Chamber Of Commerce 2014 Budget Wish List
Chamber of Commerce President Ronnie Viera, speaking on behalf of some divisions of the Chamber, highlighed the local business wish list for 2014 budget, which will be delivered by Finance Minister Bob Richards this coming Friday.
“In general, it is our hope that a clear statement from the Finance Minister will be made on when Bermuda can expect to see a balanced budget, with plans for addressing this now and in the immediate future,” said Mr. Viera.
“With regard to further stimulus to the Real Estate sector, our members would like to see an amendment to the current regulations to create more international demand for Bermuda real estate.
- Create clear rules to allow foreign exempt companies, which meet certain criteria, to purchase residential properties.
- Allow Permanent Resident Certificate [PRC] holders to purchase any property on the Island.
- Lower the tax payable by non-Bermudians to purchase property on the Island; raising the Stamp Duty for foreign purchasers a few percentage points instead.
- Allow existing foreign property owners, who have bought and sold a Bermuda property, to purchase new property without again going through the cumbersome permission process.
- The abolition of the need to sit the local driving test, if one already holds an internationally recognized driving licence.
In the Retail Sector the membership would like to see an extension of the existing tax exemptions and duty relief.
- Extend the payroll tax exemption for employers and employees, to keep Bermudians employed and to keep businesses operating, allowing them to shore up the social and commercial viability of Bermuda as a business and tourist destination.
- Extend the duty relief granted on all upgrades, refurbishment and new business on fixtures, fittings for new installations, which are essential to keep retail relevant in today’s market.
In the Restaurant sector, continue the existing tax relief
- Extend the payroll tax relief (i.e. the waiver of the employer portion) to restaurants. This relief has contributed to the end of erosion in top-line revenues over 2012-2013.
“We are very much looking forward to the 2014 budget and will have an opportunity to ask questions and get further clarification from the Finance Minister at our annual Budget Breakfast on Monday 24th of February,” said Mr. Viera.
Do not relax any laws which safeguard existing properties from the sale to PRC’s . Payroll taxes need to be payed for every expat employee in the retail and hotel industry , that would encourage employers to hire from the local labor force . Only local hires attract payroll tax relief .
The only one I agree with is giving PRCs the right to buy any house. They have been here for years, have the right to live here, contribute to the economy in every way a born Bermudian does. Plus, we need the real estate market to get rolling again.
Wtf ! This is solely a budget around benefits for non Bermudians. Are you frikkan serious? Please come again Ronnie et al
We can’t get Bermudians back to work until the economy is moving again. All these options are meant to encourage commerce within Bermuda, which is the first step.
Don’t worry all the expats are running for the hills with their bags of savings after this weeks shenanigans in Parliament.
What expat in their right mind would sink millions of dollars into an Island that treats them like a step child?
They have alternatives on where to spend their hard earned dollars.
Witness yourself all the “for sale” signs strewn like confetti across the Island. Witness the husks of derelict properties mushrooming in certain neighbourhoods.
Now double them and you have a realistic vision of the future if parliament continues thus and if expatriate workers continue to be reviled.
OOHH de boogie man is coming
one million square feet of empty office space and rising. The boogie man is already here.
You don’t want new immigration, you just want their money. Good luck with that.
Is the Chamber serious??? Why does most of their concerns seem to be with Non Bermudians??
In any environment where Bermudians are struggling to buy land in their own land, you want to make it easier for Bermudians to compete with the pockets of these Public Traded Exempt companies??
The First five points directly relate to breaking down the bureaucracy as it relates to Non Bermudians. I guess we now know where their priorities lie..
Looking at the Euro-Colonist History of Bermuda I’m not surprised.
Your ignorance can always be guarenteed
I’ll try and explain why it may appear that way, but is actually in fact a way of improving all of our lives. Imagine the Bermuda economy being like the average person’s household. It’s struggling, and needs a way to improve its income. The only way to do that is to bring money from OUTSIDE the household. A Bermudian buying a house is merely exchanging money from one set of Bermudian hands to another. It’s like a big circle.
What the chamber is trying to do is to increase the size of the circle – and the only way to do that is to bring new money into it. If a Bermudian sells their property to a foreigner, new money comes in, and with any luck is spent in the local economy. It’s new investment, which is what we all need. That’s what the first three points address. The other two is about encouraging new investment.
We need to stop thinking in terms of us vs them. Our economy is too small to support us – the only way out is through growth, and that growth can only come from outside. Unless you know some really rich Bermudians ready to invest? Oh wait, we’ve ticked that box with the Green family. So yeah, our options are pretty thin at this point.
I understand that concept entirely,, there is one big problem with you analysis, Bermuda unlike most other places in the world that have such a “sophisticated” society”, only has 22 square miles of land, therefore, a Bermudian can’t simply go to an undeveloped part of the country to look to build their home, we have to work with what is available, a limited supply. Thus when you factor in the limited supply which in itself raises the demand, and now they want to complicate the concept of “demand” by having locals compete with Publicily Traded Companies, (i.e. Companies whose owners buy their shares on a global stock exchange).
I don’t disagree. We just don’t have many options. Let’s recap where we are: We have no money. Our borrowing capacity is shrinking. Our only natural resources are beauty and charm and they have faded. No one wants to cut the civil service. No one wants to give up defined benefit plans which will keep our children in debt for generations. No one wants to offer citizenship or residency for cash. No one wants gambling. No one wants to make any changes of any kind or offer any incentives unless they personally benefit. Oh, but we may just want to mine an ocean sea bed which may or may not have resources and will cost hundreds of millions we don’t have and can’t borrow just to find out. You know what I hear? We don’t want change. Well, if you keep doing what you’re doing, then you’ll keep getting what you get. How’s that working out for us?
We can keep all the land to ourselves, and continue to watch people suffer. Or we have to make choices where we don’t like all the outcomes. These are tough times, we’re not going to like our choices. But it is a choice.
Like I said, our options are few. And no one said we have to sell everything – there’s a heck of a lot of condos for sale, we could certainly sell some of those. I wish there was a magic wand where we could just magically generate revenue. The fact is, if we want people employed, we need a bigger economy. It’s a numbers game. We can moan and cry all we like, but it’s not going to move the economy. If anyone has better ideas, I’m all ears.
Invest in Bermuda. We are the people.
Great! What are you willing to give in return? Because any investment requires a return, otherwise its just charity. So if you want people to give you their money, their ideas, their efforts – what are you willing to give back? What are we able to give which differentiates ourselves from all the other options. What makes an investment in Bermuda a good investment?
Residency? No. A vote? No. Long term options for their children? No. Land? No. Guess we shouldn’t be too surprised when they take their money and invest it somewhere else then. Wouldn’t you?
*it’s*
I agree, there certainly isn’t an easy solution. I don’t think its a case of No One wants all of the options you described above, I just think the government is doing a bad job of educating the population about certain options and the potential of certain options, in my opinion. Take gambling for instance, I am not entirely for gambling, but I am not against it either, I think if the government was to educate the population extensively and get them to buy into the concept of gambling and where we are heading, I think the majority of people would get on board, instead of the way that the current government has gone about it.. I don’t like to make everything political, but you must admit, that the OBA may have a great vision as far as gambling is concerned, but they have gone about things in, what some would describe, a very deceptive manner; promising people a referendum, then insulting the intelligence of the population of Bermuda by trying to give them a loaded question. It was an insult and it gave the people of Bermuda a the feeling that they where trying to be fooled into something. Then after they where called out on that, they decided that they where going to cancel the referendum altogether. huh? That is not the way to get the population behind something. Now they are having town hall meetings, but their intentions don’t appear genuine at all. If they had the education and town hall meetings first and had extensive ads about the possibilities, they would have got the country behind them. I don’t know who is calling the tactics, but it is not “impressive”
to say the least.
I personally think that, despite the lack of land, Bermuda as you also mentioned above has the natural resources of beauty and charm, and which is why I believe that what made Bermuda successful in the first place can make Bermuda successful again, and that is tourism. Maybe I am naive in believing this, but I stand behind my position 100%. The problem with Tourism is that Bermuda has to change, and the target market that they appealed to in the past is shrinking. Bermuda used to target the more conservative tourist who came here as it was a quiet place that they could relax and see the caves etc. is obsolete. There is a new type of tourist that is controlling the market now, the younger, more energetic, more outgoing, adventurous, fun-loving, nightlife type of tourist. Bermuda’s product hasn’t moved with the market. Frankly, apart from the beaches, which are beautiful, Bermuda is extremely boring, and you can’t expect tourists to come here for 500dollars a night and be bored to tears, and when you add on the lack of quality service, its not a good mix.
There are things that Bermuda can work on, but its going to take creative ideas, with “fresh blood”, and I don’t believe selling our valuable land to foreigners should be one of the first options. Its also going to take everyone working together, black, white, young, old, etc. The problem is to implement a government that can bring the country under one umbrella, the PLP did a bad job of including everyone, and the OBA just can’t be trusted for me, like you mentioned, they appear to concerned for personal gain and now they have integrity issues growing on a daily basis, and (for lack of a better word) a leader who is not up to the task. IMHO.
We Bermudians must also stop playing the blame game and take collective ownership for the position we are in, and collectively come to an agreement about how we are going to move forward, its not too late, but the clock is certainly ticking.
I couldn’t agree more. I don’t even watch the local news, it just saddens me that it has deteriorated to this level of behavior – on ALL sides. We need to do better.
I don’t believe it is too late, but I also don’t think there is a silver bullet. I think it’s going to take a many layered approach – and part of that is going to be the need to bring in new people. Personally I don’t really understand all the hyperbole around it. I know MANY foreigners, and so few of them actually want a vote. You know what they want? An ability to live here, to invest here without worrying they may have to leave in a couple years on the whim of some policy change. They love our island, they love our people, they want to be a part of it. But we keep saying no, we got here first, too bad for you. We want your money, but only on our terms. And we’re surprised no one is beating down the door?
I’ll give a specific example. I’m a Bermudian, and I’m married to a foreigner. He’s been eligible for status for years, and has never expressed any interest in getting it. He’s not fussed about voting, he just wants stability for Bermuda no matter who is in power. I have another Bermudian friend, same situation. Married over 20 years, never bothered to get status. Not everyone is as obsessed with politics – most people just want to work, to feel safe, and to raise their family – they want security and predictability. It’s not rocket science!
So maybe we don’t give land. Maybe we give their children a path to citizenship, so people don’t pack up and leave because this is the only home their children have known, and they have no future here. The question is, as a people, what are we willing to give? Because if it’s nothing, that’s exactly what we are going to get.
Well Madam, I have really enjoyed communicating with you, and I think despite our different paths, we both want what is best for Bermuda and its people. May you have a blessed day.
You as well – it’s been a pleasure
@ Girl on Fire
You really are on fire. What Bermuda needs is an honest broker between Bermudians and non Bermudians. Unfortunately most conversations start from the wrong perspective. Its either Bermudians are lazy, uneducated and have a lofty sense of entitlement or foreigners are rich, white and have no regard for Bermudians.
Any objective commentary would show that each perspective is wrong. Bermudians are a very proud people and so they should be. There is a limited land mass that must be protected for future generations. In many cases, non Bermudians are seen to enjoy opportunities that Bermudians do not enjoy but the advantage is not always based on ability but on social circumstances.
I personally believe that the current PRC process is very close to the ideal solution. It may need to be tweaked a little but it gives non Bermudians the right to work and live here, buy houses etc and generally enjoy thier lives that they have worked hard for. The absence of being able to vote is necessary based on past abuses of our immigration policy.
There may have to be some adjustment for how the PRC status effectively passes to their children but that discussion has to be had from a level playing field – ie one of mutual need.
One personal reality is that any PRC resident is here by choice (by definition) and has the option of returning to their place of birth. That same option does not exist for Bermudians except for the option of British citizenship (which is a valuable option I must add).
If we can get away from the politics of it all and demonstrate sincere mutal interest, we can move forward together.
One caveat… there are several social ills that must be addressed to release the building frustration felt by many. To avoid doing so is to merely adress Bermuda’s interests and future success on a superficial basis.
Well said Vote for Me, and I’ll take that as a compliment!
I think we all suffer from believing we know what motivates each other (whether Bermudian or not), when we really need to be listening with more empathy. We’re not all that different.
Let’s hope the conversation keeps moving forward in a positive direction – I think that’s going to be a challenge in the days to come.
That is the best comment I’ve read in a very long time. Well done
If we believe we have nothing, then I am not a part of that we. The easy route is to give up.
My wish list is: Legalize herb completely, saving the untold millions presently being flushed down the toilet trying to fight an unjust, losing battle.
Lower health costs by producing medical quality locally and simultaneously create jobs (we locals can do).
Promote research and medical tourism by providing an understanding and compassionate atmosphere for people who may enjoy convalescing in our climate.
Keep cost for the ill down by charging higher prices (within reason and below black market) for recreational smokers.
Provide a safer alternative for socialization than alcohol for local and foreigner alike.
Investigate hempcrete (ganja hurds mixed with limestone) and other industrial applications which are healthy, renewable, sustainable and affordable/profitable.
Keep regulation and taxes at reasonable levels and prevent big business interests from taking over allowing for a flourishing “cottage industry” model and “trickle up” economics.
Real “Buy Bermuda”, like potatoes and onions, money circulates here.
The irony of the Chamber’s release is:
Grant us all these concessions BUT give us a balance budget!! In summary, the Chamber is asking for the public to subsidize their businesses!! And all the while complaining about how bloated the public sector is.
I guess even the Chamber does not understand. Every dollar given in concession must be raised in revenue. Each dollar of revenue for government requires approximately 4 dollars increase in GDP.
Request to the Chamber, let us know what you are prepared to give up to help us get to a balanced budget!!
Mr. Ronnie Viera
You can not tell me that you have come this far in life and not lost your demeaning and have regrets for poor judgement, we are all human and we all have our Human frailties, there is not a man on this earth that has not made a few mistakes in life.
May be you just did.
This Island and its people have come along way , we are no longer living in the dark ages.
Mr. Viera during my employ I was faced with many “Catch 22″ situations and no mater what I did there could be consequences, worst of all that of doing nothing.
My answer to catch 22 was ” Dam if you do” and dam if you don’t, so ! “dam it! FULL SPEED AHEAD.
Compassion has a higher reward than saving face.
There was a heart felt apology given by that woman.
Mr. Viera, I am pleading with you to” Man Up”, show compassion ,give that woman back her job.
Mr. Furbert the Bermuda Industrial Union leader is a humanitarian he will understand.