Random Impertinent Questions
Labour want cheaper fruit and vegetables to cut down on obesity.
Question: - If they removed GST on fresh fruit and vegetables, how much money would Parekura Horomia save?
Argument over. An example of a terribly targeted policy.
Question: - If they removed GST on fresh fruit and vegetables, how much money would Parekura Horomia save?
Argument over. An example of a terribly targeted policy.
posted by Cactus Kate at 12:20 AM
10 Comments:
Horomia earns more than enough money as an MP for a discount of 15% to not really effect his buying habits. If your argument is a factual one (eg that this won't result in more people buying fresh food) then take a look at the research. It shows that a 12.5% drop resulted in an 11% increase in consumption.
My biggest concern is that because of the duopoly operating in NZ Supermarkets, that a 15% discount won't follow upon zero rating GST. I know the response is that the small vegetable stores will, and then recieve more customers, but the fact is that those stores are already quite a bit cheaper but people still prefer supermarkets.
http://asianinvasion2006.blogspot.com/2010/04/nanny-rahui-having-her-cake-and-eating.html
Josh - I discussed the supposed "research" here. It is nonsense. don't believe everything dropped from a University with pinkist spin.
Sorry, what?
As a confirmed right-winger, Cactus, I would have assumed that you're all for using market mechanisms for socially useful purposes.
It's reasonably well established that fruit and vegetables are healthier than fast food so what's the problem?
That said, I don't like the extra administration that such a policy requires.
That Goff is a great bloke... all he seems to do is make Key look good. Imagine if key had real opposition..
The idea is that people will tend to buy cheaper products,like coca cola and white bread for example.
If a big vegetable lowers its price its more likely to be sold,
Edward
Well I would prefer people were allowed to eat whatever the hell they wanted - and their unhealthy lifestyle is paid for in user pays fault based healthcare.
For example you can eat what you want if you run it off. "Unhealthy" foods are therefore only damaging if the simple formula is not adhered to calories in < energy expended.
It would take no time for the prices to go back to pre GST levels, whatever they are for produce. The supermarkets would pocket the difference citing seasonality, demand, weather events etc and no one would be any the wiser. Are Labour going to police profit margins as well? A badly thought out mass appeal loopy idea.
If it is such a bloody great idea in Labour's eyes why didn't they do it over the 9 miserable years that they had a chance to? I think it is a dopey idea. All the fat ignorant populace who spend great amounts on crap food aren't going to suddenly say " oh goody fresh veg is GST free, I think I will buy some and go home and cook it or make a nice salad" Not bloody likely. They don't eat healthy food
Radio Live talkback radio host Willie Jackson was thrilled to bits with Labour's promise to remove GST off fruit and veges. But a woman called in to say she had given up working for a church charity which dished out food parcels as she was sick of the ingratitude and ineptitude of the recipients as they asked for the fruit and veges to be replaced by packaged food as they couldn't be bothered cooking and had no interest in attending cooking classes.
I also had a mate, a trained chef and dietician, who taught DPB mums how to cook cheap, tasty and easy meals. She was full of hope and energy going into the course, but emerged disillusioned and angry, as the beneficiaries really had no interest. Doing the 12 week course was supposed to upskill these women into greater self-sufficiency and show a potential employer that they had stickability. When my mate complained to the WINZ manager about the poor attitudes and attendance of these useless women, she was told to ignore it, as these women all had "low self-esteem" and therefore couldn't be held to account.
I can't see how either raising or lowering GST will make any difference to the willfully ignorant underclasses who vote Labour.
cheers,sally
There is no such thing as unhealthy food, there are only unhealthy people.
Why should Govt decide for me what is healthy or not just because people are too lazy to look after themselves?
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