Harvey voices support for online GST

 

salebutton,sale,shopping,online,ecommerceRetailer Gerry Harvey says the current GST exemption on foreign purchases of less than $1000 is “a rort” and believes state and federal treasurers will agree to lower the threshold.

The Harvey Norman chairman and founder says the growth in foreign purchases not subject to GST was out of control.

“It was out of control three years ago, now its totally out of control,” he said.

A proposal to reduce the GST threshold to $20 will be high on the agenda at a meeting of state and federal treasurers in Canberra on Wednesday.

Harvey, who has been a vocal advocate for lowering the threshold, says he is confident the ministers will agree to the move.

“They will correct this, the point is they should have corrected this three years ago,” he said.

The retail king’s wife, Katie Page, who is Harvey Norman’s CEO, earlier told shareholders the current threshold was a “loophole” that needed to be addressed.

“This government has to fix what the previous government couldn’t fix,” she said.

Harvey does not believe lowering the threshold would result in a public backlash against the federal government.

“They (the public) know it’s a rort; how can anybody stand up and say it that’s not a rort?”

But he said a lower GST threshold would have no effect on the business.

“None, it doesn’t affect Harvey Norman,” he told shareholders at the meeting.

He said he had previously spoken out on the threshold because he wanted to draw attention to the “unfair advantage” it gave overseas retailers.

“All I was doing was pointing out that it is totally unfair.”

AAP

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