Promote small businesses to stimulate economy [1]
Thursday, May 14, 2009 - 11:00. Updated on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 - 17:11.
Dear Editor
Re: Low growth needs economic stimulus [2]
Just to clarify on comments regarding the stimulus scheme implemented in Australia, which were in two stages. The first stimulation package was implemented last year before Christmas of 2008, focusing on low income earners (Family Tax Benefit A or B) of amounts of $1,000 per child in... that group. A lot of Tongan families in Australia benefited from this hand out or splashing in order to stimulate Australia's economy.
You know and I know, that this increase of Remittances during the last Christmas period was may be consistent to this, no doubt.... But it was not $1000 per family per month.
The second package was for all working class tax payers across the board, rich, poor or middle class, however, only for those you who had tax returns of the previous year. This amount was ranging from the maximum of $900, $600, $300 respectively according to your taxable income of last financial year.
These schemes were to promote spending in these rough times of the post global financial bubble explosion. The fact of the matter was, it was crystal clear theoretically, but would it pass on in the wider community. The answer: it did nothing at all.
Why? Fear has already set in globally and job losses are mounting each week. The wider community in common sense would not spend or splash out but rather do the opposite, which is to save for a very long hard few years of global downfall.
As for Tonga, this model might work because the average Tongan households do not stick to a budget, they live beyond their means, put Misinale before basic family priorities, to feed the syndrome of the Joneses, have a car or Pajero, build houses that look like mansions, and expect remittances from family members overseas while they live in limbo.
To stimulate an economy is to provide JOBS, which means to promote small business, not just macro as we see in Matangitonga day in day out. The Chinese entrepreneurship with their small stores is the example in Tonga, start low and end up big. Whereas, what I see in Tonga with businesses is start high and crash fast. Tonga mostly relies on remittances as our ONLY MAJOR revenue, and tourism and fishing can not compete with Tongan remittances.
So low economical growth? The ball is in your court Tonga, all we do issend money, you guys spend it.
Regards
William Mariner
ionaxe [at] yahoo [dot] co [dot] uk (William Mariner )