Bahrain waives VAT on power bills

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MANAMA: Value Added Tax levied on electricity and water bills will be shouldered by the government from next month.

The weekly Cabinet, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Premier, announced the waiver yesterday.

It was recommended by the Executive Committee, chaired by the Crown Prince.

Under the new procedure, the current electricity and water tariff will include the VAT levy, which is already paid by the government.

The Cabinet approved a memo submitted by Electricity and Water Affairs Minister Wael bin Nasser Al Mubarak adding a new clause to the 2016 edict on the electricity and water tariff.

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Bahrain is beefing up measures to pre-empt any outbreak of the Sars-like coronavirus, which is spreading worldwide.

Health authorities were ordered to act fast by providing necessary early-detection equipment to examine samples and be on the alert to deal with any potential developments.

The Crown Prince directed officials to link the Health Ministry’s laboratories with leading disease-control and prevention centres and international organisations.

Health Minister Faeqa Al Saleh outlined measures taken to prevent an outbreak of the virus in Bahrain.

The monitoring and control procedures have been stepped up in line with the World Health Organisation protocols, said Cabinet secretary general Yasser Al Nasser.

l Based on the directives of the Crown Prince to ensure optimal mechanisms to directly disburse government subsidies to eligible citizens, the Cabinet agreed to unify the date of subsidy disbursements across five programmes under the Labour and Social Development and Housing Ministries.

The subsidies will be disbursed in one payment, on the 15th of every month, starting next month.

The operation will be monitored by the Labour and Social Development Ministry.

The Cabinet welcomed talks His Majesty King Hamad held with King Mohammed VI during his recent visit to Morocco.

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