Opposition, independent want rollback
Opposition party lawmakers – as
well as North Side independent Ezzard Miller – are supporting a complete
rollback of work permit fee increases that took effect in January.
The proposal has been made in a
private members motion filed with the Legislative Assembly this week.
Tuesday night at a public meeting
in Bodden Town, Premier McKeeva Bush said his government intends to perform a
complete review of all business fees – including work permit fees – with an eye
toward reducing operating costs for small businesses.
However, the premier cautioned
lawmakers against simply “willy-nilly cutting fees”.
“We have a problem here,” Mr. Bush
said. “As the last government put our budget in the hands of the [UK] Foreign
and Commonwealth Office, and we have agreed a three year budget with the Foreign
and Commonwealth Office. Now we can’t just jump up and cut revenue.”
“There has to be a very thorough
analysis done. The UK will not allow us to do otherwise.”
The fee hikes, which affect
everyone in the Cayman Islands who holds a work permit or permanent resident
status, range from $60 extra per year for attendants in the tourism industry –
to a nearly $8,000 per year hike for trust officers and administrators.
Work permit fees for non-Caymanians
are paid by their employers; fees for permanent residents can be paid by
employers or by the individuals themselves.
The rollback was proposed in the
motion filed by George Town MLA Alden McLaughlin and (to be) seconded by Mr.
Miller, according to a copy provided to the Caymanian Compass.
“Whereas recent government
statistics show a marked decline in the number of work permit holders in the
Cayman Islands since the said increases were imposed, and…many businesses in
the Cayman Islands are under financial pressure,” the motion read, asking that
work permit fees be reduced to levels prior to January “to stimulate the
economy”.
The Cayman Islands government
recently cut the one-time fee companies pay for the grant of key employee
status in half, but the cost of yearly work permit payments were not reduced.
Any member of the house can bring a
private members motion, but the mere consideration of such a motion does not
force the government to do anything with the issue.
Premier McKeeva Bush’s government
has previously refused to roll back fees introduced as revenue measures to support
government’s operations. Those included work permit fee increases and a number
of hikes on fees paid by the financial services industry.
On Tuesday, Mr. Bush said his
administration would review fees and make reductions “where appropriate”.
“This will include, for example,
work permit fees and trade and business licences,” he said. “Our concern is to
ensure that micro-businesses, those that have five or fewer employees, are not
disadvantaged when trying to compete with larger businesses.”
A review of Cayman’s Trade and Business
Licensing Law has been under way for a number of months and Mr. Bush said
government would also look at reducing fees there, as well as making it generally
easier to do business in Cayman.
The administration was also
“exploring the possibility” of reducing duties on construction materials and
cutting stamp duty on property purchases to spur a flagging real estate market.
“This will provide an extra
incentive to get new inward investment projects off the ground and, in turn,
create new opportunities for local businesses,” Mr. Bush said.
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