Budget is no problem solver!

Finance Minister, Christopher Sinckler, posing for a photograph with the Class 4 students during Friday’s Fun Day at Casa Grande Airport Hotel and Resort.Finance Minister, Christopher Sinckler has made it clear that the “budget can’t, is not designed, it is not intended to and cannot be designed to solve every problem that you have in a country”.

“If that were the case, you would only needed one budget. It would be delivered and it everything would be solved. Unfortunately, life doesn’t work that way.”

He stated this as he spoke to the media on the side-lines of Friday’s Fun Day for students of Eagle Hall Primary, St. Stephen’s Primary and Deacons Primary. This annual outing for Class 4 pupils, which is organised by the St. Michael North West Development Foundation, and the Member of Parliament for St. Michael North West, was held at the Casa Grande Airport Hotel and Resort.

His comments came on the same day that it was announced by Leader of Government Business, John Boyce, during the sitting of the House of Assembly, that Tuesday, May 30th will be the date for the delivery of the Financial Statement and Budgetary Proposals.

Explaining what the purpose of the annual budget is, the Finance Minister stated, “I said it before and I will say it again, a budget is not a be all and end all of everything.”

He continued, “First of all, the financial statement is a report on what would have happened in the previous financial year, or certainly since the last time a budget was presented, and then it is to… if there is a deficit, then the budget is supposed to introduce measures to close that gap, or at least indicate to the country how that gap will be closed.

“If there are surpluses, then the budget will indicate to the country how those surpluses will be utilised to ensure that we get even greater growth and greater prosperity. That is all a budget is.”