Red tape and blue-tack: glue period looms for IRD as National, Labour stick on election promises

(Image: Getty)

Wed, 23 Aug 2023

Conflation is surging ahead of the Oct 14 general election, with both Labour and National issuing dubious, unsubstantiated policies designed to make work for the Inland Revenue Department. For instance, the Labour promise to scrape GST off fresh fruit and vegetables has been roundly condemned by just about everyone who understands how the tax system works in practice. In return for an alleged $5-a-week savings in food bills per family, the proposed policy would introduce complexity, confusion and costs into the relatively simple GST e...

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