Finance Minister Winston Dookeran presented what he called a people's budget Wednesday with a projected expenditure of TT$49 billion, which would leave a deficit of TT$7.7 billion.In a three and a half hour presentation during which the minister showed signs of exhaustion, Dookeran outlined measures to bring back the economy from the brink of collapse caused by what called "reckless" expenditure by the previous Manning PNM regime.
He proclaimed that that "we will axe the (property) tax", which the People's Partnership pledged to do during the election campaign. And he kept the promise made Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar that there will be no new taxes.
Dookeran said the State must be the catalyst for change and must partner with the private sector to effect meaningful development as he announced incentives to encourage investments by the private sector.
He also announced measures to bring relief for tens of thousands of people affected by the collapse of CL Financial and the Hindu Credit Union. And he emphasised that the bulk of the expenditure in the coming fiscal year will be devoted to improving and enhancing infrastructure and social services in preference to grandiose projects by the previous administration that consumed billions of dollars.
In that context the minister announced that the government would kill the Rapid Rail project, which he said would have cost the Trinidad and Tobago taxpayers TT$22.5 billion if undertaken. He said the $565 million spent so far on studies for the project has not produced a viable plan.
Dookeran said alternative measures will be undertaken to deal with the country's transportation needs. However he did not give any specifics on that. He also announced the scrapping of the Alutrint plant for south Trinidad which was stopped by a court order pending a review of environmental concerns.
Dookeran said the budget allocation will include:
- Education and Training will receive $8,325 million
- Infrastructure: $5,918 million including Works and Transport and Public Utilities
- Health: $4,341 million
- National Security $4,762 million
- Agriculture: $1,836 million
- Housing: $1,837 million
Persad-Bissessar said each minister will expand on measures and give more details during the budget debate, which begins next Tuesday at 10 am. "There is no way to go but up," she told reporters, noting that economic growth is project at 2 per cent.
She was particularly pleased that the budget kept the People's Partnership pledge to "axe" the Property Tax, and scrap mega projects such as the Rapid Rail and the Alutrint plant.
She said the country just cannot afford such projects and to continue with them would have been a betrayal of the people, who voted against these projects. She acknowledged that there will some economic fallout from cancelling the projects. However she said it would be better for the country in the long term.
Read the budget documents:
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