Deficit close to $50 million
(CNS): Government has said it now plans to bring its 2010-2011 budget to the Legislative Assembly on 15 June, two weeks later than the premier had announced at the last press briefing. The expected earnings and proposed spending plans of the UDP government have been submitted to the UK, and the new overseas territories minister is said to be making a decision regarding the Cayman government’s borrowing requirement. Although government has not revealed the figure, estimates are that government will need to borrow over $200 million in order to complete existing projects, commence a number of new capital works and plug the deficit of around $50million from the 2009/10 budget.
According to a joint statement from the premier and the governor, the throne speech is expected to take place on 15 June and the debate on the budget itself, which will be followed by the Finance Committee meeting, will commence on 18 June.
McKeeva Bush had said at his most recent press conference that he hoped to bring the budget by the end of May but the delay, he now says, is down to the need to meet the new Overseas Territories Minister, Henry Bellingham, to gain approval for the significant borrowing which Cayman will need for 2010/11.
“This further delay in bringing the budget to the Legislative Assembly is necessary in order to allow the new United Kingdom Government sufficient time to examine the Cayman Islands’ 2010-11 Budget and three-year financial plan,” Bush said. “The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s approval is needed in respect of the borrowing requirement for the coming fiscal year.”
Bush is now scheduled to meet with the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State responsible for Overseas Territories on 8 June 2010. “If an agreement has not already been reached by then the Premier will use this meeting to seek this approval,” the joint statement said.
Government must have the budget approved and the appropriation law passed by 30 June in order for it to carry on its business at the start of the new fiscal year on 1 July.
“The Legislative Assembly will work extended hours until the budget is passed to ensure that an appropriation law is in place by 30 June 2010,” Bush said. As the minster of finance, Bush has warned that he will be “doing things differently” from the way proceedings have been conducted in the past when he takes over as the chair of the Finance Committee.
The full details of the forthcoming budget have not yet been revealed but it is understood there are no new direct taxes proposed.
Government appears to be facing a $47 million deficit from core government spending and around $2.5 from government companies. As a result, the deficit is estimated to be almost $50 million, in contrast to the $5 milllion surplus that had been predicted by government when it brought the full 2009/10 budget in October.
The deficit appears to have been caused as a result of continuing declining revenues, despite increases in duty, work permit fees and several business fees impose in the last budget. Government’s predicted earnings are estimated at some $77 million less than had been forecast.
Category: Headline News
Q. In the absense of any kind of accounting standards or balance sheet keeping for over 5 years, where are these number coming from? Who’s to say we aren’t $100mln or $200mln in the hole?!?
To put this into perspective, Haiti’s debt with the World Bank was only $36mln…for all of Haiti!
Where did you get this figure from? You may be confusing this since with Hait’s debt service payments. Haiti owes debt to a variety of multilateral institutions including the World Bank, the IMF and the Inter-American Development Bank as well as to countries such as France, the U.S., Venezuela and Taiwan. In 2008 Haiti’s total public debt was almost $1.9 billion. However, last year $1.2 billion of its debt was cancelled but it still has a public debt of over $1 billion. Organisations have been calling for debt relief for Haiti for decades. Do you really think that that would be necessary if its public debt were a mere $36m?
An interesting fact is that a major cause of Haiti’s poverty has been the massive debt burden placed upon it from 1825 by France as reparations for losing their slave colony. (Sure they have had dictators who robbed the country blind but this is where it started). To their shame at the time, the U.S. assisted France to collect on this debt notwithstanding that the U.S. was never required to pay Britain any reparations for its declaration of independence.
What do you get when you put incompetent and unethical people (all of them) in charge of a business? First they steal as much as they can then the business fails and they leave you with the bill. They have finished with the first two and now all that’s left is the last one. The 80% that didn’t or couldn’t vote can thank the 20% that did for this.
Come on folks – let’s understand what has happened here. The gang that is advising our beloved Premier are the same gang that gave the PPM their financial forecast and as can be seen the results are very similar. As the old saying goes, if you do the same thing over and overyou get the same results.
This should now be clear as crystal that the Premier is in URGENT need of a new financial team of advisors because what he is depending on right now to advise him is taking him off track badly (poor guy).
The island is full of accountant firms and professionals maybe someone out there can help, please I beg.
It is up to our Premier to get off his a** and use the brain that the good Lord gave him to think for himself. Massive unsupported spending is like a gun aimed squarely at his foot. The UK will give us enough rope to hang ourselves and then impose direct rule (as they have in the Turks). They will then be able to neuter one of the world’s largest financial centres for the ultimate benefit of London. The best thing we could do is run a clean, tight ship, with neatly coiled ropes and low debt so that we can continue to take advantage of our position under the UK’s umbrella while keeping their requests for change at bay. Instead we are over-spending our way right into their hands.
I cannot believe that some people on here are still intent on playing politics. This is not about PPM and UDP this about the future stability of the CAYMAN ISLANDS!
I strongly believe that we have effectively lost control of the finances of this country. It is clear that there are no procedures in place and if they are they are not being followed and there is no accountability for these failures. Our forecasting is way off because we have no clue what was spent because there is clearly a mind set with the public sector that the money will miraculously show up from somewhere. A clear lack of communication between the preparers of the accounts and the spenders of the money. When you read of the credit card fiasco, the gas fiasco, the Cayman Airways fiasco, the Bostwain’s beach fiasco, the lack of audited accounts fiasco etc etc. It spells out in large letters that we have NO clue what the true position of our finances are. So that $50M deficit can easily turn into $80M and upwards in no time whatsover!!!
The finances are way too decentralized everyone is operating in a vacuum and there seems to be no one controlling and managing the big picture. This needs to be priority number one. I would suggest effect June 1st there is a shut down of spending period. No one should be allowed to dr the governments account without it flowing through one central team whose main job is to now gather all the info from all the depts.
Secondly ALL credit cards should be on lock down confiscated with immediate effect. Too many abuses so unfortunately the good will have to suffer for the bad in the interim until it is now a centralized controlled process.
Thirdly, from the news it seems these Chief Officers have way too much power and freedom and they need to be put in their place. The Minister of Finance(who is simply not cut out for the job) needs to have a strong meeting with them collectively and then individually armed with a list of outstandings and timelines for completion or else they are fired- simple!
I found the Miller-Shaw report absolutely terrifying to read and I wish more people would actually READ it for themeselves with a non partisan mind and pay attention to the glaring and sometimes not so glaring warning signs.
We are is SERIOUS trouble and unfortunately none of our elected politicians are showing me that they have what it takes to get us through this because they are soo focused on getting re-elected they cannot see the forest for the sake of the trees!
I wonder if party supporters here are PAID to call into radio shows, post on blogs and give thumbs up, thumbs down, according to party lines?
I’m not PPM but I do so enjoy a good laugh at the Premier’s expense.
Truth be known he brings it all on himself from the bleeding from the mouth to all the back and forth. Add to that the XXXX goes and keeps the same financial team that messed up PPMs books to begin with. So what did he expect?
I can come to only two assumptions based on his logic:
1) Either he’s a XXXX for doing what looks obviously to be a stupid move seeing as the past government’s financial position should be directly attributed to a finance person’s poor judgements OR
2) He knows something about the past governments finance person and his previous forecast that the general public does not know about. Dare I say hint hint.
Well seeing that the egg is now on his face I would say it seems to be #1 but who knows could be a combination of the two.
It might be amazing to see where the numbers actually do end up. And all I can say is this. Is UDP doing any better financially than PPM did? I really do not see it but hey they have 3 more years to go and maybe they will amaze us down the road. I doubt it but I’m willing to wait and see.
I agree with almost everything you said…but I’m not willing to wait and see….I’m waiting quite worridly.
The problem for Cayman today is that we have what are called “structural” deficits. This is the deficit which is independent of the economic “cycle”. It is the part of the deficit which remains – no matter how fast our “economy” grows – and can only be addressed by direct government action. The longer we wait to reconcile this stuctural overspending, the harder the landing will be later. It is simple grade three math that you CAN NOT SPEND MORE THAN YOU HAVE. Our government is being advised by people who think thy are smarter than that, they are relying too much on the charlatan’s of finance to guide them. The end result will be default on the government’s debt and taxes which will perpetuate a vicious cycle of exodus and recession. The key to unlock our problems is to CUT COSTS, DELIBERATELY and DEEPLY. If not done it will be this generation of "leaders" who will live to answer to their children for the problems they created.
"Our government is being advised by people who think thy are smarter than that, they are relying too much on the charlatan’s of finance to guide them."
Sadly, there has never been any outreach to the dozens of accounting firms here who would gladly audit and/or consult for the public service and bring the true financial position into view.
There needs to be a balance sheet in order to constrain expenditure. Without a defined budget, there are no Government constraints to adhere to!
McKeeva to step aside now and replace him with who again????
I hope you are not suggesting that McKeeva is the best we can do. God help us if that is the case. Just about anyone else would be better. Of the incumbents Rolston on the UDP side or Moses on the Opposition side.
I was actually about to have my 8 year old daughter apply for the job of Minister of Finance. Hell she can actually count!!
If you piled up all the talent in the LA you would end up with a very very small pile.
Anyone, Anon 08:09, anyone. You must understandthat anyone would be better than mackeva, anyone
Nice move Kurt. 20% of your salary may buy you a few votes come next election so long as the cuts continue until then and people can remember it.
$50 million deficit wow…that is a lot of money!!
It is so hard to try and clean up the mess where there has been no accounts presented for how many years??
Then the last "rulers" spent and spent and can’t account for what they spent the $$$ on!
I trust that this country will soon be out of the grim financial state and everyone can get on with their lives.
How ignorant, how dumb areyou Anon 18:35? The $50 million deficit has nothing to do with the spending of the previous government DUH! The budget is decided by the ruling government based on projected revenues & costs. It is about what government plan to spend & how they plan to raise the money to pay for it. It has nothing to do with the previous government, can’t you all say anything without blaming the PPM? Just face the fact, the UDP cannot balance the budget & it has nothing to do with the PPM!
As for PPM’s spending, you say they spent & spent & can’t account for what they spent the $$$ on! ARE YOU SERIOUS? Every red cent by the PPM is accounted for. I have heard you & your UDP punks criticizing the PPM for spending too much on schools, roads & the new Admin building, but I have never heard the argument about not knowing on what they spent the money! You can’t be serious? Your people keep telling you what it was spent on dummy! SCHOOLS, BEAUTIFUL NEW ROADS, the NEW ADMIN BUILDING! Do you know now? DUH!!!!
Every red cent by the PPM is accounted for
Really? please show me the accounts where they are ‘accounted" for?
Please show me these beautiful finished schools and Admin building.
May be even some credit card receipts or free petrol paid by the tax payer.
Anonymous @ 20:40 says "every red cent by thr PPM is accounted for" well LMAO,red is the colour of the PPM so only them and their confused supporters must feel that our money was well spent!!!……..PPM your crazy and blind spending have only hurt the Cayman Islands and have certainly put us in the "RED".Caymanians lets all pray that the PPM will never be able to spend another"red cent" in these lovely Cayman Islands!!!!!..
The UDP put this country in the mess we are now in because of their irresponsible & questionable spending from 2001 to 2005, yet they were re-elected in 2009, how stupid can we be?
I’m sorry to inform you that with the hatred the vast majority of people now feel towards the present government your prayer for the PPM not to be re-elected will not be answered because the Cayman people will NEVER NEVER put the UDP back into power: "once bitten twice shy"
Anonymous @ 21:27 the UDP have 3 more years to turn things around,if they fail then out they go,PPM had their time and thats it for them,are you telling us that the PPM is going to win in 2013? Please do not make us explode with laughter(LOL)…..
The PPM WILL win the elections in 2013 (85% of Caymanians wish it was in Nov 2012), because sure as hell the UDP will not win it, that is for sure (the people are already fed up with Bush & the UDP & it’s only been 1 year) hahaha. The UDP have no hope. I can’t believe that the people put them in again after the mess they caused the first time, but I suppose the draw of the almighty dollar was too strong for some……but never again. The Cayman people can’t wait to throw the UDP out & get back to honesty, openess & transparency, which is sadly missing in the UDP administration, & even you cannot deny that. bye bye
Interesting that when a comment appears that doesn’t take a political-party bias (in particular pro-PPM if my observations mean anything) it constantly fails to excite a frenzy of thumbs up/thumbs down. Be honest, now, isn’t it the case? Dear party-people, don’t surrender your free thinking to "the party line". Join the rest of us (the ones who really count when it comes to putting governments in – and kicking them out). Yes, we all know you pledge allegiance to your party’smanifesto, and enjoy wearing t-shirts emblazoned with crazily-optimistic ballot papers, and cheering, and screaming derision at those who don’t fully agree with you – party-members or otherwise – but do you really believe (truth be told) in everything fed to you by your party masters? There are many other more healthy ways to feel of value, surely? Tear off those t-shirts (gentlemen only – sort of – please!) and breath freedom of thought, not some kind of designer collective policy. And please bear in mind the reality that party members don’t elect governments. Folks unaligned to any particular political party do. Annoying, but true (the world over).
I am not sure where you are trying to go with the "can’t account for what they spent the $$$ on!" but as far as I am aware it’s well known where the money went it’s just if they should have spent it to begin with.
If ever the question is "Where did the money go?" we have to bring the premier in on the picture because half of his projects if not more came up with a gazzilion red flags to the point where he had to get the AG removed.
PPM was negligent I agree. They were led to believe they had money and didn’t make sure for themselves and then spent, not what I would term recklessly but not when I would have advised them to.
UDP on the other hand is:
1) RECKLESS to the point of dangerous with Big Mac and all his comments about doom and gloom so he could get us all against PPM all along damaging the reputation of the Cayman Islands in the International market place.
2) RECKLESS spending with all the trips all over the globe to the point where it looks suspicious or like abuse. Keep in mind this is during a FINANCIAL CRISIS and a CRIME WAVE.
3) INDECISIVE about what should be done and to actually follow through and do something. To busy looking at 2012/13 to deal with the problems of today.
4) PANICSTRICKEN with all the thrown up ideas that were not vetted and thought through. Then reversal of position so many times it makes your head spin.
What needs to be done will not be done and that’s for the two sides to work together. Sadly there is as much chance of that happening as me winning the Florida lottery and I don’t even play it.
Call it like it is, Dred! Are you running next time?
Is a standard $200 / month contribution per employee too much to ask
$200 health insurance contribution
6,000 civil servants
$14,400,000 / year
Looks like you have been using your calculator upside down.
200 per month X 12 Months = 2,400.00 X 6000 = 14,400.000.00 per year.
WOW! Thats about 35 percent of the Budget shortfall right there.
I am a civil servant and there is no way that I will be paying $200 per month for cinico coverage. Years ago I chose to purchase very expensive private insurance for me and my family, which includes eyecare and dental, and so I do not rely on govenrment being my healthcare provider. In fact when I have been ill my insurance pays the government my costs! So, all of you civil service bashers out there, you need to know that not all of us are bleeding the govenrment purses but do pay our own way, sometimes although we can ill afford it. What I think govenrment should do is offer the option to civil servants to purchase private insurance and govt opt to cover the 20%, that way government won’t be burdened with the bulk of costs and the civil servant patient wont have to worry about the 20% owing.Feel free to comment on this post and let me know if what I’m suggesting makes sense!
Thank you for your most rational input to this contentious issue.
CNS’s World Section:
At least 300,000 Whitehall and other public sector workers may lose their jobs as the coalition government sets to work cutting the £156 billion budget deficit. The initial savings to be announced will target such items as civil servants’ perks, which include taxis, flights and hotel accommodation. The package will also include a £513m cut in the budgets for quangos, with some being abolished altogether.
We should definitely stop the quangos! There is no reason for these pets. Before you know it they are reproducing. Quangos are not indigenous to Cayman. Once the quangos are under control we can begin to look at free medical, dental, pension, long lunches, Black Berries, gas, Freedom Fridays, etc.
Borrowing another $50 million.
Recently, Premier Bush proposed a 30% pay cut for himself and the MLA’s
Now, unfortunately for Cayman, this proposal collapsed.
Here was a golden opportunity for people who love Cayman to make a sacrifice, no matter how temporary, to help it get through this difficult economic climate.
Far worse, this retreat into self service has removed all pressure on the Civil Service to agree to any substantial pay cuts.
If Premier Bush’s salary cuts had gone forward, the Civil Service would have been under tremendous pressure to follow his lead.
Everyone knows, or should know, that no person or country can live indefinitely on borrowed money,so that should not an option, and Britain should not allow it to happen.
The only other source of government income is from the fees and taxes it places on the private sector, including all private companies and the people living here.
With the private sector already under strain, businesses reducing or collapsing, and mass emigration from the Cayman Islands, raising taxes from it is also not an option.
Government income, which all comes from the private sector, is already falling and could collapse if costs increase much more.
Therefore, the only real option that exists is to substantially reduce the cost of government,and to do it now..
FIFTY MILLION DEFICIT is these the same people that submitted a budget and said that they would have five (5) million surplus, now they have such a deficit. Now can somebody tell me if this financial secretary (FS) gave these figurs to udp. if that is so i hope the premier see that he was wrong with his goverment as with the ppm I am begining to lose all confidence in the financial adwiser. he need to go home with other three officers. i smell that premier would get rid of him but he will be too disappointed because he put him there, to do his d!!!y work.if we could get rid of the FS and AG we could have a good start
Leave the Premier alone. He has clearly demonstrated his ability to manage the countrys finances over the past year. Any Minister of Finance that can turn a 5 million surplus into a 50 million deficit in one year deserves all the credit due him. So! JUST LEAVE THE PREMIER ALONE. He is more than a Financial wizard. He is a Magician.
In regards to the "permission from the UK" issue – we really ought to expect the worst.
The UK is stupendously broke at the moment … I’m talking ridiculous and history making levels of "broke-edness"!
Do we really expect them to give us a simple go-ahead while they are faced with the embarrassing prospect of having to turn to the IMF or World Bank for financial assistance? (Oh how the empire has fallen … bit of a sunset huh?)
Say what you want to about Cayman – the fact remains that we still have tons more money than the UK does at the moment … yet WE have to ask THEM for permission to borrow funds?!
Its a mad world we’re living in … mad me tells’ ya!
(Take it easy folks – the truth is the truth … I didn’t do it, I only tell it – ya’ll did it to unna self!)
Whodatis: Yeah mon. But it also seems to me the cycle has reached it’s conclusion and more or less all at the same time throughout many nations. That being, the costs of government in all nations have inexorably risen over the years as more and more people found it to be a comfortable living devoid of accountability or responsibility. The people we put in charge of overseeing all of this have also found it to be true.. government is a pretty nice place to kick-back. While all of this relaxing was going on very little attention was paid to where the real wealth of a country was created because there was so much "phony" wealth to brag about. The DOW is UP!!! Well.. the chickens have come home to roost and we’re out of money….the real kind. Surprisingly, whodatis even though they know the real culprit…massive government costs and lax oversight of the financial industry, etc. they are still trying to perpetrate the myth that it had nothing to do with them. Now they are posturing (panicking?) and telling us they are hard at work coming up with solutions none of which will cost those responsible a penny. We just get the bad news that "something happened" "somewhere" and "someone else" was the cause. People throughout the world are hearing the same cock and bull and it goes like this: "This is truly a mess and someone screwed up." Well gee. Thanks for that because you know what?? We were all busy at work trying to keep our economies going so if we didn’t screw up…..who did??
The bottom line is they won’t fix it because they broke it. No mon. They will adjust it and tinker with it until they’re ok and their friends are ok…..and we’re the same! Only broker than before… because that debt that will be used to pay for all these mistakes?? It’s ours!! And our children’s and their children’s. Or so we’re told. But wait a minute!!!
I am now officially cancelling our debt because we didn’t waste our money….they did!!!
And… our obligations to pay the friends of government’s debts because we didn’t lose all that money on derivatives….they did!!!
And…we’re not paying for any more wars….because we don’t hate anyone.
And…we’re not paying the wages of anyone who doesn’t know what the F they are doing!!!
That was too easy.
Now we can all go to the beach and enjoy the fruits of our labors while they sort out their mess.
Sadly, have to agree 100% percent. The old country’s skint, truth be told. And Cayman is a much wealthier country by any measure. Truly a perplexing situation.
Yes, "truly perplexing". If the main/head offices of a company/country (the UK) are in financial trouble…they should not learn anything from those mistakes and allow their affiliate companies (the OTs) to go the same path.
"Truly perplexing"!
You appear to be starting from a flawed or short-sighted perspective. I really don’t think we are dealing with "mistakes" here at all.
For the economy of any nation to be based upon a "FIAT money", print-another-pound, ponzi scheme of a system – a stupendous implosion was inevitable.
Of course we here in the Cayman Islands are pegged to such a system – but we surely are not working with the same tools here as is the UK or USA for that matter.
The bottom line is this: This financial crisis was not a mistake at all – this was by design … as were all the others. However, until the comfortable, White (relevant to the overall mindset), Christian middle class of the Western super-nations wake up and realize that they are in fact not the luckiest and most fortunate people in the world, but instead the biggest economic pawns in the world … the rest of us will continue to be stuck on this merry-go-round.
True dat!
But, whose "design" is it? The rich 1%, the G20 or both? Hhmmnn?
Now, i’m gonna go boating…cause it’ll all be over soon enough eh 🙂
You know people… I STRONGLY believe that MacKeeva should be put under some SERIOUS pressure from the citizens of this country to bring us out of this mess just as Pres. Obama has been put under(cleaning up the absolute mess which that other ‘BUSH’ made of the US). Since he doesnt want to take the 30% cut, then make him work REAL HARD for his dollar instead giving him the chance to excercise his dictator-like ways, entertaining his foolish ideas of imposing taxes on the people and being allowed to further renig on his duty to further plunge this country into deeper debt.
Your views?
Truly,
IRON CLAD
So what happens when the UK knock this budget back?
They are on their own cut-back program to bring their deficit under control after thirteen years of madness.
In the UK the MPs have had a 5% pay cut and in Spain it’s 10%.
I can see the FCO saying FC Off !
I’m sorry, but how can your budgeting exercise be off by over 50%. To be consistently off year after year is shameful. Something must be seriously flawed with the process if it is consistently inaccurate…
Seriously Flawed?… 16:04 you are on the right track, but a tad bit off. That ‘Flaw’ is not your average flaw. The Govt’s Budget has been maliciously flawed for decades now. In FACT that is a MAJOR part of why we are in this MESS now – If you get where I am coming from.
Tell me if I’m wrong people.
Truly,
IRON CLAD
What do you expect from a Government whose civil service can not account for the money used over the past 5 years plus.
You should realize by now that they are clueless and are just picking numbers out of the air to carry on their reckless ways.
The main flaw is the PMFL. You only have to take a look at this archaic business of Purchase and Ownership Agreements to get a picture of how there is litterally no accounting for funds that are "given" free and clear to government agencies. These funds are "given" to these agencies with no clear understanding of how they are used. Sure there is supposed to be accountability, but with these same agencies being behind for as many as 5 years intheir audits it is no wonder. Basically the country finances float along year after year with the legislature not knowing how much they really have as far as income versus expenses.
The next and largest flaw of them all is Bush Whacker. Is there anyone out side of the mental ward that can tell me what qualifies this guy to be in charge of the finances of this country. I remember the crowds in the streets in 1999 after his part in the failure of First Cayman Bank. Now he is in charge of the finances of the country! Uuuugggggghhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!
MaKeewa use what dignity you have left, if any, and step aside so that we can see our way out of this mess.
Beachboi, you demonstrate brilliantly by your comments that you haven’t a clue about the accountability principles behind the PMFL. Especially ludicrous is the comment "with no clear understanding of how they (ie funds) are used".If you study the entire budget document you will see how wrong you are. The PMFL forces civil servants to account for how funds are spent. That’s what a lot of them-not by all means all, to be fair, – don’t like about the Law. In the good old days they could just spend on stuff and providing the spending was done legally no one really bothered about what was achieved from the spending.
Come on don’t beat on him. He was close. He only missed by 55Million dollars. Or should we say it SEEMS he only missed by 55Million because we do have to wait for the numbers to come in first to see if he’s ONLY 50Mil in the hole.
But you see he will still blame PPM for this. And he’ll find away to blame them for Global warming, the hungry in Africa and for Pluto not being classed a planet still. He’s good at that.
He doesn’t want to tackle real issues such as the CS because they are votes to him. So he takes the crumbs they throw at him.
Him and his cronies are in there for the dough they can push into their pockets. Trust me when I say they have no desire or care for you or I.
What is really sad is that there is no one left who even expects the commitments of the first Premierof the Cayman Islands to have any credibility.
There is not even enough time between gaffs to allow folks to set up a betting pool on when the next gaff is coming.
another day ….. more broken promises and excuses from mackeeva…..zzzzz
How can he present a budget without any input from the opposition? then after its presented they can argue it in the house and debate it in Finance Committee. Why go to the extreme, when all the sitting Government had to do, was to reach across the aile to the opposition as a coalition before putting and presenting the budget. Both parties should have the country at heart, therefore they should be working together, instead of Ranting and Raving about what this one did from what this one did not do in the past. The Past is the Past guys, move us forward please.
So a 50 mil deficit, government employees on permanent gardening leave and still earning extortionatewages, the government refusing to now take the 20% pay cut and the premier 30% as previously agreed, more and more companies leaving the island to trade elsewhere due to rollover and high fees ………….. what are you doing Mr Bush ??
Are we so gullible? The premier promisedus that he would bring their budget by the end of May? Now he is saying it will be June 15th.
He is also saying that there will be a $50 million deficit. The UDP government can’t even balance the budget, & they had the temerity to criticize the PPM government, & they have the temerity to continue to blame the PPM for the country’s present troubles? The UDP cannot even present a budget, & they cannot even balance it? What a bunch of hypocritical jokers.
The UDP cannot blame the PPM for not being able to bring a budget or for not balancing it! This is THEIR budget, not the PPM’s.
The UDP cannot blame the recession for their present failures because the PPM had the same problems (only worse) & yet the UDP told them that the recession was no excuse. They can’t have it both ways. Therefore, by their way of thinking, the UDP have been a total failure. They have failed the people. They promised so much & in one year have delivered very little. In fact they have delivered nothing, except more pain & hurt.
Give the man time. They are juggling numbers without a clue as to what is right or wrong.
At last count…40 thumbs up on this one..That tells the peoples real
opinion on this matter..!!!
So they were late with the budget… twice and then they want it approved in 2 weeks?? I don’t like to nit pick but somethings up…
The want to rush through a budget late at night when everyone is tired so that the Opposition and the Independent Member can miss something they want buried in there.
Thank you. Got got that right. I guess there may be more slush funds hidden in this budget. Why there is a rush ?
In the interest of transparency which all of the elected officials proclaimed as one of their goals if they were elected, please could the Govt release the proposed budget to the media before it is passed? We the people deserve to see how our tax dollars are being spent, and to have debate and knowledge about what is going on and to make representation to our elected officials if we disagree.
Unless of course our elected officials believe that the people who have to pay by their tax dollars for the cost of expenditures in this budget – have no sense or should be deprived of a chance to voice their concerns.
Big surprise on the falling revenue,…. i think they seem to forget that the more expensive they make things here the more people are going to pack up and leave. No one is here cause its a cool place to be, people here to make money (Sorry to say it but its the truth)
Hell i should thank them after they raised that duty fee i found my self importing less items and purchasing less on island, so i ended up saving some money…
And i do hope they are not planning on making any money on work permits with that insane increase, look at what happened when they increased, the revenue fell faster than you can say OH Sh*T and will continue to fall, i wonder how they planning on paying back all these loans, they must have some nice false revenue earning projections like they did the last budget…
Unfortunately, Cayman’s dismal record of budget forecasting continues….check the Foot report again.
i bet he can’t blame PPM for his own deficit
I would not bet on that. He will find away. He has a way of getting every ounce of juice out of his fruits.
What scares me is budgets have a tendency of being very conservative. If he’s projecting a shortfall of 50Mil weneed to make sure we are strapped in. This might eclipse PPM shortfall. Are they not using the finance guy who advised PPM?
i though they borrowed money last year to complete the existing projects?
The Premier has repeatedly stated that the cause of our problems was the overspending of the previous government. To wit, he and his supporters point out that it was the new schools and new government administration building that have us in this "mess" as he calls it.
I note that they have not rejected the need for new schools and a new government administration building, but that we simply could not afford them "at this time".
Whether one agrees or disagrees with the Premier on his assessment is not relevant to my question. First let me extract an excerpt from the Premier’s statement before posing my question.
Quote
government will need to borrow over $200 million in order to complete existing projects, commence a number of new capital works and plug the deficit of around $50million from the 2009/10 budget.
Unquote
Can anyone tell me exactly what NEW CAPITAL WORKS he could be thinking of that cannot be put off until next year or the year after?
Only a crazy person would do the exact same thing he accuses others of doing without thinking that anyone would notice.
Hold on. You are talking about McKeeva right? What’s your question again?
With so much untruth within our Government it is very difficult to beleive any of these members. They tell you one thing and later to hear different. Why is it that Government don’t tell the truth whether its good or bad, because in the long run the truth will come out.
I find it very difficult to beleive Mackeeva or Kirt anymore and as for their members, there is very little faith in them as well. It is a crying shame, may God have mercy on these the Cayman Islands
Oliver you are so true, they are all alike. McKeva has lost his soul because of money. He does not care a rat behind about the people of Cayman, and poor Kirt he does not know whether he is going or comming.
Maybe we should have asked John Foster to do the forecasting instead. It may have been more realistic.
That is just an insult to John Foster!
His predictions are never that far off.
And his new forcast will read as follows:
"Dark clouds on the horizon, this will be a very active storm season"
We are all in trouble now that the Dictator has announced that he will be doing things differently when he takes his post as Chairman of the Financial Committee….we are in deep deep trouble. Wonder what he means by different? No AG Reports for starters perhaps?