Dear Sir,

With the new duty structure and the America’s Cup starting soon, the Government has an opportunity to address the inequality in income and expenses that exists on the island.

Government backtracking on the duty hike on beer should be celebrated as a victory for the man on the street, but the initial intent should highlight the disconnect between the One Bermuda Alliance and general sentiment.

The main concern I have is illustrated by the duties imposed on wine. At $3.99 per litre — as in the new Budget — the duty imposed on a bottle of $10 wine is $2.99 or just shy of 30 per cent of the total cost. For a $100 bottle of wine, the duty remains at $2.99 but represents a tax of only about 3 per cent of the total. This drops even farther to 0.3 per cent on a $1,000 bottle.

I would posit that the majority of Bermudians purchase from the lower end of the spectrum and the higher up in price, the general consumer would transition to our visitors and then on to the international business sector, ie, those with a higher level of income.

The top bracket would be almost entirely occupied by those customers we are expecting this year on their mega-yachts. I question why the Government believes this is fair.

I understand that the volume on the low end takes up the majority of the market and I’m not even saying that $2.99 per bottle is excessive. But there should be a progressive tax added that reflects the true value of products sold.

The fallback of this will be a race to the bottom as distributors try to retain listings and us as consumers suffer the drop in quality at the end point. As it stands, you can already go to a store and buy a bottle of wine for what certain establishments are charging for a glass.

My last concern stems from the announcement that we are having numerous mega-yachts on-island this summer. What rules does the Government have to protect local business? These yachts can hold months’ worth of provisions on board and fuel, etc. If a local imports a boat to the island, we are expected to pay duty on the fuel in the tank — will this apply to these yachts? Are they being charged for the food, wine, beer, dry goods, etc, that will be consumed but not purchased on our island?

As Bermudians, it behoves us to pay our fair share of the taxes and duties on eligible products to sustain our economy. It is also imperative that our visitors share in that responsibility, especially if they have a commercial interest.

ANON

Warwick