Govt vows to clear tax impediments
The Federal Government has signalled that along with its Budget announcement of a cut to withholding tax, it will be moving to ensure its tax review simplifies the arrangements covering the financial services industry.
The Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation, Craig Emerson, has told a financial services conference that the impediments to the financial services industry represented by tax complexity had been identified by research commissioned by the Investment and Financial Services Association.
He said that the research, conducted by Access Economics, had pointed out that most concern expressed during consultations with the industry had related to the complexity of the tax arrangements rather than the rates themselves.
“No doubt the (tax) review being headed by the Treasury Secretary, Ken Henry, will take an interest in the unending challenge of simplifying the tax system without creating unintended loopholes,” Emerson said.
“The Rudd Government will do everything it feasibly can to remove impediments to and enhance the capacity of the financial services industry to form a financial hub in the Asia-Pacific region,” he said.
“We will help remove impediments by reforming business regulation and negotiating improved access for financial services in Asia. And we will enhance the industry’s capacity through our education policies including Asian languages and immigration,” Emerson said.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
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