Barbara Edmonds: Tax fairness, government spending and growing up on the benefit | Q+A 2024 

Stop tax free exemptions for organizations that are in working competition with tax paying businesses.

This interview could be paraphrased thusly: "What is your personal position in respect of policy A, B, C and D?" Answer: "I always tow the party line and I'm unable to think as an individual and have no opinions of any kind until I'm told what to think by my comrades."

Not one answer

Didnt say a single thing, why does he press the government officials so hard and hardly ask the labour MPs anything?

Labor started looking after the workers, what happened?

Glad to see comments on

Her just assuming they will get in, in 2026

She is very good. She is not combative as Willis is. I like her.

Jack, please consider running for PM. We need someone such as yourself.

Great interview.

This interviewer is NZs best, he does a great job of challenging politicians

Congratulations. Barbra. Edmonds. Great. Speeches. Great. Job. You. Had. Take. Care. Look. After. Yourself. And. Stay. Safe. Alofa. Atu. Godbless. Soifua.

No, tax in NZ is not fair. There is a serious bias towards property investment, no comprehensive capital gains tax, no inheritance tax, few environmental taxes, and no wealth tax on the very very well off. The National party is about to make it even more unfair by providing tax cuts and reducing tax on property investment (these benefit the well off more than the poor and middle class). National does not represent the average New Zealander.

Roger Douglas talked about universal income idea.

To all politicians have some balls and say what you feel, saying something that means nothing is a slight on the hardworking constituents that voted you into your position. Too much media relations management BS. It would be refreshing to have an independent thinking politician regardless of party room process say how they felt about the current living standards and economic situation. In this instance, I would loved to have grilled this politician by young NZer on a show like Tagata Pasifika, then she would have to face the community front on… no amount of media spin would help, you’d have to actually be truthful. That’s what we want from our politicians trust and honesty. Is that too much to ask for in this day and age?

John Key promised he would catch NZ up with Australia, then he ignored doing so. Luxcon will fail to match our taxation, NZ will be losing professionals who will not be replaced, as Luxcon will be suppressing our wages. Expect GST to go up.

The capital gains situation in nz is shambolic!

Clearly, Labour are still avoiding taxing wealth.

Lol she did the thing Matt Walsh pointed out that female politicians in the States do: sassily mention their high-heels as if it gives them some kind of amazing perspective.

Jack .. good pressure as she was very reluctant to move away from the straight party line..

We need to introduce estate duty again, increase GST but reduce PAYE , introduce property tax on all land, see if GST can be applied to exports!

She is good,she says nothing.

I always thought of Jack as a very left leaning guy but he just asks these guys a few simple questions and they look pretty pathetic. It shows that having feelings and ideas isn’t enough

It is an important point about housing costs. Look back to the 1960s. The debt based economy is a problem! Politically avoid discussion matter!

It should be about care, care, care ….. not fair, fair, fair, fair……. Care should always be one before fair if one wants to create a good society. Fairness drops money into people’s pockets that could have been used to help those who need care. National comes closer than labour in getting this😢. Labour just do not get the fact that equity of outcome is not achievable as a human condition.

Great interview and Ms Edmonds came across well.

Equity in tax is difficult.

I am wondering if this is the usual easy ride from Jack a Labour supporter.

Fair to whom? The Top 10% of income earners pay over half of the total income tax in New Zealand. Compare that to the bottom 50% who pay less than 10% of the total income tax.

I am a team player.

Manage inflation by taxing the massive profits of corporations millionaires multi property investors property developers supermarkets banks oil companies IT and telecommunications companies fossil fuel companies etc

She sounds worried

Mrs Edmonds is credible as shadow finance minister but seems to suffer from the same fear of going out on a limb for CGT that cost Jacinda and Grant at the elections.

What an utter waste of time this interview was!

The only fair tax is a flat tax. Why should people that work hard and are successful pay more tax?

Create another very high level .over 200k.........mmm thats not so much nowadays.

Media accountability :) questionable voter impact *sigh* Politicians still make self interested decisions ($$?), pretending to be for the people :( The young and majority loses, wealth inequality more skewed than ever :( Rising house prices are bad for everybody long term, capital gains placed on younger lesser earners, not taxing that dynamic is even worse.

Same old, same old.

Good questions. Bad answers. We don't want a government without policies, we've already got one of those now.

Because the tax thresholds haven't changed for so long, wages have affectively decreased substantially.

Iwi corporations and profit making charities. Not paying a fail share of tax. In some cases none at all!!

You are the worst kind of politician... You are evasive with informing voters who have a fundamental right to know what your beliefs and philosophy are that you would recommend to your team... You do not inspire trust... Be courageous and answer the questions honestly and openly... I am a left-wing voter but I certainly would never vote for you...oh, and your reading list should include Jacques Fresco... “The Venus Project” …

A society that puts equality before freedom will get neither - economist milton friedman also said increased money supply is the cause of inflation. She said increased tax caused the fall of the Roman Empire - should she be in the national party?

I don’t believe in tax fairness We all allergic to tax at the same time we all must pay sure tax nothing else .

Why does he have a keyboard and mouse 😂😂

MUM OF EIGHT! EIGHT! WTF!

So the Labor (wannabe) minister of finance seems very nice. But she spent most of her time talking about how she is going to increase taxes to pay for welfare spending. She is not the social welfare spokesperson right? Its kind of like the CEO of your company discussing how they are going to cut everyone's wages so they can afford to pay for all the redundancies - not exactly inspiring stuff!

Should they have invested in communications staff ………..?

8 kids lol. Always talking about giving out free money, classic Labour strategy.

She seems like a placeholder... doesn't have any personal views at all and could barely answer a question.

Another reason Labour is a lost cause ! Previous finance minister now hailed as having the worst results IN New Zealand History !! but she says she will do the same !! DUMB @ DUMBER

It should not be so difficult for a Labour finance spokeswoman to admit that our tax system is deeply unfair and that we must tax capital gains

Great. Samoan. Woman. For. The. Job. Labour. And. National. Government. Cheers.

Good hope they keep her in. She’s hopelessly out of her depth in this role, as was Robertson. She would not have one clue about the economy or what drives it.

Verbal diarrhea from both

Hi Barbara, nice story but would have been good if you had clarified whether your Mum had private Life insurance. Obviously that would have been the responsible thing to do. Perhaps making private Life Insurance tax deductible to promote responsible family financial planning should be a new Labour initiative?

Tax tax tax you know who's this hurting me Nd the other young people around. You guys never had a cost of living time. I can't keep going on like this

Crap

More BS

She’s good. 💜

New labour finance spokesperson has long interview ….but too scared too say anything…pathetic and spineless socialist…as expected😂😂