The Governor of the Central Bank said Monday he wants the government to start moving to a balanced budget.
Ewart Williams said Trinidad and Tobago currently has a "comfortable" debt to GDP ratio of 35%. However, he warned that now is not the time to become complacent.
"We had two or three years of fiscal deficit, it is time that we take steps to return our public finances to a much more sustainable level in order to avoid our public debt situation from getting out of hand," he said.
Williams admitted that the task of putting together the 2012 budget would be a difficult one that would place serious demands on Finance Minister Winston Dookeran to bring public finances into balance while maintaining spending on big-ticket public sector projects.
He also said Government will have to review the $3.7 billion fuel subsidy if it wants to prevent public debt from reaching unsustainable levels.
"Look nobody likes to talk about the energy subsidy. We are going to have to face it. We have to face it. Whether it is $2 billion or whether it is $4 billion, it is a lot of money," Williams stated.
Ewart Williams said Trinidad and Tobago currently has a "comfortable" debt to GDP ratio of 35%. However, he warned that now is not the time to become complacent.
"We had two or three years of fiscal deficit, it is time that we take steps to return our public finances to a much more sustainable level in order to avoid our public debt situation from getting out of hand," he said.
Williams admitted that the task of putting together the 2012 budget would be a difficult one that would place serious demands on Finance Minister Winston Dookeran to bring public finances into balance while maintaining spending on big-ticket public sector projects.
He also said Government will have to review the $3.7 billion fuel subsidy if it wants to prevent public debt from reaching unsustainable levels.
"Look nobody likes to talk about the energy subsidy. We are going to have to face it. We have to face it. Whether it is $2 billion or whether it is $4 billion, it is a lot of money," Williams stated.
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