THA Chief secretary Orville London, is hoping that Tobago’s housing woes will be addressed following Minister of Finance Larry Howai’s budget speech today. Speaking at the post-executive council news conference last Thursday, London said, the Division of Settlements and Labour in the Tobago House of Assembly, headed by secretary Huey Cadette, has a backlog of 6,000 applications for housing. However, he said due to the slow rate of allocation by the Central Government, Tobago is being left at an unequal footing compared to Trinidad. “We receive an average of $20 million a year, which can provide about thirty houses,” he said.
London also advised Tobagonians to listen to the budget objectively, noting that the budget is not just about what occurs in the THA but what happens to the country on a whole. “I urge the people of Tobago to listen carefully see what is happening with respect to property tax, see what is happening with respect to the social security safety nets, see what is happening with respect to the utilisation of our energy resources, see what signals are being sent with respect to the energy resources of Tobago because we want Tobagonians to be involved in the conversation” he said. One week after the budget, the entire assembly is expected to go into retreat to re-prioritise funding allocated to the THA. All secretaries, assistant secretaries, administrators and budget analysts are expected to attend.