Gozo Business Chamber welcomes initiatives for sister island

The Gozo Business Chamber said it is pleased to hear a confirmation from the Minister for Finance that Government is continuing to push to bring under control the deficit to 0.5% and the public debt of the country to 60% of GDP.

On the measures for Gozo, the GBC, is pleased to see that Government has taken heed of the request of the Chamber to have the stamp duty on purchase of residential property in Gozo lowered to a 2%. However, it feels that this measure should be put into immediate effect and include all pending promises of sale and not put in action from the beginning of next year for obvious reasons.

The GBC praised the commitment of €16 million to increase space at the Xewkija Industrial Estate. The commitment of €3.2 million for the second fibre optic cable between the two islands is also very positive. However, if certain incentives were introduced it would have the desired effect on companies setting up in Gozo. The Chamber is also pleased to see that after the issue of the tender for the geological studies between the islands government has announced that next year it will be issuing out an international tender for the design, building and operation of the tunnel between the two islands. The Chamber also hopes that government will continue to invest more in the infrastructure needed on the island especially on the roads and other projects which will make Gozo an upmarket destination.