Pastors educated on value-added tax

The Nassau Guardian

Pastors educated on value-added tax

VAT Coordinator in the Ministry of Finance Ishmael Lightbourne yesterday urged religious leaders to help the government depoliticize the current discourse on value-added tax (VAT).

The Ministry of Finance’s VAT implementation team met with several religious leaders in the country, including officials of the Bahamas Christian Council and Anglican Bishop Laish Boyd at the ministry.

“An important part that you have to play in this is you have to help depoliticize this process,” Lightbourne told the group.

“This tax reform agenda goes beyond this administration. This administration is not going to solve our fiscal problems. So whoever the next administration is will need to be on board in what is happening now.

“There is no need for us to engage in the kind of negative and angry conversation that you hear so often from the political perspective. So we need a national conversation.”

Lightbourne stressed that the government has to address the exploding debt in the country, and noted that VAT alone would not solve the country’s problems.

“We need to be informed because without it, we hear so much hilarious nonsense... not grounded in the reality that we have to deal with,” he said.

Several of the religious leaders declined to speak with the media.

John Rolle, financial secretary, said the meeting was necessary.

“The church needs to understand how a reform such as this would impact those on the lower end of the income spectrum and how the government would respond,” he said.

The VAT rate will be set at 15 percent, consistent with rates in other countries, according to the government’s white paper on tax reform.

Prime Minister Perry Christie has said the government may consider delaying the July 2014 implementation of VAT if it is not satisfied that the public is properly educated about the new regime.

Christie has said the government intends to bring New Zealand experts on VAT to The Bahamas as early as January, and will ramp up its public education campaign next year.

 

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