Trinidad & Tobago’s Commerce Chamber Fears of Backlash for Tourism

The Tobago Division of the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce wants more details on the prime minister’s statement that he will look favorably on the Tobago House of Assembly’s concerns about foreign ownership of land.

Furthermore, the Tobago chapter blamed the media for negative impact, stating that “the debate on this subject in the media in our opinion has not helped tourism and may be one of the reasons for the current downturn in arrivals.”

The statement continued saying that “the increase in excise duties on alcohol will affect the tourism sector negatively. The tourism industry in large part is export oriented and should be considered as such, we therefore suggest a two-tier system of pricing.”

“The budget identifies great opportunities in financial services and talks of hotels being built in Trinidad, but Tobago appears to be excluded. “We still have concerns about the transportation by air and sea and hope this will be rectified once and for all,” the report concluded.