Residents ask Finance Minister for baby formula tax relief

Residents asked Finance Minister and Fyzabad MP Davendranath Tancoo to consider tax concessions on baby formula during a pre-budget consultation held yesterday at the Avocat Vedic School in Fyzabad.

The consultation was held in a packed classroom, where more than two dozen participants made suggestions for inclusion in the 2026 fiscal package. These included increased investment in solar and wind energy, greater focus on agriculture, the development of an eco-park in the area known as Forest Reserve, and the replacement of make-work programmes with a structured training and apprenticeship system.

One participant described a proposal he believed could help reduce crime through real-time tracking of individuals. A businessman called for the complete removal of the VAT system and its replacement with a universal sales tax, which he said would be more efficient, generate higher revenue, and eliminate the need for refunds.

Tancoo, who is due to present the first budget of the new UNC administration in September or October, said all suggestions were being recorded and would be passed to a central coordinating group for consideration in the upcoming and future budgets.

He said he had inherited a “brutalised economy” from the previous PNM administration, pointing to low energy prices, collapsed oil and gas production, and high deficits. However, he told attendees the Government has the capability, competence, personnel, and political will to return the country to its true potential.

Tancoo also committed to continued consultation with the public on matters of national interest and the ongoing transformation of the Trinidad and Tobago economy.