KINGSTON, Jamaica — Opposition Spokesman on Mining and Energy, Phillip Paulwell, says he is “deeply concerned” about plans to remove a tax on companies mining bauxite in Jamaica, which Finance Minister Audley Shaw announced today.

In a release from the People’s National Party (PNP), Paulwell expressed his disapproval at Shaw’s indication at today’s sitting of the Standing Finance Committee of Parliament that the Government will be moving towards a profit share agreement.

Paulwell, in response, reportedly told the Standing Committee that “[the] bauxite Levy is an efficient tax, and conditions in the industry are at their best in 10 years. Oil prices are low and alumina prices are improving”.

“[T]here is a real possibility that the Government will not collect any revenues from the profit share scheme, as this is dependent on the company reporting a profit. Bauxite is a depleting resource and it is important that the country gets maximum value for this asset,” he added.

The release further indicated that the party is encouraging the JLP Government to rethink the ‘ill-advised’ abandoning of what the PNP is calling “a decades-old policy of charging a levy”. 

The party said the bauxite levy was imposed by the Michael Manley-led Government in 1974 and since then has provided a source of revenue for the country from the diminishing bauxite reserves to finance development projects for the people of Jamaica including, importantly, many communities that have been adversely affected by bauxite mining.