Responding to calls by Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown for rates to be charged on Government buildings and to share GST on new-build houses, Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns Manager, Connor Molloy, said:

“Government-owned properties require the same infrastructure as privately-owned properties. There’s no reason why local ratepayers should be forced to pay the full infrastructure costs associated with properties that are intended to benefit the country at large.

“We have long called for GST sharing on new-builds to help ensure that infrastructure funding is linked to development compared with the status quo where central government reaps the benefits of new construction while local ratepayers bear the cost.

“Simplifying the rating system and ensuring that additional funding is linked to growth is vital for putting good incentives on councils to allow development rather than stifle it with bureaucratic red tape to allow core infrastructure to catch up.

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