ODT

LeagueMay 25

League: Lockyer set to equal Origin record

A sell-out crowd of more than 52,000 will be on hand when this year's State of Origin series gets under way at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium tonight.

NationalFebruary 19

Key signals GST rise to 15%

Prime Minister John Key has signalled an increase in GST, across-the-board tax cuts and getting more tax out of property investors.

NationalFebruary 19

Govt defends GST plans

Under fire over plans to raise GST, the Government has sought to assure the public that no one would be worse off due to the price hike and most would be better off due to tax cuts.

NationalFebruary 11

Govt questioned over GST compensation package

The Government says it will be able to compensate people for a proposed hike in GST, as it emerged that households are already facing higher food and power prices.

NationalFebruary 11

Govt faces growing opposition to GST hike

The Maori Party has joined Labour and the Greens as opposition to the Government's plan to raise GST strengthens in Parliament. Prime Minister John Key signalled on Tuesday an increase in GST, across-the-board tax cuts and rule changes to get more tax out of property investors.

NationalFebruary 11

English defends GST proposal

Finance Minister Bill English is defending his change in heart on GST hikes, saying times have changed.

NationalFebruary 10

Key promises tax cuts for all

Big personal tax cuts for middle and high-income earners are likely to be announced in the May Budget and take effect from October this year.

OpinionFebruary 10

Tax plans fail to meet expectations

In the first of a series in which political party finance spokespeople respond to the Government's signalled intentions on tax, GST and the economy, David Cunliffe outlines Labour's position.

EditorialFebruary 10

Taxing matters

When all the rorts, loopholes and mechanisms by which a significant proportion of New Zealanders either avoid paying tax - or, quite legally, are not required to - are taken into account, few people would disagree with the proposition, put forward by the Tax Working Group, that the system is "broken".

BusinessFebruary 10

Fears increasing GST would hurt those on low incomes

There appears to be overwhelming opposition to Prime Minister John Key's plan to raise GST to 15%, judging by the results of an Otago Daily Times teletopics poll.

NationalFebruary 10

Key ruled out GST increase in 2008

During the election campaign John Key ruled out increasing GST.

NationalFebruary 9

Government departments put on notice

Government departments face a tough few years and have been told they must lift their performance with no extra funding.

NationalFebruary 9

Fears GST hike could hit tourism

Some tourism operators who set their prices two years in advance in the international marketplace may be hurt if GST is hiked within that time, the Tourism Industry Association says.

NationalFebruary 9

Govt faces fight over GST hike plan

Opposition parties are going to fight the Government over its plan to raise GST and don't accept assurances that the new tax regime will be fair on low income families.

NationalFebruary 9

Conservation groups vow to fight Government's mining proposals

Conservation groups are vowing to continue fighting Government plans that could lead to mining in conservation areas off-limits to miners.

NationalFebruary 9

It's time for John Key and his ministers to deliver

On Tuesday, John Key will make the most important speech of his political career. The prime minister's address, a set-piece event at the beginning of each parliamentary year, will outline the National-led government's agenda for 2010 and define its economic recovery programme.

NationalFebruary 9

PM says some conservation areas tagged possible for mining

The Government is looking at removing protection for some areas of conservation land so they can be mined, Prime Minister John Key said today.

OpinionFebruary 9

Proposals far from radical

Tax, the prime minister proclaims, is a powerful lever for the Government to boost the economy's performance.

NationalFebruary 9

Taxing times for landlords

Rents are set to increase as "ma and pa" landlords face a double whammy of property tax changes and a proposed hike to GST.

OpinionFebruary 9

Clayton's stimulus politically expedient

Prime Minister John Key's economic growth package is just tax cuts in disguise, says John Armstrong, of The New Zealand Herald.

NationalFebruary 9

John Key's statement: full text

The Government starts 2010 with a very full programme of reform in front of it.

NationalFebruary 9

John Key's statement: main points

Prime Minister John Key outlined his Government's programme for this year in Parliament today.

NationalFebruary 9

Labour concerned by tertiary education plans

The Government is preparing the ground to scrap the fee cap at tertiary educations, put restrictions on who can study and tell institutions what subjects they can teach, Labour Party tertiary education spokeswoman Maryan Street says.

BusinessFebruary 9

Businesses welcome commitment to tax reform

The Government's proposed tax reforms will promote economic growth and plug holes in the existing tax system, business groups say, but a major union has criticised them.

NationalFebruary 9

Education groups unhappy with planned tertiary shake-ups

The Government's planned shake-up of tertiary education is an attack on students and polytechnics, education groups say.

PM's opening statement