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PLP increase calls for Deputy PM's resignation

PRESSURE mounted from PLPs yesterday who demanded answers from government and the resignation of Deputy Prime Minister K Peter Turnquest over damaging fraud allegations.

DPM targets 'missing COVID puzzle piece'

The deputy prime minister yesterday pledged that the Government's upcoming Fiscal Strategy Report will seek to provide "the missing piece of the puzzle" to its COVID-19 economic recovery plan.

'Banking desert' fears following Scotia pull-out

Long Island's MP yesterday voiced fears his constituency will become "a banking desert" after Scotiabank unveiled plans to withdraw from four Family Islands with a series of branch closures.

DPM: Bond attacks 'pie in sky thinking'

The deputy prime minister yesterday slammed arguments that The Bahamas' $600m bond issue was over-priced as "pie in the sky thinking" while revealing $133m in debt repayments have been delayed.

Reforms 'attack debt excesses'

The deputy prime minister believes upcoming fiscal reforms will "take the mystery out of the public finances" and enable the Government to "attack the excesses" that have built a multi-billion national debt.

Turnquest criticises ‘misleading’ reports on loans

FINANCE Minister Peter Turnquest yesterday criticised reports accusing the government of acquiring loans from banks caught up in controversy, insisting such claims are “very incorrect” and “misleading”.

Gov't to tap local investors for remaining $400m funds

The deputy prime minister yesterday said the Government will largely tap the domestic capital markets for the remaining $400m debt financing it requires for the 2020-2021 fiscal year.

Bahamas pays high price over $600m offering

THE Bahamas and its taxpayers have paid a higher price “than we would like” in raising $600m from overseas investors to fill the government’s financial holes, the deputy prime minister has conceded.

Gov't gives 'notice' of main bond issue

The deputy prime minister yesterday said the Government has alerted the international capital markets that it is preparing to market and issue its foreign currency bond offering.

Gov'ts 'surest bet' is on Bahamian entrepreneurs

The deputy prime minister yesterday said the Government's investment in Bahamian entrepreneurs is "the surest bet" it has made as it targets specific industries in the 2020-2021 fiscal year.

Dollarisation must 'be on the table'

An ex-attorney general says full dollarisation of the Bahamian economy must "be on the table" as the country faces "a tipping point" due to the devastation inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

'Another weapon' to avoid blacklists

The deputy prime minister yesterday said reforms to the Register of Beneficial Ownership Act give The Bahamas "another weapon in our arsenal" to combat future and present "blacklistings".

Turnquest and Bannister negative

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest and Works Minister Desmond Bannister have tested negative for COVID-19 after two staff members at the House of Assembly were confirmed positive.

'There's no quick fix' to redirect economy

AMID calls for more diversification of the country’s economy, Finance Minister Peter Turnquest said while officials will continue to have discussions on this, it is still “unrealistic” for the country to move away from its leading tourism industry.

Deputy PM: Too early to say if govt will extend unemployment benefits programme

DEPUTY Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest said Wednesday it is too early to say if the government will extend its unemployment benefits programme, expressing hope that reopening the tourism sector will return people to work.

Getting 'back into business' critical to poverty battle

The Bahamas must get its economy "back into business as quickly as we can" to combat the rising poverty and inequality exposed by a recent household survey, the deputy prime minister said yesterday. K Peter Turnquest told Tribune Business this was t

Gov't to speed up reforming its SOE loss-makers

The deputy prime minister yesterday pledged to accelerate state-owned enterprise (SOE) reforms after they proved the one area of recurrent spending overruns in the revised 2019-2020 Budget. K Peter Turnquest told Tribune Business the Government must

Fiscal deficit soars 259%

The government’s deficit widened by 259 percent from last year’s $788m, the Ministry of Finance has revealed.

Back to school VAT holiday 'still on table'

The deputy prime minister said that the back to school value added tax (VAT) tax holiday is “absolutely” still on the table to help citizens during this difficult times brought on by the COVID-19 shutdown.

TRAVEL BAN TO STAY TWO MORE MONTHS? Tourism pressure remains as foreign flights may be off until end of October

DESPITE most businesses in New Providence being set to re-open on Monday, Finance Minister Peter Turnquest said he anticipates it will still take several weeks until the government fully re-opens the country’s borders allowing for the resumption of domestic and international travel in all islands.

Turnquest: Ignore fake news

Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest has promised the government is committed to the nation’s full recovery from Hurricane Dorian and its battle against COVID-19. His assurance came as he said a significant amount of “fake news and irresponsible in

DPM rejects Bahamas 'debt crisis' description

The deputy prime minister has rejected assertions that The Bahamas is one of 52 nations trapped in a debt crisis, arguing that the country remains "in a relatively good position".

Business payroll relief gets $19.5m IDB funding boost

Some $19.5m in Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) funding has been reallocated to payroll support for Bahamian businesses amid COVID-19, the deputy prime minister confirmed last night. K Peter Turnquest told Tribune Business that the multilateral

Turnquest: Expect big changes to family budget

FINANCE Minister Peter Turnquest said while officials expect some changes to happen in the “family budget” due to the re-imposed national shutdown, decisions have yet to be made concerning the future of public servants.

Isaias: We dodged a bullet

Cabinet ministers and private sector executives yesterday said the Bahamian economy had "dodged a bullet" after Hurricane Isaias inflicted minimal damages and loss on this nation.

Govt may 'trim sails again' on Isaias impacts

The government will have to “trim our sails one one more time” and reallocate spending to deal with the potential damage and fall-out from Isaias, the deputy prime minister said last night. K Peter Turnquest told Tribune Business that the Minnis adm

COVID-19: 21 new cases, Deputy PM tests negative but will self quarantine

A RECORD 21 new COVID-19 cases were recorded yesterday, 20 in Grand Bahama and one in New Providence, bringing the country’s toll in virus infections to 174.

Grand Bahama COVID cases are hard ‘wake up call’

FOLLOWING the sudden spike in COVID-19 cases on Grand Bahama, Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest is urging residents to keep their “guard up”’ He said it is important that residents strictly adhere to the COVID-19 protocols to stop the spread of the virus. Six cases were recorded within one week on the island, while the country recorded seven cases overall last week. Health officials are conducting contact tracing.

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