The 2017 budget is due to be presented on Friday, 30 September 2016 to an anxious nation. Having had to endure the literally unbelievable optimistic economic claims of the previous government prior to the September 2015 general election, we were told by then Central Bank Governor, Jwala Rambaran, in December 2015, that the nation had been in recession for 6 months. I tell you. Of course that message has now been repeated after the messenger was dismissed for various alleged offenses, but that is for another column.

Our levels of public expenditure have moved sharply upward, with only a single decline in 2010, as shown in the graph and table for 2005-2016. Those totals are derived from the estimates stated in the various budget statements and do not represent the actuals. In that period, estimated revenue was $534.57Bn with estimated expenditure of $574.6Bn. That balance between revenue and expenditure yielded a combined deficit of $40.125Bn – 84% of which ($33.67Bn) occurred under the Peoples Partnership government, 2011-2015. Continue reading “Property Matters – 2017 Budget Prospects” →