Last night we told you about the PUP's dire take on the news that Chetumal will become a sort of Free Zone under new President Manuel Obrador Lopez.
The PUP says it;s a death knell for the Zone and could result in the loss of hundreds of jobs. Worst of all they say, Government is doing nothing about it.
Well, Minister of State in the Ministry of Economic Development, Petroleum, Investment, Trade and Commerce Tracy Taegar-Panton says it is a case of premature panic. She gave us her take via phone today:
Hon. Tracy Taegar Panton - Minister of State, Trade
"It's not all doom and gloom as of course the opposition would like to suggest because there is very little that we know about this proposal that has been floating around by the president elect. What we do know is that there would be a reduction in GST from 16% to 8% and we also know that fuel prices should be aligned with prices in the US. Those are the only 2 incentives that have been specifically discussed for the public by the Mexican authorities. It has not discussed any exemption in business taxes. As you know businesses in the Free Zone don't pay any business tax for the first 10 years of their operations, so that is an incentive. It has not mentioned any duty free exemptions for businesses operating in what is being floated as a duty free area in Chetumal. So I think before we go into panic mode, we need to learn more about the proposal and we also have that government is doing its part since March of this year in looking at how we increase the economic growth and prosperity of our northern districts of Belize. The opposition should know that there is a new shrimp farm that has recently been established in Libertad in Corozal that is doing extremely well for the export sector. It is the first time we have a shrimp farming operation in Corozal and if this goes well, we do expect to have an expansion of shrimp farming in the northern part of Belize and as you know Jules, we have also been discussing putting in place the regulatory framework for industrial hemp and let's not forget the all-important tourism sector and what opportunities lye in tourism for northern Belize."
Taegar Panton also adds that BPO services are another projected area of employment expansion in the north.
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