Merchants were cautioned that the implementation of Value Added Tax begins on Friday, January 1, 2015 and did not begin on January 1, 2014.

This stern warning came during a press conference on Tuesday at the Ministry for Grand Bahama, from Chairman of Prices Commission E. J. Bowe who was on island to tour a number of places due to the volume of complaints launched here and in New Providence on the pricing of breadbasket items.

“With the breadbasket items, we are here to let the consumers know that the Price Control Inspectors will be out in full force going forward, here in the Northern Bahamas, and throughout The Bahamas because our primary focus is to protect the consumers. We cannot allow the merchants to continue to take advantage of the consumers, so we have to look out for them.”

There are a number of items that are price-controlled, but do not fall under ‘breadbasket’ items, such as gasoline, diesel, cooking gas, cars, car parts, certain medicines. Consumers are advised to be aware of what falls under price control so that when they do purchase them and they suspect the price may too high, they can contact the Consumer Protection Unit.

Turning his attention to VAT, Mr. Bowe said, it is now the law that VAT is 7.5%. “What we are saying to the merchants is that you have to add the 7.5% onto the goods but once you have done that, please do not go up one penny above that. It is 7.5% and no more.

“We will be policing the market, and no one will escape the law. The consumers throughout these islands need that protection and we have a duty. Our duty is to protect the consumers.”

He said, “VAT did not start January 1, 2014. VAT will start January 1, 2015 and with respect to that statement I will say no more at this stage. A word to the wise is sufficient.”

Mr. Bowe mentioned the reduction in the price of oil, yet in The Bahamas, there has been no reduction in the cost of cooking gas. This, he continued, will be looked into.

The cost of eggs in New Providence has risen and caused concern. This is normal at this time of year, continued Mr. Bowe, and because the local producers cannot meet the demands, permission has been granted for the import of the product. While in Grand Bahama, he said, his team would visit some of the local producers to see what can be done.

Asking for patience from consumers with respect to two prices on a product, Mr. Bowe said that right now, according to the Price Control Act and Regulations, if there are two prices on an item, the consumer is to pay the lower price. This is being suspended for three months with the introduction of VAT. There will be a period when there will be two prices on a product, the original price and a second price with the added VAT.

“However, we will be out there policing the market on a daily basis because the consumer needs that protection.”

Mr. Bowe added that there are times when Government lowers import duty on certain goods, however, this is not being reflected in the price the consumer pays. “The whole purpose of that is to pass it on to the consumers, but I find it rather difficult when these lower prices are not being passed on to the consumer. They are supposed to pass it on to the consumers and that is an area we will have to look into going forward.

Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and National Insurance, who also has responsibility for Consumer Affairs, Alpheus Forbes said while in the past the consumer officers have been out on a daily basis but without publicity, in 2015 this will change.

“In the past we have tried to work with merchants and get them to adhere to good consumer practices. But 2015 will bring its challenges and with a new taxation system there would be even more expressed concerns. These have to be addressed.”

Value Added Tax, he continued, is not a reason for merchants to increase their prices: “They are merely the collectors of the government taxes and they need not inflate their prices or give that misinformation that they are having some sort of financial challenge collecting the VAT because their input cost can be recovered and it will be recovered. It is the consumer -- as VAT is a consumption tax -- who bears the burden of the Value Added Tax – not the merchant, not the service provider. Therefore, consumers ought not to be adversely affected and their dollars are few, their dollars are precious and they need to stretch it as far as it can possibly go.

“So my officers will be out there in full force and we will be prosecuting merchants and service providers who unscrupulously take advantage of consumers.”

Reverend Reno Smith, head of Consumer Affairs in the Northern Bahamas, said there are 11 inspectors in the Northern Bahamas inclusive of Abaco and Bimini and they are in the various establishments daily.

If there are concerns, they should be submitted to the Department, which is located in the Harold DeGregory Building, or by telephone 352-3414/351-7111 or 225-9796. He can also be contacted by email: renosmith@bah.gov.bs.

CONSUMER AFFAIRS CONDUCTS 11 INSPECTIONS – Officials of the Prices Commission conducted a tour on Grand Bahama on Tuesday following a press briefing at the Ministry for Grand Bahama warning merchants not to start charging VAT until January 1, 2015. Shown from left are: Colin Wright, member of the Prices Commission; Alpheus Forbes, Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and National Insurance, who also has responsibility for Consumer Affairs; E.J. Bowe, Chairman of the Prices Commission; Melvin Seymour, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry for Grand Bahama; and Reverend Reno Smith, head of Consumer Affairs in Grand Bahama. (BIS Photo: Vandyke Hepburn)