标签： Antigua and Barbuda

Top government officials in Antigua and Barbuda are actively evaluating a plan to expand the nation’s existing windfall profit tax to every profitable business sector, as policymakers work to secure new, reliable revenue streams for the country’s growing education and workforce development initiatives. The potential policy change was the focus of detailed discussions during this week’s regularly scheduled Cabinet meeting, where ministry leaders reviewed a range of funding options designed to support the long-term expansion of the national education system, which has outpaced current budget allocations in recent years. Currently, the country imposes a 10 percent windfall tax exclusively on large profit-making firms operating in four key sectors: telecommunications, banking, insurance, and energy. To qualify for the tax, businesses in these industries must already meet a threshold of at least 1 million Eastern Caribbean dollars (EC$) in annual profits. The proposed amendment would remove the sector restriction, bringing all profitable businesses that cross the EC$1 million annual profit mark under the tax policy. This policy conversation comes as the national government has ramped up public investments in post-secondary education across the country, including sustained institutional and financial support for the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus and the multiple campuses that make up the Antigua and Barbuda College of Advanced Studies (ABCAS). Cabinet officials have emphasized that the tax expansion proposal is just one of multiple revenue-raising options on the table, all targeted at generating new funding for ongoing educational development projects. In the coming weeks, policymakers will continue deliberations, with planned deep dives into the potential legal, economic, and social ramifications of any adjustments to the current tax structure. Any formal modification to the nation’s existing tax framework will require a full review and approval by the country’s parliament before it can go into effect. Government representatives have reaffirmed their core commitment to ensuring broad-based benefits from national economic growth, and have consistently ranked investment in public education as one of the administration’s top national priorities.

As former President Barack Obama prepares to open his long-awaited presidential center, a new national survey has cemented his status as the most popular living U.S. commander-in-chief by a substantial gap. The latest CNN poll, fielded by research firm SSRS, finds 57% of U.S. adults hold a favorable view of Obama — a rating that dwarfs the favorability scores of the two presidents who succeeded him in the Oval Office. Only 34% of respondents view Donald Trump favorably, while current former President Joe Biden trails even further behind with a meager 30% favorable rating. Obama’s cross-group appeal sets him far apart from his successors, the data shows: his favorability among political independents is more than double that of either Biden or Trump. Unlike Biden and Trump, who struggle with polarization even within their own partisan bases, Obama retains near-universal support from members of the Democratic Party. Even across the aisle, where just one in five Republicans view Obama positively, that share of cross-party backing is still higher than what either Biden or Trump receives from opposing-party voters. The poll places other former presidents’ ratings between Obama’s leading score and the low marks held by Biden and Trump. Former President George W. Bush holds a narrow net-positive rating, with 42% of Americans viewing him favorably against 33% who hold an unfavorable opinion. Ratings for Bill Clinton are roughly evenly split between positive and negative assessments. Retrospective approval ratings for former U.S. presidents often shift over time, and frequently improve years after they leave office, a trend visible in the poll’s data. Bush, who left the White House in 2009 with some of the lowest approval ratings in modern history, has seen his public image improve dramatically over the past two decades. For Trump, polling history shows his favorability climbed to 46% shortly before his planned 2025 second inauguration, up from 33% at the end of his first term — only to begin falling again immediately after he took office. Obama, who saw divided public opinion through most of his second term in office, has retained broad, consistent popularity in the years since he left the White House in 2017. In contrast, Biden entered office in 2021 with a 59% favorability rating that fell to 33% by the end of his term. Today, his 30% favorability is the lowest it has been at any point during his presidency. Though his unfavorable share has ticked down from its peak, a growing number of Americans now hold no opinion of him at all. Clinton has also undergone a negative reassessment over the past 10 years, with his favorability declining steadily. Beyond partisan approval, the survey also highlights a clear generational shift in how younger Americans engage with presidential history. As the U.S. electorate has increasingly come of age politically during the post-Obama era of polarized national politics, a growing share of young adults have little to no memory of presidents who held office before Obama. More than four in 10 adults under the age of 30 report holding no opinion at all of either Bush or Clinton, a shift reflected in updated polling methodology that now explicitly offers respondents the option to note they know of a figure but have not formed an opinion of them. When asked an open-ended question about which president in U.S. history they admire most, Americans heavily favored modern leaders. Thirty percent of respondents named Obama as the president they admire most, followed by 19% who named Trump, 9% who chose Abraham Lincoln, 9% who picked Ronald Reagan, 6% who named John F. Kennedy, and 5% who selected George Washington. Other living presidents were named far less frequently: 2% chose Clinton, 1% named Biden, and 1% named George W. Bush, with an additional 1% selecting “Bush” without specifying which member of the family. Nearly 10% of respondents said they did not admire any president or declined to offer an opinion. Partisan alignment heavily shapes results for the most-admired question: 64% of Democrats name Obama as the president they admire most, with 6% picking Kennedy, 5% selecting Lincoln, and 5% choosing Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Among Republican respondents, Trump holds the most-admired title with a 53% majority, followed by Reagan at 18%, Lincoln at 8%, and both Kennedy and Washington at 5% each.

In a routine but significant legislative sitting Tuesday, Antigua and Barbuda’s House of Representatives has formally approved resolutions to ratify amendments to the Constitution of the International Labour Organization (ILO), cementing the small island nation’s longstanding dedication to the UN body’s global mission of advancing fair labor standards and fundamental workers’ rights across the world.

The ILO constitutional amendments are not isolated changes: they form a years-long global effort to overhaul and modernize the organization’s internal governance framework. The updates are designed to ensure the ILO’s decision-making procedures accurately reflect two key shifts in the modern global landscape: the evolving needs of a rapidly changing global workforce and the organization’s expanded roster of member states.

Unlike most other agencies within the United Nations system, the ILO operates on a distinctive tripartite governance model that requires equal input from three stakeholder groups: national governments, employer associations, and organized worker representatives when developing international labor standards and policy frameworks. For Antigua and Barbuda, continued full participation in this structure has remained a priority as the country works to strengthen its own domestic labor protections, update workplace safety guidelines, and refine national employment policies, government representatives told lawmakers during the sitting.

Government officials emphasized that Antigua and Barbuda’s vote in favor of the amendments sends a clear message of the nation’s unwavering commitment to upholding international labor norms, advancing global social justice, and upholding collaborative action through multilateral institutions. The ratification also ensures the country remains aligned with the governance reforms adopted by the broader ILO membership and preserves its active standing within the global labor governance system.

The ILO amendments were just one component of a broader package of international agreements brought before parliament for ratification during the session. Lawmakers also signed off on protocols tied to the International Civil Aviation Organization, a reciprocal visa exemption agreement with the United Arab Emirates, and new international agreements centered on cross-border financial information exchange. None of the resolutions, including the ILO amendments, required extended debate before being approved.

Officials noted that continued active engagement in multilateral bodies like the ILO delivers dual benefits for Antigua and Barbuda: it gives the nation a voice in shaping global labor policy conversations, while also opening access to valuable technical assistance, evidence-based best practices, and collaborative problem-solving on pressing labor-related challenges facing the country. Following parliamentary approval, the amendments will now move through the final stages of the domestic ratification process, consistent with Antigua and Barbuda’s obligations under international treaty law.