Phil Goff is on the mark with his anti-tax avoidance policies - a clear choice for voters this year..

Image via WikipediaPhil Goff is finally on the mark with his tax proposals - a tax free threshold that the more successful Australian economy has  had for some years. Labour plans a crackdown on lucrative tax loopholes left wide open by the National Government. Property speculators have used these for years to avoid tax. It plans to set up an Anti-Avoidance Tax Taskforce  to close the loopholes which National has never attempted to close for obvious reasons.

Billions of dollars have been estimated to have been lost by tax avoidance - or in plain language tax dodgers! A small percentage of this would compensate for any threshold increases. So forget any claims from John key that it would be unaffordable. Key has been borrowing about a billion dollars a month just to run New Zealand Inc.

Labour plans to exempt the first $5,000 of income, and would introduce a top tax rate over $120,000 per annum. A figure that has been peddled around for some time. A weekly sweetener of $10.00 per week which will have some appeal for superannuants, beneficiaries and the lower paid in the workforce.

The plan is neither irresponsible or badly costed. A similar plan in Labour's successful re-election as government in 1999 was to raise taxes over $60,000 to pay for more spending in the health and education sectors.

It has been National's borrowing policy during the last two years that is putting NZ into hock. Labour will have to find some alternative to these  Muldoon-like economic policies. Key lacks any credibility by criticising  Labour's early policies which may change to some degree  in the lead-up to the elections this year.

John Key will find out it will take more than a silly grin to impress voters this year. Change for the sake of change will not be a credible election winner! Some will say that we have had enough of Shonkism in government. So much for change and the Labour-lite label.

Its also a return to the future with National's privatisation policies. Voters will be given a clear choice - left to the future with Labour, or right down the gurgler with National.

Related articles

• First $5k tax free under Labour (nzherald.co.nz)
• "Philosophy & principles behind Labour's tax policy announcements" and related posts (labour.org.nz)
• Tax-free income threshold too costly for little benefit (homepaddock.wordpress.com)