Family Trusts in the spotlight for sheltering income

Roger Douglas got it right in 1984 when he introduced a top personal tax rate of 33%, Trust rate of 33%, Company rate of 33% and GST of 10%. We had balance and tax morality was restored after Muldoon's disatrous 66% tax rate. But successive socialist labour governments since have increased the GST to 12.5% (Caygill/Lange 1988),increased the personal tax rates to 39% (Cullen/Clarke 1999) and broken the trust that Douglas had established. They also broke the balanced tax regime. It was limp Lange's 'time for a cuppa tea' that scuttled the fair tax system and also killed tax morality amongst the rank and file (trades, small businesses, self employed etc - not the so called rich who pay most of NZ income taxes anyway despite trusts). The real rich have fled years ago (eg the Velas, the Chandlers, the Myers, Richwhites,Fays...and many more) and taken their much need investment dollars & skills with them due to an unfair and inconsistant tax system. See ya cobber

Sorry Chris you are jumbing the gun here I was exampling the workers with family at ten, you go an suck an egg and wash your mouth out with soap, my household pays 33-40% tax yearly and how much to you contribute to tax yearly Chris?

Haha, some of the above comments crack me up... for starters - Jan, maybe you should have thought about that before you had a family of 10! If you cannot afford to live within your own means don't have kids! Why should those who work there arse's off at uni and in everyday jobs have to constantly pay for those who don't, there no doubt sitting on their bums watching sky or playing xbox right now! Bring in working for the dole and limit the amount paid to families who decide that the best way to get more money out of the government is to have more kids!

Why don't they introduce the taxes with a slant to capture the money they are really after. The property/land tax could apply to those who have more than one rental totally over a certain dollar value ie.$700,000.00. That would target the multiple property developers and leave the average NZer with one investment property alone. They could target trusts worth over a certian dollar value as well.

Says the 50 million dollar man in charge of the country... rich people know how to screw the country... just look at my mate English and probably a large number of politicians with a legal or business background.

Rich people and business are screaming for concessions that they just dont deserve.

Lower the top personal tax rate means that they wont have to hide their incomes anymore? thats the funniest thing I have ever heard of.

These people made and control the system if they dont know more than one way of ripping it off I would be suprised.

Close this loophole and I guarantee that English, Key and his mates have other ways in which to hide their money from the IRD.

What i find interesting is that Bill English did exactly the same thing by hiding behind a trust to claim a housing allowance. And these are the type of people that want to make it "fair"...I feel a new tui avert coming on.
....Fairer tax system....Yea right.

Under $20,000 yearly earners shouldn't be paying tax is not worth ripping them off, get your tax money from riches and not from the poor that are trying to cope with a family of ten..

Doesn't John Key have a family trust? Why is nobody asking him about that?

...THIS is the solution they came up with? There goes the last shred of faith I had.

The market always rules, tax laws are made to used to pay as little tax as possible and if u can't avoid it in NZ we wil invest anywhere overseas where we can pay less tax.

Then there will be less wealth created in NZ and fewer jobs, it is the way of the world.

Is why NZ is heading fast to 3rd world nation hood where it deserves to be, there is little incentive in this country to employ people or create wealth.