The St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) government has taken the decision to give 100% duty-free concessions to persons willing to operate minibuses after hours or late-night transportation services.
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said this will be a public policy of his government because of the increase in the number of people having to travel on evenings after 6:00 p.m. and in the nights and early mornings.
Gonsalves told parliament that the 100 percent concessions will be available for the import of buses which are 18-seaters and above.
“We will be offering for persons who wish to have buses, which we will organise a special number plate for the evening work, 100% duty-free concessions on those minibuses, and hopefully they can do work when the cruise ships are in”.
“They wouldn’t be allowed to compete unfairly with people during the day who pay the full extent of their duties and the like”.
Gonsalves said it has become difficult for the nurses, workers at restaurants and hotels, and so forth, because the service sector has grown so much and sometimes they encounter problems at night getting to their destination.
“I want to mark that down as a public policy, and there are some details to be worked out, but for persons to begin to think about purchasing vehicles of that type”, Gonsalves said.
