Government rakes it in

By BRIAN FALLOW

Wage and salary earners paid just over $17 billion in PAYE tax in the year ended June.

It is $104 million more than the Government reckons is due from that source (its estimate of the revenue that accrued, as distinct from the cash actually received) and $157 million more than the amount forecast in May's Budget.

The figure is also $1.39 billion or 8.9 per cent higher than the PAYE tax take in the previous year.

The tax take from all sources was $45.9 billion, up 7.7 per cent or $3.27 billion and 0.2 per cent or $102 million ahead of Budget forecasts.

Companies paid $7.49 billion, just over $1 billion more than the year before.

Buoyant consumer spending boosted the GST take by $956 billion or 8.3 per cent, compared with the previous year.