Remember when John Key boldly declared that New Zealand was not a tax haven?
Well, the European Union disagrees. And while it might seem rather academic what a transnational institution literally half a world away thinks about our taxation regimen … the slight issue is that this now means the planet’s largest economy is gearing up to put us over in the international naughty corner unless and until we sort our situation out.
Maybe the threat of trade sanctions or even travel bans upon New Zealand produce and citizens by the E.U. will force National to finally take this issue with the gravitas and seriousness that this demands.
Then again, there is a potential other side to this debate. Whenever some great and seismic movement (from our lilliputian perspective, at least) is about to take place in international political economy, it makes sense to ponder the inordinately yet understatedly important question: Cui Bono? Who Benefits?
And the answer to that, in this case, is quite simple. There are any number of French farmers and other European agriculturalists who have lobbied for years to keep Kiwi primary produce as far out of the Eurozone as possible. They represent perhaps the single biggest reason why we’re arguably highly unlikely to ever have a proper free trade deal with the Europeans – present and current events with our tax-haven status notwithstanding.
The question ought to be asked: if the Europeans are looking at excluding or downsizing Kiwi trade flows in response to our tax laws … will they be doing the same for countries like Switzerland? Or is there one rule for some, and another ruleset entirely for those countries who happen to have an enormous comparative advantage in a particular economic sector.
Because at the moment, there seems to be a very real possibility that efforts to put the screws on our exports into the Eurozone are perhaps less motivated by an intergovernmental desire for taxation transparency than they are by frank, rank economic self-interest on the part of the Europeans.
In that case, and if that is the situation, then it is presumably to our advantage that Britain is leaving the Eurozone. At least in that instance, we shall be shortly able to have a productive and blossoming trade-relationship with what’s presently the 5th largest world economy.
Still, regardless of the alleged motivation for the E.U.’s actions in this matter – there is a silver lining.
With the kind of serious threat against the New Zealand economy which E.U. trade sanctions (or even the potential for their future imposition) unquestionably represent, the Prime Minister and his cronies surely have no choice but to act and act decisively in order to get our affairs – and our international reputation – back in order.
With EU Trade At Stake Will Key Finally Start To Take Our Tax Haven Status Seriously?
NO.
John Key self describes himself as a terrible accountant.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owas78DZCj8
Maybe he is more of a good money launderer…
Sell us out for TPPA, while at the same time getting us banned from European markets… not sure what is going on?
Key will simply just disagree with the EU.
Key is just that arrogant.
I also notice that the NZ Herald hid this news story quietly away in the business section, rather than emblazoning it on their front page. Surely they have nothing too hide?
Not one word on One News tonight regarding this story.
Oh thats right the public are bored with this and dont understand the complexities.
Another example of political interference and manipulation.
EXACTLY. Our 4th estate now morphs into the National party.
John Key: “Bugger, I thought we’d get away with it”.
I suppose they tick differently on the other side of the globe.
Time to take the All Blacks to Europe to show the European Commission what a wonderful place New Zealand is.
Tax haven – sorted.
so john lied
he needs advice from sir Humphrey
https://youtu.be/8keZbZL2ero
John Key. Millionaire. Successful politician. Habitual liar.
The CV starting to look a bit stained?
Wikileaks needs to hurry up and out him!
Key is just a Chinese puppet. Of course he will do nothing except flee to Hawai’i. Old Zealand might be in Europe, but New Zealand is a vassal state and colony of the Chinese dictatorship that Hong Kong is trying to exit. How moronic are we?
Did you know that the basis of free-trade is Willing buyer, willing seller?
It’s a really important point and one that we should be standing up for across the world. If Europe doesn’t want to buy from us that’s their decision. We don’t have to buy from them either.
In fact, when it comes down to it, that simple basis tells us that we don’t need FTAs or even the WTO which seems to be more about forcing trade rather than free-trade. When China decided to stop selling 95% of their Rare Earths to the rest of the world that is their choice and the Eu and US should not have been able to take them to WTO arbitration to force them to sell.
When we really think about it we shouldn’t be looking for FTAs at all. They actually prevent free trade.
What we need to be doing instead is setting standards that the other nations have to meet before we’ll trade with them. Standards such as:
1. Their minimum wage is similar to ours
2. Their working conditions are the same
3. They protect their environment
4. If they’re a rogue nation or not
etc, etc
Our exchange rate also needs to be properly set. It should be based upon the trade between two countries and not upon how much some individuals are willing to pay. If imports from a country exceed our exports to that country then our dollar value should decrease in relation to that countries currency. As it is we’ve opened ourselves to financial manipulation as we saw in 1987 when John Key with Kreuger(?) crashed our economy so that some of their clients could make money for doing nothing of value.
Do these things and we’ll get free-trade that will actually bring about benefits rather than the present system that is enriching the already wealthy, destroying the environment, squandering resources and will, inevitably, destroy society. Just as capitalism has done throughout history.
Those rare earths that China happens to have a lot of, are rather important for the functioning of our modern IT products and so.
Some things are absolutely essential in modern day societies, so that makes some resource rich countries somewhat powerful, and gives them an advantage compared to those that have little to offer, except perhaps their bare hands to do labour.
“Free Trade” is a concept that is a bit of a lie, Whichever way we look at it.
Without rare earths, without certain medicinal products, without some high tech for hospitals, research and more, we would be stuffed, as there is no way we could deliver on all this ourselves.
Hence we do need some trade, call it “free” or whatever, but I agree with your list of minimum standards we should share with the nations we may trade with, at least we should aim for trading preferably with those that fulfill such requirements.
Prior to China becoming the worlds supplier of Rare Earths the US was. They still have the capability to mine and process them.
New Zealand also has deposits of Rare Earths that we could exploit. There’s something like 140 viable sites around Lake Taupo and several more in Te Wai Pounamu.
That’s where you’re wrong. We actually could provide all those ourselves. We have the resources and the necessary level of productivity to do it. Just need to build the infrastructure so that we can develop the capability.
It would, of course, mean that we would have to give up a lot of farming but considering how much environmental damage that farming does while not providing high level sills or income I’m sure that we’d be better off if we did so.
I think he needs some professional advice?
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