@Smooth Chocolate- Your post was both inaccurate and nonsensical. The economics was overshadowed by pure politics. Unfortunately many like you in the BLP feel that they must create the impression that everyone else is doing well so as to intensify the blame game on the current government.

Tourism dependent economies in the Caribbean have all been negatively affected.We cannot run away from that but to come and suggest that St. Lucia with over 20% unemployment, a huge and burgeoning fiscal deficit and with nearly all the makjor tourism real estate projects in receivership like The Landings is doing better than Barbados is to overstep the bounds of economic and social reality. Barbados is doing much better than many of its Caricom neighbours .That is a fact.

@ Harry Bynoe

ROFLMAO!!! You really don’t want to start. You’re relying on information provided by corrupt organizations paid off by huge multinational corporations. I don’t care what the HDI says as we still have Bajans living in SHANTY TOWNS AS OF 2013!! We produce not one single thing get shit keeps falling from your mouth and is smeared across your eyes. You should be reading what the Credit agencies such as Moody’s as well as Standard & Poor’s to get a true understanding of how economics works. You my simple-minded friend, have absolutely NO KNOWLEDGE of how macroeconomics works. I grow tired of explaining it to the likes of simpletons such as yourself because you still wish to play “know-it-all” even when you are CLEARLY in the wrong. An ass wouldn’t walk off the ledge of a mountain; but a fool such as yourself would be inclined to jump off it, eating the falsities fed to you by “internationally renowned” organizations. Mind you financial agencies such as the Lehman Brothers of the U.S. were once considered “too big to fail” but fell HARD. Bim’s economy is literally on the fringes.

Unenlightened parties such as yourself wouldn’t even know how to measure growth and productivity, let alone know how to parse out superficial jargon meant to appease stupid investors. Even a clown would know that our economy is literally on a thread and all it would take is one little nudge from a globalized financial crisis to throw this country into complete ruin. An idiot would also note that Bim is Highly dependent on the cash of tourists from 1st world countries ie. Britain,Canada, and the U.S.; it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that should those countries falter, BIM will Fall even harder. I would call you an idiot, but even that would be a compliment to someone who lacks any form of a serious thought process such as yourself. Hence my time would be wasted on the likes of you… (-_-)

Simple analysis, to maintain the economy ~flat, we have to grow(forex). The current strategy is unsustainable.

The BLP supporters like to trot out this phrase: Oh we have the expertise to do it and we can do it again.
Break down that statement- The economic growth in the BLP years did not occur in an environment of recession and sluggish growth in our major source markets. In other words, The BLP has never acheived economic growth in Barbados when our major trading partners were not also growing.
Can anyone on this blog prove other wise? I dare you to show me one occasion when England was in recession and Barbados tourism was booming…I am waiting.
As said by the governor correctly, we need to improve our service quality, business facilitation, tourism market diversification- things that affect our competitiveness structurally – Do not believe Mascoll’s poltically expedient “lick out some money” economics. That is designed to catch votes and placate the big financial donors in the private sector who are stuck in the old ways of doing things. That is why Trinidad was eating our lunch even in the so called good times.

@ LOOK

Then who is to blame when the elected politicians from both parties have contributed to the current dilemma this nation is facing?

@ Brudah Bim

President Obama stepped in to save the auto industry, had to because the auto industry affects a lot of businesses big and small – lots of jobs. The DLP maybe wanted to save some of those hotel and small business closing but couldn’t. The DLP is not responsible for Al Barack, the millions over-budgeted [Dodds Prison Project], the 2.4 million dollar loss [Nigerian Water Heater Project]. It can’t possibly take responsibility for the tourism industry near death because of a global weakened economy. It did not attempt to replace revenue lost from tourism and is fault for that. Barbados relies on too few things to survive, mainly tourism. Tourism in Barbados is Plan A and plan A right now is not productive – not enough. A plan B is needed, NOW.

Arthur says “economy is a mess right now”, we will fix it. He’s going to fix the economy but does not have a plan to do it – echo from Mitt Romney. LOL

@enuff

As you well know it is standard for PHds to post their work in academic spaces to suffer the glare of peer review. It was in that context the question was asked about Mascoll’s paper.

David a topic idea for you begin a thread on a head to head of DLP versus BLP platform speakers for the election campaign.

Who prevails on the platform like so:
-Stuart v Arthur > Stuart wins Arthur terrified of Staurt stayed away from parliament because of fear. Stuart oratory too profound and powerful.
-Sinckler v Mottley> keen tussle ,Sinckler cutting oratory and street humour pips Mottley.
-Estwick v Dale Marshall. No contest Marshall destroyed escorted to Jenkins by campaign platform police.
-Donville Inniss v Payne> No contest again Payne joins his shadow Gail Marshall in Jenkins.
-Jones v Cynthia Forde> Forde loses.
-Sealy V Toppin> Toppin loses curses Arthur for setting him up
-Kellman v Glyne Clark >a draw both unintelligible.
-Michael Lashley v Duguid> Dugiuid cowardly turns tail runs all the way to Montreal never returns.

What do you think let posters Dees and Bees weigh in.

The BLP has never acheived economic growth in Barbados when our major trading partners were not also growing.
Can anyone on this blog prove other wise? I dare you to show me one occasion when England was in recession and Barbados tourism was booming…I am waiting.

GooD Submission! but smooth choclate takes the cake. great example of liars can figure and figures can lie.

@ ! | January 27, 2013 at 12:13 AM |
“The government also implemented the accrual system of accounting where expenses were reported in the period incurred.”

That’s a blatant lie and you deceitfully know that this DLP administration came to power and found such a system in place started under the previous administration but became expansively operational by the Ministry of Finance as set out in loan agreements to improve fiscal management and reporting system of the government. Hence the need to ‘bring to book’ the so-called off-balance sheet financing projects.

We must therefore take what you wrote above with a large measure of skepticism and as uninformed political hogwash dressed up as desperate partisan propaganda.

But one thing you are genuine about is that the DLP administration is full of magical talent as far as managing the economy. What you have outli(n)ed is not attempts at restructuring the economy but just a continuation of the same old same dependence on fickle tourism and int’l business. The only difference is that this DLP administration came to the brilliant conclusion they can earn their financial stripes in managing economy by using other people’s money (OPM) without concern for its repayment.
Which business entity whether at the private sector or at the State level can survive by borrowing consistently to meet its current or operational expenses like wages and salaries and failure to meet its current liabilities for goods and services?
If this DLP has a Cabinet with superior skill sets to any previous one, then explain the following:

How come many of the revenues raising measures authored by Darcy Boyce like taxes on cell phones, lottery winnings, bicycle licencing remain largely un-implementable?

How come Jepter Ince, in his erudite rendition of Finance esoterica and fiscal propriety, does not know the difference between a “Fiscal” Deficit and a “Physical” one?

Why is Sir Frank always used as the chief spokesman for the Dems on all matters of economics even though he claims he is independent and not an inside bosom placed ardent member of that party. Where in this current Cabinet can be found a loyal well-trained economist -whether wooden or crystal- that can speak with the technical competence and authority (as can be found in the BLP) on such matters instead of outsourcing these skills?

Why is the current Minster of Finance so inconsistently unreliable in his projections and implementation of promises but at the same time has a corrupting penchant for unjustified discrimination in the granting of tax concessions to forex consuming (instead of generating) commercial ventures?

How can a person be described as being in possession of magical skill sets when so much tax revenues remain outstanding in the face of a fiscal crisis which according to that person cannot be ‘wrestled to the ground’ solely by cutting expenditure and sending home civil servants. The majority of the tax revenues that remain outstanding are not of a result of underperforming business activity but criminal failure of the fraudulent business managers to pay over the VAT collected directly from customers and PAYE and NI contributions docked from the pay of hardworking employees.

How can Chris Sinckler review the provisions of the IADB loan agreement and compare the agreed fiscal targets against his dismal and abjectly poor performance and then come to the fore to receive credits from the like of you, “!”, instead of junk status downgrade by the int’l credit rating agencies?
The performance of the Governor (a creature in the image of the same MoF) will be for another occasion.

How can this piece of 2×4 island be doing well when we cannot feed ourselves? We cannot even produce our quota of sugar which has been on a downward slope for many years. We import sugar for local consumption, we import food for local consumption we import every brassbowl for local consumption. How de france are we to pay for this? Tourism our main forex earner is on the decline. And people can say we are doing well against the odds? The family silver has been sold to pay for the imports, the house ent belong to us anymore and eviction notice is on its way. We doing good? When you have to borrow from Peter to pay Paul you say we are doing well? When Peter decides to say no to the borrowing who will you turn to? How will you pay back Peter? The bucket has little water left and we still doing good? When it get emptied I hope you will say that we are still doing well! Stupse

@Miller-
one sided as usual.
“How can a person be described as being in possession of magical skill sets when so much tax revenues remain outstanding in the face of a fiscal crisis”
A basic flaw in your analysis – these statutory arrears in vat payments, NIS, etc were growing when Owen Arthur was Minister of Finance – a point which you probably conveniently forgot to mention. So this DLP government should have gone and extracted all the arrears that were built up from 1994 – 2007 and then people like you would be crying about the harm done to the private sector.

Since the accrual system became operational under this government, obviously they had to ‘bring to book’ the so-called off-balance sheet financing projects. This needs to be factored in as you look at the debt figures because we all know that the BLP was involved in massive off budget spending – remember your new friend Clyde Mascoll complaining about BLP off budget spending.

The foreign reserves that the BLP speaks of were as a result of borrowings and not spectacular foreign exchange earnings so those reserves were accompanied by increase debt repayments.

As for economists who can speak with technical competence – listen you are getting confused – not every economist is a politician. Arthur is a politician and so is Mascoll , therefore they twist the economic jargon to accomodate their political objective. Arthur and Mascoll are certainly not more competent or experienced than Darcy Boyce but Darcy is not a campaign speaker. Your point is ridiculous.Eg: Arthur will say Government needs to cut expenditute- an economist can say that means significant cuts to the wage bill and sending home people. Arthur and Mascoll have a political objective so they will never admit that publicly.

My point remains – there is no magic about the BLP and to all those BLP supporters like you , who are tired hearing about the global economy – I am still waiting for an answer – Please show me one point over the last 50 years under any Prime Minister including your boy Arthur when our major trading partners were in recession and the Barbados economy was booming. I am waiting.

Near everyone thinks the economy is hurting but I havent seen too many ideas, so I will get the ball rolling and if everyone pitches in we may get a solution. Well Well feel free to manufacture any of these products as your own……..
The face on the back of a ball cap for pet owners ………….so when your dog is crapping on the beach it always seems like your looking the other way….

The aero-dynamic coral/ganja briefcase for the entrepeneur……so when a policeman comes on the beach you can do the 100 meter faster than Jamaica’s Bolt….

Gangnam style is making millions why not the Bajan shuffle,……..when drinks come to the table stand up move your feet a bit put your hands in your pockets as if you are going to pay ..then scratch yourself.

How about the political monkey, a green monkey fitted with steel toe construction boots you keep in your closet, whenever you feel like running for office you open the door and it runs out and kicks you in the balls

@ ! | January 27, 2013 at 10:46 AM |

You are waiting for what? For the miller to respond to your much discredited cesspool of lies?
You know very well that those so-called off-balance sheet financing projects like the Prison and Highway expansion were brought to proper book from current expenditure in prior years to capital expenditure in the fiscal year ended March 2008. The massive increase in the national debt after that year cannot be attributed to those book-keeping adjustments.
Any thing you say after that is infected by a trojan horse of lies and red herrings.

If Darcy the buoyant quisling is such a great economist why isn’t he the Minister of Finance instead of a buffoon of an empty-headed bullfrog lying in his own filth of corruption and broken promises?

Why isn’t Darcy charged specifically for the restart of the Four Season project, or if he is, what is really going on there? Put on eternal hold like the cell phone tax and additional impositions on already taxed lottery winnings?

One notices you conveniently avoided any reference to the other two arm chair economists in the form of the boisterous doctor of ‘play-play’ economics pretending to be a gun slinger at the OK Coral of Finance and the tongue twisted Jepter the ghost of CLICO mismanagement who does know his fiscal elbow from his physical asshole.

@ac
miller nor any of the other BLP airheads cannot touch this one. For those who came in late:
My point remains – there is no magic about the BLP and to all those BLP supporters like you , who are tired hearing about the global economy – I am still waiting for an answer – Please show me one point over the last 50 years under any Prime Minister including your boy Arthur when our major trading partners were in recession and the Barbados economy was booming. I am waiting to see how they spin this one.

I gone, let them call Red advertising and spend a couple more thousand dollars attacking the PM, that is what they like to do but they cannot bring any facts to disprove this point: “Please show me one point over the last 50 years under any Prime Minister including your boy Arthur when our major trading partners were in recession and the Barbados economy was booming.”

@!

What will happen come election day is simple: the swing voters will vote for the party they believe has the competence to chart a course out of this mess. All the analyzing etc will come to nothing but for this fact.

Harry Bynoe | January 26, 2013 at 7:28 PM |
” Smooth chocolate stop telling lies we can read the news and the internet to expose your deliberate untruths. You trying to make Barbados look bad its not going to work” The fact is Barbados is one of if not the leading developing country in the world.”

i am a young female. i have not political axe to grind, please grow up, not every one who has a point to say is a member of a political party. as far as i can see and understand, Guyanese are running to Barbados not realizing that they have a beautiful country with vast resources which are being under utilized. their economy is progressing, it cannot be equated with Barbados but what i meant was that their economy was growing not receding, so they must be doing something right.

most adults had the last 5 years to see how their lifestyle had changed, whether it has improved or not,… i say cannot change their opinion of which political party contributed in a major way to their economic situation.

i do not walk around with my head high, i choose to purposely look for those i can help in anyway i can and i love doing it, it is a way of life for me, my parents taught me that. I have never seen families reduced to poverty as i have witnessed in Barbados during the last 5 years. i would love to vote for a some other political party but being between a rock and hard place, i have no choice but to vote BLP i is absolutely frightening to imagine 5 more years with the DLP.

Checkit-Out | January 26, 2013 at 5:55 PM |
THANK U Checkit-Out…I CAN BE A GOOD GIRL SOMETIMES 😉

how about 1% proof rum so when you wake up in the morning and look besde you, you dont start screaming yikes

@David
Regarding your previous post about swing voters , that is true but the government must present the facts and the context of the situation as it presently exists and explain to these voters continuously. There are no economic magicians out there but some are out there giving people that impression to get votes.
That is why all of our neighbouring countries that voted back in former Prime Ministers are still smelling hell because they thought that bringing back the former Prime Minister would mean a return to the economic growth of a different time. It did not happen there and sorry to tell you Barbados does not exist in a vaccum.
This has been a prolonged recesion in our major tourism market and bringing back the BLP and its arrogant set of candidates will not help our situation in any way.