Finance Minister Colm Imbert has hit back at critics of his recent announcement that small hybrid cars will be exempted from all taxes in T&T from mid-May 2022.
Imbert, in a post to his twitter page on Thursday evening said: “Businessmen with agendas are claiming that no hybrid cars exist that fit within the criteria under consideration by Government for tax exemption.
“However, the Hyundai Ioniq, Kia Niro, Toyota Aqua, Nissan Note and Honda Vezel are all examples of compact hybrids that can qualify.”
Imbert announced in the Parliament last week Friday, the Government’s decision to waive taxes and customs duties on suitably sized imported hybrid motor cars, both new and used.
The exemption will cover cars with an engine size not exceeding 1600 ccs, an electric motor generating 45 kw, a total power output of 78 kw and are no more than three years old.
The Finance Minister said this measure would be introduced to encourage reduced fuel consumption, given the fact that “supply chain disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic have intensified with the war in Ukraine, adversely affecting the supply of fully electric cars.”
Earlier this week TT Automotive Dealers’ Association (TTADA) president Visham Babwah called the tax removal as “the biggest mamaguy”.
Babwah argued that based on those stipulations, the waiver “would not make much of a difference in price because of the three-year limit on foreign used cars.”
He similarly question the kilowatt stipulation, as he suggested several of the popular hybrid vehicles on the local market would exceed the required level for the exemption.