Letters: GST on food, NZ Post and reckless overtaking

GST on food ignores the injustice of low-income families paying a much larger proportion of their income on it. Photo/File.

Injustice of GST on grocery food

A recent article about 15 per cent GST on groceries "Taking GST off the Kitchen Table" suggests "The benefits from our tax system is that it is simple" and "This tends to promote more economic efficiency".

This, in my view, completely ignores the injustice of low-income families paying a much larger proportion of their income on GST paid on their grocery bills than the proportion paid by high-income families. We all have to eat and families of approximately the same size and ages need about the same amount of food

The article also cites the UK Europe (and I would have included Canada.) as having tax free grocery food. Apparently "This would not work as well in New Zealand". No explanation was given as to why this should be so. Are our politicians and civil servants less competent than those in the mentioned countries? Also not mentioned was New Zealand having extremely high poverty rates. Those countries without taxes on food much less so. Could there be a connection between these two factors?

Also not mentioned was New Zealand's reported increase in cases of rickets and scurvy. What a national disgrace in this land of plenty.

One can only hope that the several investigations into tax reforms will produce positive results regarding 15 per cent GST on groceries.

Rosemary Michie
Rotorua

Snail mail delivery

When a letter posted in Mount Maunganui to a Tauranga central business address takes eleven days from the time of posting to delivery, is it any wonder that New Zealanders now regard this service as a bit of a joke?

Ray Malcolm
Mount Maunganui

Reckless on roads

Over the past two weeks as I have been driving around our city and rural areas I have been passed no less than four times by patch wearing motorcyclists who have been flying past on the wrong side of the road.

Two of these times they continued weaving in and out cars, each time crossing the yellow lines right up and into a blind corner.

It is as if they have no regard for the law and do not care whose lives they endanger.

I would like to know if other readers have experienced this truly frightening experience and if so what are our protectors doing about this?

Name withheld by request