Budget ‘05: Gone before it arrives

National Party Finance spokesman John Key says hard working Kiwis will still be losing money under the small, insulting changes to tax thresholds which Labour has put off for three years.

“The minute changes mean that by the time this tax tinkering taxes effect, hardworking Kiwis will have already paid for it - and then some.

“Take, someone on $40,000 a year. Michael Cullen’s tax fiddle will reduce their total tax by a mere $275 per year or $5.30 a week. But because the changes have been delayed for three years - the Government will have taken another $825 off them by the time they are implemented.

“They’ll be worse off!

“Throw in the carbon tax, which will cost every power consumer a minimum of $200 a year - National thinks it could rise as high as $400 a year - and Labour’s tax tinkering looks even more pathetic.

“It’s highway robbery. Middle New Zealanders are increasingly frustrated that Michael Cullen has opted to waste vast sums of money on poorly targeted spending programmes, rather than return some of it to taxpayers.

“It’s just as bad in the top tax bracket. Take someone on $70,000 a year. The tax fiddle amounts to $534 a year or $10.27 per week in 2008. But by then, Labour will have raided another $1602 from their pockets in tax before they get any relief.

“They’ve paid for it three times over. Only National can be trusted to deliver lower taxes, along with better incentives for hard work and enterprise,” says Mr Key.

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