Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says Budget 2027 is a “rebalancing of policy” that will benefit “law abiding hard working honest citizens”, as the national budget moves to the Senate this week after passing in the House of Representatives.
In a statement on her social media page, the Prime Minister said all members of the government voted in favour of the budget in the House. The debate now continues in the Senate in the coming week.
According to the Prime Minister, Budget 2027 makes provisions for increased salaries, backpay, payments for goods and services, social support, and development programmes and projects. She said it also cuts spending on what she described as “wasteful welfare schemes, ghost employees and failed projects and programs”.
The Prime Minister said the government’s policy position is to make the private sector the main driver of economic growth and development in the coming years. She said a prosperous business sector benefits society and that the government’s responsibility is to secure the best possible value for the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
She said the divestment of loss-making state enterprises will “unlock their true economic potential”. In her view, it will attract fresh capital and experienced investors, improve management, modernise outdated facilities and turn loss-making enterprises into profitable ones. She said it will also create sustainable jobs, expand opportunities for local suppliers and entrepreneurs, generate tax revenue and reduce the burden on taxpayers.
Mrs. Persad-Bissessar said divestment will allow the government to redirect public resources towards healthcare, education, national security, infrastructure and the quality of life of citizens.
The Prime Minister also directed sharp criticism at the People’s National Movement (PNM). She said the party’s “swine culture of laziness, hatred, dishonesty and racism is being defunded”, and that adherents of that culture “will continue to struggle”.