Finance Minister Colm Imbert says he’ll soon be explaining his hint in the 2018 Budget about self-employed professionals needing to pay their “fair share” of taxes.
In Imbert’s Budget delivery on Monday, he said Government’s tax reform strategy involves major improvements in tax administration.
“We must ensure everyone pays his/her rightful share , not only the easily identified wage earner. The self- employed professionals need to pay their fair share and businesses need to ensure they collect and hand over Value -Added taxes,” Imbert said.
“In this context Government plans to review the tax incentive regime to ensure there are no companies still receiving incentives which should have expired or are no longer required.”
Since the Budget speech didn’t give measures to have the self-employed pay up, TTG asked Imbert yesterday if measures concerning that group are ahead or by the April mid-year review.
Imbert said, “ I’ll explain in due course.”
He was similarly cryptic in reply when asked if Government had plans to prevent banks and businesses from passing on to the public, the taxes those sectors are to pay listed in the Budget (35 percent tax bracket for banks, 30 percent for companies).
Imbert in the Budget had warned that decline in T&T’s reserves cannot continue unabated, “As a country, we’re currently spending far more on imports than we earn from exports - untenable.”
“Until and unless we change our taste for foreign goods, our exchange rate will continue to be under severe pressure and additional steps will have to be taken to dampen our appetites for imports.”
Imbert made it clear he wasn’t heeding Big Business’ advice to let the TT dollar drop so TT goods become cheaper than other regional states’, “ As a Government we cannot be driven only by requests of big business. We must consider all social and economic impacts of a devaluation and not make hasty decisions,...We must consider the needs of the poor and vulnerable and the effect on inflation of an exchange rate change.”
Meanwhile among Ministries where decreases in 2018 recurrent expenditure occurred was National Security which obtained second highest allocation this year compared to 2017 when it had the highest.
The Ministry received $3.6b in 2017 and $3.3b for 2018.
Allocation for NS for payments to estates of servicepeople killed in duty was cut from $4m to $3m. Development plans for NS included $80m for construction of a National Operations Centre.
Other recurrent expenditure decreases were listed for nine other Ministries.
Recurrent expenditure was also decreased ($195,000) for the Opposition Leader’s Office.
There was an increase for the Prime Minister’s Office for expenditure - for the National Security Council, commissions, committees - from $28m in 2017 to $43,250m in 2018.
The Integrity Commission will also have less money to contract services in 2018 - its 2017 level of $500,000 was cut to $313,400. Decreases are also listed for the Elections and Boundaries Commission.
However Local Government corporations all received the same allocations as 2017.
75M CUT TO LOCAL GOVT CEPEP EXPEND
Recurrent expenditure for the CEPEP programme in the Rural Development/Local Government Ministry was cut by $75m for 2018 according to Budget documents.
It was cut from $423m in 2017 to $350m 2018.
• 24 hour Chaguaramas Development Authority police headquarters post at retrofitted Base building to respond to incidents; emergency medical centre , welcome centre, mini museum also planned
• $223m in Development plans for redevelopment of POS General Hospital; second operating theatre for POSGH; upgrade of San F’do Hospital labour ward.
• $70m for Finance for special audits and state enterprise divestment.
• $16m startup for new “Tourism Trinidad” - destination management company
• $900,000 startup to establish Quarries Authority.
• $93,300,000 increase in recurrent expenditure in Works - for the Port ‘s deficit on coastal steamers - over 2017 figure of $265,500,000
• $1.5m for new plan to address illegal unreported/unregulated fishing around TT ports/waters.
• Golden Grove (Buccoo) company concerning the Sandals plan shifted from Finance to the Prime Minister’s office .
• Automatic system for approval of construction permits.
• $24m refurbishment of Hernandez Place, Arima for socially displaced over age 55 years.