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501 responses to “Barbados Budget 2013”
A visionary budget by Minister Chris Sinckler – Growth measures and a responsible,realistic and fair fiscal consolidation programme.
Let us join together and lift up this beautiful country.
Some back of the envelop points so far:
Projected slide in forex reserves 1 billion.
Massive investment to be made in the tourism sector.
19 month tax on Personal Income Tax from 50 thousand.
A government program to equip several government entities to implement alternative energy.
Government to refurbish Silver Sands and Almond Beach Village and sold. Finance from the Chinese.
UWI gets a major look – Bajans have to pay the tuition cost from 2014/2015. Means testing to be applied for financially challenged.
David
This is yet another reverse Robin Hood Budget. Robbing the poor for the benefit of the rich. The Government is once again putting a disproportionate burden on the least well off in society. Who benefits from the reverse tax credit? Temporary public officers are being asked to take cuts, again these officers are the least well off in the service. I am still waiting to hear who would be departing this bloated Cabinet.
So far,only the UWI tuition fees (austerities) put on the table as yet….[time 6.55 pm]…..probably rest soon coming,all at once or AFTER the Budget…..looks that way….wrap up time…hmmm ….looka muh crosses
I thought it was a very well crafted budget. Sinckler’s style has taken on the trappings of statesmanship. He did the best he could have done on the wicket he helped prepare.
Well done Chris. I look forward to hearing the opposition’s specific spending cut proposals or alternatives. If Mia Mottley comes tomorrow and predictably plays the political game and one-upmanship, it will be an opportunity lost to elevate the national discourse.
This is a very responsible budget given the times. Barbados will be the winner.
http://www.nationnews.com/articles/view/pms-word1/
Wunna really gine fall for more smoke and mirrors? Stupse. I can’t wait to hear Miller on the UWI fees and Stuart’s previous comment on the issue. Popcorn.
@ check-it
Devil lies in the details….the 19 months Taxes program ( personal income and otherwise) only briefly touched……crafty indeed. Bajans are not accustomed to this…looka muh crosses.
From 1300$ t0 650$, Mother Of Fookers MOF, rob the poor what a cut of 50% … REVERSE CREDIT , If who all got cut vote the other way he will be out of office, Hope they remember that next time you vote , Paid vote up to 300$ each and now the rebate ,
The MOF is clearly getting quite good at this.
Cannot keep their word to save their own lives.
HUM !
Caswell Franklyn , did the poor attended those consultations the Minister held before crafting this latest masterpiece
@ Observer
Good at what? Promising? How many of the projects we have been hearing about for 3 budgets now? And a quick question…where the extra money for TB and other statutory boards will come from without full or quasi-retrenchment or increased bus fares or part-privatisation?
Why lost 3 hundred million in the three months between March and June? Capital Flight maybe?
…and the naysaying has begun, how predictable
Reduce work week to four or three days = 20% or 40% pay cut.
@Enuff
My fellow Barbadian. Let us raise the level of the debate. Come with specific alternatives.
Very crafty presentation by the MOF… Well Done
Budget updated – click image.
good at crafting a budget
Big time moves made to spruce up the tourism product. What does that say about the tourism minister? How long now has it been since the ship started to drift with him at the helm?
Left Dem
The poor are only required to vote and after that they don’t matter.
Who is the author ? Language not Mr Sinclair’s
What level of debate what!! Only the brainless can’t recognise a snake oil salesman. These are the same people and their supporters on BU that claimed the BLP wanted to make Bajans pay to go UWI. What happened tonight?
He was trying to give some truths, hope he recognizes that is was not that hard to tell people some of what to expect.
___________________________________________
“Sinckler admitted that the macro-economic programme had gone off track and needed to be brought back in line.
Giving an early overview of the sectors including construction and tourism, Sinckler tracked how these industries had plummeted over the years.
He said the difficulties of the situation had in some cases become too much for some employers to hold on to employees, he said, while dealing with the troubling problem of unemployment.”
@Caswell
Did the MoF indicate whether there is a freeze on bring supplementaries as well?
On 13 August 2013 23:25, Barbados Underground
The post at 7:26 pm should have been attributed to Hamilton Hill.
@enuff
You are correct that the DLP committed to not cutting UWI monies BUT the current state of things makes it obvious that it has to renege on that promise. Professor Howard must feel vindicated. Like many stated on BU, the objective was to win the election, now the fun begins.
On 13 August 2013 23:30, Barbados Underground
@Well Well
“Sinckler admitted that the macro-economic programme had gone off track and needed to be brought back in line.
When he did know this, certainly not during the election campaign because both he and the GOCB said then that the economy was stable.
uwi monies have not been cut. it has been replaced by the tuition fees.
Well I guess the Society Vs Economy debate finally settled.
OOB;
Of course the devil lies in the details and I expect Owen and Mia and the other BLP members to fully point out the inconsistencies and show where expected savings are unlikely to come. But the speech was totally unlike Sinckler’s normal style. He was uncharacteristically accommodating. While spending a lot of time explaining why he felt that the very parlous situation we are in was almost entirely due to external circumstances, he did not try to berate the BLP or blame them for anything. Indeed, reading between the lines, and recognizing that he did not at all dwell on the period before 2008, he read out a litany of failures of his Ministry and himself. There must be a strategy there. I will wait to see if the BLP speakers take the bait.
I repeat that imho the speech was statesmanlike. The dissection of the details will show several areas where the plans are not likely to match with the outcomes. I. like Balance, did not expect the DLP to bite the bullet of seriously attempting to make the adjustments which they said were necessary in this fiscal year and indeed they did not actually bite it but expanded the time over which the adjustments will be made significantly.
Sinckler appeared to stay clearly away from saying anything that could be interpreted as lies. Indeed he came clean and appeared to paint a picture of the DLP’s dismal performance that would more traditionally have come from the Opposition. The strategy is quite obvious. It is going to be interesting to see where it leads.
I repeat. Sinckler, imho, did the best he could have done on the horrible fiscal wicket that he played a large part in preparing. Lets see what the Opposition does in the next few days on that wicket. I’m betting on Mia to be even more impressive and perhaps also somewhat apparently accommodating.
@Observer
Correction, delayed.
The UWI is currently suffering a heavy cash flow problem. How will the change impact student intake and by extension UWI having to cut cost.
On 13 August 2013 23:37, Barbados Underground
Watching (not the attorney) | August 13, 2013 at 7:36 PM |
@Well Well
“Sinckler admitted that the macro-economic programme had gone off track and needed to be brought back in line.
When he did know this, certainly not during the election campaign because both he and the GOCB said then that the economy was stable.
_____________________________________________
Watching…………..as a matter of fact i could swear i read somewhere Sinckler had used those same words about 2 years ago when his little vat increase went into effect, same very words i heard come from him, they gotta remember some people have long memories, particularly if you are not of the yardfowl variety.
UWI fees are made up of Tuition costs and Economic costs. Students now have to pay the tuition costs $5,000, $8,000 or 16,000 per year.. The student population will diminish significantly from next school year eventually staff will also be slashed.
But more importantly those who have the means will get a university education and the others will not.
The MoF had indicated that the VAT would be reviewed. In this budget he has indicated the measures will be for 19 months.
On 13 August 2013 23:41, Barbados Underground
the proposals should improve uwi cash flow as they will now collect the tuition from the students directly and not have to wait on the government.
@Checkit-Out
You need to study this budget, don’t be too quick.There will be some analysis on VOB at 8PM:
http://vob929.ocmnet.net/VOB/Home.aspx
On 13 August 2013 23:44, Barbados Underground
Dems Now! Dems Again!, DEMS dam crooks.
Audit , open the books, Report what Owen and Mia did in office with the records of the COP , Audit all departments and find the money they stole, Get the History books back in the Truth column .
With out Audit , more money must be spent to cover the Massive Fraud. As you all can see those who cant afford will pay for many more years to come ,
Offshore accounts will grow as the crooks move their money .Leaving the poor to flip the Bills
but if the state pays the economic cost as the MOF said the state is still paying over 80% of gthe cost. he also announced a meants testing mechanism for those who cannot afford.
How much you want to bet that the means testing will be anything but transparent?
Anyone with a copy of the Budget that can be downloaded?
Well David the time for upping “the level of debate” was then. Not to do so was being dishonest.
How much you want to bet that it will not be used to grant favours to the least deserving?
@Observer
What about the deterioration in UWIs financial position NOW? How will it erode its financial helath? When will the government release the 50 million to UWI? How long before all debt is settled?
On 13 August 2013 23:46, Barbados Underground
The phrase ” as a last resort” needs to be carefully examined. The end of the next quarter may well see that last resort come into fruition. This government has to come to terms with the fact that it would not be the first, nor will it be the last administration to lie to win an election. They may stave off only for so long before the inevitable happens. The terribly bloated public sector has to be trimmed. Plain and simple.
@lol
Can’t you read?
Click the image above to download copy.
On 13 August 2013 23:48, Barbados Underground
How long before all debt is settled?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Al Barrack has an answer.