By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

ECONOMIC Affairs Minister Michael Halkitis said the Davis administration discontinued the Economic Empowerment Zones programme, which provided some tax exemptions to inner city residents and businesses, because it was not achieving its objectives.

Former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis, who established what was known as the Over-the-Hill programme, has repeatedly noted his concern about the government cancelling the initiative.

Dr Minnis claimed that many employees and businesses were affected by the cancellation. “When we were the government, they used to bombard us every other day about expanding it,” he said last week.

During a press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister on Friday, Mr Halkitis responded: “I guess the intention was to help people to develop their properties, but what we found was that people who by large living in the area if they owned the property at all, did not have the financial wherewithal to say make an investment.”

So you had one or two large businesses come in and take advantage of investment and you can see some of them if you cruise over the hill. In certain areas of Over-the-Hill you can see some big businesses that were able to come in and take advantage of the tax-free incentive. So we felt that that was not achieving its intended consequence.”

He said not all parts of the programme have been scrapped. He said businesses in the zones earning $5m or less can still apply for a trade certificate that waives licence fees and allows them to import one vehicle without paying customs duties or other taxes.

He said: “So sometimes it might be a useful political tool to beat us with, but you have to be able to look at what was the intended consequence.”

“What did you intend to achieve? Did it achieve those intended outcomes? And is there a better alternative?”

Launched in November 2018, the Economic Empowerment Zones initially targeted residents of Bain and Grants Town and Centreville, but was extended to the St Barnabas and Englerston constituencies.

The programme allowed exemptions on real property tax, business licence tax, custom duties on materials necessary for constructing, equipping, and completing buildings, excise taxes, and stamp duty taxes.

Critics, however, said the programme did not address the acute needs of residents in the area.