Finance Minister presents 2014 Budget today March 24, 2014 | By KNews | Filed Under News Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh, will today present to the National Assembly the 2014 Estimates, traditionally called the Annual Budget. Based on recent trends, the 2014 Budget is anticipated to be the largest Budget ever announced by Government, especially since the economy is reportedly showing continued growth. Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh24 Dr. Singh will also, in presenting his budget, provide a report to the nation as to the performance of the various sectors such as sugar, rice, bauxite, gold, forestry and fishing among others. Dr. Singh is also expected to provide updates on the expenditure last year in relation to debt servicing among other Government spending. This year’s budget is the third such to be presented under the opposition controlled parliament and they have already indicated that expenditure proposed by Government which they deem to be not in the interest of the nation, will be slashed. Chief Justice, Ian Chang, in his recent ruling has stated that the opposition has no power to change the estimates provided by the Finance Minister. He ruled that the opposition can only approve or disapprove. While the Finance Minister is of the view that there was widespread consultation on the Budget before its completion, the opposition has said that they had not been consulted. When Dr. Singh announced the date for the Budget, he said that despite repeated invitations to A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance for Change (AFC), they opted to boycott the consultations. Leader of the political opposition, Brigadier (rtd) David Granger is on record as saying that APNU and AFC were not adequately consulted on the 2014 budget and as such, “It is quite likely that since we were not properly consulted, that there will be disagreements over the 2014 budget when it is brought to the National Assembly.” Several cuts were made by the Parliamentary Opposition to the 2012 and 2013 budgets, all of which were restored despite their objections. In a recent interview with this publication, Granger said, “During 2013, Khemraj Ramjattan (Leader of the AFC) and I were given a commitment from since early in July to have discussions on the 2014 budget. There had been some exchange between the Shadow Minister of Finance, Mr. Carl Greenidge and the Finance Minister, Dr. Singh but those were not consultations.” Granger was adamant that “If certain things in the 2014 budget are not in the public’s interest then we will cut where necessary. We have made our position clear on certain issues and our position will remain the same, which is that we will continue to act in a manner that represents the people of this country.” When the Finance Minister recently announced a date for the Budget, he said that “It is expected that this year’s budget will continue to promote the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)’s commitment to accelerate economic growth and social development. According to Dr. Singh the 2014 Budget “will emphasize macro-economic stability through the continued creation of investment opportunities, expanding and upgrading physical infrastructure, improving the quality of social services, and strengthening institutional and regulatory environments.” He underscored that, Guyana’s strong economic performance of recent years has been the direct result of the responsible policy stance adopted, and the prudent and responsible choices exercised and decisions made over the years by the PPP/C government. “Over the past eight years, Guyana has experienced an unprecedented period of uninterrupted growth, standing out in its economic performance, despite the crises that have enveloped economies in the Caribbean and beyond over those same years.” The Minister said that despite the stalemate that has largely consumed the National Assembly within the last three years, Budget 2014 presents another opportunity for all parties to work together in the interest of the people of Guyana. Compilation of the budget began in June 2013, and according to Dr Singh, a number of stakeholder meetings were held which saw participation from the Private Sector, Labour Unions and other interest groups. This year’s budget presentation will be the eighth by Minister Singh, who first presented one in 2007 following his appointment as Finance Minister in September 2006.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 13:32:17 +0000
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