Chapman Tripp partner David Patterson wrote an opinion piece for Stuff which – correctly in our view – indicated the huge economic harm coming kiwis’ way as a result of the lockdown.
Patterson (right) is also the National Party’s candidate for the Rongotai seat and so there is a strong political agenda at work here, but the points he makes as an experienced tax and corporate lawyer add credibility to pronouncements of coming hardship.
Who are our future litigators? Take the Survey
“Proper cost-benefit and return-on-investment analyses are more important than ever,” he wrote.
“All Government spending should be tested for effectiveness – it is not just a case of adding on to what is already there. The 2020 Budget assumes pre-Covid-19 expenditure paths remain intact and Covid-19 expenditure is simply added on top.
“It is all of our futures that are about to be mortgaged. We will pay with future increased taxes and lower spending on core social services.”
“New Zealand will have to pay the piper eventually for the Government spend now, and the people who will pay are taxpayers – whether that’s workers or business owners. It is all of our futures that are about to be mortgaged. We will pay with future increased taxes and lower spending on core social services.”
He notes that there are no “easy targets” that can produce a $100 billion increase in revenue over the next couple of decades and that income tax increases are the only realistic option.
They will create pain for voters and provide a handbrake on economic recovery.
“Our headline 28 per cent corporate tax rate is already high by OECD standards and, although in the post-Covid world other countries’ cororate rates may over time increase, there is no real scope for large corporate tax rate increases without affecting our competitiveness.”
With looming unemployment at levels we have not previously seen, it is now the economy that will be the key election issue he says.
[adrotate banner=”85″]
More New Zealand News
- Epstein Emails Cast Shadow Over Ex-Clifford Chance Trainee
Nothing like another tranche of Epstein documents to remind the profession that… Read more: Epstein Emails Cast Shadow Over Ex-Clifford Chance Trainee - Bach, Bench and Backrooms – NZ High Court Judge Wins Private Arbitration Over Open Court
If you ever wondered how the LawFuel editorial team might sanitise a… Read more: Bach, Bench and Backrooms – NZ High Court Judge Wins Private Arbitration Over Open Court - Legal Support for Pedestrian Accident Victims in PhiladelphiaArticle source: The Oakes Firm, Personal Injury Lawyers Philadelphia is a walkable… Read more: Legal Support for Pedestrian Accident Victims in Philadelphia
- Women In Law Firm Leadership: The Stubborn 20% Ceiling That Won’t Crack
The legal profession has a mathematics problem. Women now constitute the majority of law school graduates, comprise over half of associates at major firms, and represent 47% of all lawyers globally. Yet when the elevator reaches the executive floor, the numbers tell a different story: just two in ten law firm leaders are women (although when they do reach the top women legal leaders are making a difference). The latest research from the International Bar Association’s Raising the Bar: Women in Law project confirms what many practitioners have long suspected – the profession is experiencing a spectacular leakage of female talent somewhere between the mid-career mark and the managing partner’s office. The Numbers That Should Keep Managing Partners Awake The IBA’s December 2024 Progress Report, synthesizing data from 11 countries across five continents, reveals the uncomfortable arithmetic: - Judge Aitken In The Witness Box: “I Didn’t Know It Was Political”
The Northern Club Chronicles . . District Court Judge Ema Aitken has… Read more: Judge Aitken In The Witness Box: “I Didn’t Know It Was Political”
