Turnquest: My company won't benefit from budget

Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest pictured during the Budget debate. Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

As of Thursday, June 7, 2018

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest said it is "ridiculous" to believe removing customs duty on aeroplanes and helicopters will prompt him to now buy aircraft for his business.

The government is removing customs duty on aeroplanes and helicopters in an effort to build an aeroplane registry in the country.

Some Bahamians have seized on this to disparage Mr Turnquest, who has an interest in Sky Bahamas, but the finance minister laid out a detailed rationale for the duty exemptions during the budget debate in the House of Assembly yesterday.

"Most people by now know I have an interest in an airline," he said. "I would love to say that I can run out tomorrow and buy an aircraft. I really wish I could because the airline needs to improve its fleet. Truth of the matter is, this is a very difficult business, very capital intensive and very difficult operating in an environment where the playing field is not even. The whole idea now that I'm somehow going to go rush out because I've given myself a duty-free exemption and buy a new aircraft is ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous and it's petty.

"The whole idea behind duty-free exemptions on aircraft, and the member for Englerston knows this because she was involved in this, is to try to finally establish this long sought after aircraft registry. Nobody is going to put their aircraft on the Bahamas registry if they got to pay ten per cent duty on a $20m aircraft or $30m aircraft. Why? Because nine out of ten they're not gonna be here. They just want their aircraft on the registry. The idea is to make it easy for foreign companies, particularly airline leasing companies and corporate entities, to register their aircraft in The Bahamas and put them on the registry. This is just like the ship registry. This gives us $50m."

Mr Turnquest said foreign aircraft owners have good reasons for wanting to register their crafts here. The potential for the industry, he said, is "exponential," as it would create opportunities for a variety of well-paying jobs for Bahamians.

"An Israeli made aircraft wants to go to an Arab country with a US registry, can't go," he said. "A US registered aircraft wants to go to Cuba, can't go. Countries in South America and individuals and companies who may own aircraft, fear for their lives. They don't want people to know that they own an aircraft and so they seek another register. So this is a business. The benefit of this industry is that while you make it easier for them to go on the register you can charge them every year, paying four, five thousand dollars, just for registering them."

He said: "I want to disabuse those that may be easily misled by the rhetoric because I see the little cartoons on WhatsApp and whatever and I think they're funny, they don't offend me, I think they are absolutely creative. It shows the talent and creativity of the Bahamian people. But I don't want the message to get lost about what we're trying to accomplish. I always say Bahamians need to read, they need to take every opportunity to understand and to learn what it is that we are trying to do because not everything is someone trying to get you, not everyone is trying to take advantage of you. Sometimes we're actually trying to be genuine in what we're trying to do."

Well_mudda_take_sic 5 years, 10 months ago

What a bunch of poppy cock! For too many good reasons to elaborate on here, the Bahamas doesn't stand a chance of ever competing in any meaningful financial way with the developed countries when it come to an aircraft registry. Just look at the schedule below for private jets. The same applies for heavy commercial passenger jets, small private aircraft, etc. There are many, many reasons why we, as a small less developed nation, will never be able to meaningfully compete in this particular arena and Turnquest knows it. The exemption of aircraft from VAT will only ever really benefit in a big financial way the likes of Turnquest as regards his ownership interest in Sky Bahamas, as that airline seeks to update/upgrade its aged fleet of aircraft.

pileit 5 years, 10 months ago

You don't know what you're talking about, bud. Stop posting hastily googled numbers as support for your baseless opinions... you are aware of the Bahamas shipping registry, are you not? Start there for research and come back actually prepared. So sick of these shallow, useless political tools cluttering what could be a stimulating comment space.

Well_mudda_take_sic 5 years, 10 months ago

Unlike shipping that has evolved over many centuries, national and international laws and regulations pertaining to aviation, especially commercial passenger travel, are less than a century old, very tightly codified and rigorously enforced for safety and other good reasons. A select few of the developed countries are considered the pioneers in all aspects of aviation for many obvious reasons and that's just too tough a nut for smaller less developed nations like the Bahamas to ever crack. There has never been a Liberia in aviation and there never will be one. We have limited resources and need to be realistic.

TalRussell 5 years, 10 months ago

But... are the Imperial Red Shirts in talks with Air China to buy BahamalandAIR. Who will own the many dozens government owned airports stretching far and out island wide after the Comrade Chinese airliner steps in and are there plans enter into the local airline ownership? Is the red government's Imperial minister aviation still withholding the granting of license to Comrade Bran McCartney to operate local airline... if so, why so?

TalRussell 5 years, 10 months ago

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jamani2 5 years, 10 months ago

I must say the candor and frankness that exudes from the minister's words are quite refreshing. He is absolutely right when he says that people must cultivate more of a love for reading. Not only Bahamians, but people don't like to read, period. And then their rhetoric gets reduced to feelings, superstitions, and conspiracy theories. Someone once said that if you ever want to hide something from Americans, put it in a book in the library. They will never find it, because Americans don't like to read. Again, this is true of people in general. Europeans and Middle Easterners, it seems, are much more avid readers than the rest of the world.

Now, not only is it important for Bahamians to read more, it is also important for us to remember--develop long term memory. By reading more and putting things in our long term memory we can better hold the politicians accountable.

vlmarshall 5 years, 10 months ago

I don't understand us as a people. How long have we said " the Bahamas need to look at more than just banking and tourism", " governments need to find new way to generate income". Finally we have new ideas, and because the ideas are new there is still grumbling. I don't own a plane, I have no desire to own a helicopter so therefore the VAT exemption on aircraft will not benefit me. However, it will benefit, Western Air, Flamingo Air, Sky Bahamas, Pineapple Air, LeAir and others that service the Family Islands. All of which I have had to travel on with the exception of Pineapple Air. So what if Sky Bahamas will be one of the companies that will benefit, what about the many other Bahamian owed airline companies that will also benefit. Isn't this about benefiting Bahamians? I'm certain that no one in the Bahamian Aviation industry is complaining, and if by some chance we are able to really develop and aircraft registry from the exemption wouldn't that be a added bonus? it would result in new jobs and new careers. Which would accommodate those yearly graduates that we complain don't have jobs, it would also allow opportunities for the bloated public service workers to go when they are eventually let go, which has to be done in order for those payroll costs to go down. So pick your poison, either which way, if there are no real solutions...shut up, please.

vlmarshall 5 years, 10 months ago

C'mon birdiestrachan. We are all very aware of the Oban issue. Like many others I would like to hear a final word on what will happen with that proposed idea. Not gossipmonger but an official statement from the governing party. But let us not forget that there have been other PMs that would have misspoken as well albeit not with a signing. Most recently the "I have no horse in the race" coupled with the "We will hold a referendum on the gaming issue" which later turned into a non-binding referendum.

CatIslandBoy 5 years, 10 months ago

The Airline Registry is a great idea, just like the Shipping Registry has been very successful. It was a prideful feeling, to observe a large vessel on the Mediterranean Sea, a couple years ago, with the Bahamian flag flapping in the wind. As the DPM stated, many of our neighbors will choose the Bahamas because of proximity and convenience. Only the bird-brain and prophets of doom among us can see the ulterior motive in this move,

pileit 5 years, 10 months ago

agreed, we're long overdue in this space.

Well_mudda_take_sic 5 years, 10 months ago

We stand a better chance of establishing an economically viable registry for unmanned space craft designed to explore the outer reaches of our universe.

alfalfa 5 years, 10 months ago

So, Sky Bahamas belongs to who. Mr. Butler. Mr, Turnquest is a shareholder. No matter all of the Bull Crap he is spewing, he will benefit from this. Hence a conflict of interest. How many other bahamians give a sh-t about airplane, helicopter; new or used, parts or otherwise. We will have problems to pay our bills to survive. To even publish this exemption is assinine.

CatIslandBoy 5 years, 10 months ago

So, what about the creation of an airline registry, that you are not hearing? Are you even familiar with the ship registration success? And if Sky Bahamas, and the other Bahamian airline companies, benefits from this exemption, what is so wrong about that? We have to get away from the crab in the barrel syndrome.

Sickened 5 years, 10 months ago

This exemption and the washing machine exemption are just TERRIBLE timing on their part. I don't mind the exemptions personally but it just stinks that they did it now. They should have waited a year before doing it.

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