Ah'm a swinger, man - a swinger!
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Like you fd, I swing too like a brown (i'm SE asian) monkey from tree to tree (read that as my party affiliations over the years). So while still undecided up to this point, let's Swing some more or do the Tango :p
Have you ever considered the effect of progressive taxes? Thought not, but it drives up wage demand from higher income earners. A great contributor to the inequality that many bemoan. There are many advantages to a flat tax- the rich still pay more. It's interesting that several countries thought of as socialist have switched to a flat tax system.
https://www.google.co.nz/search?site...k1.3gABv5xM49U
One of the immediate benefits is an instant reduction in tax evasion, although that's not a problem in NZ. Where it exists here is generally among the lower to middle income earners - as the IRD will confirm. Most certainly I do not accept that the state is the best provider of certain things, so generally I favour private providers over govt. providers - but not for everything. I also am a great believer in social security - at about the level NZ has it. I think anyone who has wandered around the globe a bit will realise our system is fairly desirable. Everybody - including the wealthy, is affected by poverty in their homeland. It is more Labour's current sycophants rather than their direction in 2017 that concerns me. If little is the best Labour can come up with as a leader - what on earth are the rest like?
He cracked a little joke today, I'm still gasping. Regarding the debate over caged eggs vs free range eggs he said he was an eggnostic! Laugh? Just about fell off my chair. First joke since he became leader.
More to the point he makes spasmodic attempts to move towards the Centre.
Does that make him eggcentric?
Interesting data about ongoing PM expenses.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politi...-for-life.html
Bill and Steven have their bit of fun. Forget about all the other stuff that needs paying for.
Wiki on progressive tax: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_tax
A flat tax would increase inequality in NZ. As there is a current trend towards inequality, the argument must surely be that some of the top earners aren't paying their fair share. No doubt in FP's imagination, a flat tax would mean that everyone at the top would unwind their trusts and tax haven arrangements so they can pay the new flat tax. What rate would it need to be, to bring them all over? 3%? 5%?
I see the Labour party in Holland has been decimated. Pretty much the end for them. Is that what is going to happen here too? In England they are not the flavour of the month either.
Big winners the green party there.
No. A tax free threshold of $15,000 plus a flat tax of 22% for all. Nothing unfair about everyone paying the same percentage tax - everything unfair about progressive tax.
And once again, you should stop assuming what I think, and no doubt about what is in my imzagination - because you do not know.
Labour is clearly supporting a backward looking philosophy ready to be phased out while parties who advocate for the environment are going up all over the place in Europe.
Problem with the NZ Greens is that they are just an ultra-left version of the Labour party in disguise. Their goal is not to help the environment, they just use a green name to hide their ultra left wing agenda.
Just have a look at their policies (https://home.greens.org.nz/policy/full) ... only one quarter of them has anything to do with the environment. The rest are things like sexual orientation, women, defence, Maori affairs, arts and culture, children, broadcasting, democracy, ...
I guess obviously does a government need policies on all these subjects. However pushing a hard left wing agenda on all these issues is just making sure that the NZ Green party will never be in power.
The inconvenient truth is that New Zealand has no political party which prioritises the environment - i.e. I don't expect the NZ Greens to benefit from this trend in Europe. Sad for our environment.
Capital gains taxes are complex. One biggie is whether private homes should be exempt. But the bigger one in my view is whether an item can be sold exempt as long as the funds are repatriated in a like for like item within a specified time frame, as is the case in USA. That makes it fair and workable in my view.