THE FREE National Movement has accused the Davis administration of failing small businesses, saying its “ill-advised” policies has made it difficult for business owners to operate.

The party spoke out hours after the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation criticised the government on its recent policy changes related to business licence renewals.

Last month, the Davis administration made policy changes mandating that all businesses provide the real property tax assessment number for the building from which the business operates, even if they are renting the space.

They are also requiring businesses that earn less than $100,000 to submit proof of income at the time of applying for a business licence renewal, among other things.

Yesterday, the BCCEC said in a statement: “These decisions have added to the mounting frustration of the private sector, added delays, and continue to hinder the timelines in how businesses are able to operate and prepare for the future.”

“Businesses suffer and cannot properly plan when the GOB makes policy shifts that have a material impact on how they are to operate without providing a fair and adequate notice period for implementing new policies.”

The BCCEC also noted that in a recent survey, more than half of the respondents they surveyed indicated they were concerned about government regulations, red tape and government taxes and fees.

“The BCCEC acknowledges that it is within the purview of the GOB to make policies. However, we believe that in these economic times challenges by inflation, supply chain issues and uncertainty, policies ought to make doing business easier.”

“The benefit of policies that advance the ease of doing business not only makes the jurisdiction more attractive to international businesses and partnerships, but also leads to a strong and more resilient local business community.”

“These factors will naturally increase revenue for the government of The Bahamas. The business community wants to see policies put in place that supports business growth – which is tantamount to economic growth.

In a statement, East Grand Bahama MP Kwasi Thompson, who is also the shadow minister for finance, said the FNM stands in support with the BCCEC.

“Bahamian small businesses are just beginning to recover from the fallout of the pandemic and now face a government that is determined to put up obstacles and make their challenging environment even worse. The government should be doing all it can to promote, assist and encourage small businesses instead of adding to their frustrations,” he added.

“We demand that the government immediately reverse their hastily imposed and ill-advised requirements for business owners to chase down the real property tax information of their landlords. In no scenario is that a reasonable requirement of a tenant. We demand that the government cease its requirements for proof of income during this licensing period for micro and small businesses.”

“If the government wants to change the financial information required from small businesses, it must give the businesses at least six months to plan for and adequately provide the information - with provisions for the training and support of small businesses.”

“This is an added expense that some businesses will find very difficult to meet. We demand that the government cease its wholly unreasonable and expensive demand that all Customs brokers pay to integrate with its Customs Click2Clear system.”