SHOW US THE MONEY

“Show us the money! Show us the money!”

In the first of two televised debates held in early November for election 2011, that was the repeated one-liner that National’s John Key used to pressure Phil Goff over Labour’s election promises.

Disappointingly Goff failed to respond with any conviction whatsoever. Even more disappointing both Key and Goff completely ignored the obvious answer. In these globalised times, to fund our social and economic recovery, tax the banks on every speculative transaction they make in our territories.

How would that work?

In England it’s being promoted as the Robin Hood bank tax. Of course the banks are screaming blue murder that it would be horribly complex, unfair to individual rich members of the public, terribly tough on the banking sector, and would be of minimal benefit to the poor. But let’s unpack these objections and see whether they hold water or not.

First, how tough has this recession been on the banking sector? This is the same sector that has over the past four years received trillions of dollars worth of taxpayers moneys from across the globe to keep it going, and is still paying itself billions of dollars in bonuses. Sound like tough times to you?

Second, how unfair would this be on rich members of the public? The taxes proposed would be charged on all bank transactions that do not include members of the public; bonds, derivatives, currencies, speculative stuff. The bankers would give something like 0.05% on each deal that they did, sometimes even less. Does that does sound unfair to you?

Third, how minimal would these benefits be? Even the most conservative estimates suggest that this tiny tax on the banks would raise hundreds of billions of dollars every year across the globe, Not only would that help save lives and fund vital environmental action around the world, it would help avoid cuts to crucial public services here in this country and fund improved outcomes for us all.

Every one standing in this election says they care, and are going to do something about our falling standards of living and rising poverty. So, in the debate between the two who are most likely to form some kind of government after the election, that’s what I was listening for. What are they going to do? How are we going to pay for it?

What I heard Key say was that National would sell assets to fund education, housing and health, while Goff said Labour would rejig taxes to do the same. But neither gave me a clear vision of what that would look like.

The answer is as plain as the nose on Goff’s face; don’t sell our assets and don’t just take GST off fruit and veges; tax the banks.

The MANA movement has renamed it the Hone Heke tax, and it’s the only sensible answer to John Key’s challenge to, “Show us the money!”