In the #NiccolaWillis interview with #JackTame, she said that most people will act legally, and so will not use a VPN to gamble offshore

Can anyone clarify? Is she going to make #offshore #gambling #illegal? Or #VPNs illegal? What did she actually mean?

@peteo it's about avoiding the new tax, if you use a VPN you can avoid their new offshore gambling gax

@solewhitelight
But which of these is Willis looking to make illegal? Gambling offshore, or using a VPN, or a combination?

(It was surprising to when she said during the interview "I heard about VPNs last week" I would have expected a little more awareness of privacy from an MP)

@peteo Tax avoidance is already illegal, it would be like an online store not charging GST and thus selling cheaper goods compared to stores that do charge gst

@solewhitelight
I don't think it is like online shopping.

What happens if my account is based in Australia, and I never bring money in?
What happens if I am visiting for a couple of months? Do I need to start an account from NZ? So many permutations to consider...

And isn't it naive of Willis to say "most NZers will do the legal thing" ? IRD estimates that 25% of NZers took part in the cash only economy each year, and estimate white collar crime is "in the billions"

@peteo yeah I'm not a lawyer so I don't know how all that stuff works 😅 At a guess I would say if you were in NZ during the transaction then it would apply to you? But I really don't know.

And yeah it is a bit naive of her

@peteo , lol, if monetary gain is involved they'll educate themselves to avoid it.
Not a good sign for a politician to make guesstimates about human nature and then declare herself a spokesperson for them.