Summarised by Centrist
Labour has agreed to campaign on a limited capital gains tax (CGT) covering investment properties but excluding the family home and farms.
The 28 percent tax would apply only to future sales, starting July 2027.
The plan, approved almost unanimously by Labour’s caucus and policy council, ends months of internal debate over whether to pursue a wealth tax or a broader CGT. Party leader Chris Hipkins said the revenue would help pay for a new “Medicard” scheme, giving “a limited number of free GP visits.”
According to RNZ, the caucus settled on a property-only CGT “to help fund a new scheme offering a limited number of free GP visits.” The tax “would not be retrospective” and would affect profits from property sales other than the family home and farms.
An RNZ–Reid Research poll last month found 43 percent support for a CGT on investment properties, 36 percent opposed, and 22 percent undecided.
The policy marks a shift from Hipkins’ pre-election position ruling out any CGT or wealth tax, a decision that prompted then–revenue minister David Parker to resign. Hipkins later reopened the issue, calling for a “blank page” approach and saying he personally preferred a CGT over a wealth tax.
Labour’s last three leaders. Phil Goff, David Cunliffe, and Jacinda Ardern, each tried and failed to introduce a capital gains tax. Ardern famously dropped the idea in 2019, saying she would “never revisit it while leader.”
The new policy is Labour’s latest attempt to show direction after months of criticism from National that the opposition had “offered only criticism and no fresh ideas” since losing the 2023 election.
