Yes, please close these webshops down and let us institute a national lottery where the Bahamian people benefit from 100% of the profits.

When will we finally get healthier options in the breadbasket items? How many years to make a decision? This is really pathetic for a doctor to be the minister in charge and take so long to implement obvious healthy changes. Meanwhile of over 190 countries in the world the Bahamas is in the top ten for obesity for both men and women. Everywhere you look hulking masses of fat Bahamians who can barely walk. Even primary school children. Just lumbering masses of redundant protoplasm. Ambling fire hazards due to incendiary thighs constantly rubbing together. They must use a lot of talcum powder to ease the friction.

Because of our unhealthy diet diabetes is an epidemic and getting worse. Our life expectancy will soon begin to decline because of preventable chronic diseases. Fix the DAMN breadbasket and include all vegetables, nuts and fish like Tomorrow!

You are so right. This FNM Administration is squandering away all the goodwill and mandate they had from the people to make hard, meaningful changes for the betterment of this country. Nothing in this budget reflects that, it is lazy, simply raising taxes and no cuts. Why is there no date for the sale of these unprofitable govt corporations? Not one, not bahamasair, BEC, water and sewerage. Just a never ending horizon of bleeding the treasury and the Bahamian people dry. Why is there not a commitment to reduce the bloated civil service by at least 5%. Nothing, just the easy way out raise taxes, which regardless of what they say will increase the burden on the poor. Vat is a regressive tax, the rich will not feel this but the poor will. Very disappointing so far in this government and yes because of their cowardice to make hard cuts in expenditure we will vote them out and put in the even worse, corrupt criminal PLP. We have suffered from an unmitigated succession of incompetent, cowardly leadership.

When are we going to reduce expenditures? There is no sign of that in the financial projections from the ministry of finances for three years out. This is unacceptable, personal emoluments ( civil service salaries) have increased 40% in the last 7 years. Does anyone feel that this is justified, has service from any government ministry improved even at all to warrant this? We have to reduce the bloated civil service. Getting our debt under control can not simply be raising taxes, that is lazy and easy. The pact we have with this government is that if you raise our taxes the civil service must be reduced. Period. If this does not happen I will help vote this government out that I presently support. Minister Turnquest promises this will happen, but in his own projections personal emoluments increase over the next three years, so he must be lying to the Bahamian people.

What world is this union leader living in? The Bahamian public is looking for the civil service to be reduced by 10-20% and he is asking for a salary increase! It is unfair and egregious to increase vat by 60% and not significantly reduce our bloated, inefficient civil service.

Make no mistake about it this is a massive tax increase. The impact has been somewhat mitigated on the poor through exemptions, but still likely an overall increase in taxes for even them. The middle class will have no such luck and will bear the brunt of this increase which not allowing for exemptions etc will bring in an extra 375 million per year.

I can live with this if the govt continues to downsize the civil service and our debt service ratios begin to fall. We have to get recurrent govt expenditure under control. Perhaps this saves us from devaluation down the road. If we are to bear this pain I want to see government downsized in a meaningful way. Otherwise the FNM will pay the price for this in the next general election.

I would prefer a national lottery, but realistically this does not have a snowball chance in hell of happening. Best bet ( pun intended) is to leave the status quo and limit profits to 10% or even 5%.

These web shops should be taxed to within an inch of their lives to pay for all the social ills they cause. If the port has a mandated profit margin of just 10% then why should the same not be expected of webshops who are a drain on taxpayers and a destroyer of family and community life. The government has full access to the data and accounts of the webshops so it is easy to regulate.

You are entitled to your ignorance but the facts are: Cable Bahamas IPO share price in 1994 was $1.00. Fact. I sold cable shares in 2015 for $8.34 after a 3 for 1 split equates to (8.34x3)= $25.02 per share. Fact. More than a 25 fold increase in 21 years. If you do not understand this math best of luck to you.

You appear to be financially illiterate. Which part of a 25 fold increase not including dividends do you not understand? Not a SINGLE small retail investor ( or any investor for that matter) who purchased cable shares for $1 at the IPO lost money. In the 24 years since then the share price has never traded below $1. So your statement is false. Most small retail investors especially those who held their shares for several years made a fantastic return.