~ ‘Will cause more layoffs’; ‘Should be rewritten’ ~
PHILIPSBURG--The excluding of several categories of businesses from the payroll support programme included in government’s stimulus programme was one of the major points of concern raised by several Members of Parliament (MPs) during a meeting of the Central Committee of Parliament on Tuesday.
Businesses and services that are excluded include administrative and support service activities; rental and leasing activities; services to buildings and landscape activities; construction; education; electricity, gas, fuel, steam and air conditioning supply services; financial and insurance activities; human health and social work activities; information and communication; manufacturing; other service activities (activities of membership organisations (excluding taxi associations), funeral and related activities); professional, scientific and technical activities; public administration and defence; real estate activities; wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles, transportation and storage.
Party For Progress (PFP) MP Raeyhon Peterson said the exemption list will cause more layoffs and gives the people of St. Maarten the impression that only based on the essence of their business, will they receive support.
“The relief is supposed to be for every individual in need, not only for certain businesses,” he contended. “This concerns me, because I personally do not understand the legal basis, or based on what information this list was created.”
Peterson said based on the information on the St. Maarten Stimulus and Relief Plan (SSRP) website, the list was based on the “international standard industrial classification of all economic activities,” which he said is a United Nations industry classification system. He, however, questioned based on what this was applied to St. Maarten.
“Did they take the unique economy of St. Maarten into consideration? And was the contribution per business when it comes to tax revenue for government taken into consideration? If the largest contributors of taxes for government do not fall under the group that can get support, government will lose double income when these companies shut down and then we will have a bigger problem,” Peterson contended.
He added that the word solidarity is not used properly. “Given the state of emergency, many businesses have halted all of their operations because they do not fall under the exceptions given in the national decree for businesses who are allowed to continue operating. For example, construction companies or auto repair companies. However, based on this list, they also automatically do not qualify to get any support. But they for sure will have a revenue decline of more than 50 per cent.”
He further explained that institutions such as day-care centres and pre-schools, theoretically fall under education, which is also on the list of exempted businesses. He asked what type of support there is for day-care centres, which have been closed since the closure of schools.
“Many of the parents also would be unable to contribute their monthly fees to the day-cares, especially since the children are staying home as per the rules of the state of emergency. Is there an extra provision that is going to be in place for these small day-cares and pre-schools that may not qualify for the support?” he asked. “So, what are these companies and persons supposed to do? Why is the stimulus relief plan not applied across the board?”
United Democrats (UD) MP Sarah Wescot-Williams said she could not see the connection between the international norms applied to determine the exemption list and St. Maarten’s situation. She suggested that government have a standard set of criteria for businesses to either qualify for the support or not qualify rather than in advance outright excluding some businesses based on government’s “feelings” that these businesses will not be in need of assistance.
United People’s (UP) party MP Sidharth “Cookie” Bijlani said many businesses are fearing now that they will not be entitled to support based on the exempt list. He said the revenue of supermarkets, for example, is down comparatively from pre-COVID-19 and the lockdown period.
“Some are complaining that it is 40 to 60 per cent down. What about garbage collectors? Are they all benefiting from government or businesses where the majority are closed? Hotels are closed so how will they get help and if they go on strike we will have problems,” Bijlani said.
The UP MP asked what the basis was of excluding so many businesses and suggested that the exempt list be rewritten. “You have to consider everyone,” Bijlani stressed.
UP MP Grisha Heyliger-Marten also questioned what is government’s legal basis for exempting some categories of businesses, some of which she identified. She asked whether the stimulus is only intended to benefit industries such as hotels.
