by Rick Lowe
Every now and then a former Minister of Finance comes out with comments about a proposed tax system.
They usually speak when they are in opposition, and it doesn't matter which political party they belong to.
It indicates to me that they cannot speak their minds in our political system when they are being paid by the Bahamian public.
Sad commentary indeed, but let's consider a correct approach to taxation for a moment.
The authors of The End of Prosperity assert:
Excessive taxation is detrimental to labor and capital, poor and rich, men and women, old and young. Excessive taxation is an equal opportunity tormentor. While the world is dynamic and many of its ups and downs are beyond the control of government, there are a number of criteria for judging the efficacy of a tax system. These were summarized well by nineteenth-century American economist Henry George:
4. That it bear equally – so as to give no citizen an advantage or put any at a disadvantage, as compared with others.
What say you? Should The Bahamas be considering some form of "Flat Tax" instead of "Value Added Tax" system or a "Sales Tax" system?
No doubt in my mind Rick, we need a fair tax, so does the USA.