Jamaican Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett says the UK has informed Caribbean Tourism Ministers that on March 23 the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the British Government will be making a statement regarding the future of the tax.
Bartlett said following the announcement consultations are expected to be held on proposals for a successor regime to the APD. Tourism Ministers are hoping these discussions will take into account the Caribbean’s proposal to change the tax.
"We in the Caribbean have been lobbying for the implementation of a two-tiered band under which the ADP should be applied. One tier for what is known as “short-haul” destination and the second tier for so-called “long haul” destinations," Bartlett explained.
"That policy would be a win-win situation for all concerned as apart from proving to be a revenue-neutral position, will remove the disparity which exists between travellers heading into the Caribbean paying more APD than those going into the United States.”
Minister Bartlett says there is optimism that the announcement will be very favourable to all concerned. He says there is an intense lobby against the ADP from non-Caribbean countries such as South Africa, India and Australia, which have also been hit hard by the tariff.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar had raised the issue with her British counterpart, David Cameron, during discussions in London last year. Cameron had promised her that his government would review the ADP in the spring.
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| Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar with her British counterpart, David Cameron, at 10 Downing Street |
1 comment:
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