Herrera Calls Fuel Tax Spike Unconscionable

As Belizeans feel the squeeze at the pump, a new warning is coming from the Senate floor. Business Senator Kevin Herrera says the government is quietly cashing in on rising global oil prices, pointing to what he describes as a sharp spike in fuel‑related tax revenues. Herrera claims the government’s take at the pump has jumped by as much as sixty‑six percent and warns it would be unconscionable for the administration to profit from an international crisis without easing the tax burden on drivers.

 

Kevin Herrera, Business Senator

“When oil was around sixty dollars a barrel before the conflict government collects overall an average of around forty-five percent of taxes and fuel. So I am not even looking at the add on, just the acquisition prices. At forty-five percent, at sixty dollars a barrel, government is collecting around twenty-seven dollars a barrel. Now, where we are right now with oil around a hundred dollars per barrel, government’s take now is around forty-five dollars per barrel. This, if you want to look at what the take per gallon is, it is around six dollars per gallon. This would be a sixty-six percent increase madam president on the price of fuel on what government is taking. So government is getting sixty-six percent more on fuel. I am hoping that adjustment would be made and I believe it would be unconscionable for government to capitalize on this unfortunate situation we are in, but I have not seen that yet.”

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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