Gisborne Herald
  • Gisborne Herald Home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport

Locations

  • Gisborne
  • Bay of Plenty
  • Hawke's Bay

Media

  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Gisborne Herald / Opinion

Wealth tax call a high-risk strategy

Gisborne Herald
15 Jul, 2023 06:05 AMQuick Read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

Chris Hipkins showed once again how focused he is on trying to stay in government when he followed the lead of Sir John Key and Dame Jacinda Ardern in ruling out a policy, that he knows has merit, any time under his leadership.

In this case it is wealth and capital gains taxes (the latter also being one of Ardern’s  “not on my watch” calls) that are off the table — and as in previous examples, it’s about winning votes in the all-important centre ground.

The parties to his left whose support would be needed to form that third-term Labour government were furious.

The Greens said there was a very real possibility they would refuse to join a coalition with Labour if they didn’t put a wealth tax back on the table, and Te Pāti Māori said Hipkins had effectively ended coalition discussions before they had even met.

That didn’t phase the Prime Minister, who said the nature of MMP democracy was that minor parties needed support from a majority of Parliament in order to advance their policies.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A portion of Labour’s own left-wing, progressive erstwhile supporters will turn that advice on its head and move their  votes to the Green Party, to have any chance of the tax reform they and many commentators agree would rebalance our tax system, making it fairer and helping to address inequality and poverty.

But if Hipkins’ captain’s call prompts enough voters to stick with Labour rather than voting National, it could make the difference come October.

Things will need to start going a lot better for the party, though, as a string of ministerial scandals and tough economic conditions hurting households have shown up in a fall in support for Labour in two recent political polls.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

A poll out on Tuesday by Labour’s own pollster Talbot Mills had the party dropping five points to 31 percent, and National (on 36 percent)and Act having the numbers to form a government. The next day a Taxpayers’ Union-Curia poll also had Labour on 31 percent, a two-point drop from Curia’s last poll a month earlier; National was down three points to 33 percent and the overall result would have been a hung parliament.

A Newshub Reid Research poll from two months ago is also instructive here — it  showed that 53 percent of voters want a wealth tax implemented, while 34.7 percent opposed it.

Focus groups appear to have shown Labour that campaigning for a wealth tax would have been a risk for its re-election. Hipkins’ move to squash that carries risks of its own as he disappoints such a large part of Labour’s base, the very people he will be needing to help  promote the party in the lead-up to October’s election.

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Gisborne Herald

live
Gisborne Herald

Landslide sparks evacuations, roads closed, homes flooded after storm

12 Jul 12:43 AM
Premium
Gisborne Herald

Gisborne's Grey St protests ongoing one year on as review looms

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Gisborne Herald

Gretchen La Roche on her musical journey and promotion of the arts

11 Jul 06:00 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Gisborne Herald

Landslide sparks evacuations, roads closed, homes flooded after storm
live

Landslide sparks evacuations, roads closed, homes flooded after storm

12 Jul 12:43 AM

The North Island is expected to get off to a wet start this morning, with lingering rain.

Premium
Gisborne's Grey St protests ongoing one year on as review looms

Gisborne's Grey St protests ongoing one year on as review looms

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Gretchen La Roche on her musical journey and promotion of the arts

Gretchen La Roche on her musical journey and promotion of the arts

11 Jul 06:00 AM
One critically injured, part of SH35 blocked after crash involving car and truck

One critically injured, part of SH35 blocked after crash involving car and truck

11 Jul 03:46 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Gisborne Herald
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Gisborne Herald
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP