In the United Kingdom, the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has announced a windfall tax on energy firms that will raise around £5 billion. A windfall tax is economically very rational and the money will be used to help low income households, that have been catastrophically hit by the large increase in electricity prices.
All around the world, we are seeing rising costs of food, electricity, gas and other daily living requisites. The windfall tax in the UK will help poorer households that are being squeezed by the increased costs of daily living expenses.
In SVG, poorer households are facing the same financial pressures as poorer households in the UK.
In SVG, we have also seen rising costs of food, electricity, gas and other staples. We need to impose a windfall tax on the super-rich of Mustique and Canouan to help poorer households with the increased costs of daily living expenses.
For decades, Vincentians have been subsidising the super-rich of Mustique and Canouan. It is the taxes of Vincentians that pay for the roads and other services the super-rich property owners of Mustique and Canouan use. It is time to turn the tables!!!
An urgent effort should be made, with government leading the way in helping low income families get through this very difficult period.
The simplest and best way to raise money immediately is a windfall tax. A windfall tax in SVG could raise around EC$5 billion.
The super-rich migrants of Mustique and Canouan have been getting away with not paying their fair share of tax for too long. If they really care about our country and people, they would see that a windfall tax to help our people is reasonable. It is only right and fair that the super-rich pay tax.
Taiwan has been making billions of dollars every year from our fish licence and has not paid tax. We should also impose an EC$5 billion windfall tax on Taiwan immediately to aid the recovery of our country. Money received from the windfall tax could also be used to set up an SVG tuna fishing and canning industry. This industry will bring in billions of dollars in revenue to the SVG Treasury and create thousands of new, long-term jobs.
The longer it takes for our country to impose a windfall tax on the super-rich migrants of Mustique and Canouan and Taiwan, the more likely we will see households being unable to adequately feed themselves.
Leader of SVG Green Party, Warrant Officer Ivan Bertie O’Neal BSc (Hons), MSc, MBA, says that a windfall tax is a reasonable way to raise money. The recent example of the United Kingdom imposing a windfall tax on energy firms to raise around £5 billion, illustrates the path that SVG should follow.
The windfall tax in the UK of around £5 billion will help poorer UK households that are being squeezed by the rising costs of food, electricity, gas and other daily living expenses.
Similarly, we must impose a windfall tax of EC$5 billion on the super-rich of Mustique and Canouan and Taiwan to help poor SVG households that are being squeezed by the rising costs of food, electricity, gas and other daily living expenses.