James Fuller: Hnry CEO on the six policies sole traders would prefer over a $20 tax credit

Sole trader confidence in the government's slipped after the announcement of the fortnightly $20 tax credit. 

Accountancy service Hnry's most recent report reveals 44% think they'll be worse off with the government's promises. 

They've come up with six policies they would support instead, such as lower tax rates for high demand professions. 

CEO James Fuller says sole traders aren't looking for handouts. 

He says sole traders just want to be heard and recognised as there's 400,000 of them and they don't seem to have the ear of the Government like big business does. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Pre budget, no shortage of noise about tax cuts. Of course,
how we couldn't afford them all. We'll ask a sole
trader you might find a different answer. We've got a
survey show seventy seven percent support for lowering the second
bracket tax rate from seventeen point five to fifteen point
five percent, seventy four percent support for a two percent
tax credit for self employed people, and a fifty seven
percent support level for lowering income tax rates by profession.

(00:20):
Now there's an idea, Henry CEEO James Fuller Willis, good morning,
Good morning. Questions I found very interesting and we'll work
through them in a couple of minutes. What were you
looking to find out in the way you're asking these questions?

Speaker 2 (00:32):
When we do this this survey quarterly we asked sole
traders around their businesses, how they're feeling too eutonomic from
a personal standpoint, and so prior to the budget, we
went out to sole traders to say, what are the
things that you would like to see from the government
when it comes to supporting the sole trader sector.

Speaker 1 (00:49):
Okay, and were you surprised by the results?

Speaker 2 (00:53):
Well, not particularly. I mean, sole traders make up about
four hundred thousand businesses in New Zealand, and so it's
no surprise that they would want to see themselves be
recognized by the government with some fiscal policies that they
believe could really help inject some life into what is
quite a stagnant economy.

Speaker 1 (01:09):
The reason I asked the question is because, of course,
if you followed the media, every man and his dog
has his hand out at the moment, and we can't
afford tax cuts, and we need even more money for
the government to spend on even more things. And yet
suddenly you find four hundred thousand New Zealand doers who
think completely differently.

Speaker 2 (01:24):
Well, it's interesting. I don't think soul traders are looking
for a handout here. They're really just coming up with
fresh ideas to not only stimulate the economy but also
to keep pace with other OECD countries. So we know
from recently the government is looking to other countries for
policy ideas, whether that's Estonia, and these are interesting ideas
that soult traders are supporting that do make sure we
can keep pace with the likes of France or the Netherlands,

(01:46):
who have specifically recognized the benefit that Soule traders bring
to their economy.

Speaker 1 (01:51):
Does it get complicated? Seventy four percent support for a
two percent tax credit. Once you go down you can
have a bit here and a bit there. Does it
get administratively complex?

Speaker 2 (02:00):
Well? I think what's interesting is we've seen the government
in the last few weeks make what I would say
would be sort of sledgehammer changes to the tax system,
whereas I think what we're talking about here is more
of taking a scalpel in certain areas. So if you
look at the sort of fifty seven percent that support
lowering income tax rates by professions to encourage more people
to become self employed, you have this brain drain in

(02:21):
sectors like nursing, in the trades where people are going
across the tasment. So actually do it looking to do
what they do in France, which has to incentivize people
to stay in those trades or to go into those trades,
is a great way of simulating those specific parts of
the economy.

Speaker 1 (02:34):
I'm glad you raise that because that's a lot of
support fifty seven percent. But when you go by a profession,
I mean there's Jesus, I mean what am I Am
I a broadcaster? Am I a nurse amy, a builder,
and I mean I could be anything I want, couldn't I.
And that's where your problem rises.

Speaker 2 (02:50):
Well, it doesn't, it doesn't. I mean, ID already takes
off of what people do, and you look at the
whole acc system is already set up to charge based
on people's exact profession. So we already have this data
within government. It's surely just a case of actually enacting
those calculation changes at a government let.

Speaker 1 (03:07):
And you would argue they've got the weird with all
to do that if they really wanted to. So it's
just a mindset that needs changing.

Speaker 2 (03:14):
Yeah, I think it's about recognizing soul traders and the
benefit that they bring to the economy. I think there's
been a big, sort of a glutted understanding of some
successive governments about whose sul traders are and what value
they bring. And what we're seeing from this survey is
that forty four percent of sul traders believe they'll act
to be worse off due to the government's cup decisions,
and then induitional fourteen percent aren't actually confident that the

(03:34):
government can deliver on these election promises.

Speaker 1 (03:36):
Very good, Indeed, James appreciate your time James Fuller, who
is the Henry spelt h r Y these days the CEO.
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