Focus on economic growth and human capital, business leaders tell Shaw

As Finance Minister Audley Shaw prepares to open the 2018-19 Budget Debate in Parliament this afternoon, two prominent business leaders are hoping that he will stick to his promise of no new taxes and that he will focus on initiatives that will enhance the development of Jamaica's human capital and spur economic growth.

President of the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce, Larry Watson, says in fact, he expects Shaw to announce a rollback of certain taxes given that the government's revenue targets have been running ahead of projections.

Revenue collections as at December 2017 were running ahead of projections by $13 billion.

Meanwhile, president of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), Howard Mitchell, says the announcement of any new taxes by the Finance Minister would be a surprise, given Shaw's pronouncement that he would not do so.

Mitchell says he expects Shaw to focus on initiatives that stimulate economic growth and enhance the development of the country's human capital.

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