Another FNM MP, addressed his concern about the increase in Value Added Tax (VAT)  in the House of Assembly yesterday.

Long Island MP, Adrian Gibson said that while he agrees that there is a need to increase VAT, particularly so The Bahamas can be accepted to The WTO, he believes the timing for preparation was inadequate.

“While I support the increase in VAT and the simultaneous reduction and eventual elimination of customs duty on various imports, I’m concerned that there wasn’t a greater degree of public consultation and or consultation with big business, and or the business community, Gibson said.

“Given the concerns being expressed, the increase perhaps should be postponed until the third or even the fourth quarter, as opposed to immediate implementation on the 1st of July.”

The Long Island MP, said in his constituency, he’s been faced with many questions, and in his opinion, this postponement would allow business persons to organize their accounts and their affairs.

“I spoke to Long Island business persons and even chatted with Mr. Rupert Roberts this morning and I can tell you that many of them feel that a brief postponement will be more palatable.”

“There is no such thing as a free lunch, and as we seek better infrastructure that will translate into new opportunities in The Bahamas, to attain the same, we must understand that the either the government has to raise the funds through taxation or borrow.

“We cannot have our cake and eat it too. It is a give and take,” he said.

“There’s a need to raise taxes of the VAT from 7.5 per cent to 12 percent, particularly given our accession to the World Trade Organization, because the country needs supplemental taxation to reduce legacy debt, and of course customs duty will in large part be eliminated and or greatly reduced, when we are slated to join the WTO in December 2019.”

“Our country can no longer survive off credit; moving forward, I’d suggest we also implement a debt ceiling,” he said.