Services dwindling with each new Budget - Hon Fraser
Hon Fraser was at the time speaking at the December 13, 2019, budget debates at the Second Sitting of the Second Session of the Fourth House of Assembly and even remarked that the HoA is underfunded.
"What bothers me more than anything else about this Budget Mr Speaker... is not the size really... but its the fact that services have dwindled since the days of a $119M budget when I came into office," Hon Fraser said.
"The services we are receiving, Mr Speaker, are far inferior than the ones we were receiving with our $119M budget," he reiterated.
'Where is the money going?' - Hon Fraser
Hon Fraser then moved to question, "Where is all this money going?"
He said some budget estimates such as those like the $42M subvention for the BVI Health Services Authority is a comfortable figure given.
"I remember when they were struggling to get $28M," he said. "Someone needs to be able to sit down and rationalise where this money is going and is it necessary," Hon Fraser further underscored.
According to Hon Fraser, funds should be managed and disbursed in a more prudent way, including better management of services across the Territory.
The National Budget was assented by Governor Augustus J. U. Jaspert on Friday, December 20, 2019, then gazetted on the same day.
On the passing of the 2020 Budget, Premier Andrew A. Fahie (R1) had indicated that his Virgin Islands Party (VIP) government is one with a difference in terms of management of the territory.
He said in a statement it has been a very long time since any sitting Government has been able to successfully complete all the stages of the budget process on time.
11 Responses to “Services dwindling with each new Budget - Hon Fraser”
Nonetheless, I’m with the Liberator on his take on dwindling service delivery: “What bothers me more than anything else about this Budget Mr Speaker... is not the size really... but its the fact that services have dwindled since the days of a $119M budget when I came into office," Hon Fraser said.” The BVI has an approx $1,000, 000,000 Gross Domestic Product, sum of cost of goods and services produced within the territory border in a year. Further, for at least the last 3 or 4 budget cycles, the territory’s budget has averaged $300M; even in 2018 after the 2017 hurricane catastrophe, its budget was over $300M. However, with a $1B and an average $300M budget, what is there to show for it? Does the territory have First World road network, water supply system, wastewater system, education system, health system, electric power generation, production and distribution system, public safety ( police, fire, security),public works and engineering system, environmental preservation and protection system, social system, sports and entertainment, heritage and culture, reliable ferry and other transportation system......etc. NO. Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. Independent study needs to be conducted on what the territory got for its past $300M budget and what will it get for $414M? With the type of money that has flowed and is flowing through the BVI, what has the taxpayer gotten. All residents should be alarmed on the return on investment. This low level of return is not sustainable. The BVI needs some serious structural adjustments. The structural adjustments apply to more than money and should include legislation, processes, practices, procedures, institutions, agencies, operational effectiveness , strategic position.....etc.
Here is a news flash. No government can investigate itself, for that is like putting rat to mind box cheese. The BVI has bragging right that though tiny it has one of the largest budgets in the region. Though that may be true, dem say talk is cheap and money buy land. The ???? are what are VI taxpayers getting for their money? Are we getting good roads, quality healthcare, top of the heap education, quality and reliable water supply, are black outs, brown outs, unstable voltage rare, is the smell of and sight of raw sewage history, environmental protection reach a critical mass, nightmare parking in Road Town thing of the past, the embarrassing lack of central library, the lack of a functioning central market, poor ferry service, broken labour and immigration system, an agricultural system on life support, the vaporizing of the once national sport——softball......etc.
Stop the unconventional nonsense and focus on conventional core issues. This is real life, not a game show. We are talking about people’s live, personal well-being, the way forward......etc. Except for the cronies who are impressed with the nonsense? On the morning of Feb 26, 2019, there was great hope and expectation. But perhaps that was a mirage, for executive experience matters and lack of is showing. The modern era founding fathers/mothers, ie, HL Stoutt, TB Lettsome, Williard Wheatley, CB Romney(?), Ethlyn Smith, Ralph Oneal, D. Orlando Smith (still alive?), Noel...etc have passed on so who will take up the mantle and chart a new course forward?