Michael Wood
MP for Mt Roskill
Spokesperson for Revenue

MEDIA STATEMENT
19 July 2017

Nats show they’re the tax dodgers’ best friends

“The government is taking the knife to IRD at a time when we need a highly skilled department to ensure that multinationals and speculators don’t get away with dodging tax, says Labour’s Revenue spokesperson Michael Wood.

‘For nine years, National has turned a blind eye to tax dodging by multinationals and speculators. Now, they’re cutting the jobs of the people tasked with ensuring that the big end of town pays its fair share like the rest of us.

“It’s terrible that 4,000 hardworking Kiwis are now left with the Sword of Damocles hanging over them for months, not knowing whose job will go, or who will get a pay cut. Public servants don’t deserve to be treated like this. There’s a real risk, now, that many skilled staff will leave due to the uncertainty, even if their jobs are eventually saved.

“Improving IRD does not require a whole-scale gutting of the organisation and loss of experienced workers. National’s botching and blundering will see IRD lose the experienced tax inspectors we need to clamp down on tax dodging multinationals and speculators.

“Labour has a better vision for change at IRD in which we achieve efficiencies, treat staff with respect, and create a highly skilled organisation that protects the integrity of our tax system. We’ll increase the number of investigations staff to catch tax dodgers and make abolishing secondary tax a part of the process,” says Michael Wood.

ends

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