EDITOR, The Tribune.

YOUR columnist Dick Coulson argues again for Income but has he done his homework?

Take the GDP (which is far from the aggregate) of say $23,000.00 - an Income tax of 20 percent would generate only $864m… 30 percent would raise $1.29 billion…40 percent would generate $1.72 billion.

All Income Tax regimes allow for concessions - mortgages, financing , schooling, health insurance, etc, so how much could a Coulson Income tax regime collect?

NIB contributions have to go up 20-30% - it will have to be at the high income end that the largest increases will have to occur.

VAT is a consumption tax so rationally you will keep the basics low with exemptions as you don’t want to put too much burden there but it is a consumption tax ‘you the consumer choose to purchase the service or item’ - a free choice.

I am unsure about the ozone thing in the Budget - has someone run the estimates as the tax exemptions against tax increases?

Owing to the limited size of the sector to drawn Income Tax from the same comment applies… the empathises will be on one sector, on the middle and higher earning sector - is that fair?

W THOMPSON

Nassau,

June 20, 2018.