The President of the Malta Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise, Mr Tancred Tabone said that he welcomed the proposals on taxation announced on Tuesday morning by the Leader of the Nationalist Party, Dr Lawrence Gonzi. Mr Tabone was particularly satisfied with the announcement since the Chamber proposed the possibility of fine-tuning personal income tax bands with the Prime Minister only last week when he visited The Exchange to discuss the Chamber's proposals for the 2008 General Election.

The proposal to widen the initial threshold of 15%, as well as that of lowering the tax ceiling to 25% is indeed positive to business as it promises higher consumption. "Primarily, this measure will serve to increase purchasing power across the board thereby promising to stimulate the economy. Dr Gonzi stated that this measure would be sustainable in the medium-term through the same added economic stimulation it would bring about. Besides, this measure is also beneficial to national competitiveness as it is conducive towards containing wage inflation pressures," continued Mr Tabone.

The Chamber was further satisfied that this morning's news conference also addressed incentives for more women to contribute to the labour market.

"We asked both political parties last week to incentivise more female participation in the labour market to contribute to national competitiveness. The country must capitalise on its one and only natural resource - its human one," added the Chamber President.

"The announcements made this morning were positive from a business and economic point of view especially given the unfolding international economic situation. The call to stimulate the local economy was made to the Prime Minister during his recent meeting with the officers at the Chamber of Commerce," concluded Mr Tabone.