Fed: Govt committed to GST finetuning: Howard

AAP General News (Australia)
08-17-2001
Fed: Govt committed to GST finetuning: Howard

CANBERRA, Aug 17 AAP - The government was committed to fine tuning the GST on caravan
park rents and in other areas, Prime Minister John Howard said today.

Mr Howard said the government was not about to drop the GST on caravan park rents,
but was trying to find ways of simplifying the accounting procedures surrounding its imposition.

The government has been under pressure since the GST's introduction to help permanent
caravan park residents who pay tax on their rent.

The GST is not applied to other rents.

Mr Howard said simplifying the GST on caravan park rents was an example of the government's
commitment to ongoing fine tuning of the tax.

"At the moment, most of the caravan park operators argue that the accounting involved
in it all and the procedures are such that it is less attractive to offer the input taxing
option than the reduced GST option," he told Melbourne radio 3AW.

"We are looking at ways of making it more attractive to offer the former rather than
the later but we are not altering the law.

"I have always said that if you can simplify it and fine tune it then we are ready
to do so and I have never made any apology for that and I will go on doing it in not only
this but other areas."

AAP sw/kjp/mg/bwl

KEYWORD: TAX HOWARD

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