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Foote questions why FPI is not moving forward with their
income trust proposal November 25, 2005
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Judy Foote, MHA for the District of Grand Bank, questions why Fishery
Products International (FPI) is not moving forward with their much-touted
income trust proposal.
In October, FPI stated they would be putting their income trust proposal on hold until the federal government clarified what changes would be made to tax regimes related to income trusts. On Wednesday, the Federal Minister of Finance confirmed that no new taxes would be charged to income trusts in this country, a decision that made income trusts more attractive to investors. "FPI made several commitments to the communities of Fortune, Harbour Breton and Bonavista in an effort to get legislation changed in the House of Assembly," said Ms. Foote. "Since that time, the company has not lived up to any of these commitments. The company first used the excuse that federal tax laws related to income trusts might change. Now that the federal government has brought clarity to that issue, they are stating publicly that no decisions will be made on establishing an income trust before the company completes its operational review in January. Three communities in this province are relying on these commitments and it is unacceptable for FPI to continuously play these games. "The House of Assembly approved changes to the FPI Act that would permit the sale of the value-added and marketing division of the company. FPI received what it wanted from the people of Newfoundland and Labrador, it is now time for the people of the province to receive what they were promised in return. It certainly appears that the company used the federal government’s examination of income trusts as an excuse not to move forward, but were not expecting clarity brought to this issue in such a short period of time. As a result, they are now using their operational review as a stalling tactic while the communities of Fortune, Harbour Breton and Bonavista are forced to wait for an answer on their future. "FPI made commitments to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. Instead of looking for ways to possibly close plants and reduce employment, they should be honouring their commitments and moving forward with their promised investments. If the company is serious about establishing their income trust, now is the time to announce their intentions. Otherwise, I fear this whole proposal was nothing more than a sham." |
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