Collins Comments 14 June 2004
Judith Collins MP for Clevedon 14 June 2004
Budget Blunder Labour's big spending will force many working families onto state dependence. Just how bad this 2004
budget is for New Zealand has recently been shown by National revealing the following take-home figures for 2007
1.. For a one income, two parent family with two young children living in south or west Auckland or Wellington City
Gross income
$38,000
$60,000
Income tax
-$7,410
-$14,670
ACC levy
-$456
-$720
Family assistance
+$7,198
+$598
Accommodation supplement
+$5,528
+$28
Net income
$42,860
$45,236
Difference
+$2,376
2.. For a one income, two parent family with three young children living in central Auckland
Gross income
$38,000
$70,000
Income tax
-$7,410
-$18,570
ACC levy
-$456
-$840
Family assistance
+$10,162
+$562
Accommodation supplement
+$8,648
+$648
Net income
$48,944
$51,800
Difference
+$2,856
This means that after the budget has lifted the after-tax income of some families earning $38,000 to a gross of between
$42,000 and $48,000 almost the same as the after-tax income of families earning between $60,000 and $70,000.
The awful thing is that behaviour will shift. Where is the incentive for someone to take a higher paying, more stressful
job, if they are going to lose any increased income in tax while they could simply sit back in a less stressful job and
get paid sufficient Family assistance and accommodation supplement paid for by the person earning a gross of $70,000.
Labour's response to these figures has been "so what?".
Labour is overtaxing middle income New Zealand and then giving back through the welfare system. It is turning
self-sufficient people into beneficiaries. The official unemployment figures are promising. The problem is when we look
at the invalid and sickness beneficiary numbers we realize that they have increased by almost the same amount by which
the unemployment benefit has decreased. What this indicates is that benefit switching is occurring. We still have more
than 330,000 adults of working age on benefits. This budget will do nothing to stop that from rising.
Have your say on the foreshore issues Great news! Now everyone has a chance to have their say on the foreshore and sea
bed issue. It is now possible to make online submissions to the select committee direct from the National Party website.
All you have to do is go to www.national.org.nz/foreshoresubmission.aspx or go through www.foreshore.co.nz.
I wonder how many of you watched TV One's programme on race relations with Anita McNaught. As I told my husband, the
best thing about it was that I really looked forward to the advertisements. Some of the statements made as fact were
outrageous. I have no idea why TV One felt it was necessary to bring back to New Zealand a woman who left these shores
seven years ago and has never been back since. It was sanctimonious claptrap and a waste of taxpayers' money.
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