to identify the dirty little secret — in fact, not little and it's not much a secret — that of course, not having a capital gains tax means that the richest are able to shuffle their income and assets into capital and therefore avoid paying tax," he said.
The IRD and Treasury reports are expected to help "identify the dirty little secret" of our richest families, Bernard Hickey says. (Source: Breakfast)
"The estimate is that the richest 40% of New Zealanders only pay an effective tax rate of 10% because of a lack of that capital gains tax.
"We could have gotten $200 billion in extra tax revenues if only there had been a fair tax system which meant that capital gains were taxed at the same rate as every other type of income."
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said the Labour Party had no plans to propose a capital gains tax - at this stage.
"The Labour Party set out our tax policy for the last election back in 2020. We're honouring that policy through to the next election and then before the next election — well before the next election — people will know what our tax commitments are for the next term of government should we be re-elected. I'm not setting that out today," he told Breakfast.
Figures from Inland Revenue - to be released today - will showcase how much tax the wealthiest New Zealanders pay. (Source: Breakfast)
"We set out a tax policy before the last election — that's the tax policy that we've been implementing, it's the one we're going to stick with right the way through until the election."
Revenue Minister David Parker is set to address the tax reports later this afternoon.
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