Antigua Barbuda Labour Party leader Gaston Browne says the promises outlined at the launch of the United Progressive Party’s campaign last night will collapse the economy.
UPP leader Harold Lovell promised ABST reductions on items ranging from funeral expenses to eyeglasses and some electronics.
He also promised to reduce corporate taxes in an effort “to ease the squeeze” for residents.
But speaking earlier today, Browne cautioned voters from buying into such a plan, saying it will have repercussions from the economy.
“When we cost them, it will run in the region of about EC$ 150 million,” Browne said.
He said given that the government is operating with a budget deficit, “to reduce revenue by 150 million dollars would literally be to collapse the economy.”
Browne, who is also finance minister, told reporters that if the economic policies outlined by the UPP are implemented, “they will destroy jobs, the economy, and government finances.”
He estimates reducing corporation tax by half will cost the government $40 million and the other cost of living measures is estimated to have a revenue impact of about $ 100 million.
The UPP leader also promised to reduce fuel prices at the pump, reduce the fuel variation charge on electricity and reduce vehicle licensing fees.
Browne said reducing the licensing fees and fuel variation will “bankrupt” the Transport Board and the Antigua Public Utilities Authority.
He called the promises “desperate and outlandish.”
In the last few minutes, Financial Secretary Whitfield Harris and APUA General Manager Esworth Martin have both released statements supporting the prime minister’s assertions.
Click to read them below.
memo-revenue impact of measures.docx 3 APUA’s Ability to Reduce Fuel Variation and to Cut Water Rates
APUA’s Ability to Reduce Fuel Variation and to Cut Water Rates
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UPP makes Empty Promises and brings and gives FALSE HOPE.
You mean ALP, YIDA false promise, 500 homes false promise, Canada visa free travel gone, water in 14 days false promise, plenty ground fakings and nothing to show according to Lester bird, we can’t tek this incompetence no more
The only thing alp accomplish is the enrichment of the Brown family.
Oh and we gee way plenty plent passport
What is so funny is CIP was implimented by the UPP I wonder at times if they were relected in 2014 and the visa restriction were posed what would you people with short term memory lost would say. SMDH
1) The CIP idea came from Gaston Brown in Parlaiment but yes the UPP implemented it
2) The ABLP made significant changes to the act toake it easier and more attractive for persons to buy into the CIP when they came to power in June 2014.
3) Those where the careless measures that put us into that situation with the Canadians.
4) Remember they fired the Canadian man because he wanted to take the controls of the CIP from the hands of the politicians?
How short really is out memories
Yet still ALL other poltical parties to include Anthony Stewart of the DNA who was so oppose to it said they will not scrap the program. Hmmmm so again I say if the UPP or the DNA( the DNA is a band of unhappy UPP members who is not haapy with the current leader) would have been elected in 2014 and the visa restriction was imposed wha aru short term memory people would say. SMDH bunch of hypocrits just with no work to do.
If it is all empty promises, why is Gaston stealing Lovell’s ideas. Remember, the ABLP already brought out its manifesto and those ideas he is stealing from Lovell’s presentation on Sunday night were not in there. Lovell has a vision. The PRIME MINISTER FLAP, FLAP FLAP
Gaston shut yr mouth u already doing lots of shit why u think upp will collaps it the upp already prove them self so shut up yr mouth all u doing gaston just talk no action what is yr report card gaston brown as the prime minister show us what have u done to help the economy’ and the poor and working class people of this country
Whom the god’s wish to destroy they first make mad!! D…DAVE .. BARBARA MARIA GOMEZ be careful.. A word to the wise is sufficient.
PM, YOU NEED TO SHUT TO HELL UP & KEEP IT MOVING, 5 MORE YEARS UNDER YOUR LEADERSHIP WILL TAKE US TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SUMP PIT HA! HA! GO & COME AGAIN
The economy done collapse Gaston, you see your budget deficit. Nobody trust labour, Canada no trust laBour, Sandals no trust labour, butch tell he hotelier friend dem to stay far, Antigua look stink and filthy in the last two years so we going with UPP all the way.
Of course Sandal not going to love ABLP cause Gaston say Butch nar get the 60% of the ABST. Me woulda bex to. Smh
Gaston can’t get investors so he only have groundfaking and he blame Sandals. Leave Sandals alone because they provide jobs and scholarships. Leave Sandals alone
Guys do u realize there is a way of tracking who u are and the exact location your posting from … even the device ur using have fun chatting shit… election benefits no one not even the politicians … its just a way of keeping everyone in check … how can u kill urself for some one u never knew in ur entire life then make in your leader … dunce system a man come begging u for a job the become ur boss is like have the gardener knockling u
WELL IF LOVELS PLAN WILL COLASPE THE THE ECONOMY Y U WANT TO GO AND IMPLEMENT THEM WEDNESDAY LOL THOUGH U SAID LOVEL HAD NO PLANS U IN POWER AND ALL WE HEARING IS THEM FLAP THEM FLAP. …..ANYTHING TO BENEFIT THE MASSES OF PEOPLE BUT WHEN IT US JUST TO BENEFIT A FEW IT IS OK …UP TO NOW THE GAS PRICE IS HIGH. ….U HAVE IT EASY BECAUSE YOU COLLECTING RENT FROM GOVERNMENT THIS IS CORRUPTION NO MINISTER OF GOVERNMENT SHOULD BE RENTING BUILDINGS TO ITSELF THE PEOPLE OF ANTIGUA SHOULD FIGHT AGAINST THESE STUFF…THE UPP SEEMS TO BE LOOKING OUT FOR THE POOR PEOPLE AND WHEN NEXT ELECTION COMES AROUND AGAIN AND THE PARTY WITH A BETTER PLAN COMES AROUND AGAIN THEN WE VOTE THEM,,,THE PENSION FOR THE ELDERLY WAS AST MINIMUM LESS THAN $300 DOLLARS THE UPP RAISED IT TO OVER $800 DOLLARS MEMBER THEY WERE IN POWER FOR OVER 25 YEARS AND NEVER DID SHIT, SCHOOL MEALS, UNIFORM GRANT AND ETC WHICH I HAD THE SCHOOL MEALS PROGRAM WHEN I WAS GOING TO SCHOOL. ..AM NOT FOR ANY PARTY HAVE VOTED BOTH WAYS SO I DON’T GET CAUGHT UP IN THE HIPE. ….PEOPLE TIME FOR A CHANGE GASTON IS A DICTATOR EASY EASY EASY HE DON’T CARE FOR THE POOR PEOPLE IT IS EASY TO SEE. ….I KNOW ASOT WILL NOT LOOSE WITH ALL THEM BIG TRUCKS IN THE AREA SUNDAY NIGHT WAS MY FIRST TIME SEEING SOMETHING LIKE THIS LATE NIGHT CURRENT OFF IN THAT PARTICULAR AREA HE WAS IN WE EVEN CALLED APUA TO ASK WHAT WAS GOING ON MAJORITY OF PARES HAD LIGHT BUT THE AREA WERE ASOT WAS HAD NO LIGHT IRONIC. …
@CURIOUS WHAT IF THEY CAN TRACK WHICH PART YOU TEXTING FROM AND WHICH DEVICE IT DOES NOT FUC&*$KIDGHK MATTER IF THEY HAVE THAT TIME ON THEM HANDS CODOS TO THEM WE KNOW ANR CAN SEE BUT WHO GIVES A RATS TAIL THIS IS ANTIGUA NOT NORTH KOREA SO TEXT AS U LIKE
Prime Minister, why are you stealing from Lovell’s vision if Lovell’s vision going to collapse the economy. Lovell beat you on ideas and now you want to copy Lovell. Prime Minister you are a failure and a waste of time
Are you even making sense right now?
Beaten at your own game. Don’t cry. Don’t whine. Just tell Gaston that he is a failure. He has no vision. He has to have a special Cabinet meeting tomorrow to steal Lovell’s ideas. But it is just a little too late.
Well well every time I come on this site I just have to laugh at all the dunceness these party supporters post. 😂😂😂 me tell aru already watch aru blood pressure again MBS nah have enough tablet
He would say that wouldn’t he? Now I wouldn’t pretend to know much about Government financing, but it would seem to me that most of these things are doable. In fact the PM admitted as much when he rushed to adopt them and make them IMMEDIATE Policy. Really Now? BTW AFAIK the only monies collected by transport board is the inspection fees and other similar fees. The license fees themselves supposed to go to the consolidated fund so how would that being halved bankrupt transport board? Fake News.
Just heard The APUA manager coming out with some letter to the PM that the proposed policy of the incoming government would plunge the country into darkness. Really? This is brazen politics and should be totally disregarded. No public officer / manager should be using their office to get involved with politics. He deserves to be fired. In any case wouldn’t it be much better to lower the rates so that everyone can pay their bills rather than half the customers unable to afford the current rate and getting amnesty? Just saying.
Me meself heard um. gASTon frightin bad. Gaston FLAP FLAP FLAP
What I’m about to say will properly result into me being cuss and cyberbullied by some of the bloggers on this site espically the UPP supporters but I am not going to purge my conscious. I am a born and raised Antiguan i am also 33 years old working mother and this is my views.
Back in 2004 was my first time voting. Through out that time all I kept hear was how the “Bird lead” ALP evil teif and curropt and there is no hope for Antigua under them. Not only that the UPP came with some real wonderful promises things would be so great with them in power that had the skill to run Antigua and Barbuda life would be so wonderful, public servants would be paid on time they had so many invertors who had more money the R. Allen Stanford who was at the time Antigua’s largest invertor. The UPP made so many wonderful promises that they done right convince me a young girl who just left school to give them I try so I did. Sad to say I was left with a great disappointment when the UPP did not live up to their hype some of there promises were watered down versions from their manifesto and some were not even bother kept. Then some of the members even began to do the very same curroption they accused the ALP of partcing. They implemented so many taxes on us and even acknowledge that some of the taxes that were placed by the ALP were very beneficial eg the Education Levy. Smh they did do some good I won’t lie, School Meals and Uniform grant are very good programs. PDV is also very good as well as the raise for pensioners can’t take that away from them, but the level of currotion with them ack!! The most outlandish was a so called music festival called Romantic Rthym and some blue and yellow jelly bean side walk in town and that is just the tip. Time marches on and in 2009 it was elections again in the sweet 268 Antigua. The Currupt ALP and now tainted Currupt UPP coming again trying to convince people which one was the lesser evil. I now 5 years old then my fist time when and cast my X and again being a foolish young woman voted for the UPP cause everyone desvers a second chance. Me just waste me X insted of the UPP getting better they got worst. They seems to forget about their missions of improving the lives of the citizens and residence of Antigua and Barbuda and now only focusing on themselves the level of nonsense was so high it made me say well I thought the ALP was bad. Every week scandal after scandal even their own supports on certain media houses that has always been pro-UPP were talking about it. I not going to talk about the level of BS the UPP did cause honestly I don’t have the time for that they know what they did to get a 14-3 beating from the ABLP. I sat down and watch the ABLP did what they had to do to change people mind about them. The struggle fight and did a lot of house cleaning but I must say thought there are still some thing that need to change espically expelling Asot Michael from the party I would galdly support the ABLP. I don’t always support what Gaston Browne does but at lease so far he has not strayed. And yes I’m going to cursed and call a paid ABLP operative but that shows the low minded mentally of some of you bloggers
PS 1 more thing. Looking at the political history of Antigua and Barbuda whenever a political party gets defeated that massively at the polls shows a sign of failure.
Alp 1971
PLM 1976
ALP 2004
UPP 2014
watch the trend. God bless Labour all the way
I am hurting here you all killing my common sense..did not the prime minister say he would reduce electrical cost also..I remember reading the article in this very paper…
My friend just do what I do if I try make sense of these post these political zombies post I would brain dead I just read that a laugh at them like how I laugh at Donald Trump who is making the White House a pappyshow.
In my opinion of these zombies I find the post from the UPP crew most hailrious cause they quick to cuss the ABLP and forget that their party had so many chances to prove them selves and failed. But then again who am I to judge. Keep posting guys you make my boring days in the office entertaining.
What I am about say will properly result in me being cyberbullied by some of the bloggers on this site espically those who are strong UPP supporters but I could not careless I won’t be one who purges my conscious. The UPP had 10 years to do things and they did not. From their defeat in 2014 was a sign Antigua people lost confidence in them and it is so sad their supporters won’t acknowledge it.
As usual, another brain dead zombie with nothing to say.
As someone who has financial experience, cant see how what lovell says can be done regarding lowering electricity rates. APUA has enough trouble finding money to do what needs to be done.
Aren’t more desalting plants needed, new pipes, more street lights etc etc etc.
From where will the money come?
IMAGINE MICHAEL BROWNE CAME IN HEBERTS TRYING TO CAMPAIGN AND ALL I COULD HEAR IS THEM FLAP THEM FLAP THEM FLAP, NOW TELL ME WHAT IS THAT E……I LISTEN TO SOME OF LOVEL’S PLAN AND ANYTHING FOR THE POOR PEOPLE I WILL REALLY TAKE INTEREST THAT ALL CAN BENEFIT NOW GASTON ALREADY HAS HIS MANIFESTO OUT BUT IT ACTUALLY BACK FIRED ON HIM, NOW GUESS WHAT HE WANTS TO IMPLEMENT LOVELS PLAN BUT I THOUGHT THEY SAID LOVEL CAN’T LEAD THIS PROVE TO ME OTHER WISE AM VOTING FOR UPP.THE ALP GOVERNMENT SHOULD NOT BE SAYING WHAT THEY GOING TO DO THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN READY DOING THEY IN POWER Y WAIT TILL ELECTION AND ALL I CAN HEAR IS THEM FLAP. ……GASTON IF AND WHEN U PUT LOVELS PLANS IN PLACE THEN U SHOULD JUST CALL IT QUITS YOU HAVE FAILED THE POOR PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTRY UP TO NOW U STILL HAVE THE GAS AT $12.50 MAKING A WHAPPING 8 OR SO DOLLARS THAT IS CRAZY AND STILL CAN’T PAY WORKERS. …YOUR GOVERNMENT IS ALL ABOUT THE ENRICHMENT OF YOUR MINISTERS TALKING ABOUT CREATIVELY. ..THEN ALL SCHOOLS START TO GET BURN;,BROKEN INTO AND THEN MICHAEL SAID HE WANTS TO PUT SECURITY CAMERAS IN SCHOOL, WE ALL KNOW HOW THAT ONE WORKS THEN HE BROUGHT E BOOKS WHO REALLY BENEFITTED FROM THAT SURELY NOT THE KIDS BECAUSE MY KIDS STILL HAVE THEIR HEAVY BAGS, THEN YOU HEAR ABOUT AIR CONDITIONING IN SCHOOLS ALL THIS IS NOT TO BENEFIT THE KIDS BUT SOMEONES POCKET WHEN YOU USE THE WORD CREATIVELY WE ALL KNOW HOW IT IS DONE WE ARE NOT STUPID. ……..ON ANOTHER NOTE NO MINISTER SHOULD HAVE NO BUILDING THAT THE GOVERNMENT RENTING IT IS CORRUPTION AND ANY PARTY DOING THIS SHOULD STOP AND THE PEOPLE SHOULD VOTE AGAINST THEM TYPE OF STUFF WE THE PEOPLE HAVE TO TAKE BACK OUR COUNTRY FROM THIS KIND OF STUFF.MICHAEL BROWNE IS A DISMAL FAILURE IN ALL SAINTS WEST THUS GUY HAS NOT BEEN HERE FOR YEARS AND NOW POPS UP TALKING ABOUT THEM FLAP THIS IS THE MAN THAT HAS BEEN ON A PLANE WITH WINGS AND SHOULD BE THE ONE FLAPPING,JUST A WASTE OF A MAN ……IMAGINE THIS MAN WANTED TO
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