1 00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:09,240 Speaker 1: Questions, answers, Thanks analysis, the drive show you trust for 2 00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:13,319 Speaker 1: the full picture. Heather Duplessy and drive with one New 3 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:16,159 Speaker 1: Zealand let's get connected news talks that'd be. 4 00:00:17,760 --> 00:00:20,960 Speaker 2: Hey, good afternoon. The government has ditched the Digital Services 5 00:00:21,040 --> 00:00:23,400 Speaker 2: Tax bill. This means they're not going to try to 6 00:00:23,440 --> 00:00:25,800 Speaker 2: make Google and Facebook's own a meta and various other 7 00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:28,280 Speaker 2: tech companies pay more tax than New Zealand. Simon Watts 8 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:29,600 Speaker 2: is the Revenue Minister. 9 00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:31,600 Speaker 3: High Simon, Hey, very good afternoon. 10 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:34,240 Speaker 2: Hither so did the Trump administration put you off? 11 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:38,440 Speaker 3: Look, it's a factor that we took into account. Obviously, 12 00:00:38,520 --> 00:00:41,080 Speaker 3: the recent developments that have been going on, including those 13 00:00:41,120 --> 00:00:43,840 Speaker 3: in the US, have naturally formed part of our assessment. 14 00:00:44,080 --> 00:00:45,360 Speaker 3: But at the end of the day, I took a 15 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:47,839 Speaker 3: look at this tax. We've been looking at it a bit, 16 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 3: and it's got some real drawbacks and we've made the 17 00:00:51,120 --> 00:00:53,600 Speaker 3: decision to pull it from their gender. 18 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:57,319 Speaker 2: Did Trump administration talk to you guys one on one 19 00:00:57,440 --> 00:00:59,320 Speaker 2: or are you just reading the tea leaves from comments 20 00:00:59,360 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 2: they've made. 21 00:01:01,040 --> 00:01:04,479 Speaker 3: No, there's no discussion one on one on this specific matter. 22 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:06,920 Speaker 3: But you know, the reality is as you would expect. 23 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 3: You know, where we're taking a look naturally at all 24 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:12,520 Speaker 3: of the factors going on. I think the thing about 25 00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:15,560 Speaker 3: this tax is it's got a number of drawbacks. It 26 00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:18,920 Speaker 3: doesn't actually tax profit, it actually tax income or losses, 27 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:20,720 Speaker 3: so a company could actually be in losses and be 28 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:23,840 Speaker 3: still subject to the tax. UK put in place this 29 00:01:23,920 --> 00:01:25,920 Speaker 3: in twenty twenty and what they found is actually the 30 00:01:25,959 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 3: tax has got passed on to consumers. And you know 31 00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:31,120 Speaker 3: that's a big issue for us in the cost of 32 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:33,880 Speaker 3: living crisis. And you know, I had a number of 33 00:01:33,880 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 3: concerns on the actual underlying drawbacks of the tax, but 34 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:39,640 Speaker 3: it's a big number on our P and L and 35 00:01:39,920 --> 00:01:41,679 Speaker 3: hence we wanted to make sure we kicked the ties 36 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:44,039 Speaker 3: on that before we pulled it. The other big thing 37 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:48,600 Speaker 3: is actually in April the OECD grouping of countries, which 38 00:01:48,600 --> 00:01:51,320 Speaker 3: about one hundred and forty countries, have made an agreement 39 00:01:51,360 --> 00:01:54,760 Speaker 3: to support a multilateral solution. I've watching New Zealand's part 40 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:57,200 Speaker 3: of and our viewer is that's a better way to 41 00:01:57,240 --> 00:01:59,760 Speaker 3: progress on that, and so that work's going to probably 42 00:01:59,800 --> 00:02:02,200 Speaker 3: pick up in the next months to year to come 43 00:02:02,240 --> 00:02:04,960 Speaker 3: and hopefully brings a much more enduring solution to this problem. 44 00:02:05,000 --> 00:02:06,640 Speaker 2: I think's actually going to happen though, I mean, because 45 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:09,440 Speaker 2: multilateral things hardly ever actually bear fruit. 46 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:12,680 Speaker 3: Well, heah, it is hard to say, right, I mean, 47 00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:16,560 Speaker 3: you're right, these are challenging and ongoing conversations. But as 48 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:18,280 Speaker 3: I said, you know, the one hundred and forty countries 49 00:02:18,320 --> 00:02:20,360 Speaker 3: to make a call in April of this year to say, hey, 50 00:02:20,400 --> 00:02:22,520 Speaker 3: we're going to work on it. The technical works actually 51 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 3: all being done. It's now ready for the countries to 52 00:02:25,639 --> 00:02:27,720 Speaker 3: get some agreement on it. That's a lot better than 53 00:02:27,720 --> 00:02:28,560 Speaker 3: where it was in the past. 54 00:02:28,639 --> 00:02:30,240 Speaker 2: I mean, do we just need to accept that. Look, 55 00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:33,200 Speaker 2: we'd all love to tax Google and Facebook, but probably 56 00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:34,400 Speaker 2: just never will be able to. 57 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:38,839 Speaker 3: Well, look, the reality is, you know it might sound good, 58 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:41,520 Speaker 3: but those that tax is going to get passed on 59 00:02:41,560 --> 00:02:44,920 Speaker 3: to consumers. So whether you're using Amazon or you're using 60 00:02:45,639 --> 00:02:48,440 Speaker 3: door Dashed or to your food, you know, those tax 61 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:50,680 Speaker 3: are going to flow through to consumers. And this goverment's 62 00:02:50,720 --> 00:02:53,680 Speaker 3: really focused on making sure that we're not putting more 63 00:02:54,080 --> 00:02:57,079 Speaker 3: costs on New Zealanders. And this is one example of 64 00:02:57,160 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 3: us taking that pressure off in the future. 65 00:03:00,040 --> 00:03:02,000 Speaker 2: Out of ten, what are the chances of power cuts 66 00:03:02,040 --> 00:03:02,639 Speaker 2: next winter? 67 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:07,320 Speaker 3: God, next winter? Although that's a bit you know, that's 68 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:09,880 Speaker 3: I think that pretty low in the context of where 69 00:03:09,919 --> 00:03:13,079 Speaker 3: we are. But I am worried about energy security. Obviously, 70 00:03:13,160 --> 00:03:15,720 Speaker 3: my main focus is this winter, and obviously. 71 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:18,079 Speaker 2: This winter we seem to be okay. It's next winter 72 00:03:18,120 --> 00:03:18,960 Speaker 2: that's the problem. 73 00:03:19,720 --> 00:03:21,520 Speaker 3: Yeah, but we've done a lot of actions to make 74 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:23,760 Speaker 3: sure that this winter wasn't you know, coming into this 75 00:03:23,880 --> 00:03:27,080 Speaker 3: job back in January, this winter was at risk and 76 00:03:27,120 --> 00:03:30,280 Speaker 3: we've got a number of actions and around Stockpilot, Huntley 77 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:32,520 Speaker 3: and all of that. But yeah, next year it remains 78 00:03:32,520 --> 00:03:35,440 Speaker 3: at risk. But I'm working pretty hard with all of 79 00:03:35,480 --> 00:03:37,920 Speaker 3: the players in the market to make sure we're mitigating 80 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:39,520 Speaker 3: that risk as much as I can. And it's a 81 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:42,240 Speaker 3: major it is my priority in the energy portfolio. 82 00:03:42,560 --> 00:03:44,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, good stuff, Simon, Thanks very much, appreciate it. Simon, 83 00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:47,160 Speaker 2: Wat's Revenue Minister and obviously energy Minister. Will come back 84 00:03:47,200 --> 00:03:47,800 Speaker 2: to that in the tab. 85 00:03:48,320 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive, listen live to 86 00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:54,640 Speaker 1: news Talks. It'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow 87 00:03:54,680 --> 00:03:56,440 Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio.