The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

TALL Pines MP Leslie Miller yesterday defended the Progressive Liberal Party against criticism over how it had handled receipt and expenditure of value added tax (VAT) revenue, suggesting that public demands for transparency and accountability over the tax are “pointless”.

While responding to questions on how his party has handled the revenue generated from VAT since its implementation in 2015, Mr Miller told reporters that the PLP had done a “good and honest” job of managing the affairs of the country with the money collected from the tax.

Mr Miller said the accounting provided by Golden Isles MP and State Finance Minister Michael Halkitis Tuesday night did an excellent job of “putting it in simple details for the average Bahamian,” adding that the PLP had nothing to hide concerning the tax revenue.

He said those interested in the “money and numbers” could look at all of the budget statements released by the Christie administration since the tax was implemented and draw their own conclusions on “how much we get from the people to do their work.”

Speaking on the sidelines of the PLP’s ongoing convention Wednesday, Mr Miller said: “In every budget, it says what the income is and the income is VAT, the majority of it, and it shows what the expenditures are.

“To isolate VAT to itself doesn’t make any sense. We indicate what the government is making and then we say how we are spending it. To create a separate report that say how much is coming from just VAT is pointless.

“What is the big deal when it is all going to defray the expenses of The Bahamas?

“We don’t need to waste any time to write up a report to say ‘we got $12 on Friday from Joe, $10 on Saturday from Jenny and $13 on Sunday from you’ - all going to the government to run the country.

“Damn, we waste all that time and we still need $100 to run the country, so what the hell we gain from arguing over the little $30 we getting from VAT - stop it.”

On Tuesday, Mr Halkitis said that the revenue collected from the tax was spent on various state initiatives under the Christie administration.

He had previously stated that this revenue went into the consolidated fund and would count against the national debt.

Mr Halkitis said tens of millions of dollars were spent on roads, docks and seawalls in Andros, Exuma, Mayaguana, Abaco, Grand Bahama and Cat Island, adding that the government invested in a new fleet for the Royal Bahamas Defence Force at a cost of some $232m to protect our borders and marine resources.

Backing his parliamentary colleague yesterday, Mr Miller said the government has kept its financial dealing “clear and in the eyes of the people,” contending that there was no need to create a separate form of accounting for VAT.

“VAT is a part of the overall financial mechanism of the country,” he said. “One small part, the government is still working in other areas to ensure that they are getting enough money to run this country.”

“These people going crazy on VAT know that the government is still trying to rub pennies together to keep things flowing, but they choose to say (things) and get everyone worked up.

“A lot of those who criticise the government and try to put a spin on VAT are really disingenuous and they know better. We are talking about well-versed businessmen that come with garbage, that they know is garbage, to try and sully the minds of everyday Bahamians as to what VAT is.

“As if VAT was this gift that was given to us and it had no reference to what it is being used for. When we only had duty on goods, where was the accountability?

“The budget is brought (to the House of Assembly) every June, every June we go through the budget and we approve the budget. The VAT money goes into the consolidated fund, I don’t understand this, where is their confusion coming fund? The government isn’t stealing the money. In fact, we are working with the little we have to keep this country going.

“But these people know better and they choose to spread (expletive).”

In November 2016, Mr Halkitis, told the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants (BICA) conference that the government had collected $852m in gross VAT receipts over the 18 month period from January 2015 to the end of June 2016.

His comments last year reignited concerns over how the government was spending this tax windfall.

Last November, Tribune Business reported that while its income had increased, the government was continuing to run deficits and grow the national debt, albeit at a slower pace than in previous years.

As a result, many observers have questioned whether VAT is being employed to pay down the national debt, Tribune Business reported.