Page 2502 - Week 06 - Thursday, 23 June 2011

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them to make the case to government that they should get the remission, that they should not have to pay the tax like everyone else. But some will be able to make that case. Some will be able to make that case in various ways. It is a recipe for dodgy dealing when you set up a tax that is so obviously distortional and is so obviously wrong in terms of its values that the only way to make the legislation work is for people not to pay all of that tax.

The alternative is clear, and that is that you set it at a reasonable rate. You set it at a reasonable rate in the first place and then you do not have to have all of this complexity and all of this potential for dodgy dealings by setting it at a reasonable rate.

The internal contradictions are there. Mr Barr did not bother to address these. If these are the market values, why are they not being reflected now under rectification? If these are the market values that you have got in your schedules, why are they not being reflected under rectification? You will have the opportunity. You can get up again and tell us. Resolve that contradiction for us, Mr Barr. Please get up. You will have another 10 minutes. You can tell us: if these are the right rates, why is it that they are not being reflected in rectification now? If you cannot answer that question, then it demonstrates that the rates are wrong.

There is no room to move on that, Mr Barr. So you will have the floor. You can tell us: if the rates are correct, why are they not being currently reflected in rectification? You have got 10 minutes. Take your time.

Question put:

That Ms Hunter’s amendments be agreed to.

The Assembly voted—

Question so resolved in the affirmative.

Amendments agreed to.

Question put:

That the remainder of bill, as a whole, as amended, be agreed to.

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