Opposition blasts Finance Minister for budget blunder

By Nakinskie Robinson    

 

Opposition Spokesman on Finance Julian Robinson says Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke owes the nation an explanation about the error made in the recent 2024/25 budget.

 

Mr. Robinson says the Finance Minister must also disclose the possible implications of the budget blunder.

 

Legislators on Wednesday, approved an amendment to the Appropriations Act 2024, commonly referred to as the budget, after being advised that the statutory expenditures voted on were in contravention of the law.

 

The move, which comes less than two weeks after the budget was approved in the House of representatives, triggered an emergency sitting of Parliament on Tuesday.

 

During the special sitting, Education Minister Fayval Williams, who also served as a state minister in the Finance Ministry, piloted the amendment in the absence of Dr. Clarke.

 

She explained that the adjustment to the statute was to exclude the amounts related to the statutory expenditure that was inadvertently included in the act.

 

Mrs. Williams said the amendments were necessary as the Constitution stipulates that statutory expenditures shall not be voted on by the House of Representatives.

 

Statutory expenditures are amounts that are charged on the Consolidated Fund or the general revenues and assets of Jamaica by virtue of a provision in the Constitution or any other law in force.

 

But Mr. Robinson, who on Tuesday described the situation as unprecented, said there could be grave implications. 

 

"I think it's important for the country to understand how the error was made and what caused the error not to be detected before all the documents were sent to Parliament, passed by Parliament, and approved by Parliament. It's also important for us to understand the implication of the error because without the amendment it means that the government cannot spend money in these critical institutions. 

 

"It has to go to the Senate tomorrow and then it has to be signed by the Governor General. And so I'm concerned about the impact it may have on these institutions and their obligations that they have, and whether they are going to be adversely affected because they don't have any money coming to them from the government to meet these obligations," he suggested. 

 

The Shadow Minister added that it is concerning that the error was not caught before the document was presented in Parliament.

 

Efforts to get a comment from Dr. Clarke on the matter were unsuccessful.

 

Radio Jamaica News was informed that he may have departed the island recently.