Premier Burt And OBA’s De Couto On CIT
Premier and Minister of Finance David Burt and Shadow Finance Minister Dr. Douglas De Couto have both commented on the Government’s Corporate Income Tax [CIT].
Premier David Burt Statement
Premier Burt said, “In the 2025/26 Budget, the Government projected that revenue received from corporate income tax [CIT] will be roughly $187.5 million in the coming fiscal year. This is 25% of the estimated $750 million in Corporate Income Tax revenue that the Government expects to receive annually from the new CIT.
“On Friday, in their continued effort to sow speculation and uncertainty, the Shadow Finance Minister claimed that the Government does not know how much revenue will be received from CIT. The Opposition is being mischievous and hoping to create confusion on an issue of national importance. The OBA is well aware that the Government has based its estimates on input from international tax advisors, and those figures have been compared with estimates received from the OECD, which have confirmed that the projection of $750 million is sound.”
The Premier and Minister of Finance continued, “This Government has a strong track record of conservative projections for revenue, and exceeding those projections thanks to prudent economic and fiscal management. This includes the surplus we delivered in this year’s budget, where we projected a surplus of $210 thousand, but delivered an actual surplus of $19.7 million dollars”
“Our success belongs to the people of Bermuda. Because of the Government’s strong economic management, we will have record investment in affordable housing, further tax relief, further reductions in fuel duty, expanded coverage for HIP and Futurecare, and increased funding for scholarships.
“Either the Opposition is trying to sow speculation or is simply ignorant of the facts that they have been presented on multiple occasions. Despite this, this Government will continue its work in building a fairer and more affordable Bermuda for all.”
Dr. Douglas De Couto Statement
Dr. Douglas De Couto said, “On Friday, the One Bermuda Alliance asked two Parliamentary Questions relating to the Corporate Income [CIT].
“The first question was how much estimated CIT income would come from the top 10 and top 25 largest CIT payers. The second question was what criteria or methodologies would be used to allocate the CIT income between the consolidated fund [for Government spending] and the Tax Reserve Fund [in case tax refunds need to be paid back].
“The Premier said it was ‘unknowable’ and ‘we will not know’ how much CIT money might come from the top payers, due to the nature of the OECD information used for the Government projections. It is hard to understand how the Government can be confident in its CIT projections and yet somehow not be able to answer the question, how much tax will come from the top 10 or top 25 largest payers. This is important to have a view on, because if a large amount of tax comes from a small number of CIT payers, Bermuda’s CIT income will be very sensitive to these taxpayers coming or going.
“Remember, this Government boasts of a so-called $19.7m ‘surplus’ last year, while actually spending $54m of borrowed money, and $134m of borrowed money over the past two years. That’s we don’t take everything the Government says at face value, and why we continue to challenge their statements.”
