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Fiscal Commissioner Courtney Williams
By Racquel Porter
The Independent Fiscal Commission (which replaced Economic Programme Oversight Committee) has deemed the budget presented by Finance Minister Fayval Williams credible, but says it's not without shortcomings.
Commissioner Courtney Williams, speaking Monday morning at its inaugural press conference, highlighted the 2025/2026 budget's credibility, the importance of fiscal policy, budgetary shortcomings and the critical role of the private sector.
Referencing the first Economic and Fiscal Assessment Report, which has been published and tabled in Parliament, Mr Williams said, based on macroeconomic and fiscal projections, the budget is reasonable and achievable.
He said Jamaica's current fiscal policy and position are sustainable.
Turning to the budgetary shortcomings, Mr Williams pointed out key issues flagged in the IFC's report for the Government's consideration in the short to medium term.
Chief among them is presenting a comprehensive fiscal profile for the Specified Public Sector.
Mr Williams also proposed the tabling of revenue measures concurrently with all other budgetary documents and presenting these measures in the Fiscal Policy Paper, as required by law.
Additionally, he pointed to the need to establish clear compensation negotiation cycles geared toward settling wage negotiations before the budget is presented.
Other proposals include:
Re-introducing a determined a fiscal rule for Wages & Salaries at a level and time to be determined.
Accelerating the implementation of the Public Sector Transformation programme.
Shifting the deadline for filing annual income tax returns from March to a month in the first quarter of the fiscal year (April to June).
Addressing weaknesses in project management to improve the efficiency of public investment.
Commissioner Williams also stressed that the private sector must be the main engine driving economic growth.
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