Penalize comrades at commercial banks apply too much discriminatory restraint discipline with hording $2 billion of "unlent cash" in their vaults..... cash to quickly juice existing and startup local enterprises creating thousands family sustaining paycheques. Banks need start paying their fair share taxes into peoples public purse... at least equal total amount 12% VAT red shirts goin take out pockets people every day... working, non-working, retired and the $700 fees per body claimed by loved ones deceased from PMH morgue.

I don't always agree with Mr. Lowe, but I agree that we have to bite the bullet and pay.

The fact that the former government withheld the truth from us about their spending is reprehensible.

But they spent our Vat and added to the national debt and so we now have face the reality of our finances.

Let us accept what has happened, pay the price, and look to the future.

Just like the corrupt Christie-led government, the Minnis-led government steadfastly refuses to make known to the public a detailed plan for austerity measures aimed at significantly reducing the size of our grossly over-bloated and non-productive public services sector. And yet you propose to give Minnis and Turnquest the same foolish benefit of the doubt that saw our 7.5% VAT dollars squandered on growing the size of the civil work force rather than reducing our annual deficits and national debt. That's the height of insanity. The Minnis-led FNM government should instead be starved of additional tax dollars until they have demonstrated a sustained good faith track record of meaningful reductions in the payroll and pension benefit costs of our out-of-control public services sector. Why should we subject ourselves to the very real likelihood of being duped by fork-tongued politicians who appear to have no real appetite whatsoever for implementing much needed painful austerity measures?

This from a "fiscal hawk"

"We knew it was coming," Mr Lowe told Tribune Business. "How and when we didn't know, but it's better now than down the road when it would be even worse. The trends were all in the wrong direction. It's better to try to deal with it now than fall off the ledge completely and be forced to do things even worse."

Just give me plain-speak. Thank you, Mr. Lowe!

None 94,409 voting 35 red candidates 10th May - will allow members Imperial red cabinet to blame the PLP for new red regime's paying out cash from people's public purse, for policemen's overtime pay...when the supreme court ruling provided alternative option.

TalHusler, you neglected to say that the alternative provided was even worse. You speak in half truths. You would make a good plp supporter as long as you had an easy good paying government job.

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2018…

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2018…

That should be plenty "plain speak" enough for jamani2 above!

Looking at the numbers set out by Mr. Lowe, it would appear that if you deduct the VAT money from the 2016 numbers, the PLP would have given the country its first BILLION DOLLAR DEFICIT.

When the FNM ran the deficits during the recession in 2009-2012 we at least can see all the road works done in Nassau. What did the PLP do with the 1.8 billion they spent in 2015 and 2016?????

Regardless of what the fiscal experts say, if The Bahamas does not get up of its hands and start producing something the financial crisis will worsen. All the so called industries, like banking and tourism are actual leakages that take hundreds of millions out of the country every year. It doesn’t take an expert to tell you that if a bucket is leaking faster than you can fill it up you will end up with an empty bucket. You have several choices since the bucket is a given: fill it up faster, fix the leak or do a combination of both.

No amount of additional taxes or additional borrowings can fix the massive leaks in our bucket. Only severely painful austerity measures directed at significantly reducing the grossly over-bloated size of our public services sector can meaningfully address the out-of-control leaking that is currently going on day in and day out.

Barbados economic/fiscal policies caused their problems.

First Published: 2013-07-28 by The Nassau Institute

Mr.Owen Arthur, former Prime Minister of Barbados, was in Freeport, Grand Bahama recently to encourage The Bahamas to implement a value added tax (VAT) like he did in Barbados because of the mounting government debt and deficits there.

Their VAT rate started at 15%, has moved to 17.5%, and now there is speculation of 21%. Of course the government denies that 21% VAT is on the horizon.

Coming on the heels of Mr. Arthur’s recommendations, when it was thought things couldn’t get much worse in Barbados, an article from Caribbean 360 states that S & P has downgraded Barbados yet again, "to negative from stable… …for the island that has “fallen back into recession”."

Following is an example of taxation, and by extension, the cost of living in Barbados, as confirmed by an owner in the automotive business.

The list price for a mid-sized SUV is $192,250.56 Barbados dollars or $96,125.00 US dollars.

This price includes?

Import Duty/Excise tax of 45%
Consumption Tax of 100%, and,
VAT of 17.5%

A similar mid-sized SUV here lists for approximately $43,000.

Political leaders like Mr. Arthur, seldom connect the dots of
government borrowing, spending, taxing and regulating with a declining economy. With rumours circulating that The Bahamas government borrows to make payroll as revenue has slipped so badly, are we far behind Barbados?

The solution Mr. Arthur offers seems to be more of the same tax, spend and regulate policies, which causes investors to retrench even further and the problems are exacerbated.

The introduction of VAT will be a further stake in the heart of The Bahamian economy if the government does not revert to its correct role of maintaining peace and justice.

The short answer is The Bahamas needs to study the economic path of Texas or North Carolina, for example. Instead of policies that discourage investment and job growth, pursue policies that encourage the creation of wealth. The government needs to hold the line on spending and reduce taxes and regulations to help alleviate concerns of jittery investors, so the economy can begin to get back on track.

Bahamians should prepare themselves for many surprises of worsening government policy when the "ideas" like VAT being recommended by Mr. Arthur and others fail to increase government revenue enough to cover their continued spending.

https://www.nassauinstitute.org/article…

"Bahamians should prepare themselves for many surprises of worsening government policy when the "ideas" like VAT being recommended by Mr. Arthur and others fail to increase government revenue enough to cover their continued spending."

And that, Mr. Lowe, is the very heart of the problem. Mr. Turnquest says he needs alternatives to the 4.5% VAT increase. They don't want plans, initiatives or ideas, they want money (probably so they can keep spending it)! They are attempting to scare The People into thinking this is the only solution. Is it possible to present an alternative plan for repaying debt and improving the economy that even our Government cannot screw up? Small ting, I know!