The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The private sector yesterday pledged to “up the ante” on fiscal responsibility via the October launch of a renewed public relations campaign, after the Government failed to meet its own summer target for publishing a policy paper on the issue.

Gowon Bowe, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) chairman, urged the Government to demonstrate to sceptics that previous promises to be more accountable and transparent in managing the Bahamas’ finances were not merely “a PR exercise”.

Calling for there to be “action behind the words”, Mr Bowe said it was in danger of squandering the positive response to Prime Minister Perry Christie’s February announcement that the Government would itself initiate discussion/consultation on fiscal responsibility-type legislation for the Bahamas.

Mr Christie, during the 2014-2015 mid-year Budget statement, said this would be done through the publication of a policy paper “by the summer of this year”. However, it is now almost the end of August with school about to resume, and such a document has yet to materialise.

Mr Bowe warned that this missed target threatened to further feed the “consistent gripe” that plagued the run-up to Value-Added Tax (VAT) implementation - that the Government was not seriously committed to wider fiscal reform, and greater transparency and accountability in how taxpayer monies were spent.

And he said the private sector’s willingness to collaborate with the Government on further reform efforts was being undermined by the seemingly “dismissive” manner in which it had failed to address the Chamber’s 20-30 page list of outstanding VAT issues requiring clarification.

Calling for the Government to allay these fears by publishing the “first draft” of a fiscal responsibility-type framework by December, Mr Bowe said the Chamber and Coalition for Responsible Taxation was looking “probably in October” to initiate a new fiscal responsibility and accountability campaign.

The Coalition is currently functioning as a division of the BCCEC, and Mr Bowe explained that the latter’s public relations section would probably lead the campaign once the Small and Medium-Sized Business Help Desk was launched.

“It would behoove the Government, given that there are a number of challenges on its legislative and economic agenda, to not allow this one to be seen as a PR campaign where they never get it done,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business on fiscal responsibility.

“When the Prime Minister made his comments, persons saw it as a positive move. But there has to be action behind the words.

“Get it out and moving from a draft to a template document to show what fiscal responsibility will look like. That will engender confidence this is not a PR exercise.”

The Chamber chief then confirmed that the Government had yet to clarify the private sector’s numerous outstanding VAT concerns, despite numerous promises it would do so.

“I’ve taken the position on this one that the Government and Coalition is going to basically have to up the ante on its public relations in that regard,” he told Tribune Business.

Mr Bowe said the Prime Minister; Michael Halkitis, minister of state for finance; John Rolle, financial secretary; and Simon Wilson, deputy financial secretary, had all promised to address the concerns and uncertainties but failed to follow through.

The Chamber chairman said this was fuelling private sector scepticism about the wisdom of future collaboration with the Government, and questions about whether previous promises about wider fiscal reform were merely a sop to get VAT through.

“I would certainly want to keep the private sector and citizens on board,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business. “If you are going to be dismissive about this issue, be very careful about the message you’re sending about future collaboration.

“Put it this way,” he added. “Despite the collaboration and positive end result of being able to implement VAT, if there was one resounding sentiment that came out, it was that the Government should not implement it unless they take very serious steps to implement fiscal responsibility as a total package.

“Now the Government has collected this additional revenue, how is it being spent? Everyone’s saying the same thing: How’s it being spent? How can we judge their financial stewardship without having accountability and transparency?

“The only way the Government is going to achieve comfort with people that their money is being spent in a wise manner is to demonstrate a true commitment to fiscal responsibility, and that they are not taxing people into poverty for the greater good.

“There has to be clear reporting and evidence of how monies are being spent, and how wise the policymakers are in their decisions.”

The Government is set to enjoy a $300-$350 million net annual revenue increase annually, and the private sector is especially keen that they be used for the purpose advertised - deficit elimination and national debt reduction.

The Democratic National Alliance (DNA), meanwhile, yesterday made a move to seize the ‘fiscal prudence’ agenda by primising to enact a Balanced Budget Act if elected, in a bid to boost accountability and curb government “overspending”.

The Prime Minister announced the Government’s fiscal responsibility ‘policy paper’ proposal earlier this year following increasing public pressure on the issue.

He announced during the mid-year Budget: “In light of the gravity of this matter from a public policy perspective, and in order to enlighten the debate in a Bahamian context, the Government will commission the preparation of a policy paper on the issue of fiscal responsibility legislation.

“This will allow informed discussion on whether this type of legislation is appropriate for the Bahamas at its current stage of development and, if it is deemed to be appropriate, which of the many models of fiscal responsibility legislation would be the most appropriate for our country.

“It is hoped that this paper can be completed and published by the summer of this year, with any final recommendation on whether legislation is appropriate in the Bahamian context to be presented to Cabinet by the end of this calendar year.”

This initiative has seemingly yet to start, which will likely fuel suspicions that the Prime Minister’s comments may have merely been made in a bid to ‘dampen down’ the increasing calls for greater transparency and accountability.

Mr Bowe yesterday said there was plenty of expertise, both inside and outside the Government, to help develop a ‘fiscal responsibility’ framework best suited to the Bahamas.

Suggesting that private sector organisations would “jump at the opportunity” to assist, he told Tribune Business: “Why not take that mentality and have a Christmas gift - deliver to persons by December a first draft or framework that it will implement going forward.”

Mr Bowe said that whether it took the form of ‘rules’, legislation or policy, “fiscal responsibility is high on the agenda” and not going away, whether the Government liked it or not.

He added that the issue was inextricably linked to the recent discussion surrounding alleged ‘conflicts of interest’ and corruption among public officials.

“There’s certainly a lot of talk on the elimination of conflicts of interest and corruption,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business. “The population’s focus and attention is on improved accountability and transparency.

“They’re often used as buzz words, but people are paying more attention. It’s an important time to throw support behind the discussion.”

The Chamber chairman added that greater accountability and transparency were “not a favour but an obligation for those charged with governance”, yet too often they paid “lip service” to these topics.