HARBOR BOARD DEBENTURES.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 October 1920, Page 5

HARBOR BOARD DEBENTURES.

OBJECTION TO PAYING TAX.. ' j. PREMIER, NOT SYMPATHETIC,' '* By Toleeraph.—Pr«« AuoettUoa. Wellington, Last Nlghfc » Protests against the provision* <rf acts, tain clauses in the Land and I&omt' ® Tax Bill were made to-day bjr . d** ■ ! " putatiou from tiie H&rborjffjardi At*. sociation which waited oa 'Bux Pri miof« Sir. J. O. Harkness (prewupt' (: that - said the objicftwn o thv '' Association Was to ai 1 !%'»? £ which required harbor boardi to bjeonfi 3 tax-gatherers, by making thfim ■" t ible for income tax on 1 detatifteiLtlMty-. . liad issued. ,*The <jiefy proWJion| Beaqt % that inventors wbufd not "receive thd full rate of interest wiieh the boarda contracted to pay, and the fact Would • ® affect detrimentally the '' position, for investors would not be 'l £ ready to take up debenture*. . people holding harbor board debenttirW ' , were not liable for income tax life •$) *, : and they would liave the utmost dwt'; , culty in securing from the _ a refund of the amount that bandit would be compelled to collect. Mr. Massey interjected that boaribi? I were not required to pay but nin*Ji ly to collect it. which would be- B9it , breach of faith on the part of fhfrV-' J boards. K » Mr. Harkness would not aooept th^p statement position. Investors, said, would 'consider there had Man jjfl t breach of faith, and the credit qf tiw '- ' harbor boards would suffer. It wouM ■' I be jiifit as much a breach of faith *» j jf the Government collected tax ofl - its own free of income tax debentures Mr. Massey said tHafc Harbor ddben« i tures were taxable at present,' and th* '■?' Government wag losing a great deal aa> .• j mially because it had not been able tf. collect what ought to be paid by tts < 1 people holding them. The Bill proposes C ' to place boards in the samepositlon a* f companies in the matter of collection <tf - J tax on their shares. The Bill applied ■ " only to interest paid in New Zealand. Mr. Jull (Napier) said that board* would have to make provision to meet* the new condition, and would havfc to! 1 increase their dues. > Mr. Masscy assured the deputation, that the Government was not going tyi inflict any hardship upon harbor boards j or any other local authorities. Not one > penny was to be collected from them. Mr. J, M, Dickson (Chalmers): «1' hope some of our arguments haVe Im- , pressed you." , t Mr. Mqssey: "Well,, they haVenot.^