Gov’t warned over Freeport ‘side deals’
The Government was yesterday warned not to agree any “side deals” with Freeport’s largest investors at the expense of all other businesses, should it ultimately decide not to renew the city’s expiring tax breaks long-term.
Gov’t ‘back to drawing table’ on draft NHI Bill
The National Health Insurance (NHI) Secretariat was yesterday said to have “gone back to the drawing table” over the legislation that will facilitate the scheme’s implementation.
PM refutes Customs ‘under-performance’
Prime Minister Perry Christie yesterday said import duty-related revenue had declined due to new tax treatments designed to accommodate Value-Added Tax (VAT), not “under-performance”.
Five-year deal gives BEC union transition focus
The Bahamas Electrical Managers Union (BEMU) yesterday said its new five-year industrial agreement allows it to focus directly on the Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) reform process.
BEC takeover set for Monday
The Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) will finally be placed under private sector management this coming Monday, Tribune Business was told yesterday.
Mortgage relief a ‘twin-edged sword’
Arawak Homes’ chairman yesterday conceded that any Government action to address the Bahamas’ $675 million ‘bad’ mortgage crisis would be “a twin-edged sword”, as the threat of creating ‘moral hazard’ among existing borrowers was “very real”.
‘Ticking timebomb’: Gov’t warned to defuse Freeport
The Government was yesterday urged to rapidly defuse the “ticking timebomb” that is Freeport’s expiring tax breaks, a well-known businessman warning that the city’s private sector is “stuck in limbo” until it acts.
Scotia shrugs off Baha Mar collapse
Baha Mar’s collapse into receivership will “not have a significant impact” on Scotiabank (Bahamas) 2015 financial results, even though its equity stake in the project has effectively been written down to zero.
Long Island’s private sector at 35% capacity
JUST 35 per cent of Long Island businesses are back in operation three months after they were devastated by Hurricane Joaquin, the island’s Chamber of Commerce president yesterday estimating that the private sector will take two years to “get back to where it was”.
SUPERGREEN SOLUTIONS: The right atmosphere for water generation
We all know how important water is to our everyday lives. Even more important to our overall health and wellness is clean drinking water.
Misguided to compare GB Power with BEC
The Opposition’s deputy leader yesterday said protesters were comparing “apples with oranges” in arguing that Grand Bahama Power Company’s tariffs should at least match BEC’s, adding that the former’s newly-approved rate structure “strikes a relatively decent balance”.
Gov’t challenged on 30% health insurance cover
The Government’s assertion that just 30 per cent of Bahamians are covered by private health insurance was yesterday challenged using data from another government agency, which pegged the ‘insured’ level at closer to 50 per cent.
Scotia: Bahamas ‘skews’ bad Caribbean mortgages
Scotiabank’s regional chief yesterday revealed that its non-performing Bahamian mortgages were nine percentage points higher than the Caribbean average, which would be cut to just 8 per cent if this nation’s data was excluded.
Scotiabank reverses business volume trend
Scotiabank’s regional head yesterday said the increased business volumes its Bahamas operation is now enjoying suggest that last year’s downsizing exercise is already bearing fruit.
Gov’t told: Don’t treat doctors as the ‘devils’
A well-known physician yesterday suggested Saturday’s National Health Insurance (NHI) meeting involved a change of style rather than substance, as he urged the Government not to treat doctors as “devils”.
