Minister denies conflict of interest over fulfilment
Monday 14th November 2011, 11:30AM GMT.
COMMERCE and Employment minister Carla McNulty Bauer (pictured) has insisted that there is no conflict of interest over her previous involvement in the fulfilment industry and discussions over the abolition of low value consignment relief.
Responding to a caller on BBC Guernsey’s Sunday Phone-in representing the VAT campaign group Ravas, who thought the number of people in Guernsey government with an interest in the industry meant the conflict of interest was ‘staggering’, Deputy McNulty Bauer said that her interest was prior to her involvement in politics.
‘We do have one member who does have involvement in fulfilment and because of his conflict he has not been involved in any discussions that we have around the table,’ she said.
Deputy McNulty Bauer also disputed the view that companies moved to Guernsey to avoid paying VAT.
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Well, you can’t argue with the accuracy of the last sentence.
Those businesses that moved operations here from the UK did not do so in order to avoid paying VAT, they did so in order to avoid CHARGING their EU customers VAT.
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Both Deputies were an embarrassment on the phone-in and demonstrated that they are either deluded or stupid, or possible a mixture of the two. Claiming that firms haven’t come here to avoid charging VAT is an incredible statement, just why else do you think they set up in Guernsey? To take advantage of our cheap premises and staff perhaps? And as for calling a company that proposed to employ 200 people locally a “brass plate company” is CMB really so ignorant of what a brass plate company is? Or was she trying to confuse people by using a term that many would not be familiar with? With ministers like these two it is no surprise to see the mess that some departments are in, surely there must be better people in the States than them?
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“Deputy McNulty Bauer also disputed the view that companies moved to Guernsey to avoid paying VAT.”
If that is the case why are they moaning about the English governments abolition of low value consignment relief and some looking at relocating, not to say possible hundreds of redundancies? What has changed then besides the closing of the VAT loophole to have this effect?
Makes you dispair some times about our politicians who must thing we are stupid.
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I’m not sure what the point of this article is. On the face of it a caller makes a false accusation and the Deputy sets the record straight.
And just to open this up a bit; what exactly would the problem be if the head of our (DTI) did have an interest in the industry?
Dep Rob Sillars owns or is certainly a major shareholder in one of the fulfillment businesses and he has to step out of the room at the exact time his knowledge in the area is most use.
So we get a broad range of business people on the C&E and then aren’t allowed to use them at critical points. Is it just me?
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Neil Inder
Common sense does not apply in politics. We must throw the baby out with the bath water.
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Carla McNulty Bower’s attempt to defend Commerce and Employment’s actions, or lack of them, over the LVCR debacle, was unconvincing at best.
But I suppose it’s not easy to defend the indefensible.
At all material times, the fulfilment industry may have been operating legally, but that didn’t make it morally right and the States of Guernsey should have realised it was destined to end in tears.
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Neil Inder,
I would have thought that it was obvious. You can’t have politicians with a personal interest in a particular business being involved in debate on that subject. No matter how neutral they may try to be , they have a personal interest in the final decision assisting their business.
That’s where the fine line of corruption in politics starts creeping in. Imagine a final decision that gave benifits to that politicians business. The media would have a hayday.
We already have a weak Code of Conduct compared with other jurisdictions and although the SACC is trying to increase the accountability of the Code of conduct, they appear to be fighting an uphill battle.
We could do with taking on the UK version.
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CMB was an absolute embarrassment on the phone-in, When asked if she were to stand for re-election she lauded us with how much experience and knowledge she had gained through her time in politics after giving one of the most unknowledgeable and inept performances ever to grace our airways, utterly cringeworthy. The arrogant and contradictory Dep Sirett was no better and showed absolutely no humility considering the debacle that is his Dept but at least he appears to be able to foresee he has no chance of re-election.
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Back to the start please.there sits guernsey reeling under bad bad leadership in all areas no more tourism,no more horticulture and apparently reliant on the good auspices of “the banks”who now contribute nothing, then various businesses appear with the will to import and export goods which are repacked and re sent to various destinations ,sorry if this is too simplistic bear with me
This enabled otherwise unused properties to be utilised,post and freight services did well and a number of real locals were able to obtain work if they wanted then the english government {who Lyndon has built a good rapport with and has a lot of good buddies there who understand what the islands need to survive }looked over ,saw they were missing out on revenue and promptly s?at on us from a great height ,bet the bloke in the brussels office is laughing up his sleeve with nothing to do but watch us take a rear ender from those who are supposed to be on our side.
The morals of this ,well sorry mate but thats business and if the english want to encourage the same industry then pass a law and they will come back,lets face it if i order from the net i ask to absolved from vat [you all do]and accountants are paid a great deal of moneyto find loopholes in deals to avoid paying tax for their clients so belay the righteous indignation please.
yes carly and mcnulty and bauer have ,all three of them cocked this right up ,when this was first got wind of they should have told the english to get lost, so whats next well seeing the way the place is run, the banks i have no doubt will pack up and leave and increasingly sooner rather than later, the buses are gone,the fulfilment industry is going and as the army well knows ,alarm and despondency is infectious and the spreading of it is chargeable .
Of those who are not local when the next industry fails they may well have to leave empty houses when they relocate but not a big deal when the the banks pay handsomley for relocations,me well i and a gathering number of real guernsey people are looking forward to it ,the outcome, less services required,less cars on the road etc whats to be done well burn the english rag we call a flag get the green and white one out tell the english gov where to get off and stand up roger perrot,got to go i’m working on my mandate for the elections it starts with Born in england came to guernsey a week ago so consider myself local,never had a real job ,but tried and failed in three ventures totally useless cant even wire a plug but the money seems good vote for me as you have done with so many others
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