By KHRISNA VIRGIL
Tribune Staff Reporter
kvirgil@tribunemedia.net
AS THE government moves to prepare finances for the 2014-15 budget State Finance Minister Michael Halkitis is forecasting requests for more money from several key ministries.
Speaking to The Tribune yesterday, Mr Halkitis said while the National Security and Health Ministries along with the Department of Social Services might request more funding than in the last budget period, it was still the government’s aim to ensure fiscal prudence.
He could not say specifically if increases would be approved across all ministries as debate at the House of Assembly is not set to take place until next month. Officials in various government agencies are still making submissions to the Ministry of Finance.
“Everybody is going to ask for increases,” Mr Halkitis said. “That is the nature of it because you have Ministers that want to do more. The demands are more as the country grows. For example in healthcare there is going to be an increased need for spending because we have things like the Critical Care Block (at the Princess Margaret Hospital) and mini hospitals, etc, that we need to pay attention to. Along with the condition of some of the clinics on the family islands.
“In aviation we need to upgrade airports. The Defence Force and police. So everybody will be asking for more, but we have to make sure that we do as best we can to make sure we are meeting those needs but within our framework.”
Mr Halkitis remained optimistic that with a reduction in unemployment numbers and a continued upswing for the economy, there would be less of a reliance on the Department of Social Services.
“Hopefully, we will see less of a need for that. But what we were doing over the last few years is just to make sure that while we were coming out of the recession and families were still recovering, we didn’t cut assistance where it is needed. But hopefully as employment increases there will be less of a need for that,” he said.
During the last budget debate, FNM MP for St Anne’s, Hubert Chipman said the country’s debt was expected to to be $5.5 billion – $1 billion of which was borrowed by the PLP in less than two years.
He said the government’s borrowing over a two-year period represents the largest increase in government borrowings in the Bahamas. However, the Christie administration refuted Mr Chipman’s claims.
Comments
ThisIsOurs 10 years, 7 months ago
DO MORE?!??!!?!!?!
These people are STEALING!!!!
They ask for the huge budgets for ill thought out projects that either never get started fail or deliver nothing resembling the original intent. Half the money disappears and there is never any accountability. Look at those BOB loans, look at PHA. disgraceful,
Can you give us an accounting of the 20 million allotted for the agricultural school? The 15 million to failed UR, what about the training agency how was that money foolishly used?
You should be ASHAMED Mr Halkitis, Mr Christie for calling yourselves Ministers of anything.
B_I_D___ 10 years, 7 months ago
They know that come 2017 they are done, so they need to ramp up the pillaging to epic proportions while they still can.
sheeprunner12 10 years, 7 months ago
But its only 2014!!!!!!!!!!! My God, whats going to happen by 2016??????
realfreethinker 10 years, 7 months ago
And they are doing a damn good job at that. There wont be much to govern after this crew finish
afficianado 10 years, 7 months ago
These politiicians are OLD and EXPIRED!!!
sheeprunner12 10 years, 7 months ago
Who will tell this government that they have to spend LESS instead of more???????
We are in debt $6 BILLION and we OVERSPEND $500 MILLION each year!!!!!!!!!
Just read Larry Smith's article and see what our politicians have done with our fiscal management in FORTY short years.
Say NO to VAT, illegal numbers, Perrycare, more civil servants and foreign consultants/firms, Chinese loans, lack of public pension plans, more RBDF boats and RBPF cars, ................. etc. Its going to ruin us!!!!!!!
SP 10 years, 7 months ago
Who's on first?
It is painfully Impossible to defrienciate The FNM last 5 year tenure in office with the present PLP administration.
More of the same. Just another group controlling the checkbook with no accountability whatsoever!
TheMadHatter 10 years, 7 months ago
Absolutely correct. Even if the law said they have to be accountable and put the info online - the info is simply not there. I bet they don't have the books balance for January yet.
The problem is that the country is run by such a SMALL number of persons (38?) We need to have more MPs. There should be 100 MPs in Parliament. I'm not being sarcastic. I really think the power is in too small a group. I would even support 300 MPs which would be one for every thousand of population. MPs would then be more local and more accountable to the people in their home town. People would be able to meet with their MP as well.
TheMadHatter
sheeprunner12 10 years, 7 months ago
Ur an ass........... the US has a 635 member Congress plus Prez and cabinet for 325 million citizens!!!!!!!!
We just need responsible visionary leaders.......... not these morons
TheMadHatter 10 years, 7 months ago
Yes, and the US needs more too. Their Constitution allows for one Rep for every 30,000 persons - which would be 10,833 members of Congress. They are suffering from the SAME PROBLEM we have - which is dictatorship. A dictatorship in the classical sense means ONE man ruling a population. But in effect when you have 325 million people CONTROLLED by just 600 people - it is in effect a dictatorship. The same in the Bahamas. The only reason they have all of those people is because the govt is so complex they are needed but NOT for democratic reasons. All of them have staff as well which take care of all sorts of things. More reps would be able to take care of more things AND you would be able to speak to your REP. But maybe you have monthly conversations with YOUR MP - who am I to judge? Maybe everyone in your Constituency meets and chats with their Rep from time to time in person. I might just be living in fantasy land or I might just be an ass like you say. Maybe I'm an ass and the world is perfect and I just don't realize it?
TheMadHatter
CongressionalSpeaker1 10 years, 7 months ago
These guys are full of bologna! You always ask for additional funds for everything you do! Either you guys cant count or estimate or the guy's you're hiring are morons! Or that you guys add additional funding for your personal pockets. These days you're only checking for the wellbeing of you and your families MP's. Which is human nature and nobody can deny that when in power they wouldn't look out for their family. But to what extent? You guys are sick people in the end. Trying to destroy the country for a few dollars is ridiculous. When the table turns and the dogs are hungry they always seem to bite the hand of the person responsible. In other words what goes around comes around.
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