Guernsey Chamber Of Commerce Urges Action Over Manx Tax Move

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

28 August 2002

The President of Guernsey's Chamber of Commerce has warned that something must be done to match the Isle of Man's corporate tax reforms, if Guernsey is to retain its attractiveness as a location for international business.

Speaking to the Guernsey Press and Star this week, Simon Howitt announced that: 'We cannot afford to stay where we are at the moment. We have a problem which needs a solution, even if that is one which not everyone likes. My view is that it would not be sensible to reject any proposal without very careful thought.'

Mr Howitt told the newspaper that Guernsey and Jersey are going to have to change the way in which companies are taxed in order to compete, but said that Guernsey would probably not be following exactly the same path as the Isle of Man:

'One of our difficulties is that a very significant proportion of the revenue which is collected in Guernsey, which is used to pay for education, medical care and a plethora of other things without which the Island would grind to a halt, is paid by companies which carry on business here. We could not afford not to tax these companies unless some other tax was introduced instead.'

The Chamber of Commerce chief told the Guernsey Press that he has 'no idea' how the States authorities will respond to the Manx challenge, but suggested that: 'It may be that at some time in the not too distant future we could see proposals resulting in fundamental changes to our tax system. However, he warned that:

'The proposals may not be palatable to all sections of the business community'.

Recommended