The Gonsalves Government has increased taxes in almost every budget since coming into power in 2001, which are hitting the poorest of people the hardest.
From the introduction of VAT to increased prices of petrol products and vehicle surtax, as well as rising professions license fees, Labour has increased tax at every possible opportunity.
However, while it has campaigned to position itself as the party of the working people, the majority of these tax hikes have had the biggest impact on working people.
Huge numbers of people rely on cars and petrol to get to work but they are finding it more expensive to get to work because in higher taxes on these, which means they have less money going into their pockets each month. Furthermore, basic goods such as rice, lentils and pigeon peas have been made taxable under the Gonsalves Government, making life more difficult for those on the breadline.
In a previous Budget, Labour admitted: “St. Vincent and the Grenadines has some of the highest rates of taxation for both individuals and companies”, which raises the question, with so many people struggling to put food on the table, what is being done with the taxes we pay?
Recently it was discovered that $95 million has gone missing from public finances, with no explanation from Finance Minister Camillo Gonsalves, which suggests the increasing amount of tax we are paying isn’t being used to fund public project but is lining the pockets of the Gonsalves Government.
Since Camillo took over his current role, 420 businesses have been forced to close their doors as a result of the increased cost in doing business, which has resulted in 2,754 more people losing their jobs. And despite the rising levels of people finding themselves without a job, the Minister of Finance has refused to release the official unemployment figures as he continues to avoid the financial struggles we face.
Not only has the Gonsalves Government failed to tackle increasing unemployment, but it is continuously increasing tax on the people who are struggling the most.