Over a year out from the next general election and a month before this year's budget is revealed National and Labour are butting heads about the best way to tax New Zealanders.
Labour leader Phil Goff has said Labour would reverse any changes made to the 38 cent tax rate, which looks likely to be lowered in next month's budget, and the threshold would be higher than the current $70,000.
He said Labour would look at raising the threshold for those on low and middle incomes to avoid them being lifted up a tax bracket when their pay increases.
"What we're talking about is the tax cuts being fair to all New Zealanders.
"We would be looking at a rate of taxation that's not much different from the 38 cents in the dollar as the top rate but increasing the threshold so you didn't get to that level until you were earning very high incomes."
He defined high incomes as "six figures".
"What I'm committed to doing in ensuring that the tax system and the tax cuts are fair to middle and low income earners and not just going to the people at the top as National is proposing," Mr Goff told reporters this morning.
Finance Minister Bill English said Mr Goff's comments were "the same old Labour Party coming back -- put up taxes, spend more, borrow a lot and hope people vote for you".
"We're going to announce our package in the budget, it'll be a package that is good for the economy and good for families and reflects the circumstances we're in at the moment."
Labour's plans were "reckless" in the current climate where governments have big deficits and it was going to get harder to borrow money and they would leave a "big burden of debt for the next generation".
The budget would underline the National Government's credentials as a "responsible manager of worker and business taxes with a growth plan and a tax system that better rewards hard work and enterprise", Mr English said.
