If the planned changes to privacy of tax information proceeded, the Inland Revenue Department may hand over personal information to credit rating agencies. The confidentiality of personal information is the primary concern for IRD, shared Inland Revenue Commissioner Bob Russell with the Parliament's finance and expenditure select committee today.

As a part of the Making Tax Easier proposal open for public discussion, controls on taxpayers’ information were relaxed. The tax information is supposed to be kept as a secret by the IRD, but with some legal exceptions.

IRD will be able to share information with other Government agencies, with the help of changes proposed under the Making Tax Easier proposal. The Ministry of Social Development will be benefitted the most by this proposal.

Credit reporting agencies should have an access to personal information, according to MPs.

The proposal on the IRD's website revealed that people will be more willing to pay their tax debt, if they are familiar with the fact that the debt could harmfully affect their credit rating, which will consequently influence their capacity to borrow money.

Fellow Labour MP Stuart Nash shared that the information can be given to credit rating agencies, which could negotiate public faith in the IRD.

Mr. Russel said, “What's that doing to the integrity of the tax system, if it's in the media and people believe that we've done things and in fact we haven't”.