Consumer Protection legislation should have been ‘rushed’ too- Hon Fahie
The Opposition Leader has already blasted the National Administration Party (NDP) Administration for convening the House for the first time after hurricanes Irma and Maria to rush through a curfew legislation but ignored the need for Consumer Protection legislation.
There have been many reports of price gouging and other unfair business practices following the two devastating hurricanes.
“With the same haste, legislation like the Consumer Protection and those, must come…because too many things are happening now that, Madam Speaker, I thought that by now if there is one legislation we could have rushed, would have been that one,” Hon Fahie commented while making his contribution to the debate on the Micro Business Companies Act 2017 during the continuation of the Eleventh Sitting of the Second Session of the Third House of Assembly of the Virgin Islands on November 16, 2017.
What about the people on the ground?
Hon Fahie, while expressing the need for the Micro Business Companies Act 2017 and other bills that affect Financial Services, added there is also need to bring legislations in a timely manner to the House that will benefit the people on the ground.
“Let us continue to do what we have to do with the financial services aspect but [do] the same thing when it comes to on the ground, on the ground legislation that will affect our people more directly in a short term…in everything there is a balance.
“The Financial Services has done us good but it has also has given us many challenges, because when we talk about per capita income, Madam Speaker, our per capita income is high but that has nothing to do with our people on the ground, our local people. It has to do mostly with the salaries et cetera of persons in that industry…
The Opposition Leader said the goal is for “our people” to move from the micro level to the mid range and to the higher level of business “but to do that we have to give them supporting legislations like the Consumer Protection and many other legislations to make sure our people can move from step to step and that there is legislation to protect them.”
Previously, Hon Archibald C. Christian (AL), the Junior Minister for Tourism, was loudest among the NDP legislators to also call for legislation to protect consumers and business owners alike.
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