Government was forced to suspend yesterday’s debate on a bill to approve the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act in T&T until next week.
Failure to pass the legislation by September 30 will result in T&T being unable to trade internationally and will also result in the implementation of a 30 per cent withholding tax on US dollar transactions in the banking system.
After Finance Minister Colm Imbert presented the bill for debate in the House of Representatives, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the bill was over-reaching, adding that the Opposition was “not against the agreement, it is not that we are against T&T, but (our actions today) are in the interest of the country.”
She insisted she was “not going on any guilt trip that I will cripple the country, crash the country, because I am not supporting this bill in its present form.”
Commenting on newspaper reports of the Government holding talks with the Opposition on the matter, Persad-Bissessar insisted as the time was passing the Opposition had no bill to look at. The Opposition received the bill on Monday to prepare for yesterday’s debate.
The Government required the support of the Opposition for the bill to be approved, as it requires a special three-fifths majority, which the Government does not have.
Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi and National Security Minister Edmund Dillon were absent from the country during the debate yesterday.
Persad-Bissessar said the Government was seeking to blame the Opposition if the measure fails to get the required support, but said the Government must give the proposed date for proclamation of the bill before it could be approved.
“If you want us to pass it you will put the date in this bill. We are not buying cat in bag anymore. You will put the date in the bill so that we can pass it,” she insisted.
She said the bill was also seeking to validate the sharing of personal information held by the Board of Inland Revenue or by financial institutions, noting the Parliament was also being called on to validate unconstitutional acts done over the past 27 years.
Persad-Bissessar said because of the numerous concerns they have, the bill should be sent to a joint select committee for consideration and be returned in one week for debate.
But the Government did not agree to that proposal.
Acting Attorney General Stuart Young dismissed the claims made by Persad-Bissessar in his contribution. Minutes later, he told reporters the former PP Cabinet had agreed to pass the said legislation since 2013 but it did not happen. He said it was the Persad-Bissessar government which decided that the competent authority to deal with the measures in the bill should be the Minister of Finance. Persad-Bissessar had criticised the new Government for maintaining that decision.
Young said the proposal to refer the matter to a joint select committee cannot be accepted because “Parliament prorogues on September 22, so the legislation needs to pass before that date.” He said appointing a JSC will delay the process and he insisted Government was committed to pressing on to fulfil the obligations and to having the bill passed. He said failure to meet the September 30 deadline could have deleterious effects on our financial sector and the citizens of T&T.
The Government has set Monday for a meeting with the Opposition to agree on the way forward, but the venue was not announced. The Parliament will meet again on Wednesday to proceed with the matter.