Remove PAYE to give people more buying power

THE EDITOR: At this time I am reminded of the age old question: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Similarly, I have to ask: Which is more important, the public economy or the private economy?

During the last Parliament, the Minister of Finance was zealously focused on the public economy which may have supported the Government over that five-year period but had devastating effects on the population and the private economy.

Should he think he was a success and decides to repeat the same for this Parliament, I do not think there will be a treasury big enough to support the needy population.

One from zero will always be zero.

I call on the minister to please take one step back and see the big picture. The public economy relies on taxes collected from businesses's quarterly taxes, the Green Fund Levy and PAYE.

Those taxes will dwindle as businesses close and workers join the needy and become a burden on the Government.

Wouldn't it be wiser to remove PAYE and waive the property tax which would then give the population increased buying power and in turn help businesses recover, employ more workers and be in a position to pay increased quarterly taxes and Green Fund Levy?

Another idea would be for the Government to focus only on the necessary projects – road repair, water supply, agriculture, education, clearing of water courses and completion and distribution of existing housing. This last project will be a source of income.

Forget projects such as community centres and playgrounds. The youngsters are not into physical activities anyway.

RICHARD DEANE

Diego Martin