Property tax coming back: Rowley. "No, not true," says PM Kamla

Opposition Leader Dr. Keith Rowley said Wednesday the government of Trinidad and Tobago is bringing back the property tax which it campaigned against in the general election.

And he warned that the tax would be heavier than the one the previous Manning PNM government had proposed.

But Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar immediately knocked down Rowley's charge saying the government is doing the opposite to what Rowley is telling citizens.

"No, no, not true. In fact, we have approved a Bill that will repeal the Act which was brought by the last administration. So that is totally false," she said.

"Each week, we have to deal with some of the falsities. I know last week they were saying that we were going to remove the fuel subsidy. Not true. This week, they are saying that we are going to bring back the property tax; no way, it's not happening. 

"The bill, to be introduced in the Parliament (will) repeal the Property Tax Act that was passed last year." she said.

She added that that bill approved by Cabinet "should repeal what was done by the last administration."

Rowley called a news conferfence Wednesday to tell reporters that he has a copy of a Bill, which he said clearly indicates that government is moving to impose the controversial tax on citizens.

He said the government plans to sneak in the tax bill into Parliament during the Carnival season.

"Lo and behold, in the dead of night, and the eve of Carnival when everybody is playing attention to Carnival, the government slips this Bill into Parliament," he said.

"And I have looked at both Bills - Property Tax Bill and the one government has put in the Parliament. The government proposal now, as laid in the Parliament, is 7.5%," he said.