The Tribune

ALL eyes will be on Parliament today for the Budget – and while there are many questions about how the government will tackle income and spending for the year ahead, the thorny one of what to do about the National Insurance Board fund persists.

Back in February, the Minister of State with responsibility for NIB, Myles Laroda, told reporters that a decision had been made about what to do with the fund – which has been headed towards depletion by 2028 if nothing is done about it.

That suggestion was echoed by press secretary Clint Watson – though Mr Watson seems to be headed for a new job title at ZNS imminently. He too said that “a decision has been made”.

And yet, when Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis was asked about it during a visit to Eleuthera, he said that an increase in the NIB rate was “one of the options that we are looking at”.

It has been some months now since that little rollercoaster, and no announcement of a decision has been forthcoming – although NIB has continued to lose money at around $6m a month.

But today the government unveils its new Budget plan – and officials are coy about whether the issue of NIB’s dwindling fund will be addressed in it.

Fail to address it and NIB’s black hole will keep getting larger. Increase the rate and we will all have to dig a little deeper to fill that hole.

Worst of all would be to try to somehow patch a fix outside of the Budget – as everyone will adjust to the new changes only to perhaps have to adjust again if contributions are raised separately.

It is some months since the supposed decision was made, there really should be no reason for it not to be included in the new Budget.

FNM chairman Dr Duane Sands suggested yesterday that the government is dodging the issue, saying: “I don’t expect that we are going to hear much in terms of the specifics of dealing with the structural challenges facing the economy.”

The Office of the Prime Minister, meanwhile, spoke in non-specific terms about being “focused on areas vital to national development” and saying we will “continue strengthening our institutions, policies and practices to foster a secure environment conducive to economic growth”. Low on detail, high on rhetoric – but the proof shall be on show in today’s speech.

The FNM, of course, cannot boast of having dealt with the NIB conundrum during their terms in office. This is a crisis long in the making.

How bold will the current administration be? Will it change the retirement age? Cut benefits? Reduce costs such as the NIB workforce size? Increase contributions? Or do nothing at all?

There are limited options – and we await today’s Budget eagerly to see if the matter is addressed.

Elsewhere, there will be a keen eye on the cost of government overall, and the expected size of the deficit and national debt.

Sometimes, it is not just about the decisions one makes, but the decisions one chooses not to make. Today we will see which is which.