Look to successful international governance models

RUSHTON PARAY

The Minister of Finance and the UNC administration have made a decisive start by committing to repeal the TTRA and withdrawing the residential property tax regime.

The announcement to refund citizens who already paid sends a strong message: this government intends to lead with fairness, transparency and a reset in the relationship between the State and the taxpayer. That tone is welcomed after years of heavy-handed measures and declining public trust.

Still, these decisions carry fiscal consequences.

The country will lose potential revenue streams and there is a need to act quickly to fill those gaps with smarter, more equitable alternatives. What follows is a practical roadmap built around international examples and policy ideas that align with the government’s stated goals of growth, equity and good governance.

The energy sector remains central, but it’s in trouble. Production is falling and the optimism around LNG contract renegotiations won’t be enough without new gas coming online.

The UK has used upstream fiscal incentives tied to investment and production timelines to stimulate exploration in mature basins – TT should follow that model and accelerate decisions on marginal fields and brownfield expansion.

Government’s position to withdraw from coercive tax structures creates space for more effective and citizen-friendly revenue management. Instead of the Revenue Authority, modernise the existing BIR and Customs using digital tools and performance contracts.

Estonia’s tax system, almost entirely online, offers a clear model. In place of residential property tax, a modest levy on unused commercial lands and buildings or idle state/private assets could create revenue while encouraging productive use of land and buildings.

Economic diversification must go beyond Cabinet notes and slogans. Key opportunities lie in agro-processing, tech services, renewable energy, and niche manufacturing. Special Economic Zones with regulatory support and tax relief – similar to the UAE’s model – can help drive investment into these areas without distorting the broader tax regime.

The forex market still suffers from restricted access and low transparency. A managed forex auction platform can help distribute scarce forex more fairly while maintaining market discipline.

Bangladesh and Nigeria have implemented versions of this system with positive effects on predictability and planning for businesses.

Inflation, particularly in food and fuel, continues to affect working families. The liberalisation of diesel prices, for example, is still filtering into transport and food costs. Instead of returning to broad subsidies, Government should consider a digital voucher system for low-income households, funded by savings from better-targeted social spending. Chile’s direct cash transfer system is a good benchmark.

On public debt, the new minister inherits a country still recovering from heavy borrowing during the pandemic and the post-2016 energy shock. A new medium-term fiscal framework should tie borrowing to capital investment only, with transparent rules. Jamaica, once heavily indebted, turned things around by adopting these exact measures in its post-IMF recovery.

Our export industries face growing pressure from international climate policies. The EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism threatens TT’s ammonia and methanol exports. To maintain competitiveness, government support for carbon-reducing retrofits in the Point Lisas estate is necessary. Germany’s hydrogen transition programme offers a structure for public-private collaboration in this area.

The private sector needs clearer rules, faster decisions, and real signals of reform. TT should consider creating a fully autonomous investment facilitation agency with digital processing and guaranteed timelines. Rwanda did this and is now a top African destination for FDI (foreign direct investments) despite its size and location.

Crime remains an economic issue. Businesses are scaling back operations and investor confidence is tied directly to public safety. One option is to link municipal job creation programmes to violence prevention, similar to how Medellín reduced crime by integrating social investment with policing.

Finally, citizens want to see outcomes. Performance-based budgeting should be introduced across ministries, with ten per cent of allocations tied to measurable outputs. New Zealand’s Wellbeing Budget framework, with published indicators and real transparency, is one possible model.

This new administration has chosen to start with fairness. It now has a rare opportunity to back that up with discipline, efficiency and a growth strategy that reaches people where it matters. With the right tools and the right political will, this finance minister can reset not only the fiscal accounts but the country’s direction.

Rushton Paray is the former MP for Mayaro and shadow minister for Trade, Industry & Investments