Budget ‘lacking solutions’, says Sutherland
OPPOSITION MEMBER of Parliament Dwight Sutherland has urged Minister of Finance Christopher Sinckler to rethink the new taxes imposed in Tuesday’s Financial Statement and Budgetary Proposals.
Sutherland’s call came as he participated in today’s reply in the House of Assembly.
He said he listened with “bated breath” for solutions to the island’s current financial crisis but what he heard was more “killing of the legacy of dreams and hope shattering”.
The St George South Member of Parliament added the most disappointing element of the budget was not the unprecedented levels of taxation, but the lack of solutions it offered.
Sutherland noted the National Social Responsibility Levy would erode whatever increases seniors had received in their old age pensions, would cause an increase in the cost of medication like Ventolin and Diabetic Strips, and would also have a negative impact on local manufacturers. He described Tuesday’s Budget as “the most disappointing” for its “unprecedented levels of taxation”. (HLE)