Tongan farmers taking tractors to parliament in drive to reduce 15% Consumption Tax [1]
Wednesday, June 8, 2005 - 14:00. Updated on Friday, May 9, 2014 - 13:09.
Tonga's new 15% Consumption Tax launched on April 1 came under attack from two fronts this week.
In the House of the Tonga Legislative Assembly the People's Representatives have tabled a new Private Member's Bill aiming to amend the Consumption Tax Act extending some exemptions and reducing the tax to 10%.
Meanwhile, Tongatapu growers are planning to drive their tractors and trucks through the main street of Nuku'alofa to arrive at parliament at mid-day on Thursday June 9 where they will present a petition to the Speaker of the House in support of the Private Member's Bill and calling on the House to exempt growers' agricultural supplies and trade from the Consumption Tax.
In parliament last week, the Private Member's Bill signed by the nine People's Representatives, Clive Edwards, Sunia Fili, 'Akilisi Pohiva, 'Isileli Pulu, 'Uliti Uata, Fineasi Funaki, Samiu Vaipulu, Vili Helu, and Lepolo Taunisila, proposed amendments to the Consumption Tax Act.
The Bill proposed amendments to Section 2 and Section 5 of the Principal Act. The People Representatives, in principle, wanted four major changes to:
... exclude farming and agricultural activities, business and trade in local agricultural produce from the ambit of the Consumption Tax Act 2003 CTA.
... exclude private imports (non commercial) from taxation under the CTA.
... reduce the rate of consumption tax from 15% to 10%.
... remedy the anomaly with zero rated goods. With regards to zero rated supplies, in the case of the squash industry, the fertilizers, seeds, chemicals and bins imported for growing and shipping of squash have been zero rated but the Commissioner of Inland Revenue was still demanding payment of 15% tax on the costs of those items on arrival. The commissioner said that the growers could claim refunds after export even though they were not registered for consumption tax. There is no provision in the Act to claim refunds if a company is not registered.
The Private Member's Bill was presented to the Standing Law Committee of the House which approved it on June 2 to be presented to the Legislature for its deliberation.
To add more weight to the Bill, the Tongatapu Growers' Association on June 3 passed a motion for growers to drive their tractors and their trucks to parliament at mid-day on Thursday, June 9, and present a petition to the Speaker of the House, calling on the House to pass the Bill.
'Aisake Tuiono, who chaired the meeting of the Growers' Association on June 3 told the growers that before they drive to parliament on June 9 he wanted at least 5,000 signatures on the petition. He told the growers that their Drive to Parliament was only for the growers "and they should not bother the public at large to participate, not this time," he said.
Speakers at the gathering expressed the view that the people may have only nine votes in parliament but if thousands of growers drive to parliament it will remind the House that the nine PRs represented thousands of people.