Incoming revenue minister Todd McClay faces some big challenges in his new job, including coming to grips with 160 pages of new legislation before Parliament, Polson Higgs tax partner Michael Turner says.
Mr McClay, who was chairman of the finance and expenditure committee in Parliament, has been made revenue minister and associate health minister after Peter Dunne's fall from grace last week.
Mr McClay will be sworn in as a minister outside today, Prime Minister John Key said in a statement yesterday.
Mr Turner said Inland Revenue was at the start of a new computer project costing about $1 billion over the next 10 years.
''We have seen from Novopay that the Government is a bit sensitive about throwing money at these sorts of IT projects. McClay will want to get up to speed quickly before he writes out any cheques.''
Last week, a 160-page tax Bill was reported back to Parliament with another two tax Bills expected back to the House later this year, Mr Turner said.
The new minister would have a ''bit of work'' ahead of him understanding the tax programme and getting it through Parliament appropriately. While he would have some understanding of revenue through the chairmanship of the FEC, Mr Turner said, Mr McClay had not worked with the IRD and that was also a challenge ahead for him.
Mr Dunne had been there for so many years that he would have got to know the department officials and would have known whose advice to trust.
''We have seen ministers hung out to dry by officials, so McClay will have to learn quickly who he can rely on. We also have a reasonably new commissioner Naomi Ferguson in the top role. There is a lot on his plate from day one,'' he said.
Mr Key said the associate conservation role held by Mr Dunne would be discontinued, and those responsibilities picked up by Conservation Minister Nick Smith.
''I look forward to welcoming Mr McClay to the executive,'' Mr Key said.
''He has proven himself to be a valuable member of the National Party caucus over the past four and a-half years.''
Mr McClay's appointment comes after Mr Dunne resigned when he refused to release emails between himself and Fairfax Media journalist Andrea Vance for an investigation into the leak of a Government Communications Security Bureau report.
Mr Dunne refused to hand over the full text of 86 email exchanges to investigator David Henry, instead offering an edited text of some of the messages.
The report was authored by Rebecca Kitteridge, seconded from Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet to conduct an urgent compliance review of the government spy agency. The report was classified as ''sensitive'', restricting its access to approved public servants and ministers.
