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Ken Chaplin
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
The highlight of the 2007-2008 budget debate was the recognition by prime minister Portia Simpson Miller and opposition leader Bruce Golding of the urgent need to create jobs through economic growth.</B>
Ken Chaplin
This has got to be far more than the meagre 2.5 per cent that the finance minister Omar Davies has been speaking about. For 18 years of this government its economists have been saying that the country is "poised" for big growth. Today the country is still "poised".
Golding was much more focused on the creation of jobs than Simpson Miller. More on this later.
The speeches of both Simpson Miller and Golding were first-class. Golding was analytical, dealing with the most pressing need of the country which is employment. It was one of the best budget presentations I have heard by an Opposition leader for many years. Simpson Miller was far more confident than last year and her delivery greatly improved. However, her speech was far too long.
After three hours I turned off my television but later read the speech from cover to cover as I did Golding's only because I had to. The prime minister should understand that when she covers subjects not under her portfolio in such detail she has to be careful that she does not pre-empt her ministers. Also the press is not likely to report much of the sectoral debate as the news would have already been "stale".
There are nearly one million Jamaicans who are unemployed or not gainfully employed. This is creating serious problems across the country, creating an intolerable crime rate, poverty and social disorder.
Many people cannot afford to pay their mortgages or rent, send their children to school, and even buy food regularly. The greater the number of people employed, the faster the growth rate with people paying more taxes and greater the revenue inflows. Golding put it this way: "The objective of our people must be jobs. Two-thirds of the total revenue collected is derived from wages and consumption expenditure. So if we create more jobs, you put more money in people's pockets and enable more people to consume. You collect more revenue and then you will be able to pay down the debt and create jobs." Creating more small businesses can also ease to some extent the unemployment situation. As Simpson Miller announced, $1 billion was taken from the National Insurance Fund last year to onlend to Jamaicans for new micro-business or to expand existing business.
An end to corruption in government would also encourage local and overseas investment.
When I visit the inner-city communities or the countryside and see the large number of young people sitting at the street corners during school or working hours, it leaves me worried. The matter of jobs also did not escape Simpson Miller's attention, but she should have given more attention to the problem. The creation of more jobs requires more training of skilled workers. HEART-NTA is carrying out comprehensive training programmes, and close to 80,000 young people will be trained this year. The question is where they will find employment. The work of the economy is to provide jobs, but the country is far behind.
The agency does not train for the overseas market, but recently a few graduates have found jobs in other countries.Golding proposed to abolish tuition fees at secondary schools if elected to office which, according to the finance minister, would cost $2 billion. The Opposition also proposed to abolish all hospital fees. The two proposals are realisable, but Golding's proposal to establish a Constituency Development Fund financed by 2.5 per cent of the budget requires closer examination.
Davies seemed to have panicked by Golding's proposals but he remained quiet after Simpson Miller announced that effective May 28, 2007 all fees for children and minors under 18 years old in government hospitals and health facilities will be abolished. This will not be applicable at the University Hospital of the West Indies. There was no money for this in the budget and it appears that the step was taken without Davies' approval. It seems as if Simpson Miller suddenly came up with the proposal after hearing Golding's proposal to abolish hospital fees. Looking at Davies's face in Parliament he seemed surprised and not happy with the move by Simpson Miller.
While Simpson Miller discussed the matter of steps being taken to improve the justice system, she has failed to deal adequately with police abuses which is hardly better today than it was in the colonial days. She runs the risk of many poor young Jamaicans in the inner city forming an alliance against her re-election. There can be no doubt that there is more confidence in the economy today than over the past five years. Infrastructure development is moving ahead as Simpson Miller said.
The main problem in this country, apart from water and crime, is the condition of parochial and farm roads. The maintenance of these roads is minimal and in some instances they are being repaired on a partisan basis. I expected the prime minister to declare that road repairs must be carried out on a non-partisan basis and that the programme would be expanded.
The bad condition of most of these roads is a punishment to motorists and pedestrians. The completion of the construction of the $3.4 billion sewerage project in St Catherine which Simpson Miller said would serve 600,000 residential and commercial customers in the Kingston Metropolitan Area is eagerly awaited.
The loan ceiling for NHT contributors will be raised from $3 million to $3.5 million and in the case of joint application from $6 million to $7 million. This comes back to the first point raised in this column - the need for employment so that people will be able to maintain their payments and will not fall into arrears and lose their homes. I gather that many people in government schemes, especially in PNP garrisons, are heavily in arrears. The government has a poor record in economic growth. I hope that it will improve.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
The highlight of the 2007-2008 budget debate was the recognition by prime minister Portia Simpson Miller and opposition leader Bruce Golding of the urgent need to create jobs through economic growth.</B>
Ken Chaplin This has got to be far more than the meagre 2.5 per cent that the finance minister Omar Davies has been speaking about. For 18 years of this government its economists have been saying that the country is "poised" for big growth. Today the country is still "poised".
Golding was much more focused on the creation of jobs than Simpson Miller. More on this later.
The speeches of both Simpson Miller and Golding were first-class. Golding was analytical, dealing with the most pressing need of the country which is employment. It was one of the best budget presentations I have heard by an Opposition leader for many years. Simpson Miller was far more confident than last year and her delivery greatly improved. However, her speech was far too long.
After three hours I turned off my television but later read the speech from cover to cover as I did Golding's only because I had to. The prime minister should understand that when she covers subjects not under her portfolio in such detail she has to be careful that she does not pre-empt her ministers. Also the press is not likely to report much of the sectoral debate as the news would have already been "stale".
There are nearly one million Jamaicans who are unemployed or not gainfully employed. This is creating serious problems across the country, creating an intolerable crime rate, poverty and social disorder.
Many people cannot afford to pay their mortgages or rent, send their children to school, and even buy food regularly. The greater the number of people employed, the faster the growth rate with people paying more taxes and greater the revenue inflows. Golding put it this way: "The objective of our people must be jobs. Two-thirds of the total revenue collected is derived from wages and consumption expenditure. So if we create more jobs, you put more money in people's pockets and enable more people to consume. You collect more revenue and then you will be able to pay down the debt and create jobs." Creating more small businesses can also ease to some extent the unemployment situation. As Simpson Miller announced, $1 billion was taken from the National Insurance Fund last year to onlend to Jamaicans for new micro-business or to expand existing business.
An end to corruption in government would also encourage local and overseas investment.
When I visit the inner-city communities or the countryside and see the large number of young people sitting at the street corners during school or working hours, it leaves me worried. The matter of jobs also did not escape Simpson Miller's attention, but she should have given more attention to the problem. The creation of more jobs requires more training of skilled workers. HEART-NTA is carrying out comprehensive training programmes, and close to 80,000 young people will be trained this year. The question is where they will find employment. The work of the economy is to provide jobs, but the country is far behind.
The agency does not train for the overseas market, but recently a few graduates have found jobs in other countries.Golding proposed to abolish tuition fees at secondary schools if elected to office which, according to the finance minister, would cost $2 billion. The Opposition also proposed to abolish all hospital fees. The two proposals are realisable, but Golding's proposal to establish a Constituency Development Fund financed by 2.5 per cent of the budget requires closer examination.
Davies seemed to have panicked by Golding's proposals but he remained quiet after Simpson Miller announced that effective May 28, 2007 all fees for children and minors under 18 years old in government hospitals and health facilities will be abolished. This will not be applicable at the University Hospital of the West Indies. There was no money for this in the budget and it appears that the step was taken without Davies' approval. It seems as if Simpson Miller suddenly came up with the proposal after hearing Golding's proposal to abolish hospital fees. Looking at Davies's face in Parliament he seemed surprised and not happy with the move by Simpson Miller.
While Simpson Miller discussed the matter of steps being taken to improve the justice system, she has failed to deal adequately with police abuses which is hardly better today than it was in the colonial days. She runs the risk of many poor young Jamaicans in the inner city forming an alliance against her re-election. There can be no doubt that there is more confidence in the economy today than over the past five years. Infrastructure development is moving ahead as Simpson Miller said.
The main problem in this country, apart from water and crime, is the condition of parochial and farm roads. The maintenance of these roads is minimal and in some instances they are being repaired on a partisan basis. I expected the prime minister to declare that road repairs must be carried out on a non-partisan basis and that the programme would be expanded.
The bad condition of most of these roads is a punishment to motorists and pedestrians. The completion of the construction of the $3.4 billion sewerage project in St Catherine which Simpson Miller said would serve 600,000 residential and commercial customers in the Kingston Metropolitan Area is eagerly awaited.
The loan ceiling for NHT contributors will be raised from $3 million to $3.5 million and in the case of joint application from $6 million to $7 million. This comes back to the first point raised in this column - the need for employment so that people will be able to maintain their payments and will not fall into arrears and lose their homes. I gather that many people in government schemes, especially in PNP garrisons, are heavily in arrears. The government has a poor record in economic growth. I hope that it will improve.
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