Tax Transparency or Public Shaming? PM Weighs In
Prime Minister John Brice帽o isn鈥檛 pleased with the Belize Tax Service鈥檚 recent move to publish the names of tax defaulters. While the agency says it鈥檚 within its legal rights, the PM believes the list should have stayed private. He argues that many small businesses end up in tax trouble not because they鈥檙e dodging payments, but because they simply don鈥檛 understand the filing process. And while the government can鈥檛 legally erase tax debts, Brice帽o says they鈥檝e been stepping in to help, negotiating lower penalties and interest rates to ease the burden. But is naming and shaming tax defaulters a fair way to enforce compliance, or does it risk crushing the very small businesses the government claims to support? PM Brice帽o insists his administration isn鈥檛 out to hurt entrepreneurs.
Prime Minister John Brice帽o
鈥淚t is unfortunate that it was made public. And I am speaking for myself. It should not have been made public. We should have continued working with them. As you know there has been tremendous growth in the economy over the past four years and nobody can dispute the fact. And it is unfortunate and some small businesses in many instances because they don鈥檛 know how to file their taxes are in problems. But we stepped in. We stepped in whenever they asked us to help. We cannot write off taxes. It is only the National Assembly. But how do we help, we will try to negotiate with the Belize Tax Service to try to lower the interest tor the penalties to make it more affordable. We do not want to get anybody out of business. We want more businesses and entrepreneurs. That is why we have been working closely with BELTRAIDE for them to be able to thrive in this economy.鈥