All results / Stories / Natario McKenzie
DPM: Business Licence fee is ‘inherently unfair’
THE Government is examining how to adjust a Business Licence fee that the Deputy Prime Minister yesterday branded “inherently unfair” to firms with high turnover and low profit margins. K Peter Turnquest, who is also minister of finance, described as “misinformation” any suggestion that the Government has committed to the European Union (EU) that it will introduce a corporate tax or income tax.
Economist: Enterprises Bill $250k should be ‘bit higher’
THE Commercial Enterprises Bill’s $250,000 investment threshold should have been “a bit higher”, a University of the Bahamas economist argued yestrerday. Rupert Pinder, addressing the Rotary Club of West Nassau, said the $250,000 benchmark for foreign companies applying under the Bill did not match the level of incentives being granted.
Economist backs spending cuts to end ‘major wastage’
A University of the Bahamas economist yesterday backed government spending cuts on the grounds there has been “a great deal of wastage”. Rupert Pinder, addressing a Rotary Club of West Nassau luncheon, said: “We cannot overemphasise the importance of economic growth. You can cut spending until the cows come home, but what is really going to put this economy on a strong footing is growth. I am a proponent for cuts in public spending because I think there has been a great deal of wastage.
PM: ‘No time to rest on laurels’ over EU
THE Prime Minister yesterday said the Bahamas has “no time to rest on our laurels”, given the European Union’s (EU) concerns over the absence of corporate income taxation. Dr Hubert Minnis told the House of Assembly that the EU’s Code of Conduct group had written to the Government expressing concerns that this nation’s tax system did not comply with its ‘blacklisting’ criteria.
Nassau/PI resorts in New Year sell-out
MAJOR Nassau/Paradise Island resorts are predicting traditionally strong occupancies over the Christmas and New Year’s holiday period.
All ‘milestones’ come Aliv for mobile player
The Bahamas’ second mobile operator said yesterday it had met all “milestones and obligations” for cellular coverage and infrastructure roll-out as required by its license, its sales and marketing head arguing it has “the best network in the Caribbean”.
A Cabinet minister yesterday moved a parliamentary motion to create a select committee that will probe the the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) 2011 privatisation.
A Cabinet minister yesterday moved a parliamentary motion to create a select committee that will probe the the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) 2011 privatisation.
QC tells the web shops: Form own credit union
A prominent QC has called on web shop gaming operators to establish their own credit union, as blasted the Canadian-owned banks’ refusal to accept the sector’s deposits as making “no sense whatsoever”.
Mortgage Relief: 16%of targeted borrowers qualify
Some 16 per cent of troubled borrowers targeted by the Government’s revised Mortgage Relief Plan have been enrolled in the scheme, a Cabinet Minister yesterday saying it had already been “more successful” than the first version.
Govt targets extra $40-$80m revenue from enforcement
The Government is targeting an extra $40-$80 million in additional revenue over the next six to 12 months as it pursues an enhanced enforcement/compliance strategy, a Cabinet minister said yesterday.
Hutchison ‘streamlines’ Freeport investments
The sales process for the 409-acre Grand Lucayan property on Grand Bahama is “still ongoing”, Prime Minister Perry Christie said yesterday.
Abaco’s airlift capacity up 9%
Abaco has attracted 47,000 stopover visitors year-to-date, a Ministry of Tourism official says, with the island’s airlift capacity for international arrivals increasing for the third straight year.
‘Much work’ ahead over business ease
The Bahamas has “a lot of work to do” before it sees a dramatic improvement in the ease of doing business, the Opposition’s finance spokesman said yesterday, adding: “There’s just too much government bureaucracy.”
Mortgage Corp still stuck at 40% arrears
The Bahamas Mortgage Corporation’s (BMC) arrears ratio continues to hover around 40 per cent, its chairman said yesterday, despite it adding $49.7 million in new mortgages to its portfolio over the past four years.
Fishermen: Gov't late on storm relief
Bahamian fishermen are hoping the Government will give further thought to their cry for fuel concessions, one representative telling this newspaper: “That would go a long way to helping the industry”.
‘Nothing to celebrate’ on $99m borrowing
The Opposition yesterday argued there was “nothing to celebrate” in the Christie administration’s revelation that it is only borrowing $99 million to fund the 2016-2017 fiscal deficit, its finance spokesman saying it had over-burdened Bahamians with taxes to achieve this.
FNM deputy questions Mortgage Relief ‘sense’
The Christie administration’s revised Mortgage Relief Plan does not make much sense “on the face of it”, according to the Opposition’s finance spokesman, who questioned what return the Government would get for its $20 million ‘investment’.
Web shop gains 'stay' on closure
The only web shop operator to be denied a licence has obtained a stay of the Supreme Court decision that effectively paved the way for its closure two weeks ago.
Two-destination Cuba travel 'bit of a stretch'
A 'two-destination' travel arrangement that would see visitors to Cuba also travel to the Bahamas could be a “bit of a stretch”, the FNM's deputy leader believes.
Bahamas must get balanced tourism
The Bahamas must ensure it strikes the right balance between its cruise and stop-over business, the FNM's deputy leader reiterating that it provide a competitive and unique product.
Prev Next
