Don’t introduce new taxes, use budget to reduce cost of doing business – GUTA to govt

• 2022 budget statement to be delivered on November 17

• GUTA wants a reduction in the cost of doing businesses

• COVID-19 has impacted business operations

The Ghana Union of Traders Union has called on government to as a matter of urgency desist from introducing new taxes as the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, delivers the 2022 budget before Parliament.

According to the President of the trade union, Dr. Joseph Obeng, government must rather implement policies aimed at reducing the cost of doing business.

Speaking in an interview with journalists following a courtesy call paid on the Ga Mantse, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, at his residence in Accra, the GUTA president said he expects the finance minister to spell out measures seeking to fast-track the recovery of businesses from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This year saw the introduction of new taxes and so we are not expecting another layer of cost in doing business to be added. Businesses have started showing signs of fatigue in terms of tax payment so the introduction of new taxes will make businesses collapse,” Dr. Obeng added.

“In the wake of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), we should think about how to reduce the cost of doing business and not increase it,” he added.

The GUTA president further called on the government to bring to bear policies that will see a reduction in the fees and commission paid by businesses operating in the country.

“The disparity in cost has made it difficult for businesses in the country to compete with their peers in the sub-region,” he lamented.

Meanwhile, Minister for Finance and Economic Planning, Ken Ofori-Atta is expected to deliver the 2022 budget statement of government before Parliament on November 17, 2021.

The presentation of the budget is in accordance with Article 179 of the 1992 Constitution and section 21 of the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921).