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Trades tax on vehicles realigned
The government has aligned the rate of trades taxes on diesel-powered
passenger vehicles to be the same as those applicable to similar
petrol-powered vehicles, as announced by Finance Minister Danny Faure in
his Budget Address 2008.
The director general for Trade, Charles Morin, said that diesel vehicles
with an engine capacity not exceeding 1,000cc, which have been paying
125% tax will now pay only 75%.
He said that diesel vehicles with cylinder engines of capacities between
1,300 and 1,500cc which have been paying 125% tax, will now pay 150%,
while those whose engine capacities are between 1,500 and 1,600cc
including double or twin cabs, will pay 150%, while all diesel vehicles
whose engine capacities are between 1,600 and 2,000cc which have been
paying 150% tax, will now pay 175%, thereby experiencing a 25% increase.
With the exception of ambulances which are exempted in all categories,
all diesel vehicles for passengers, whose engine capacities exceed 2,000
but are not more than 2,500cc which have been attracting 150% tax, and
also double or twin cabs, will now be required to pay 225% tax while all
diesel vehicles whose engine capacities are between 1,600 and 2,000cc
which have been paying 150% tax, will now pay 175%.
Diesel vehicles for passengers, whose engine capacities exceed 2,000 but
are not more than 2,500 cc including double or twin cabs which have been
attracting 150%, tax will now be required to pay 225% tax.
Diesel passenger vehicles whose rating is above 2,500 but does not
exceed 3,000cc have been paying 175% tax but will now pay 225%. He
also stressed that the tariff for vehicles designed for the
transportation of goods, which was 25% last year, has remained the same.
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Below normal rainfall expected during the next four months
Below normal rainfall that may bring about slightly drier weather
conditions is expected over Seychelles during the second half of the
rainy season, that is from January to April 2008.
This, according to the National Meteorological Services (NMS), is due to
the moderate La Nina phenomenon which appears to be persisting and is
consequently causing rainfall to be lower than normal.
Seychelles’ rainy season normally starts from November and ends in
March, during which time wind from the northern hemisphere meets and
converges with wind from the southern hemisphere within the Seychelles
area to form its rain belt, referred to as the Inter Tropical
Convergence Zone (I.T.C.Z), which incidentally influences Seychelles
weather and contributes to most of its rainfall.
Forecaster Vincent Amélie said that instead of having the normal I.T.C.Z
rain recently, the country has been getting its rain from several
tropical depressions instead as a result of the La Nina phenomenon,
which renders the I.T.C.Z. belt passive, diffused and disorganized.
He said that things may return to normal come April, but by then the
country would have already entered into its dry season, which means that
the dry season might be longer than normal this year, and probably
persist as early as from this month up to November.
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Local writer takes first place in international internet writing contest
Sandra Hanks Benoiton has won first place in the Answers.com Creative
Writing Challenge, an International writing contest conducted on the
Internet by web information giant Answers.com, and has now been inducted
into the site's Hall of Fame.
Ms Hanks Benoiton's story, "Sweet
Polska", not only fit the criteria set by the competition - a story
less than 750 words that creatively and correctly uses and links to ten
specific, and rather obscure words or phrases - but did so with a
touchingly tragic tale of the festive season during World War II in the
Warsaw Ghetto.
The "must use" words for the contest were: a lick and a promise,
ataraxia, contraband, halva, mantic, praxis, sapid, semilunar,
serendipity and zeitgeist.
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Trades tax on
vehicles realigned
Below normal rainfall expected during the next four months
Local writer takes first place in international internet writing
contest |
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