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Briceno Buries Budget
Thu, March 23, 2017
The Prime Minister presented the 2017/2018 budget on March 13th - and the debate started 10 days later. The two day event is the highlite of the annual parliamentary calendar because almost all of the 31 members present on the budget. They can speak for as long as they want, and many of the representatives go on for extended periods about all that's good or bad in the budget. The Leader of the Opposition always starts it off with his response to the budget. This year, he outdid the Prime Minister, with a presentation that lasted for one hour and eighteen minutes, about half an hour longer than the PM. Briceno keyed in on what he said are major omissions in the budget:..

Hon. John Briceno, Leader of the Opposition
"They present a budget that offers no plan to help the still struggling productive sector. They will not build one new school; they will not reduce poverty by even a fraction of a percent. No ordinary Belizean will benefit from anything contained in this budget."

"The Prime Minster in his presentation said that the priorities for his budget will help government to live within its means, that it will support Belizean families, invest in the skills of our young people, make Belize a better place to do business and to live."

"Which planet is this Prime Minster on?"

"Is he aware that we had over 100 murders last year and this year already we have had 30 murders in 80 days? Did he forget that our economy contracted by 0.8 percent?"

"How can he achieve any of this when he can't even grow the Belizean economy?"

"As for the Prime Minister's projected primary surplus of 37 million dollars, we ended up with a primary deficit of 56 million dollars instead, an actual shortfall of 93 million dollars or 1.6 percent of GDP. This is in spite of the dramatic increase in fuel taxes. Instead of an overall deficit of 62 million dollars, this UDP government had an overall deficit of 160 million dollars, almost 100 million dollars worse than projected."

"In other words, the Prime Minister went out and taxed us more, borrowed more and spent more, almost $300 million more of money the government does not have."

"Where in this budget do we find the assurance that good paying jobs will be created for the more than 17,900 unemployed Belizeans and the many young Belizean who will join the work force come June? How will sucking another 80 million dollars in new taxes to pay for more government waste grow the middle class and help those on the margins who are working so hard climb out of poverty?"

"I wish with all my heart that I could support this budget. I wish with all my heart that I could lead my party to support it as well, but I can't, we can't."

"How I wish we could say to the Belizean people that this budget would do something good for Belize, after all the last budget left us on the verge of bankruptcy and I feel the anxiety of Belizeans, it is ubiquitous."

"I wish I could say that this budget will in some way help poor Belizeans who are struggling every day just to put food on the table, but there is nothing in this budget that will lift one single Belizean out of poverty."

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