Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall says the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) requires Guyana to pass legislation which would apply additional taxes to local manufacturers so as render taxes applied to Caricom manufacturers non-discriminatory, but AFC leader Khemraj Ramjattan is accusing him of misrepresenting the CCJ, while arguing that abolishing the tax altogether is also an option.
The exchange between the two lawyers ensued following attempts by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, by way of a motion, to suspend the Standing Orders so that a substantive debate on the merits, or lack thereof, of the Customs (Amend-ment) Bill could be had by the National Assembly.
A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) MP Carl Greenidge, who is also the coalition’s financial point man, wasted no time lambasting government’s decision to move such a motion considering that the bill is not ready. Greenidge reminded the House of the decision to wait on a report from the private sector which is expected to outline the challenges the private sector envisages if the bill is to be passed. It was government’s lack of consultation with the private sector on the bill’s provisions which led opposition parliamentarians to vote against it last year, effectively killing it. It was however, laid again earlier this year.
Since the bill has not benefited from sufficient consultations with the private sector, Greenidge said, it should not be further considered at this time.
Greenidge told the government side that the bill as it stands cannot be deliberated on and warned that it would be voted down, again, if an attempt was made to initiate further debate on its provisions before the private sector has its say.
Hinds though, explained that the motion was not for a vote on its passage to be taken, but for a substantive debate on its merits to take place.
The bill was read for the first time last January, and eventually defeated in May after the opposition said there was need for more consultations with the private sector. The bill sought to lower the rate of the Environmental Tax charged on beverage containers while widening the range of bottles, cans and other receptacles that are subject to the tax. Had the tax been passed it, among other things, would have levied a new tax on local manufacturers that are exempted under the current legislation. It would have also made similar taxes imposed on manufacturers in Caricom countries non-discriminatory, as the tax is currently only applied to external companies.
Legal proceedings brought by a company in Guyana’s sister Caricom jurisdiction of Suriname have highlighted the need for some change with regard to the tax. In May, Rudisa Beverages, a Surinamese company, challenged the application of the tax only on imported beverages, at the level of the CCJ. The court found that Guyana was in breach of its obligations under the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas (RTC) and ordered the country to pay US$6,047,244.47 ($1.2B) which had been collected from the company via the tax since 2009. The tax imposed on the imported goods effectively raised the price of each imported container by $10, while local manufacturers were not required to pay the same tax.
In addition to the payment, Guyana was ordered to take measures to bring its laws into conformity with the RTC.
Nandlall told the National Assembly on Thursday that the CCJ has accepted that the Customs (Amendment) Bill will bring Guyana into conformity with the RTC and he added that the CCJ be adjourned for several months to allow for the implementation of the bill.
Nandlall also said that he will be required to tell the court by October 30 if the legislation has been passed.
Ramjattan, however, trashed Nandlall assertions, and argued that the Legal Affairs Minister is well aware that there are alternatives which would see Guyana not implementing taxes on its already heavily-taxed populace. Ramjattan said Guyana was ordered to take appropriate action, which can also include repealing the contentious environmental law. He said, however, that rather than do that, government wants to make local manufacturers pay an additional $5 tax on non-returnable beverage containers.
APNU MP Basil Williams also took a turn lambasting government for the route it is seeking to go. He noted that Guyanese are already overtaxed, and lamented that rather than repealing the tax altogether government is seeking to retain the tax by imposing more taxes on local businesses. The legislation, he finally said, is not one that the opposition parties can bring themselves to support.
Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett noted that Guyana was in breach of its international obligations and suggested that the opposition allow the bill to come back and probably be sent to a select committee where it would be further deliberated on.
Hinds’ motion was unpopular with the opposition parties and thus was voted down when the question was put.
