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The crashing of the Inland Revenue Department website yesterday, the deadline for businesses to file GST returns, was a sign of worse to come, Labour revenue spokesman David Clark said.

Inland Revenue has released its first group of benchmarks for 16 industries, which may prove to be a double-edged sword for business operators.

The faith in the integrity of the Inland Revenue Department may be shaken following the sentencing last week of a former department employee for, among other things, tax evasion.

As the festive season draws closer, staff and client functions are on the agenda of many Otago businesses.

The Government has increased funding to the Inland Revenue Department to target the cash economy, the economy where people accept cash for doing jobs but do not report it for tax purposes.

In a rare move, the Inland Revenue is using debt collectors to gather outstanding tax and student-loan payments.

Dunedin tax practitioners are worried privately about an expected 40 jobs going from the city's Inland Revenue Department offices, but Revenue Minister Peter Dunne says no decision has been made.

Serious cash-flow problems for small and medium-sized businesses through GST refunds being withheld by the IRD for extended periods have come under scrutiny.

The Government is considering making PAYE a final tax, removing the need or ability of taxpayers to deal with the Inland Revenue Department, Deloitte Dunedin tax partner Peter Truman says.

Here in Otago we only felt a (significant) tremor on September 4 at 4.38am, but in Canterbury they felt the full impact of the 7.1-magnitude earthquake, and the damage that it and the many aftershocks that followed have left behind has yet to be quantified.