New warning on tax ‘black hole’

Tuesday 23rd January 2007, 12:00AM GMT.

TREASURY proposals to fill the Island’s impending tax black hole may not work and Jersey could lose virtually all tax on business income, says the chairman of the Scrutiny panel assessing the new zero-ten tax structure.

And Senator Jim Perchard’s panel has called upon the Treasury to take forward an alternative proposal to ‘extract some loot’ from non-locally owned businesses such as high street chain stores. Meanwhile, the latest proposals could result in a one-year tax holiday for the self-employed if plans to change business tax assessments to a current-year basis are approved. Next week, the States, says Senator Perchard, are to be asked to create an up to £95 million ‘bloody great hole’ in the Island’s finances and ‘seem to be using Elastoplast to fix it’.

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