St. Lucia’s business people are demanding that the VAT be reduced from 15 per cent to 10 per cent.
A St. Lucia business spokesman said “VAT is one amongst other reasons why some businesses were going through tough times, while the slowing down of the economy is another, the Kenny Anthony government should have set the VAT ceiling at 10 per cent and increase it as the economic situation improves. The 15 per cent VAT is far too high in these harsh economic times.”
The problem in SVG is that there is no one who dares to question the PM, Mr. Gonsalves, about reducing the current 15 per cent to 10 per cent. Businessmen and journalists get shouted down and belittled whenever they try and raise anything about anything, let alone the crippling effect on the economy by high VAT charges. The other problem is if you manage to get a question to Gonsalves, he sometimes will talk for hours about all sorts of crap except the actual question.
In Europe, VAT is added only to items classed as luxury items. In SVG, the supermarket adds 15 per cent to callaloo and adds VAT to medicines and many necessities.
Ultimately it’s not the business that pays the VAT. It’s the little man with a handful of dollars in his pocket; it’s the little man’s family that suffers. Because when the VAT is high, the little man buys less, children go to school hungry, old people are undernourished.
SVG applies VAT to all sorts of items which should be exempt, so its not just the businessman who feels the pinch, but the public is paying VAT on things that are totally unreasonable to pay on, and it’s little more than downright governmental greed. I would say highway robbery, but our roads are in such a bad condition, highway robbers are unable to operate.
Peter Binose
Self appointed keeper of the whistle
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Why you have to lie we all know you hate the Pm for whatever reason. You must be living in a different Europe from the rest of us because what you say it not true.
Vastina, if you think I lied about the VAT, how about the other comments I made, because I can show you them as well.
FACTS
Reduced rate 5% Some goods and services, eg childrens car seats and some energy-saving materials in the home.
Zero rate 0% Zero-rated goods and services, eg most all food and childrens clothes.
Food is normally VATable at zero rate.
Luxury food items, cakes, chococlate etc is standard rate.
fresh fruit, vegetables and meat do not carry VAT.
Prescribed medicines are zero rated.
There are special VAT reliefs available on most purchases made by charities which mean you either don’t have to pay VAT or you pay a reduced rate of VAT – whether or not you’re VAT registered.
VASTINA, you obviously do not live in SVG, as you claim to live in Europe, so perhaps you are blind to what is happening in SVG. Unless people come forward and tell the truth it will only get worse. Many of the people here are experiancing pure hell.
Miss Vastina who is the PM to like and why are you defending a liar. He is a no body. It is high time that he go and may you and all the parasite that surround him sucking on tax payers dollars as if its you all personal bank account go to hell with him. My anger is growing day by day. The time is coming!
Well Vastina, would you like to apologise for calling me a liar when everything I said was true?
The trouble with people is not that they don’t know, but that they know so much that ain’t so.
~Josh Billings
Vastina, VAT killing the nation has nothing to do with who hate or love the PM. In Canada, GST is 5% in most provinces and less than 7% in others, and basic/essential things (and for your homework, research what is basic/essential) are exempt. The PM has to keep it that way because VAT and the Customs are the main cows that are nourishing the Argyle airport. The Europe you live at must be somewhere behind Mars.
Because we don’t enjoy the luxury of natural resources, I agree we should be paying VAT to help with the country’s progress but 7% is more reasonable and at the end of the tax year we should be able to claim it back on our tax returns. The Government is a “TAKE” government and the working population don’t get any incentives for the “take, take, take”.
I am always amazed as to why VAT is used on basically everything in SVG. I live in the state of NY and we only pay a tax on clothing,(the only food we pay taxes on are on food from fast food restaurants).
I can understand taxes on clothing, alcohol, tobacco but there’s no reason why taxes should be on food.. We need food to survive