P.M. legislates income tax reform
The House of Representatives today provided spectators and those listening by radio with a healthy dose of humor, rhetoric and drama. It was after all, one half of the legislature at work conducting the people’s business. But perhaps the most outstanding feature of this morning’s proceedings was the Prime Minister’s introduction of a bill to amend the law abolishing income tax for persons who earn less than twenty thousand dollars per year. Esquivel says the bill, which also provides for the imposition of a company tax, will benefit everyone.
Manuel Esquivel, Prime Minister
“People will be now saving somewhere within the region of eight hundred to a thousand dollars a year of their salaries because it means that all employees will benefit. Not only will people who are earning less than twenty thousand stop paying all income tax all together. Because of the deduction of nineteen thousand, six hundred dollars that all employees can now make, people earning more than twenty thousand a year will also pay less income tax than before and that ranges between eight hundred dollars to about eleven hundred dollars. People in all income tax brackets will be paying that much less income tax.”
Q: “You keep raising the bracket, is this a gradual move towards the total abolition of income tax?”
Manuel Esquivel
“Precisely that is the goal but it has to be done prudently and with a plan because we cannot abolish taxes without making sure that the Government’s revenue is going to be protected. And hence with the introduction of the V.A.T., the gradual abolition of more and more people from paying income taxes, the abolition of the corporate, company tax, the reduction of import duties, these are all part of a package of moving away from the Government taking your money before you get it, to the Government allowing you to get your money and then deciding what taxes you will pay determined by the manner in which you decide to spend your money.”
The bill was referred to the Ways and Means Committee for consideration and examination and is expected to be sent back to the House to be read a second and third time at its next sitting before it becomes law.
The abolishment of personal income tax wasn’t the only thing on the mind of the Prime Minister today. At the adjournment of the House Mr. Esquivel told reporters that the performance of his Government over the last five years is satisfactory and indicated that the general elections will be called when he is good and ready.
Manuel Esquivel
“No, we have not accomplished everything; that would be totally ridiculous. When we set out a manifesto, we set out a plan of action, which we hoped to accomplish within five years. I would say the vast majority of it has been accomplished. But one cannot predict the future absolutely in that way. One thing is certain we have an Opposition calling for elections now even though they know that this House has until the sixteenth of July before it is dissolved. In stark contrast to the fact of in 1993, in less than three years and a half, more or less, of their term, they declared that they had accomplished a hundred percent of what they had set out to do which we all know is not so.”
Q: “Sir, you haven’t announced the date of elections yet but is your party ready for elections?”
Manuel Esquivel
“We are ready. But we said back in 1993, I am sure if you look at the records of the House, I can distinctly recall it was the member from Mesopotamia, Mr. Finnegan, saying in the House that the people of this country had elected us to serve an entire term. This was in context of the P.U.P. advocating their authority after three and a half years. The people had elected us for an enter term and we intended to serve an entire term and that is what we are doing.”
