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MONDAY, JUNE 7, 2021
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Bahamas can’t be ‘burnt’ over 15% corporate taxes By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE government yesterday pledged it will not be bullied by this weekend’s 15 percent minimum global corporate tax deal amid warnings that The Bahamas cannot afford to be “burnt” by any knee-jerk response. The Ministry of Finance, in a statement responding to the agreement announced by the G-7 (group of seven) finance ministers, indicated it was executing just such a measured approach by saying it was assessing whether there are any consequences for The Bahamas’ domestic tax system and international financial services industry. It also said this country “reasserts its sovereign right to determine the tax structure best suited for the ongoing development of the country” in response to the pronouncement by the world’s most powerful economies that they have reached agreement on how to combat tax avoidance by major multinationals - especially those in the so-called “digital” economy. The G-7’s finance ministers, unveiling an agreement that the German
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Nassau marinas: ‘Relief is coming’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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ASSAU Cruise Port’s top executive has promised that “relief is coming” for marinas seeking to regain super yacht access, acknowledging that progress “can come with a degree of pain”. Michael Maura, responding to concerns voiced by the Association of Bahamas Marinas (ABM) president that the expansion of the cruise port’s northernmost berth has cut-off mega vessel access to his and other nearby marinas, told Tribune Business yesterday that the vessel hired to dredge the channel to the required depth will arrive by the last week of June. Acknowledging the complaints, Mr Maura said: “This construction with that pier extension does impact Peter [Maury’s] operation, and I
Tourism minister ‘anxious for end to quarantines’
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
A CABINET minister says he is “anxious to get rid of quarantines and curfews”, adding that this is having an impact on the ability of Bahamian hotels to jumpstart their lucrative group travel business post-COVID.
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Dionisio D’Aguilar, pictured, minister of tourism and aviation, told Tribune Business that The Bahamas’ ranking by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the
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• Port chief: Progress can involve ‘degree of pain’ • Dredger to re-open mega yacht access by end-June • Acknowledges ‘may not be fast enough’ for Bay Street
NASSAU Cruise Port’s demolition of former Port Authority building. am sorry for that. Unfortunately, when you are trying to advance in certain areas, and this is definitely one that has a material benefit for a lot of Bahamians, it does come with a degree of pain for a small amount of time.” He added that, on the day
Mr Maury raised his issues, he was meeting with senior Port Department officials and leading executives from the Nassau Cruise Port’s main contractor, Enka, to discuss the dredging plan around the berth involved because the vessel that will
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SIR FRANKLYN WILSON
Budget fails to ‘convey’ fiscal crisis’ true depth By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
perform the work is now “en route to Nassau”. The Nassau Cruise Port chief said: “There’s 10-14 days of dredging that will happen on the north side of the pier extension, and then the dredging will move around to the south side of the pier extension. I shared with Peter and others our intent is to complete some dredging on the south side and south-east side of the new pier to allow vessels to move around the pier and use that navigation channel. “Relief is coming, but I appreciate it may not be coming fast enough for the marina owners on Bay Street. There are plans to provide dredging around the
A PROMINENT businessman is arguing that the present budget fails to properly detail the extent of the economic and fiscal crisis facing the Bahamian people following the COVID-19/ Dorian debt blowout. Sir Franklyn Wilson, the Arawak Homes and Sunshine Holdings chairman, told Tribune Business that the 2021-2022 budget was not sufficiently candid on the post-pandemic challenges facing this nation and the level of austerity pain via new and/or increased taxes, spending cuts or a combination of both - that may have to be endured by taxpayers in coming years. In particular, he compared the present version to the 1993-1994 budget presented by then-prime minister Hubert Ingraham during the Free National Movement’s
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