Where your taxes go
May 31st, 2012 at 2:00 pm by David FarrarWorth checking out Where are my taxes. It details and shows graphically how much money per capita is spent on various activities. Some big items:
- Superannuation $2,328
- Primary schools $639
- Family Tax Credits $480
- Secondary schools $469
- Tertiary Education $459
- Domestic Purpose Benefit $413
- Land and Transport $401
- Student Loans $373
- Early Childhood Education $313
- Invalid’s Benefit $300
- Accommodation Assistance $282
- Unemployment Beneift $200
- Sickness Benefit $177
- Student Allowances $137
May 31st, 2012 at 2:02 pm
You knows things have swung too far to the left when MSD gets over 26% of the total…
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:02 pm
Wow – I’m surprised to learn that superannuation is so massively bigger than everything else MSD does…
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:08 pm
I love being a battery that others feed off.
if only i were paying my fair share
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:09 pm
It’s not superannuation.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:20 pm
Of course it’s superannuation. $10.24bn, up 6.8% this year.
DPB @ $1.82bn only increased by 0.1%
I’ve been using this site for ages. Also check the top right and click the “view incomes” and see where the money comes from.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:21 pm
For a different take on this, see the Maxim Institute’s Income Tax Tracker:
Vote:http://bit.ly/L47M6i
May 31st, 2012 at 2:24 pm
Why is treasury so large?
[DPF: Debt interest]
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:27 pm
So out of this list I’ve used 3. Primary and secondary schools and Land transport. My kids went to school and I drive on the roads. Cancel the rest and there would be no difference to my life (other than maybe better schools for my kids and better roads)
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Teppic – interest
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:31 pm
“Why is treasury so large?”
Interest on the debt we’ve borrowed over the last 4 years. Total government debt has doubled under National.
The debt interest bill, not capital, just interest is about the same as our defense and police spending combined
Hence the critical need to get into surplus and start paying down the capital.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:44 pm
I think I deserve patsy of the week for that one…
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:44 pm
The devil is in the detail.
How much of this public tax money across each sector is going to private sector consultants and contractors?
What is the NAME of the consultant / contractor?
The SCOPE of the contract?
The TERM of the contract?
The VALUE of the contract?
Where’s the ‘Register of Interests’ – available for public scrutiny – to double-check for any untoward ‘conflicts of interest’ between those who are awarding and those who are awarded these contracts?
Where’s the ‘cost-benefit’ analysis which PROVES that all this ‘contracting out’ of services that were once provided ‘in-house’
by ‘public servants’ is more ‘cost-effective’ for the public majority?
Penny Bright
‘Anti-corruption campaigner’
http://www.dodgyjohnhasgone.com
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:47 pm
Obviously a lot more school kids will have their taxes increased, and teacher numbers chopped in order to keep the PM’s super promise.
A 10% rise in super is larger than many of the items on this list.
What’s more, on average super recipients are way wealthier than the people paying the taxes to support them!
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:47 pm
Penny – if you want to know that information, why don’t you put in requests under the OIA?
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 2:49 pm
freedom101 – I don’t think you’ll find many people on this site disagreeing with you re national super.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 3:02 pm
y’know, between…
…dribble…
and
‘fucking rabbits ears’ around everything
Im rapidly turning into a grammer nazi.
Dear Batshit lady. If its any consolation whatsoever, when I was consulting, up until late last year, I always charged my public sector clients only $1,500 per day plus expenses.
Im sure you will be relieved by that
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 3:17 pm
Eh, what is the biggest item? Can’t see it, can’t see it, can’t see it!!!!
Well, if my name was John Key.
Still borrowing $250 million a week in this age of austerity and zero budget?
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 3:21 pm
Super is clearly affordable as long as you commit to continuous tax rises, increased government debt and cuts to services delivered to non-voters.
Tui billboard.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 3:39 pm
And $42 million subsidising private schools as John Minto of all people points out which somewhat less than ironically boast small class sizes as one of their main features and the saving from increasing state school class sizes is $43 million. Surely that is simply too cute and there is a mathematical error in Minto’s calculation.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 3:52 pm
Mark (565) it is much cheaper for the government to subsidise private schooling then it would be to provide no subsidies and have those children go to public schools. Why on earth the government don’t convey this is beyond me. Do you honestly believe that the public schooling sector can EVER compete with private with regards to class sizes? It will never happen but what the government can do is try to compete on teacher quality which is MORE important (research supports this).
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 3:55 pm
Australia has 30%+ pupils at private schools. In NZ it’s around 2%. A simple tax incentive to parents to send their kids to private schools would most likely reduce the overall cost to the state.
eg: Offer a $5000 tax rebate.
Saving to the taxpayer: considerable, as it costs much more than that per pupil in the state system.
Reducing private fees by $5000 would induce a large take up by parents who currently cannot afford it.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 4:12 pm
freedom101 – you would find that over time, school fees would increase by the amount of the subsidy.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 4:32 pm
gassmaniac. Maybe, maybe not. It’s supply and demand. Not all private school fees are the same now. I suspect lowering fees would simply increase the number and diversity of schools. Some would offer entry level pricing and some would offer premium pricing. It’s more likely that there would be an expansion at the bottom of the market as the top of the market is already pretty price insensitive.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 5:05 pm
Sorry to be a spelling Nazi, but I think you’ll find it’s “grammar” not “grammer.”
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 6:00 pm
S’ok StH, was on a computer that doesn’t have spell check enabled, you’re right. Not your right, you’re right
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 6:21 pm
Actually Working For Families costs $651 per capita, you forgot the Inwork Family Tax credit, the internal transfer and the admin cost.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 6:46 pm
Also interesting Debt Servicing costs $838 per capita, the biggest single item after National Super, with WFF third. The DMO says the current average total debt interest rate is 3.7% with the current 90-day bills about 2.5% (for reference: in October 2008 the 90-day rate was 9.2%). A 1% (100b.p.) increase in the interest rate will cost NZ an extra $1.1 billion a year, going back to the old 9-10% days (of only four years ago) would destroy NZ – we would be in a negative feedback death spiral just like Greece where you’re borrowing more just to service the interest. Even an increase in the general economic growth climate = higher interest rates = either more taxes or debt required to service existing loans, it’s going to be a long hard road for NZ (and the world) getting out of this.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 6:58 pm
Freedom 101 #
“…Australia has 30%+ pupils at private schools. In NZ it’s around 2%….”
Are you sure ?
Why then does early childhood education cost 65% of 98% of the entire total secondry education cost for NZ? [$313 against $469]
This seems to be very wrong when you are talking 2-3-4 yrlds.And the fact that child care minders[teaching is hardly a third of their days work] are one of the lowest paid jobs in the country !
Where does the money go ?
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 7:06 pm
Freedom #
Also, NZ is largely atheist, where private schools are mostly religious based.Religions would then not see the viability of opening more shools in NZ.
And THAT is the cost to NZ of being largly atheist.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 7:34 pm
Mark #
“…Surely that is simply too cute and there is a mathematical error in Minto’s calculation…”
Your right.Minto is totaly useless at maths.
When Minto had a blog over at Stuff, he commented from time to time on education costs.
Minto would NEVER acknowledge the facts that those who send their kids to private schools ALSO pay taxes, and that the government HAS to provide a BASIC education to EVERY kid in NZ, and that kids at private schools then only recieve about 60% of that government OBLIGATION[Private schools get funded by government at about 60% of the cost to educate a state kid] but their parents, through tax, pay for that OBLIGATION that their child is ENTITLED to.
I used to tell Minto that the government was not doing it’s job if private kids were not receiving the government OBLIGATION in FULL for a BASIC education -or that- those in State schools are recieving MORE than the governments OBLIGATION to ONLY PROVIDE a BASIC education.
He’s a marxist – only work to a basic level of competance and get paid only what you need.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 8:17 pm
If the goal is getting back to surplus, obviously superannuation is a distraction.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 8:53 pm
There’s quite a bit of nonsense talked about private schools. the facts seem pretty clear to me. If you choose to send your child to a private school, then please don’t have the cheek to ask for some extra from your fellow taxpayers. They are already providing an excellent education system that your child can use. Private schools save bugger all money for the government. If all the private schools in the country shut up shop, their pupils could still be readily accommodated in the state system – it’s doubtful that the additional marginal costs would even be as much as the present government subsidies to private operators.
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 9:21 pm
Mikenmild,
Amazing that marginal costs are so low in education. I guess on that basis we must be paying a huge amount more per capita than larger nations. Is that a fact though?
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 9:26 pm
Nationmaster tells my Ireland spends significantly less per primary school student than the uk. How can that be? http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/edu_spe_per_pri_sch_stu-spending-per-primary-school-student
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 10:41 pm
@ gazzmaniac “you would find that over time, school fees would increase by the amount of the subsidy.”
You make a fine case for government regulation….
Vote:May 31st, 2012 at 11:10 pm
I wonder if that is the same mikenmild who is worried about class sizes increasing. The marginal effect of adding one or two kids to a class must surely be very low!
Given its massive cost, why on earth does the government feel so obligated to pay the old age pension to all and sundry whether they need it or not?
Of course it is not really superannuation because it is not paid out of any kind of accumulated fund! Superannuation implies people have contributed so are obliged to get something in return. Paying taxes that are all spent every year does not entitle anyone to a welfare benefit (based purely on age) that they have no need for!
Vote:June 1st, 2012 at 10:33 am
I notice it doesn’t include the wealth transfer and de facto tax machine that is the ACC…
Vote:June 2nd, 2012 at 4:28 am
Great to see National have promised to tackle the number one cause of our defecit then….
Oh wait.
I guess since they caused this item of expenditure in the greatest bribe ever (see Muldoon) they can’t go about fixing it.
Vote: