4. JOHN KEY (Leader of the Opposition) Link to this
to the Prime Minister
Does she have confidence in the Minister of Finance; if so, why?
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK (Prime Minister) Link to this
Yes; because he is a hard-working and conscientious Minister.
Is the Prime Minister aware that the family assistance in Australia is in fact considerably more generous than Working for Families, and that therefore over the last 9 years Australians have had not only personal income taxes cut but have had family assistance well in excess of what her Government has been offering?
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK Link to this
I am absolutely delighted to see that the Australian Labor Government has introduced a working families’ support package, just like our Labour Government did here. I note of course that the National Party has at all times voted against Working for Families tax relief.
Hon Trevor MallardI tell the member that it is better than being 27 points behind. Is the Prime Minister aware that successive Treasurers in Australia have been progressively chipping away at personal income taxes over the same period in Government that she has had in Government, and that someone earning $80,000 in Australia has had tax cuts over the last 9 years that mean that that person is better off by $200 a week?
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK Link to this
I am aware that right-wing Governments in Australia prioritise tax cuts over other areas of spending. I am also aware that in our own country the net tax position of a single-earner family on the average wage and with two children under 12 is today under half of what it was when Labour came into office and inherited a poor situation from the National Party.
Is the Prime Minister aware that someone earning $30,000 a year in Australia has had tax cuts over the last 9 years—the same amount of time that her Government has been in office—and that that person is now better off to the tune of $75 a week; if she is aware, has she not cut taxes because she simply does not believe that New Zealanders are worthy of a tax cut under her Government?
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK Link to this
I am also aware that in Australia the pension is means tested, there is no paid parental leave from the Australian taxpayer, and there is no 20 hours’ free early childhood education, and that our Government has built up education, health care, and living standards for superannuitants, and taken a much broader approach to a social wage than the National Party ever would.
Does the Prime Minister agree with her Minister of Finance that on Thursday, when he finally delivers his long-awaited personal tax cuts, they need to be passed into legislation immediately because if they are not he cannot be trusted to not take them away—the way he did last time he promised a tax cut?
Rt Hon HELEN CLARK Link to this
It is a matter of record that the Labour Government has delivered considerable tax relief to families, to people who save in superannuation schemes, and to businesses to encourage investment and growth. Every one of those tax cuts was voted against by a National Government.