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Web shops are urging the Government to reconsider the New Year s Day introduction of the long-awaited patron winnings tax due to the additional burden it will impose on COVID-hit consumers.
Leander Brice and Garvin Newball, A Sure Win s co-chief executives, told Tribune Business their clients need more time to bounce back given the hardship imposed by the pandemic s devastation of employment and incomes.
Saying they were sensitive to the plight of patrons, the duo said in a statement: As an innovative industry, we remain committed to adapting as needed to the ever-changing environment in which we operate.
PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party Chairman Fred Mitchell said the impending imposition of a winnings tax on web shop patrons will lead to reduced player participation and layoffs in a sector that employs more than 3,000 workers.
In a statement issued yesterday, Mr Mitchell said while he understands how desperate the government is for revenue, the impending tax appears to be an “assault” on the web shop sector.
He said: “Has the government really conducted or thought about the cost benefit analysis of the proposed imposition of the tax on Bahamian users of web shops and their winnings?
“We understand the desperation of the FNM government for revenue but does the FNM really at this time of economic and health crisis, want to impose a tax which will affect poor and middle-class Bahamians? The foreign visitor pays no taxes on their winnings.
Opposition deputy slams starving of capital works tribune242.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from tribune242.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Progressive Liberal Party Deputy Leader Chester Cooper.
NASSAU, BAHAMAS Opposition Shadow Finance Minister Chester Cooper yesterday asserted that the government has yet to identify a clear strategy for economic growth, while slamming many of the forecasts in the recently released Fiscal Strategy Report (FSR) as “fanciful”.
Cooper, in a statement on the FSR that was tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, said: “I have yet to identify a clear strategy for economic growth which is what the government should primarily be focusing on at this time.”
He added: “What I do see is an administration that once again runs to impose additional taxes on the Bahamian people and further starve capital works that could spur the economy. The administration that railed against value-added tax then raised it, is now looking to a legalized gaming industry it opposed to shore up its fiscal position. The irony is breathtaking. Of course, we hear no talk of taxing the winnings of foreig
Casinos make a greater contribution to the Bahamian economy than Gaming Houses
NASSAU, BAHAMAS Attorney General Carl Bethel yesterday defended the implementation of a gaming tax on winnings for only Bahamians, indicating that casinos, which are exclusive to tourists, make a far greater contribution to employment and economic activity throughout the Bahamian economy.
While presenting the Fiscal Strategy Report in the Senate on Wednesday, Minister of State for Finance Kwasi Thompson announced that starting January 1, 2021, the government will implement a long-planned gaming tax on winnings to help counter significant revenue losses.
However, the gaming tax on winnings will not apply to casinos.