Phil Goff: former Labour leader on Labour's CGT policy

A former Labour leader says there'll be a sense a relief among many to see a new capital gains tax policy.

Labour's announced the policy for next year's election campaign, targeting commercial and investment properties, but not family homes. 

The revenue would go into health, creating a Medicard scheme providing free GP visits.

Phil Goff told Ryan Bridge the OECD has been calling out New Zealand for being the only country in the western world not to have the tax.

He says Labour's putting it in place for the sake of fairness and making sure investment decisions aren't distorted by being the odd one out.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let's look at this capital gains tax from Labour show.
We former Labor leader Phil Goff is with me this morning.
Feel good morning, Yeah, good morning, Ryan. Do you think
and I know you're a fan of this and we've
spoken about this, do you think if this goes well,
you then look to extend it because it is quite
narrow and focus.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Now. Yeah. I think the undertaking by Chris Hipkins was
that the tax would be introduced as set out and
would not be changed before the next election, which means that,
you know, look, you always change policy over time, but
you need a mandate for that policy, and that's what
he's saying that he'd be seeking. So nothing going to

(00:37):
be sprung according to what they're telling us in the
first term. And you know, I've been interested to see
the reaction to the tax and by a number of people.
I think some people say, look, it could be broader,
but generally a sense of relief that finally, after years
and years of Treasury advocating and the OECD saying you're

(01:01):
the only country in the Western world that doesn't have
such a tax you need one, that somebody's finally had
the courage to say, we're going to put one in
place for the sake of fairness and for the sake
of making sure we don't distort investment decisions by making
one area of investment tax free.

Speaker 1 (01:17):
Do you think, how do you how do you when
you got your capital gains tax through your caucus? How
did with it was the people who wanted you to
go further? How do you stop them from linking and
disunity in the party?

Speaker 2 (01:31):
Look, I don't think I think that has been exaggerated
in terms of the differences that might exist. Now, there
are always differences in caucus. I've never known a caucus
to be totally of one mind on controversial topics. I
think the greater nervousness at my time was that people

(01:51):
had always been frightened to bring in a capital gains tax.
It had been recommended, it was regarded as sensible, but
it was regarded as politically damaging. And you know, somebody
described it as a suicide note not within caucused it
from outside. So I think, you know, there would be
some pressure to say a wealth tax. I'm glad they
didn't go with a wealth tax because a wealth tax

(02:13):
is as yet reasonably unproven, And as Barbara Edmonds said,
I think quite frankly in her press conference yesterday, that
would be the one thing that would create a differentiation
with Australia and might encourage investment to go to Australia.
Nobody's going to have say, investments going to Australia because
of a capital gains tax, because they actually have one already,

(02:34):
they've had one since the nineteen eighties, and it's a
tougher capital gains tax than what we're implementing here. So look,
I think by and large the Caucus will say this
is our policy and we're going to get behind it.
There is an unanswered question that somebody leaked it. That
happens from time to time, which hunts are pretty fruitless usually,

(02:55):
and I think Hipkins is right to say, well, you know,
if you found a person it just leaked something, that'd
be gone. But they're not going to exert a lot
of time and effort trying to track down who might
have leaked it, if indeed it was leaked maliciously.

Speaker 1 (03:11):
All right, appreciate your time. Phil GoF, former Labour leader.
For more from early edition with Ryan Bridge, listen live
to News Talks.

Speaker 2 (03:18):
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