The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

SEEKING to quell public outrage over the suggestion of a hurricane tax, Deputy Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis yesterday insisted that there are other alternatives yet to be discussed as the government mulls over how it will fund Hurricane Matthew relief efforts.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a donation exercise spearheaded by Courtyard by Marriott resort, Mr Davis defended the government against criticism that such a tax would be unnecessary and counter-intuitive in the wake of Hurricane Matthew.

Prime Minister Perry Christie on Monday said the Cabinet might consider introducing and implementing a special tax to help finance Hurricane Matthew repair and recovery efforts across the country.

However, that announcement has been meet with harsh criticism and vitriol, with many Bahamians taking issue with the lack of clarity on revenue earned by the government through the introduction of value-added tax (VAT) early last year.

“It is only a discussion,” Mr Davis told reporters on Wednesday.

The Cat Island MP said that while Mr Christie’s comments gave the impression that tax discussions were far along, actual discussion on the topic were not advanced, nor extensive.

He said: “What the Prime Minister is saying is look, this has been a tremendous loss to our country; this is likely to cost us hundreds of millions of dollars and we have to start off by deciding how we are going to pay for what we have to do.”

“(How) we pay government bills, government revenue, is usually by taxing.”

“And I think that is what he is talking about.”

“There has been no decision to introduce any tax at the moment,” Mr Davis said.

He said the Christie administration was examining the country’s present tax structure, to determine if there are any “gaps” that could pool enough resources together to aid the government with its hurricane relief efforts.

“As we do in everything, we identify what the issues are, then we try to find a solution to those issues if they become challenges.”

Mr Davis continued: “I think the first thought that comes to mind is tax, but that is not the only way to resolve the issues of raising funds. Identifying the gaps in the present system and aggressively addressing that, and you may find sufficient (resources) in that gap.”

On Tuesday, sources informed The Tribune that Cabinet ministers rejected a sin tax on tobacco and alcohol to accumulate the necessary funding for repair and recovery efforts.

Those sources claimed the majority of Cabinet ministers opted to pursue avenues that would free Bahamians from additional taxation.

Mr Christie has previously suggested that repair efforts associated with Hurricane Matthew could exceed $200m.

On Wednesday, the government moved to create a $150m Hurricane Reconstruction Bond.