Assuring that the economy is on solid ground and growing, Minister of Finance and the Economy Larry Howai says the Government wants an extra $2 billion-plus. Speaking in the House of Representatives yesterday, Howai said the funds are for “urgent and critical recurrent and capital expenditure up to September 2013.”
The money would be spread across several ministries, most of it for personnel expenditure and because it involved salary adjustments of just under $1.8 billion, every ministry was involved, Howai said. The three largest heads of expenditure requesting supplementary funds, other than personnel expenditure, are the Ministries of the People and Social Development, Housing, Land and Marine Resources and National Security.
For the Ministry of the People and Social Development, there was a request of over $210 million in additional funds “to meet the payment of social grants to the end of fiscal 2013,” the minister said. This ministry got a budgetary allocation of over $3 billion for the 2012/2013 fiscal year. The Ministry of Housing, Land and Marine Affairs required the additional resources of over $142 million “to facilitate expenditure under the community-based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme,” Howai said.
“The funds are needed for the expansion of beautification and landscaping facilities, the engagement of four additional contractors and the continued development of staff with an emphasis on training,” he said. The Ministry of Housing was allocated over $3 billion in the last budget.
In the Ministry of National Security, additional funding of over $203 million was required to supplement transfers and subsidies and in order to replenish its Strategic Services Agencies allocation which was utilised to make an interim payment for the training and maintenance support programme, arising out of the acquisition of four BW139 medium twin turbine helicopters, Howai said.
The funds are also needed to strengthen the disaster preparedness and mitigation capacities of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management in readiness for the hurricane season. Further, the funds are also to be used for the payment of arrears to the Telecommunications Services of T&T for the roll-out of CCTV cameras and for the Hoop of Life programme. The National Security Ministry got $5.5 billion in the budget.
Howai said the supplemental funds are being sought through the Finance Supplementary Appropriation Financial Year 2013 Bill. The Finance Committee of the House met last Monday and all the details of the proposals were circulated to all members and discussed, he said. During the meeting various issues were raised by members and responses were circulated and further explanations will be given by selected members during the debate.
Some of the additional funds are for:
• Ministry of National Security: $203,751,000.
• Police Service: Over $661 million.
• Ministry of the People and Social Development: $210,438,000.
• Housing, Land & Marine Affairs: $142 million.
• Local Government: $257 million.
• Works and Infrastructure: $104 million.
• Food Production: Over $74 million.
• Personnel Department: $4,913,100.
• Ministry of Finance and the Economy: $25,875,000.
• Ministry of Legal Affairs: $10 million.
• Education: $314,676,100.
• Labour: $7,568,000.
• Planning and the Economy: Over $17 million.
• Sport: Over $69 million.
• Environment and Water Resources: $97 million.
• Tertiary Education and Skills Training: $190 million.
• Tobago House of Assembly: $222,818.
• Tobago Development: Over $2 million.
• The Judiciary: Over $10 million.
• Ministry of Justice: Over $859,000.