Government Backbencher Dr. Sonia Browne Appeals for Relief Amid Land Tax Increase - Rural Constituents Also Affected

Government backbencher Dr Sonia Browne on Tuesday made a direct, personal appeal to her parliamentary colleagues for relief from the land tax assessed on her home – although the ministry responsible for her bill was not up for scrutiny – as she claimed some of her neighbours were carrying a similar burden.

According to the St Philip North MP who was a Cabinet member until two months ago, her land tax bill almost tripled from $3 300 for 2022 to $8 300 for tax year 2023-2024.

The former health minister used the Estimates debate in the House of Assembly – which was examining the appropriation for the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Nutritional Security – to offload a “heavy burden” she said she was carrying on her shoulders, which she said was also a matter of concern for her rural constituents in the heavy farming belt.

“This is the only place I can find to bring it up in the public sphere and I am waiting to hear if members of the public have the same issues,” she said.

Dr Browne told the House she was used to paying a certain level of land tax for many years until last year.

“I opened my land tax bill last year and almost had a seizure. It moved from $3 300 roughly to $8 300. I called my neighbours who are also farmers, one of them moved from $475 to $4 512 and they are legitimate farmers.

“I have 25 broilers, six layers, five lettuce in the ground, lots of coconut trees and fruit trees. I do not make a profit from any agricultural business. My neighbours, however, that’s their livelihood.”

Dr Browne insisted the matter needs to be addressed.

“I personally feel it was a mistake. I don’t want to throw around what little weight I have, but I went like a normal citizen and made the relevant calls, one of which was not the prettiest…. I was treated so badly…. Some of my neighbours are adamant that they are not paying the land tax.

“I have started to pay it, but God knows $8 000 is more than I make in here this month. I think that needs to be looked at,” she pleaded.

Dr Browne told the session she was bringing the matter to the attention of the legislators and the public in the hope that she would see some relief.

Cautioned by Chairman of Committees Peter Phillips that the matter was one for the Ministry of Finance which was not at that point under scrutiny, Dr Browne insisted that she tried that ministry “to no avail” and that since agricultural land was one of the measurements for the determination of land taxes, she was certain that the Ministry of Agriculture had an interest in the matter.