PMO

Monday, 18th March 2024

BUDGETARY PROPOSALS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT 2024

MR. Speaker, Sir, it is good to see you this afternoon, smiling as you are. And, let me say at the outset of this Second Reading Speech and Budgetary Proposals that I would like to thank all Honourable Members on this side for the sterling effort over the last few weeks, with respect to outlining the plans and programmes of the various Ministries of this Government. 

Indeed Sir, in following the tradition of previous Prime Ministers and Ministers of Finance, this is the time at which I now get to bat my hand.  

Sir, this afternoon’s Budget will be a conversation with Barbadians about where we have come from, where we are now and where we go next, and of course, how we get there. It is a Budget that would secure our Barbados of today and our Barbados for tomorrow. That security is anchored on our achievements against many odds so far, on the clear improvements we are seeing and on the bright light of our rising star, which is the result of our joint effort. It illuminates a future, prosperity in which we can all share and a country in which our pride remains fully justified because, Mr. Speaker, it is built on our industry. 

In this Budget, all Barbadians whether at home or abroad, will see how their efforts can further contribute to the shared national prosperity; how all of us can benefit from our labour, to enjoy our share of that prosperity.

The Barbados star will continue to rise through the collective effort of all of our people and together, Sir, we will fully emerge from the period of deep economic and financial abyss, with its political origins of course in the “lost decade” of 2008 to 2018, from the social and economic tentacles of the COVID‑19 pandemic, and from the supply chain shackled by the Russia/Ukraine War and its consequences, and now compounded by the war in Gaza.

We can go into a period, Sir, of increased social stability and heightened and sustainable growth, but Mr. Speaker, we must work together, and we must plan together. Let us therefore reason together, Sir.  

In order to put you into a listening mood, let me say as early as I did last year, there will be no new taxes. But I am telling you up front, that I will warn you that there will be some adjustments during the course of this year, of a few rates that we will need the public to be able to bear, if our services that depend on those rates, are to keep up with the kind of service that Barbadians want.

Let me also make the point, Sir, that I am well aware that there are some issues which are of further concern to the country. I hear you and I see you and I feel you. The allegation of unsustainable national debt, the cost of living, the health care system and more specifically the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, the state of our roads, particularly, the pothole repair, the access to jobs especially for our young people, and of course the management of the education transformation effort. I will address these as I speak to you today, Sir.

My second mood setting point, is to give the country first the facts, and second, an assurance about the national debt. I do not take these things lightly because so much has been put abroad to convince the country otherwise. I need to make the point, Sir, Barbados’ debt is not galloping out of control. The debt to GDP ratio, is not precarious. And this Barbados Labour Party Government has not increased the national debt to unmanageable levels. In fact, Sir, the national debt is now lower than it was when we came to Office in 2018.  Lower, I can spell the word, L‑O‑W‑E‑R. When we came to the office, Sir, the debt was 178.9 per cent of our GDP. At the end of February,  last month, 2024, it was 114.6 per cent, Mr. Speaker.

In 2018 when we came to Office, debt cost this country 68 cents out of every dollar of revenue.  Today, we are now paying 30 cents out of every dollar to service debt.

Sir, the reduction in our national debt has been despite the fact that we went through the worse pandemic in 100 years; despite the extreme weather events – the worse hurricane in 65 years, the worse freak storm in our memory, and Mr. Speaker, an ash fall that was the worse since the 1902 volcanic eruption of Soufriere in St. Vincent. 

Mr. Speaker, in spite of all of the things that required citizens’ support and occasioned high expenditure against shrinking government revenues in those days, and in spite of war-caused supply chain disruptions and price increases, Mr. Speaker, our debt has been lowered.  And, Mr. Speaker, let me put it in further context too and there is a beautiful graph, three graphs in fact, that I hope will be shared with the public of Barbados, that show the story very clearly about the management of this economy since 1976, and who increases debt and who allows growth in this economy to take place. And I hope it will be shared, Sir.

In 1994, when the Barbados Labour Party became the Government under the then Owen Arthur, debt stood in this country at $2.5 billion, 14 years later when we left office, Sir, at the end of December 2007, we left a few weeks into January, the debt stood at $7.2 billion.  Owen Arthur carried it from $2.5 to $7.2 in 14 years, Mr. Speaker. Under the Democratic Labour Party Government, not only in the 10 years did our debt mushroom, not only did we record 23 downgrades, but we became the third highest indebted country in the world.  And therefore, this talk now about debt really amuses me because we all know and we saw the consequences of the debt that the DLP left us in.  

Indeed, Sir, we all know what the position was with respect to all of the matters from the South Coast to the buses, to all of the things that I don’t need to repeat. Sir, when the DEMS left the Office in 2018, the national debt, inclusive of the arrears, stood at a whopping $18.1 billion, from $7.2 billion where they inherited it.

Mr. Speaker, that is what they did. And Mr. Speaker, they took an economy from us in 2008 that was a $9.6 billion economy, and you know what they gave us back in 2018, Sir? An economy at $10 billion. In other words, when we say that the economy stagnated, these are the facts. And given all the talk about debt, do you know where Barbados’ debt stands today, Sir, in absolute numbers?  Mr. Speaker, our debt at the end of this month, February, just gone, $12.859 billion — sorry, that is what we carried it down to when we restructured the debt. 

You know where the debt is today, Sir?  $14.9 billion. In almost six years, we have only increased the debt of this country by $2 billion in spite of going through all of the challenges that I just spoke to you about — challenges that this country did not face in 65 years and 100 years. 

Mr. Speaker, these are the facts. And I want to remind you, Sir, that this Government remains fixed on our determination to reduce our debt down to 60 per cent, and we hope to be able to do so by 2035 or if we negotiate with our international partners, by a date soon thereafter.  

Sir, this information is critical to understanding what is happening in this economy and what our real growth prospects are. And grow we must if we are to maintain this country’s upward trajectory.

My third mood setting point, Sir, for listeners, is that after years of downgrades, this economy is now growing. Sir, I told you about consecutive quarters of growth, well let me tell you, despite the challenges, we have had 11 consecutive quarters of growth and we’re about to see the 12th one by the end of this month.

Mr. Speaker, it is amazing! In addition to that, Sir, unemployment is back down to about 8 per cent, well below the historical average of this country of 10.3 per cent. And Mr. Speaker, the economy is expected to grow 4 per cent this year.  

Mr. Speaker, I start with these facts, because when you listen to some people in this country, you will believe that we are presiding over a graveyard but we have come here today to let you know that Barbados is moving upward and onward.  

Mr. Speaker, I raised these issues at an early stage because there are too many people who want to put themselves on a platform in order to put the country on a scaffold.

Mr. Speaker, you can settle your own mind for your own opinions, but the facts are the facts. And despite all those who today promote that internationally as a way of creating fake news, we shall stay rooted in the facts. The facts, the facts, the facts. 

I raise these issues, Sir, because I am aware that this is of concern to some people. If you keep reading in the newspaper and hearing on call-in programmes that the country in trouble, that the debt in trouble, and this and that, go back to the facts. And I will give you a pictorial image in graphs too as I said, that will share with the whole country to tell you the story of debt and growth in this country.

Mr. Speaker, this is where we came from and I have taken a few minutes this afternoon to put this in context.

But we have also, Sir, managed the country’s finances responsibly, and we have made sure that people have shared the burden and shared the bounty, as we did it. The reality, Sir, is as I said, even though we are doing well, I believe, Sir, in my heart of hearts, that we can do better. And, I have come here this afternoon to ask us, to be able to do better and to come together as a nation.

Sir, as I said, this economy has exhibited significant resilience over the last two years and the outlook for 2024 remains optimistic. The economy successfully managed all of the things that I mentioned earlier and in spite of all of that, our debt is lower, our reserves, Sir, are higher than they ever were at $3.2 billion. I don’t lose sleep at night anymore about reserves — reserves that we had inherited at just over four weeks.

I lose sleep about skills deficit; I lose sleep about whether we have enough people to do the job that has to be done in this country. That is where we have taken the country, Sir. Over 33 weeks of import cover, more than adequate, more than the 12 weeks that people say used to be the standard.  

Mr. Speaker, in addition to that, we have over the course of this time, put in our debt to natural disaster clauses that the rest of the world are now following.  We weren’t the first to put it, St. Kitts and Grenada were. But we are by far the largest issuer of commercial paper with natural disaster clauses. And I remind us that if the worse, let me knock some wood all ’bout here, if the worse is to happen to us, that it will immediately unlock 19 per cent of GDP over two years, almost $2 billion because we recognise that so many of our people are uninsured and under insured.  

Mr. Speaker, that is what we have been trying to get the world to understand with the Bridgetown Initiative and to be able to get the international financial institutions to change how they do business.  We don’t talk to them for the sake of it. We do it because when we do it, it gives us more elbow room to do things like laying more pipes in St. Lucy, to get rid of the brown water, or to do other things in the country — to get more electric buses, or to be able to help the hospital. We do it to get the additional fiscal space, Sir.

I would like, however, at this stage Sir, to pause and to congratulate and to thank the Social Partnership of Barbados, who from Day One in this Government has worked with us on the key critical issues. We won’t agree on everything, but on the key critical issues we have worked together to reposition this country — labour and the private sector, achieving our targets and raising living standards and the quality of life of Barbadians is paramount for our future. 

And that is why, Sir, last year May 1, we all committed to Mission Transformation Barbados 2030, and the six Missions. Throughout this speech today you will see that almost every initiative is anchored in one of those six Missions because it is not idle talk, it is not esoteric writing for people to talk about in the newspaper articles and letters. It is meant to be the underpinning of a coherent strategy that would bring this country, not simply out of difficulty, but carry us to prosperity and stability and resilience.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, the public investment since 2018 when we came to Office, has totaled in excess in human areas $1.8 billion. We remember that we allowed our students from the very first September that we were in Office, to be able to enter The University of the West Indies with the comfort of free education again.  Over the last five years, Sir, this Government has spent $2.7 billion in education, and $1.8 billion on health.  

Sir, these approaches are critical investments in being able to achieve what we hope can be our long-term growth target of 5 per cent.

Mr. Speaker, and what about confidence? Tell us?  Where is it? I suggest to you, sir, that confidence has been fully restored to this economy. The rating agencies have been upgrading us, thereby demonstrating confidence in our policies and management of the economy. There are not from about here. The IMF has supported our home-grown BERT programme and we have been able to do exceptionally well in managing our affairs with them. 

The World Bank has demonstrated confidence by not only providing liquidity support during COVID, but has been reengaging Barbados as a member of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, so that we can access concessional loans again without having to ask for exceptional access. The AFREXIMBANK has set up its first office outside of the continent of Africa in Barbados and the Latin American Development Bank, otherwise known as CAF, is about to set up an office in Barbados as well. Mr. Speaker, even locally, the banks are saying that they have not seen this amount of pent-up demand for projects for the last decade. You read it in the paper and heard it this weekend on the radio.

Sir, the international financial community, the local, regional and international investors, the members of our Social Partnership, the private sector, the labour unions, have all seen confidence returning to our country. They can see where we are, and they all have confidence in where we are going and can go.

It is time Sir, now for to us deliver and for us to move forward to achieve equitable, inclusive and stronger growth, that would leave no one behind and that would lift everybody up.

BUDGETARY PROPOSALS

So, Mr. Speaker, as I address these budgetary proposals, it is important to say at the outset, that this is not going to be about fiscal arithmetic. It isn’t. Mr. Speaker, it is not even a score card for individual Ministries. You have heard my address over the last few weeks and you can judge for yourself the volume of work that the Government is engaged in.  We are not perfect, but we do our best each and every day to make this country better and to work with everybody.

This conversation this afternoon is more fundamental. This is a conversation in which we must engage as a people if we want to make sure that our young people will inherent a decent quality of life, given all of the threats that they face in today’s world. Many of the threats, most of them, beyond their control. The Government and people of Barbados working together Sir, have overcome national difficulties, environmental and exogenous economic shocks, climbed out of the economic pit, as I said, and we confronted the worse aspects of the climate crisis and the pandemic.

But what happened when we confronted these challenges, Sir?  We stabilised the economy and put it on a clear path of growth. I told you we had 11 straight quarters about to go into the 12th. And the question is: Who is the ‘we’ that I am talking about?  It is not just the Government that is in here that I am speaking about Sir, that I have the honour to lead, but I am talking about all sectors and all workers and all households, and all pensioners, and the private sector and the religious and interfaith organisations, civil society, and I feel then Sir, many on the block. We always do well as a country when we work together. That is my continuous refrain.

Now, Mr. Speaker, I want to say that we can remain comfortable at our previous rates of growth which have been two-and-a-half to three per cent more or less. Before the lost decade of course, of 2018 when it was zero.  Or Mr. Speaker, we can set our sights to achieve 4 per cent to 5 per cent growth in the medium term. 

Mr. Speaker, if we do this, we can enhance the prosperity for as many Bajans as possible and for as many future generations as possible. To change our trajectory to higher levels of growth would require effort and investment from all sectors, with many individuals and entities playing their part, not just the Government. We accept that the Government must continue the exercises to remove the red tape and to continue to deconstruct and reconstruct. My Cabinet must be tired hearing me talk about deconstruct and reconstruct. We are going to do that for as many systems as possible.

But we must also have the same efforts being undertaken in the private sector and in all other spheres of activity in our country. Every Bajan must go to work daily to give of their best, knowing that in so doing, Sir, they will themselves obtain greater benefits and an improved quality of life. Our personal and our national standard, and we said it from the beginning, should be nothing less than excellence. Do your best! Not everybody is created equal, but everybody must be given equal opportunity and all we ask you to do is do of your best.

Today I concentrate initially on what it will take for Bajans in Barbados to adapt and to become more resilient to the new global and societal realities and what it will take for us as a nation to have sustainable and inclusive growth. In other words, Sir, how do we push this economy to higher heights and prosperity? And secondly, how does a people-centered approach allow for the ultimate objective of sharing the pie fairly among Bajans.

Mr. Speaker, there are therefore only three themes this afternoon.

• One: Growing the Barbados economy. How to create a larger pie to grow it quicker and to higher heights at 4 to 5 per cent.

• Two: How do we have a resilient Bajan and a resilient Barbados by extension? How do we sustain ourselves to keep the pie.

• Three: How do we do this in a people-centered Barbados always? This is part of our DNA. How do we share the economic pie? 

And perhaps the one major difference between us and the other side, is that we accept that in order to share appropriately, you have to grow. But if you are not growing, you can’t share. I don’t believe that the other side is wicked at all. It is just that since 1976, this economy has only seen growth under the Barbados Labour Party Government consistently. Straight talk, Straight, straight, straight, talk. You want growth, look here, you want recession, look there.

Mr. Speaker, that is the conversation I want this entire Budget debate to spark nationally, not just in this Parliament, but across the island from St. Lucy to St. Philip, from St. James to St. John; and Mr. Speaker, even within the two spheres of the Democratic Labour Party.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, we must be clear about where we want to take this country and I hope that we can have national consensus on the things that are necessary for growth. I expect that there will be divisions and different opinions, but there are some fundamental tenets that Barbadians must hold all political parties to if they are not to put our well‑being and welfare as a nation and as households at risk.

Mr. Speaker, I therefore ask us, to look and see where the missions that we committed to last year, how do we play our role, recognising the obstacles and the objectives of the journey that we set out for ourselves? So, I say to you, Sir, the water may be choppy at times, but as the Captain, I have a duty to steer the ship safely even through rough and choppy seas. And I need to do so with a clear understanding, as to what is the role and the participation of those on board the ship including the Opposition. We have a compass, but we need Sir, however, all hands on deck.  

A: GROWING THE BARBADOS ECONOMY

So let us talk Sir. To improve the standard of living of every single Bajan, to help them achieve their dreams and aspirations and to continue national development, as I said, we must grow the economy. Growing it is not just about the numbers, it is not about business as usual, it is getting the numbers right and the business investment right in order to ensure that Bajans can live well, as many as possible.

Sir, we have already started to pursue this in the last few years since coming to office with respect to attempts at economic diversification. They take time, but if you don’t plant you can’t reap.  What I want to do Sir, is to concentrate on how we can remove the obstacles and how we can increase the pace and scope of action in certain sectors through transformation. Or, as I would normally say, through deconstruction and reconstruction, to allow us to get to that 4 to 5 per cent growth rate, Sir.  I believe that rate is ours to claim.

You know, Sir, if we did nothing else, but to deconstruct and reconstruct, in every area of activity in this country to justify what we are doing, why we doing it, how we doing it, when we doing it, who doing it and for whom we doing it, You know, Sir, that there would be a significant increase in efficiency across this country. If we all committed to nothing else other than national housekeeping, we would be so much better off. And I am spending time this afternoon on this simple matter. Because I hope that in speaking to it, I can inspire households and businesses and groups and churches to ask the simple questions, the simple prepositions. It ain’t nothing more complicated than a primary school child would do. And if you ask these simple questions, you will be surprised about how much efficiency and productivity we will bring about, Sir. 

What are the questions:

What we doing?

Why are we doing it?

Who is doing it?

For whom is it being done? 

When is it going to be done, Mr. Speaker?

Where is it being done?

How is it being done?

And why are we still doing it the way that we used to do it all through the years like if we are tied to it as chains, as if we are slaves to processes that somebody aome and left about here, rather than creating and forging our own futures as our National Anthem requires us to do.

Sir, if we ask these questions, regularly, and we measure the answers appropriately, and are prepared to make the changes to bring improvements, these actions would form the kinds of good habits that would lead to success.

So, on the first matter, Sir, of growing the economy to higher heights, there are a few strategies that we must pursue with the public and private sector to remove blockages and to propel pace and the scope of growth. And let me outline these upfront for us.

1. Creating business Barbados;

2. Increasing public and private sector partnership;

3. Reviewing tax structures and new investment funds;

4. Further modernising our tax system;

5. Digitisation and reengineering business processes;

6. Unlocking the mortgage market;

7. Increasing access to financing for the private and public sectors;

8. Unlocking renewable energy investment;

9. Addressing our demographic challenges by population and skills management;

10. Monetising liquid and derelict assets in the public and private sectors;

11.  Exporting capital to diversify investments, given Barbados’ limited size and vulnerability starting, of course, with the CSME and the wider Caribbean and Central and Latin America basin;

12. Establishing the pharmaceutical industry to aid in the protection of citizen’s health as well as to export the earning of foreign exchange;

13. Developing Barbados as an agro‑processing hub;

14. Incentivising a vibrant creative industry and film industry;

15. Capital projects.

Mr. Speaker, let me go to each of these topics quickly for you.

1. Creating business in Barbados. 

Sir, globally small and medium-sized enterprises are the centres of innovation and drivers of economic growth, we know this. It is Government’s intention to give impetus to the Barbados Small Business Sector and to support entrepreneurs. We are acutely aware that investors in international businesses have options in a world where capital is highly mobile. In conjunction with supporting Barbadian entrepreneurs, in order to remain competitive in our region and globally, we have to ensure that in addition to maintaining the low rate of tax that we have maintained for small businesses in spite of carrying up the other tax rate for other corporations, that we must ensure the barriers for doing business with ease for all companies, but especially small ones are considerable reduced. 

It is with this in mind, sir, that we will launch a new entity called Business Barbados. The work is well under way. 

This will be a commercial state own enterprise directed by a Board of Directors drawn predominately from the business community and run by a CEO at the helm. It will have three divisions under it. And it will be positioned strategically in the middle of the local trading and investment architecture by ensuring that all services required from pre- to post-incorporation of companies will be vested in and provided by the operations of that entity.

There will be three arms:

 One, the corporate registry as we now know it, will be dedicated on its own.

Two, intellectual property will be taken out of the corporate registry and have its only agency.

And Three, business facilitation to be able to help all businesses in this country.

Invest Barbados, Sir, will continue to focus on attracting businesses of substance to set up in Barbados. The focus on attracting business here and getting people to establish global or regional headquarters to our jurisdiction will continue. But once Invest Barbados has done its work, the companies have to find their way through a current maize that is establishment, incorporation and all the legislative requirements for setting up and doing business here.

That is where the hand over to Business Barbados will now occur. From incorporation to the filing of annual returns and every requirement of Companies legislation, Business Barbados will be the responsible entity.

As I said, we will also ensure, separately, I said this on a previous occasion not today, that we have a new Companies Act, our currently Companies Act goes back to the 1980s and therefore, is not necessarily fit for purpose for operating in a current Barbados.

We will also, Mr. Speaker, to give context, have Export Barbados, which is the old BIDC – Barbados Industrial Development Cooperation, continue to drive the expansion of exports to focus on increasing foreign exchange earnings repatriating to local businesses from those exports. 

Mr. Speaker, we believe that from business development services, access to financing and partnership with agencies including trust loans and Fund Access, our small businesses will be encouraged and enabled to grow. Business Barbados therefore will provide local businesses with the support to develop the stage where they can be handed off to Export Barbados as well.

Mr. Speaker, it will be the new kid on the block, pivotal to anchoring all business facilitation services in a single space. As I said, CAIPO and the Intellectual Property Agency as well as business facilitation will be at the core of it, Sir.

2. Increasing Public Private Partnership.

Our national strategy will build on offering a more business friendly environment, sir, to create high quality and sustainable jobs in our country. To ensure a long-term growth in well‑being, we will prioritise, Mr. Speaker, those national development projects. To facilitate the establishment of these Public Private Partnerships, I propose with the effect from the April 1, 2024, to establish a refundable, a 50 per cent refundable tax credit for investments in projects identified and approved by the Government in the context of our national development strategy, the specific areas you will hear throughout this presentation that will benefit from these tax credits that support national development.

3. reviewing our tax structures and new investment funds

Mr. Speaker, we have entered a new phase of our economic development, with the tax reforms having been adopted in October last year.

Our policy, aligns us with international standards will a normal rate of nine per cent as I said for all companies, four-and-a-half per cent for small business companies ‑‑ sorry, five-and-a-half per cent for small business companies and a top‑up tax at 15 per cent for large multinational companies that are considered, as they call it, in scope.

This will secure our reputation as a nation with our international partners.

The job tax credit and the research and development tax credit, combined with a 4.5 per cent tax for certain types of intellectual property called the patent box, all allow us to promote a long-term job rich growth.  

Indeed, Mr. Speaker, that bill is now I believe before the House of Assembly, capturing all of the reforms announced in October, with the additional reform of the Intellectual Property Special Tax for the patent box.

With that tax reform behind us, Sir, it is time to redefine Barbados’ offer. What it is that we are offering to the world to get people to come here and invest? In that context, Sir, The Ministry of Finance will modernise our legislation on funds and asset management. The aim of this modernisation and reform package is to create an environment conducive to investments, thereby promoting economic growth and enhancing the country’s position as a competitive destination for international players and their investment in the funds industry. 

Mr. Speaker, I see five main areas of intervention.

One: The categories of investment funds, the modernisation and expansion of the categories of investment funds and vehicles, to address evolving market trends, investor demands and financial innovation.

Two: The categories of fund industry operators, streamlining the regulatory framework for fund industry operators to encourage efficiency, accountability and professionalism across the fund industry.

We need to reach the right balance between safeguarding measures to protect investors and fostering an investment environment that supports sustainable growth and innovation.

Three: Fund management and licensing process. To clarify the public’s understanding of what should be regarded as a regulated activity under the Barbadian regulatory framework.

Four: Supervision and enforcement. Enhancing the regulatory certainty and trust in the authorities by clearly defining their powers and limits. 

Five: Taxation. Ensuring tax neutrality for investors and remaining compliant with international norms and practices. 

Mr. Speaker, we will integrate best practices and sustainability metrics for assessment of the green level of the funds investment, corporate reporting and consultancy on sustainable investment strategies. Our early adoption of the Global Rules will also act, we believe, as a further boon to business by encouraging more countries to come on board.

Mr. Speaker, this maybe a little dry, but this is how we grow the pie.

I didn’t mean to rhyme, but it sounds good.

4. The further modernisation of our tax system.

Sir, this is pivotal moment for the country.  The Ministry of Finance will further modernise our tax system to bring more tax certainty and ease of doing business. To this end, modern transfer pricing legislation will shortly be introduced to this Parliament. Our tax treaties will be revised and extended to take advantage of our tax reform and to make us more attractive to foreign investors.

The locals will also like the fact that we will amend the Economic Substance Act to reduce the onerous reporting obligations, most of which are no longer necessary as we have modernised our tax system and most importantly, we have addressed all 53 matters that we found languishing on assuming office, that Barbados had been put on a black list then grey list. I want to thank the Honourable Attorney‑General and his team from the Central Bank and the rest of the Financial Services Sector, in the Inter‑Governmental Task Force for over the last five years and 10 months, no joke, for working assiduously to get us off the Financial Action Task Force List. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of International Business, successive Ministers, from the Member for St. James South, the Leader of Government Business in The Senate, the Minister in the Ministry of Finance, the Member for Christ Church East Central, all of them, for allowing us, Sir, to come off the European Union and the OECD list with respect to taxation and not just money laundering and counter terrorism initiatives. And indeed, Sir, these list as you know would have prejudiced Barbados as a destination with which business could be done from the international marketplace.  

And let me remind you, that in each instance, whether because of taxation or money laundering and counter‑terrorism, Barbados was put on these lists as a result of actions taken before May 2018 when this Government came into office, but it was ours to clean up and I thank all who I have mentioned for helping us clean it up and now to be removed individually it has been a gargantuan task but we have made it. And why does it matter, Sir?  Because if you are on these lists, there is something called enhanced due diligence. You know what that means? That the banks in Europe will put additional obligations on you to do any business with Barbados which means that some people say, “You see that, I could go and do business with another country, I ain’t hurting my head with them.  Forget ’bout them.”  

So that for us to take us off all of these lists, we can now do business without those hindrances. But equally as important as I said, we also are in a position now where the economic substance, obligations can be reduced in terms of the level of reporting.

5. Digitisation and Business Process Reengineering.

This is the deconstruct and reconstruct part. This is the part that gets us to do what every small child does be doing now, holding a phone and using digital because they no longer operate in an analog environment. I still remember the days when CBC was black and white. You understand?  I still remember the days when it was barely Technicolour. I still remember the days when it used to have power outages and tell you normal service will resume shortly.  Well, I come to you today to tell you normal service has resumed with this Government with initiatives that it will bring. 

Sir, the Government is meeting the challenges, and we are prioritising the widespread adoption of digitisation as a key to unlocking greater efficiency, you know that.  

The Member for St. Michael South Central will speak I am sure in this debate about where we are with the digital ID card. The Member for Christ Church East Central will continue to speak about the digital payments. Sir, this is fundamental to our long-term development. But you know what, Sir, we now need everybody to be moving. We do it individually.  But we are not doing it institutionally and that is the problem.

And whether it is the Public Sector or the Private Sector, we need to have the introduction of digital skills in our training and educational institutions, in our workplace training, in the labour colleges.  Government has invested in skills development and the acquisition of these digital skills even through the programmes that the student revolving loan fund has been helping people get off the ground with, these are critical. And why? It is at the core of our life. From smart phones to cloud technology. Importantly, it supports stronger and more equitable growth, and it will bring about higher productivity.

Can you imagine if you had to go and add things without a spreadsheet nowadays and how long it would take if you didn’t have it, the bottom line is, Sir, that we want to see it across every area of activity. And therefore, it is a national priority. We accept that there must be protections and cyber security protections put in place. But we cannot stay in an analogue Barbados when the rest of the world is in a digital world.

Sir, we must equally deconstruct and reconstruct.  It is not as simple as using software to type or software to add.

You have to look at the systems and see whether the systems you have are appropriate to a modern Barbados or whether you got to change them up as we did with the Certificate of Character and the other things that we did and why? Sir, our smallness demands it.  The technology is a leveler and a democratiser, not just for individuals, but for nation states. 

To achieve the objective of a cutting-edge digital economy, Sir, this Government will establish a new National Data Centre to provide the necessary computing infrastructure that will drive technology innovation in Barbados and in the region. This will be cutting edge, Sir.  

Such a data center will power the provision of online Government services to citizens, to the Barbadians diaspora, to businesses overseas, investors and entities under the digitisation, Sir, of all of Government’s processes will be completed.

The work of the centre will also enable the build out of an information economy and tech industry, in which local and international developers and technology companies building cutting-edge applications, that begin by solving national problems but which are scalable to the world and will have global application.

What does the data centre mean for Bajans?  What does it make possible? Sir, it will power the already underway health sector transformation that Member for St. Michael North is helping to lead in the Ministry of Health along with the Minister of Industry, Innovation Science and Technology, Member for St. Michael South Central. It will between the two, see a partnership between the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the introduction of a health information system, which will feature electronic health records for each patient, owned by you the citizen, supported quick access within the hospital or other public and private medical providers. So the file is yours, nobody else’s. 

Mr. Speaker, it will allow for more efficient admission, discharge and transfer. The notion that people coming at you every six, seven times in a casualty and asking you for the same information, needs to be a thing of the past. It will allow, Sir, for faster ordering, tracking and reporting of tests and results.  Half the time that you got delays in A&E is because you’re waiting on test results to come. And, Mr. Speaker, it will allow for pharmacy supply management and inventory control.

In other words, Sir, full digitalisation of the health care processes that will improve wait times, diagnostics and access to medication.

Mr. Speaker, this process will happen over the next two to three years. I want to be realistic about it. But you can’t get there if we don’t start and if we don’t continue focused with the capacity to do it.

The centre, Sir, will also be led by the new Government Agency called Gov Tech Barbados, a modern citizen services online portal. A single online market to access every service and every application across Government. And this will be rolled out in phases over the next year, Sir.

The truth is, we have done things from the beginning like the Police Certificate of Character and other things that we have done, the payment of taxes online and thing, but we are now trying to bring everything together so that you have the Single Modern Citizens Services Online Portal, Sir. It will accelerate public safety management and services provided by the Immigration Department, the Barbados Police Service and other key social service providers.

Mr. Speaker, but in the private sector and in the NGO sector, to further incentivise the country’s digitisation efforts, we are going to as of April 1, 2024, propose to introduce a 100 per cent tax credit for local companies digitising and/or reengineering their business processes and upgrading their systems between now and June 30, 2025, for use within the same income year on completion. Mr. Speaker, this is time bound and it is time bound because the country does not have the luxury of letting people amble their way into a digital world and therefore this tax credit is intended to help those who want to do it before that date and therefore will be able to claim it in whether it is Income Year 2024 or 2025, depending on their corporate income year.

Sir, we strongly encourage the financial institutions to work aggressively with the business support organisations to develop the necessary financing instruments to get the digitalisation done by all companies who are interested.

Sir, that Barbados can be a leader in the technology space in this region is also entirely possible. I therefore propose that from April 1, 2024, the introduction of a 50 per cent tax credit for centres offering artificial intelligence, coding, robotics and digital training.

6. Unlocking the Mortgage Market

This one is for all Bajans who want a house or a piece of the rock.

One of the major challenges to unlocking real estate investments in this country, has been the length of time that it takes to complete mortgages and sales of real estate. Everybody is complaining, everybody.  The banking and credit union sectors have reported to the Ministry of Finance that they have an unprecedented $2 billion plus of investment in the pipeline but for some reason, much of it is hampered by the pace at which transactions are being completed. Sir, this cannot be allowed to continue.

This administration supports a free-market system and the right of all people to earn a living and a return on their investments. But we must do what we can to remove the impediments to speedy and effective investments in our country, our economic growth depends on this.

This cannot be about blaming any particular body or any particular sector, Sir, since blame is now to be carried by all sides.

The banking sector is too rigid and is rightfully criticised for demanding far more than is reasonably required to protect its interest. They want belt, suspenders and hoists. And I am told may be even bolts and chains. 

I have a report recently from a very responsible Barbadian, who has a mortgage with one of the largest banks. The value of the asset is not insignificant and the mortgage is in good standing. The gentleman went to the bank and asked for a home equity loan of $50,000, but the bank tells him he can’t get it until you do a new valuation on the house. Not in respect of the mortgage that they all right have, but to cover the home equity loan.

Now, sir, how can that be a reasonable request?  The commercial banks are insisting on a mortgage over the property on the assignment of insurance policies and more. How can you walk into the banks in this country, Sir, and get a loan for $75,000 to buy a car but when you go to borrow $75,000 to buy a piece of land, you can’t get it in under four to six months.  You get a car loan in a week. And a loan to buy a piece of the rock, you can’t get in under four to six months, Sir.

Sir, and you know what makes it even worse, is that the car will depreciate from day one and the property will appreciate from day one too. Sir, this is madness. And this is in a country where mortgage defaults are in single digits. Bajans pay their mortgages, we know that. 

Sir, my own profession, how can the legal profession maintain the right to regulate its own fees?  Charging a minimum fee on each transaction, while at the same time we are told that the reason for the delay on closing mortgages and sales lies on the shoulders of the lawyers.

Mr. Speaker, the timelines are unacceptable, and it is one of the biggest drags on economic development in this country.

You heard the bank say in Cayman Islands, they can get a mortgage closed in a week. In Trinidad, a month.  How does Barbados get three to six months in a city, a town that you can walk about in less than an hour? No, sir. And the Realtors, Realtors make a larger fee than the Lawyers, without having the same fiduciary responsibility that the Lawyers have.

Sir, the Land Registry, there are also complaints about that, that that can a cause of delay, Sir.

I am simply saying to us today — swear to God, swear to God — we have to modernise how we do land transactions. And the notion that we are caught up in a 19th, 20th Century UK, United Kingdom, as a modern 21st Century Republic cannot inform how land transactions are done in Barbados to help from the smallest person to the largest transaction.

Sir, we must govern. I have asked the Minister of Housing and the Attorney General to jointly convene a colloquium amongst all of the stakeholders to review all of the systems and processes relating to transactions involving real estate and to recommended and oversee in the immediate future, the implementation of these recommendations. And Sir, I look forward to being a part of that meeting, not as Chair, but as a participant with them.

In the meantime, though, sir, we are setting the standard and sending the signal, and Government starts this ball rolling today. One of the main delays in any land transaction is the investigation of title. This is required because except for lands in registered areas, title to land is not guaranteed. We have set a target of 10,000 housing solutions Sir, over the next few years. And these will be largely done on lands owned by The State.

To bring greater certainty to title and to relieve attorneys of long and complex title searches of State lands, we will shortly be amending the Crown Lands Vesting and Disposal Act to provide that all lands transferred from The State shall have an indefeasible title. In other words, Sir, a state guarantee of title.  Even them big words I feel need to go and banish back to the 19th Century with the British.

This is foolishness. A country that is so small, 166 square miles and we can’t get mortgages and land transactions done in under three to six months? Sir, at the moment, title is only guaranteed where The State sells the land. But not when The State transfers land without consideration. And this is what happens when we transfer it to the BTII Barbados Tourism Investment Inc or to the HOPE Company or to any of the other entities that we may have to transfer it to.

This small measure, Sir, in advance of the colloquium, will go a long way in cutting down the transaction time where the transaction involves State owned lands.

I concede too Sir, that there are also other inputs into the transaction which are in the hands of The State and they too must deconstruct and reconstruct and be at the colloquium.

The Barbados Revenue Authority Tax Clearance Certificates, the National Insurance Clearance Certificates, the Certificate of Good Standing from the Corporate Registry. And others, sir, we are not leaving any stone unturned in deconstructing this matter with land transactions. Where these matters require simply the checking of records, as for the most part they will, we will put systems in place so that they can be accessed within three working days and eventually, Sir, in real time.

Sir, as I said, the Police Certificate of Character used to take three and four months, people used to have to go and stand up and wait and lose their job. We know how that is come down to less than 24 hours. I say to you, the Property Act can be amended, and the systems put in place to make land transactions more efficient in this country and to bring us into a 21st Century Republic as we are.

7. Increasing Access to Financing for Private and the Public Sector generally.

Sir, as I said, Barbados is benefiting from recent upgrades, not only based on our debt management, but on our overall stronger economic performance. Economic growth has therefore been robust, but more is needed as I said.  From the Private Sector, the Private Business Sector, and the Banking System.

The BERT Programme is premised on us continuing capital investment as close as possible to five per cent of GDP, but we need to be able to more than double private investment in the country and while we started to see it happen, we can keep pressing the accelerator.

Mr. Speaker, achieving that long term growth product target means, Sir, that we have to therefore engage the Private Sector to be able to invest in existing and new economic activities to move forward and to ensure that this decade will be one of progress and the renewal that we desire.

The Financial Sector needs also to become more innovative and to strive to support the business community’s investment efforts. Managing risks, Sir, is an important pillar of financial intermediation, which is the core responsibility of banks. Our banks must not simply avoid risk taking and seek profitability from fees and charges. You have heard all of us talk about that being an unacceptable proposition and change of business case. It is their responsibility to seek to development and to promote lending products to build and expand their lending portfolios and to support the growth of businesses and households.

Sir, I have been meeting with them as recent as last Friday and I am satisfied that we can work on the same page together and I have committed to them to be able to do so and to work to remove the obstacles that they may see in going forward.

In that way, Sir, if we can do that, the Banking Sector will liberate capital from sedentary and nonproductive savings, to higher profit margins and a lever for national growth, while providing people and businesses with the financial resources that will enable their dreams to become a reality. By and large, Mr. Speaker as I said, Bajans pay their bills, so the risk to the financial institutions in this country has generally been minimal, and it is well within our capacity to do this. So, let’s get on with the job and get this done, Sir.

Similarly, the financing of Government’s operations is an opportunity for financial institutions to expand their balance sheets to generate income, and to support Barbados’ future development. The banking sector is currently characterised by very high levels of excess liquidity that can be invested in private investment and in Government debt instruments with limited risk. The BOSS bonds have offered a favourable rate of return and the Government is making a measured return to the Treasury Bill Market, and seeking to redevelop our yield curve over time.  

Banks, Bajans, private citizens, and institutional investors have a key role in financing this country’s development through these mediums, Sir. We cannot achieve our goals unless all stakeholders execute the vital role that they must play, and support the development and modernisation of Barbados and by extension, the improvement of our quality of life.  

Sir, when we go buying goods from overseas, we’re supporting the competitiveness and the development of another country. When we buy local, we support ours.  When we invest in financial products overseas, and even leaving our money in the bank, all of the banks’ dividends are repatriated outside of Barbados.  

The bottom line is, Sir, that if we put some of the same money to earn higher interest rates in Government paper, then we are in a position, Sir, to be able to support our own while having a win-win, rather than receiving 0.01 interest rates, that are now available to savers in this country.

8. Unlocking Renewable Energy Investment

 Sir, as it relates to renewable energy now let me be very clear: Barbados has set ambitious policy objectives but we are being constrained, Sir, by regulatory lag, and the resulting delayed investments in critical infrastructure. 

I’m not going to mince words about that, Sir. We cannot afford to take years to settle a simple electricity rate review hearing; it doesn’t happen in other countries, not when the last rate review was 13 years ago. And yes, Sir, we need this settled because the country needs investment in infrastructure to enable the onboarding of renewable energy. 

Legislatively this year, we will have a new Electricity Supply Bill before Parliament, and we will invite international experts shortly to review that Draft Bill and to make recommendations for updating our Utilities Regulation Act, and our Fair Trading Commission Act. This is the time, Sir, to deconstruct and reconstruct all of our regulatory processes that govern those pieces of legislation to ensure that Barbados’ regulatory environment is fit for purpose for a small island developing state, and not simply a mimic of other international regulatory environments that do not suit our purposes. 

We will not compromise on the core values but we must make it fit for purpose. We badly need efficient electricity regulation that keeps pace with our needs, aligns seamlessly and without undue delay with policy, supports competitive practices, and protects the consumer. My Government, Sir, will also commence in the coming weeks, a study on renewables, electricity generation and consumer welfare as a barometer to guide our policy in support of Barbadian consumers.  

On the matter, Sir, of the licenses for the local utility, our Electric Light and Power Amendment Act sets out a process for the issuance of these licenses, and that process is being followed diligently, starting in the next few weeks.  

Having reached conclusion of the negotiations with the Barbados Light & Power, we are now at the stage of engaging in a public consultation. Those will begin in the first week of April and shall last I’m told, for about four weeks.  

The most pressing and immediate challenge, however, Mr. Speaker, is getting storage into the system. Barbados has over 205 megawatts of generation licenses approved, and another 333 megawatts in applications. In the pipeline, we can see further upwards of another 650 megawatts. 

It is clear to my Government, Sir, that Barbados absolutely can meet its target of 100 per cent generation of electricity from renewable sources by the year 2030. But it depends, Sir, if, and I mean, if, we can get storage into the system, beginning in this year of our Lord.  

The Barbados Light & Power Company has already announced to the sector that the grid in its current state can only absorb 100 megawatts, without adding storage. So immediately you see a problem. Getting storage into the energy system is now a matter of urgent national energy security, Sir. And the Government has been patient, patient, patient on these matters.  

We’ve already, therefore, begun to address these issues, and indeed we are deeply embedded in building a new process to succeed the feed-in tariff that was announced as a pilot by the FTC, in accordance with the FTC’s own understanding that there would have to be competitive procurement, thereafter, Sir, and they said that in the same feed-in tariff decision of June, 2023 last year.  

There are three competitive procurement methods for acquiring renewable energy systems, I’m told, Sir.  Feed-in tariffs, Auctions and direct negotiations. And my Government has already had feed-in tariffs, as I said, for the generation of electricity; we have the pilot for up to 50 megawatts on storage. We are actively following however now, other limbs in the competitive procurement framework. What we need, therefore, are immediate solutions to getting the storage on the grid right.

Sir, this is so unsexy it ain’t funny, but this is so critical, it is unbelievable. Because you cannot grow an economy without energy, and those who don’t understand that will understand that they will soon preside over a declining pie.

Sir, as a matter of urgency, we need the Fair Trading Commission’s decision, which we hope will come in the near future, on the current Clean Energy Transition Rider by the Barbados Light & Power to be delivered, so there is clarity and predictability in the market on storage investments by the utility. This clean energy rider is to be able to allow the Light & Power to have 90 megawatts of storage.  

It is clear, Sir, for all to see, that the country can’t hold no more strain, unless Bajans say to me, and they have not, that they want to see load shedding, or they want to see more power outages, or they want to see all the negative outcomes that go along with grid instability. We must take immediate steps, Sir, to introduce Barbados’ first Battery Energy Storage System for the utility. The number of power outages, and I go back, I talk to you about how it was as a child. We didn’t have no big set of power outages in this country like other countries. We had regular, stable electricity, but in the last decade, I remember the one with the monkey, I remember the two‑day shut down. I could remember all of them. All of a sudden now, periodically, you got power outages as a part of our landscape.  

Sir, we know only too well that if you don’t maintain a car what happens to it, you don’t maintain a house or a piece of equipment, what happens to it? It will break down. And we know that if we want new equipment or cars or phones, we have to pay for it too, and we have to pay for the maintenance of it too.

 Let’s talk straight. The choices are clear Sir, and we’ve taken far too long to make decisions that can be made in a fraction of the time that it is taking to make in our jurisdiction in this country. And this is not the first time I’ve spoken to it, but I’ve been sensitive to the fact that we’ve given everybody a long, long, long, long rein, but we are not cutting it in terms of our timelines. It makes us utterly unattractive for investment and the loser will be the small man. Don’t let us talk about the companies, the loser will be the small man, the small business that cannot afford a generator because the large ones got generators.  The loser will be the small man who will lose all their stock when they least expect to do so.  That is why the old people would tell us to take care of being penny wise and pound foolish.  

You could imagine a small shop in the middle of a 10‑hour or a one‑day loss of electricity and all the meat in the freezer gone? I am talking about a shop but it is in most Barbadian households now too, people keep a lot of meat in the freezer. Everything gone through.  

Mr. Speaker, we need storage now and it is not just the Government that is saying it. It is not just the utility applying for it. All of Barbados heard the Bankers’ Association today in the paper, telling you about removing the regulatory red tape. We have to regulate but we have to do it quickly and efficiently and Mr. Speaker, by introducing storage into the system, what are the banks telling us? That they have over $500 million in investment for renewable energy that is being tied up. Half a billion dollars, not million, “B” for billion, “B” for Barbados, tied up in the banking system.

Mr. Speaker, by introducing storage we get more Bajans connected to the grid and they can get a return on their investments. Sir, you got people who now went and invest in small systems and can’t get the arrangements with Light & Power, and want to know how their money now sitting down idle when they could have taken that money and put it in something else. This is not about large companies alone; this is about all Bajans who have an interest in this area. And, Mr. Speaker, we can ramp up generation capacity once we have storage in the system, and we can account for the periods when the large volumes of photovoltaic panels, Sir, are not producing energy, like during the night time.

Sir, I really don’t know what else to say. This is mission No. 1 in being able to achieve mission No. 1, which is to be able to have a sustainable and resilient Barbados in the face of a climate crisis. It is against this backdrop, Sir, that I announce that my Government will immediately begin a process of engaging in direct negotiations as its preferred form of procurement with international suppliers of storage systems, to determine what will be available and most affordable for those investors who want to participate in storage in Barbados.

During the coming weeks, there will be an advertisement that will seek to invite interested parties in this nation to prequalify for participation in the provision of battery storage through direct negotiation, so that our first licenses for storage can be issued in this year. The abundance of solar PV licenses now need to be matched by the necessary equivalent in storage licenses and this is clearly a matter of urgency.  

We have been advised by the International Financial Corporation of the World Bank that the process of direct negotiation enables the Government to move more quickly to get the projects off the ground, and that the truth is, Barbados’ volumes for what we need for storage are so small that we can’t even compete or command or attract attention, because of how small what we are asking for is, in the context of what the companies who are manufacturing these systems are dealing with from other countries and companies.

My Government, Sir, under the Ministry of Energy, is already in a well-advanced position of developing a price cap mechanism for internal use, which will guide the competitive price discovery process, as has been advised by the International Financial Corporation, the IFC, as I’ve said.  

But I want to make the point here, Sir, that we are in many ways writing the playbook for small island developing states as we go forward. There are very few countries in the world that have had to face all these issues with the same frameworks in place. There are many others who are watching us, Sir, and watching Barbados as an example, and watching to learn from what we are doing, yet while we are proud of what we are doing, we know we have to plan our next steps forward.  

Indeed, Sir, I will announce today the intention of the Government to establish a future energy Advisory Task Force, comprising top renewable energy experts in their respective disciplines to focus exclusively on positioning Barbados in front of the renewable energy curb.  These will come from local, regional and international quarters.  

And, Mr. Speaker, we have to do it because this is a fast-paced industry. It does not even look today like it looked two or three years ago. So that if you want to be in this game, you have to be staying ahead of the curve.

9.  Population and Skills Management.

Sir, it has been widely accepted that the country’s long-term economic growth is related to a set of fundamentals, including population growth and innovation. Our country is experiencing an ageing and declining population, and this dual deficit poses a challenge to achieving higher sustainable rates of equitable and inclusive growth that is required for our development. This is our objective. But what are the facts, Sir? Our birth rate in 2023 was 10.58 births per thousand people, a decline, Sir, from 2022 of .26 per cent. And the decline, Sir, was also in 2022 from 2021; and the decline in 2021 was also a decline from 2020.  Sir, I could go on and on.  

Mr. Speaker, the facts are clear, our population growth has not only slowed now, it has declined, and what we are facing, Sir, is the position of most developed countries, Sir, of an ageing and declining population.  

The question, Sir, is: Are we producing a population that has the skills and knowledge to meet the needs of the Barbados economy and society as it evolves, since so much of what we are doing in the economic and social sector depends on skilled labour?  That’s why I tell you that I don’t stay up at night worried about reserves, I stay up at night worried about whether we got the skills and the people to build out this economy, to do what I say from day one – that many hands make light work.  

Mr. Speaker, I want to further elucidate the facts because Bajans must know this. The results of the last census, which came out in 2021, the 2021 census because of the COVID pandemic it was delayed by a year. Our population has been recorded at an estimated resident population of 269,090. Sir, we were using the figure 287,200+, for a long time and, Sir, the decline is clearly patent.  

But you know what is even more alarming, Sir, that of that number, 25.6 per cent of the population is over the age of 60. One in every four persons in Barbados today, as we speak, is over the age of 60. 

And, Mr. Speaker, let us look in here, let us look in here for a change, that at least eight members in here, not me, but at least eight members in here, are over the age of 60. And that tells you, I’m not asking you to ask and answer which one, the Leader of the Opposition is looking at me, I could assure him that I am not one, I might be there soon but I’m not there yet. But all jokes aside, the truth is, that eight out of 30 represents the national average, and that is the challenge that the country is going to face, whether we like it or not, and long after we go.

We know that the predictions are that by 2050, one in every two Bajans will be over the age of 65.  One in every two. This is nothing to play with anymore, Sir, this is a national crisis and therefore, Sir, the other thing that we should recall today from the census is that there are 160,748 Bajans over the age of 35 and almost everybody in here over 35. Although I came in here at 28 and a number of us came in here at 30 and 31. But you know what that 160,748 means Sir? that 60 per cent of the population is older than 35 and only 40 per cent of Barbados is under the age of 35. Sir, this is a crisis.  

As I said earlier, with this demographic profile, Sir, it will have an impact on the economy and on the society and as we saw last year with the reform of the pension scheme and the NIS, we have to redouble our collective efforts, particularly, through skills development that is aligned to the evolving needs of the economy to drive growth even faster in this country and to deal with other social and other impacts of aging.

Sir, consistent with an aging society as well, the incidence of dementia and Alzheimer’s is increasing in our country. The majority of the households cannot cope easily nor care easily for their elderly loved ones and sometimes it leads to abuse, poor treatment and regrettably even abandonment. 

Recognising, Sir, that the family is still the main unit of care for older persons, The National Assistance Board, working more closely with the Barbados Alzheimer’s Association, will raise awareness within families and communities and teach the skills necessary to defuse moments of crisis, including helping care givers to understand how to treat their elderly relatives with patience and care. This is on the heels of the recently introduced Community Elder Care Programme that we introduced during the pandemic.  

Sir, this is by no means an easy experience but, it is our hope that together as one Bajan family, we can support each other when it comes to taking care of our seniors. We will have a new Immigration Bill before this Parliament before the end of this year. The draft has been prepared and is now the subject of commentary within Government and when it comes here it will go to the Governance Committee for them to be able to reach out to the wider Barbados — under the National Assistance Board, Sir, governance or economic, I am not sure which one. 

Under the National Assistance Board, Sir, we’ve also made provision in these estimates for the development of two respite and daycare facilities along the guidelines of the Soroptimist Village in Eden Lodge and we expect those two facilities to be started during the course of the next year with the help of the Minister for People Empowerment, the Honourable Member for St. Michael South.  But in addition, Sir, to further the cause, with effect from the 1st of April 2024, I propose to introduce a 50 per cent tax credit for the provision of elderly care facilities and hospices. This will allow, Sir, for private investments to assist with building out the capacity in this space which is clearly, clearly, clearly, now a matter of urgency.

10. Monetisation of illiquid and derelict assets in the public and private sector of Barbados.

Mr. Speaker, look ’round Barbados, look and see how many buildings shut down because they derelict or how many buildings pop down. Too many. And whether it is owned by public or private sources, we need to be able to get these assets back into productive use. It is the only way that we can continue to build out our national economy, Sir.  

To this end, we will initiate a comprehensive programme aimed at identifying all such assets in the nation. This will involve a meticulous assessment to determine the most feasible strategies for their conversion or utilisation whether through redevelopment, sale, or partnership with the private sector. There are a lot of families where one person fighting to go forward and buy any materials to fix up the property because they feel the brothers and sisters ‘ain’t gine’ give them back the money or the nieces or whoever in the family ‘ain’t gine’ give them back the money and what ends up happening is the property starts to fall into disrepair.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, our objective is clear. How do we unlock the value of these under-utilised assets, generate revenue and stimulate economic activity and create jobs for Bajans?  

The recently established Growth Council chaired by the Most Honourable Dodridge Miller, with the soon to be established Barbados Legacy Fund will promote public private partnerships for developing public assets and Mr. Speaker, these assets will move towards ensuring that we can see value and wealth for those in the private sector but equally for those in the public sector. To complement these efforts, Sir, we will also be identifying the specific bureaucratic and regulatory inefficiencies, I spoke about unlocking mortgages and the red tape for transactions for land that will impair the investment process.  

The Growth Council will help us deal with these, Sir, and will allow for a conducive environment for business including small and medium-sized enterprises in particular.

Sir, we understand the importance of community involvement and sustainability in these areas and our approach, therefore, will be to prioritise projects that not only provide financial benefits, but will also enhance the social and environmental fabric of our society and our communities. Through this initiative, we are addressing multiple issues critical for development.

11. Exporting capital to diversify investments

Given Barbados’ limited size and vulnerability, simply put, Sir, we’ve got to export capital, we got to do business outside of Barbados.  You can’t do all of your business inside of Barbados.  It is simply too small and that is why it is so important for us to be active members of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy, Sir. And when we are finished with the CARICOM Single Market and Economy, we need not be frightened to go to the wider Caribbean and the wider Central and Latin America. That is why we are so glad to have the people here from northern Brazil and that we are now working to open up our relationships because they are closer to us geographically from Bovista than they are to Brazilia and São Paulo which are five and six hours away but you can be in Barbados in 90 minutes from Bovista and from Manaus in two hours, Sir. 

They are land locked and we are a natural hub with twenty‑something flights a week to the UK and twenty‑something flights a day ‑‑ not a week, yeah, a week to the UK and twenty‑something flights a week to the US and other flights to Europe, Central America and I hope to live to see the day when we can open up the African market, Sir.

Our vision is to position Barbados therefore as a pivotal player in these areas, but it requires a mindset change. I looked and saw the companies that got through the lost decade. You know who they were, Sir?  The companies that had investments outside of Barbados as well, not just only here. So that there was a diversification of their portfolio. You look at the Goddards Group of Companies. You look at a whole host of the rest of them. They had portfolios outside of the country and the country needs to open up its mind to get us there.  To ensure the success of this initiative, Sir, we will work with regional bodies, financial institutions and private sector partners and we will identify the investment opportunities.  

Guyana is growing faster than any country in the world and most of Barbados has links with Guyana and most of Guyana’s black population got links with Barbados. That is the reality.

So that we need to be in Guyana, in Trinidad, in Jamaica, in the same way that others have traditionally come here and invested. I don’t get vex because Trinidadians have invested here. I say we need to go in Trinidad and invest and return the favour and do the same in Jamaica. We are the only region in the world with whom we have a trade surplus is the OECS, the Eastern Caribbean states, we can do better, and we must do better, Sir. If we do so, we will secure a prosperous and a more resilient future for all Barbadians.

12. Establishing the pharmaceutical industry.

Sir, I’ve spoken to this quite a few times.  Our country has a history of pharmaceuticals going back to 1888 with Carlisle Laboratories. We’ve been in the business of fill and finish, we need to move to higher value added, Sir.  And the reality is that during COVID, we discovered that it wasn’t easy to get vaccines and the ones that we got eventually were manufactured in India that has developed expertise in this area. We want to go into this area and we have been working with other countries to forge a global South‑South opt-in alliance to make available the most modern biologics to the people of the developing world, starting with our own people. 

Our likely partners in the establishment of this venture have been the Government of Rwanda, the European Union, the European Investment Bank, the World Health Organisation, the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, and the individual companies with whom we are having discussions. 

13. Creating an agro‑processing hub.

This is one of the ones that has been in process for a while. We know that at the end of the day that it doesn’t make sense only producing the basic products. We grow cocoa and export cocoa beans in the region, not chocolates. We do the same and see the same thing in Africa. We make high quality, we grow cotton but it is exported and converted into high quality fabric and garments. Same with the sugar.  We’ve taken a decision to be able to sell no bulk sugar but to sell value added sugar because the price equation simply works for us.  

I believe Sir, that it is critical for us therefore to move Barbados quickly to the agro‑processing hub, recognising the logistical advantage that we had. We had it for the wrong reasons for the movement of slaves, we can use it for the right reasons for the prosperity of Bajans going forward.

Sir, I have already seen the plans for a private investment for the Barbados Guyana Trinidad Food Terminal at Lears, so has the Senior Minister for Infrastructure in charge of planning and the Minister of Agriculture, the Honourable Member for St. Philip South. It is exciting. They are now going through the permitting stage. In addition, we already have open as the Member for St. Michael South Central will tell you, the food terminal that I opened at Newton under Export Barbados and that this food terminal has already received permission to export to the U.S. and will shortly be getting its permission to be HAACP compliant. Mr. Speaker, this has already been a game changer for small food entrepreneurs in Barbados who want to make pepper sauces and to do all kinds of condiments and all other kinds of things to export to our families and businesses overseas.

And make no mistake about it, Caribbean food is highly, highly, regarded in the international market and we need to take advantage of it.

14. Incentivising the Creative Industries.

Last year we announced initiatives to promote the film industry. After extensive consultation locally and internationally led by Senator Munroe‑Knight, the legislative framework is at its final stages and will be before Parliament within the next three months. I want to thank the Honourable Senator, for her considerable work in these consultations that have taken so long but are so critical because they have to balance that against Barbados’ tax reform that we have also undertaken.

I want, however, to say that visual artists are not usually the topic of conversation in this Parliament — regrettably so. And we understand that in a small country such as ours, to promote opportunities for visual artists locally doesn’t normally happen because of the small nature of our market and the fact that we are only now getting more and more of our people into wanting to buy local art, whether original or prints, rather than buying paintings of ducks and winter in some of the department stores in Bridgetown. We got people ’bout here’ who can paint and draw and sculpt and do all of the things. You only need to go into Golden Square and see some of the wonderful living art that was put in Golden Square when we built it.

Sir, this Government’s heart is tied to the creative industries. I make no apology for it.  To promote the opportunities for visual artists locally with the vast amount of construction that is taking place and will continue to take place in Barbados, commercially and within the Tourism sector, we will now formally introduce a new tax incentive that will foster business for the visual artist. With effect from the April 1, 2024, a 50 per cent refundable tax credit is introduced for the purchase of local art up to a value of a million dollars for the outfitting of investment projects. In other words, buildings, whether commercial or hotels that buy local art and hang local art in their buildings. This is a new incentive, Sir, and I would like even though Government is not going to claim the incentive, the same approach to public buildings must be mirrored with what we are now proposing for private individuals to do with the purchase of art in this country, local art.

15. Capital Projects.

So, Mr. Speaker, as we chart our course towards sustainable development and economic resilience, it is capital projects that will also drive much of what we are doing. These investments are designed to create jobs to spur economy activity and to lay the foundation for a brighter more prosperous future for all Barbadians. There is nobody more frustrated than me that during the course of the pandemic that for three years effectively, our capital projects ground to a halt because of the pandemic. But, Mr. Speaker, normal service has resumed and in that normal service, there is a whole list of capital projects at Appendix V and I say to you that this is not even an exhaustive list, but this is one that we’ve culled from the Senior Minister of Infrastructure and the Honourable Minister, in the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Senator Blackman who work together. Some of them in the public sector and you see it as you drive on the highway, the Geriatric Hospital Redevelopment and I hope that the Senior Minister’s comments showing that this is Zone C land and not Zone 1 land and has satisfied the concerns of all Members.

The Plant Tissue Cultural Laboratory that all the permitting has been done in the Ministry of Agriculture, will do that, will give Bajans magnificent amounts of planting material so that they can all become involved in the growing and processing of food so that we can become food and nutritionally secure.  The Barbados Youth Advance Corp Dormitories being led ably by Minister for Youth Affairs, the Member for St. John and indeed, Sir, I tell him hold tight, he got a lot coming shortly. And the Richard Stoute Amphitheatre, which we started building in the National Botanical Gardens, but we will continue the work, and this is being ably led by the Minister of Environment, The Honourable member for Christ Church West Central, and we thank him for that.

In the private sector, I call just a few. There are over 81 projects in Appendix V, but I list Indigo Hotel in Bridgetown which will finish, I believe, within another six to eight months, Indigo Hotel, which is by the old Caribee in Hastings, that will finish in six to eight months. The Royalton Luxury Resort in Holetown, in the constituency of the Member for St. James Central, that is expected to start within a few months. The hotel Pendry in Speightstown, the   Member for St. Peter is happy and I believe the residents have also been engaged for that hotel and that will be an extension of Port Ferdinand. The Hyatt Hotel in Bridgetown which has been long, long, awaited; and the Pierhead Project in Bridgetown, both of which we expect to start this year, Sir.

Sir, I can go on and on through the list, but the truth is, it will take me a long time to go through all of them and I’m conscious of the time this afternoon that we will be here.

The Government’s thrust, Sir, is one that is very clear. We will continue to benefit from the traditional sectors, Tourism, Manufacturing, Agriculture, International Business, which has now become local business. Our local business is international, and our international business is local. But we must drive and confront these new obstacles that can open up new sectors, but can also enhance growth in existing sectors, Sir. The truth is, Barbados has per capita, the largest number of university graduates and trained young people in the region.  But even with that, it is not enough and we need to be able to get some of our young people who have gone overseas to come back home, and we need to be able to settle an arrangement, as I keep saying, that while we take care of the older people among us, we must build Barbados for the young people, because they are the ones who must help continue sustaining life and economic activity on this wonderful country that we call home.

Mr. Speaker, we believe that today’s young people are enterprising and entrepreneurial and they often have a job and a side gig. Young people today don’t operate in the same way as older people who wanted a single job for life. Young people are prepared to do things whether it is in the gig economy, whether they want portability, they tell you if you can’t wear it, can’t carry it, can’t move it, can’t hold it; don’t want it.  That’s what they tell me, Sir.

Equally, Sir, the Government’s thrust at diversification cannot exist on its own or in a vacuum.  The time for business conservatism and risk aversion in the business community in Barbados must be put behind us. And I don’t say this as a criticism, but I say it as something to urge us that if we want to become more resilient and if we want to move to 4 to 5 percent growth, then we have to take some risk. And your Government will be here to hold your hands as we go out beyond Barbados to take those risks. 

Our businesses therefore have to start fishing near the shore and cast their nets into deeper waters where the large catches are to be found. We may be a small land space with a small population, but we are in a community that is large. That small land space will always limit business and constrain our capacity for growth. But it will only be fatal to our national growth effort, if we are not prepared to look overseas to overseas markets, inside and outside of our region.  I pray, Sir, I pray, Sir, that we will summon the courage and the confidence as Barbadians, young and old, to recognise that we need to engage the world if we are to benefit from a larger market than the one which we have, Sir.

Enabled by technology as well, Sir, the world is now more open than it has ever been before. You can stay here and put things on your social media sites and sell them to people in Ghana, sell them to people in Argentina, sell them to people in Singapore.  Mr. Speaker, we must seize the opportunity because this is an opportunity that has never been given to our individual citizens in the modern settlement of this nation.

As Shakespeare puts it, Sir, we must take the tide that leads on to fortune or lose our ventures.

B. RESILIENT BAJANS AND A RESILIENT BARBADOS

Mr. Speaker, I want to address what it will take for us to become more resilient as Bajans and as a country. We have to build at every level. And what is resilience? It is not just some new buzzword.  Resilience is the key to our survival. Simply put, it is about building toughness, about developing a capacity to anticipate, to prepare for weather and withstand shocks, whether it is environmental such as a freak storm, or if its health and social implications like COVID, to be prepared for pandemics, to be prepared for economic challenges like supply disruptions. All of these things, Sir, it is about adapting to our realities. 

I am proud today to announce that a holistic climate investment plan for prosperity and resilience, the Barbados National Resilience Plan, has been prepared and is aligned closely to the mission economy and its 2030 agenda. This comprehensive strategy will shortly be presented to Cabinet. We took an initial presentation late last year and we sent it back for further adjustments and it is now coming back to us.  And this plan not only aims to capitalise on Barbados’ unique assets, but also promises to enhance the quality of life for our people, positioning the country as a pioneering, innovative hub, for climate positive solutions. The plan provides a framework for our decisions in investment aligned with the targets that need to be met to achieve a stronger and more resilient country. It is based and commits Government to achieving 15 key resilience targets, focusing generally on social resilience. All Bajans are empowered by and engaged in the social, economic and cultural development of our country and they have equitable access to job opportunities, dignified housing, reliable utilities, healthy food, clean water and efficient Government services.

Economic Resilience that will have a diverse, robust economy, which attracts the right capital to drive strong inclusive growth and allows us to recover quickly from a climate disaster or any other global regional or local shock and climate resilience.

Of course, Mr. Speaker, we have become a leader in the green and blue economy globally and we will make sure that our economy benefits from this leadership in advocacy.

We have launched the Bridgetown initiative, which has helped redefine the international debate on climate finance and development and we will continue our international advocacy, cognizant that it has yielded significant benefits that are tangible for Barbados and Barbadians.

The Barbados Water Authority’s grant of $80 million from the Green Climate Fund is a clear example.  Who else has given this country $80 million as a grant since we became an independent nation, Mr. Speaker? 

Our Government is commit to the successful delivery of this investment plan and one of the targets is to ensure that all policies, legislation, budget allocation and Government structures are aligned with our resilience targets. The annual budget is an important part of that integrated framework and Ministers are known that they will be judged accordingly.

Mr. Speaker, we are taking additional policy action towards resilience targets. In full compliance with international rules, I therefore propose the following measures to complement our tax reform. With effect from the April 1, 2024, an additional 25 per cent non‑refundable tax credit to boost the 50 per cent research and development tax credit that we announced in October, for projects related to the ocean and to the greening of the economy.

And, secondly, equally from effect from the April 1, 2024, a refundable tax credit for projects, with respect to a 50 per cent refundable tax credit for projects resulting in net zero emissions in Barbados.

Mr. Speaker, we can see from Tourism entities to all other kind of entities benefiting from these areas and I hope that they will be the creativity in our domestic private sector, but also that this will attract foreign capital to our country to be able to see us as a perfect hub, not just as a Small Island Developing State, but as a large ocean state with nothing between us and Africa.

• Improvements in our Met services.

Sir, I think everybody knows the enthusiasm of the leader of the Met Office and all of us enjoy his enthusiasm and the extent to which he has brought early warning capacity to this country. We now hear more about flood warnings and all kinds of warnings in a way that we have never heard consistently before. The office, Sir, is very concerned about the weather and the climate and they are telling us that the intense heat this year and likely extreme weather will continue. The truth is that the measurements and the systems that we have developed are even helping countries like Cuba in using some of our models and they are in regular consultation at the Met Office with all of the major institutions in the Americas. 

This office is providing observational data with unmanned sea surface drones that go 400 kilometres east of Barbados. In the last hurricane season and in this hurricane season, the Director has indicated that the drones will penetrate any storms or hurricanes that pose a threat to this nation and for those nations positioned west of Barbados.

Why is this important?

Sir, to be resilient, we need to have a better understanding of the threats that we face and the capacity to prepare for them.  This might be a little dry for people again, but this will make the difference between whether you save your life or you lose your life, because if you know something is coming and you know your house is not up to scratch, or where you are is prone to flooding or whatever, you take the appropriate decisions in order to be able to save life and wherever possible to save property.

Sir, we in the Government have been supporting the investments at the Met Office to make Barbados’ Met Office globally recognisable and to be able to be put among a class of very few. The Government’s total investment in the Met Office this year is in the region of $4 million to buy some of these drones and unmanned equipment in order to enhance their capacity to give us early warning signals.

• Barbados — A Small Island and A Large Ocean State

     Mr. Speaker, at the centre of the investment plan is also, as I said for us to be seen as a large ocean state. This plan looks at Barbados between now and 2035, but in the next few years it will prioritise the expansion of the Deep Water Port, strategically located as we know as the shortest trade route connecting Africa to the Americas, positioning our country as a logistics and transhipment hub. The plan also lays out investment and initiatives like the XPRIZE Coral Restoration competition. We are losing too much of our coral reefs and we need to build them back and pay forward. And Mr. Speaker, this is critical for us.  While constructing these new assets, the Government acknowledges the importance of strengthening its existing critical infrastructure concurrently. We will future proof essential systems, notably water and wastewater infrastructure, our roads. 

The Minister for Public Works is telling you that there are some roads that simply have now to be done in concrete because it will stand up longer and better in a way that asphalt will not. Similarly, Mr. Speaker, we will ensure that our housing, our education facilities, our healthcare infrastructure, all of these things have now to be future-proofed because of the world in which we are living and we are already seeing ‑‑ when I went to St. Lucy two years ago, the member for St. Lucy will tell you that St. Lucy had floods in areas that people said that for decades they had never seen those parts of St. Lucy experience a flood. Last year for the first six months of the year, Barbados had rain fall that was 50 per cent less than the 30‑year average. Mr. Speaker, it is real and in February last month, the entire world had global temperatures rising 1.77 degrees above preindustrial climate. Mr. Speaker, you snooze, you lose and regrettably, some people may lose lives and not just property. A word to the wise is sufficient.

• Coastal Zone Management 

Sir, the Coastal Zone Management Unit will start a seven‑year climate resilience and integrated coastal management programme with the Inter‑American Development Bank.  

I signed the loan in the Dominican Republic just over a week ago. A series of coastal infrastructure projects will be implemented from beaches at Clinketts in St. Lucy, Mullins to Retreat in St. Peter, Sand Street in St. Peter, Oistins in Christ Church. Not sure if the member for Christ Church South is aware, the Government is still doing for the people of Christ Church South, with or without you. But all jokes aside, look, if we don’t protect our beaches, can you imagine what will happen to those people who depend on a job in a hotel or a job in a restaurant on a beach?  All them jobs gone. Not to mention that the Government will not be collecting the taxes that will allow us to take care of the other people who ain’t working on the beach or who ain’t working near the breach.  This is vital to Barbados’ stability and development and therefore we look forward to urgent shoreline stabilisation and enhancement.

Additionally, aspects of climate change adaptation, coastal hazard mitigation and institutional strengthening of the Coastal Zone Management will be implemented as part of this programme.  

In addition, Sir, we continue at pace with getting the work off the ground with the Marine Spatial Plan over the next few years as this is needed to build true resilience and to drive sustainable development.

To augment these matters, Sir, I want us to work collaboratively with the private sector and households who can afford it. I therefore propose now that with effect from April 1, 2024, that a 50 per cent tax credit be introduced for beach rehabilitation, coral reef restoration and other marine conservation works that are approved by the Coastal Zone Management Unit.

• Comprehensive Investment Areas

Sir, across 12 areas, priority areas is what the plan also speaks to. We aim, Sir, between now and 2035, as a result of this plan alone, to be able to generate 10,000 new quality jobs and to achieve a 50 per cent reduction in the poverty rate in this country, ensuring that 100 per cent of the population also has access to primary and secondary healthcare and that we can, as I said earlier attain 100 per cent renewable energy generation. To do this, to execute all of this will require a total investment of US$14.5 billion by 2035 or to put it more clearly, just short of BDS$30 billion between now and 2035.  

Significantly, over half of this sum, amounting to US$8.7 billion or indeed, Mr. Speaker, just over BDS$17 billion is to be sourced from the private sector, creating domestic investment opportunities both at the institutional and retail levels and attracting international financiers as well given the scale.  These funds will be channelled into low carbon, nature positive and circular solutions, offering attractive financial returns and critically leading to the creation of new jobs and new sectors.  

The remaining estimated US$6 billion or BDS$12 billion will need to come from public sources, given that this relates to investment in social goods.  Over the time, Government intends to contribute about US$950 million or indeed, Mr. Speaker, BDS$1.9 billion, comprising of US$100 million, BDS$200 million from Government revenue resulting from business-as-usual GDP growth and another US$850 million or BDS$1.7 billion generated through additional GDP growth spurred by the successful implementation of the implementation plan.  

We have already started with one debt swap. We broke new ground globally with the debt swap for nature, what we call the blue bonds and we are now looking at a debt swap for climate, in order to allow us to security more cheaper and longer term public financing from domestic and international lenders which we are championing through the Bridgetown Initiative and which will be a critical part of the portion of this financing.  

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to thank the International Finance Corporation – IFC, The European Investment Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank, The Development Bank for Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) and the Rocky Mountain Institute for facilitating through secondment and other means, the necessary human resources and subject matter experts to put this country and this Government and the people of Barbados with the development and implementation of a climate investment and resilience plan that will become one that will be a model globally.

• Water Resilience

Sir, water for all. We know, Sir, that our country is among the 15 most water scarce countries. In addition, the advancing rate of climate change is exacerbating our water crisis in several challenging ways. The truth is that we have had estimated that our rain fall will continue decline and that by the end of the century, it will be about 20 per cent of what it is now. That is so frightening, Sir, that when we think that some people will have children and grandchildren living at a time when this country’s rain fall will be one fifth of what it is now.  

Adding to this complexity, Sir, is the aged pipes that we all know about. And Mr. Speaker, I have learnt that there are on average 80 burst mains a month in the Barbados Water Authority, for which the Barbados Water Authority must seek to repair. In addition to that, those burst lead to loss of money, what they call non‑revenue water. If you’re pumping a gallon and you losing it, you can’t pay for it. You can’t get anybody to pay for it. But there is also the issue of discoloured water because of the age of the pipes. And then there is, in addition to the mains, and most Bajans don’t know this, another 1,100 to 1,500 service lines that are burst on a monthly basis. Eighty mains and 1,100 to 1,500 service lines. Those are the smaller pipes going to our houses.  

Mr. Speaker, the revenue losses from non‑revenue water is too high and when you add that to the already depressed revenues from the arrears and other inefficiencies, we have a serious and daunting task. But it is not impossible.

Mr. Speaker, we have to improve the efficiency of the Water Authority’s operations, including its arrears collection. Last year, we announced an amnesty, regrettably, only a couple hundred people chose to benefit from it, but the truth is that we have to come to the reality that water will soon attract a premium across the entire world and that whether we like it or not, Bajans still enjoy some of the cheapest water rates in the entire Caribbean. There are only about three or four countries in the region that got cheaper water rates than us.

Given the challenge of supplying discoloured water in parts of the island, BWA is aggressively pursuing filtration systems of both Alleynedale and Bowmanston pumping stations. In the case of Bowmanston, the construction of redundancy water holding tanks to ensure interim supply whilst the source well settle is being undertaken. Additionally, the water authority has acquired 104 district metered areas, flow meters.  These are special meters that will improve distribution and will expand coverage of the SCADA software system, which will improve the monitoring and the remote control of pumping and distribution systems to facilitate real time decision making by the BWA. They have started the implementation of these district meters thankfully now.  

The reservoir rehabilitation started with the emergency replacement of three welded steel tanks that were on the verge of collapse at Fort George, Lodge Hill and Boscobelle. You can see the wonderful big black steel tanks if you drive around these areas, but you know what was amazing, Sir, that when they reported it to me as Minister of Finance, the member for Christ Church East at the time, those tanks could not even withstand a Category One hurricane.

The Deputy Prime Minister, when she had control, would have assisted in helping us and the member for St. Michael West Central, would both have assisted in getting the five new concrete tanks up and going and we are 75 per cent finished in terms of the construction of those.  

Castle Grant, which has already had its opening.  One of the two tanks that have gone at Apes Hill is already completed and in operation. The three tanks that remain to be completed now are: Shop Hill, a second tank at Apes Hill, and one at Rising Sun, which is critical for the people of Christ Church, because of the outages that Christ Church is having. 

I am taking the time to go through these things, Sir, because the country must know the details of what we were doing as a Government to ensure that we can get water for all no matter how daunting the task is. There is another tank that has been planned for St. Andrew that has not yet started yet.

Mr. Speaker, in addition to that, the Lodge Hill to St. Stephen’s upgrade project was finished with the installation of two tanks at St. Stephen’s Hill and at Lodge Hill.  

Mr. Speaker, in addition to all of this, the Water Authority is continuing to train and up‑skill staff and to introduce private contractors through delivery-driven arrangements to assist the Ministry of Public Works, in particular, to improve the timeliness of road reinstatements.  

Mr. Speaker, when they go and fix the pipe, we need the road fixed back. That is all I’m telling you.  You can’t dig up the new nylon roads that we are putting down, and then don’t fix them back.

So, we have worked and said that there has to be an arrangement that is not only putting pressure on MTW but also will reach out to smaller contractors and other road contractors to help us in this area.  

Mr. Speaker, at the moment, MTW can only do about four a month with all of the other stuff that it is doing. But we have about 44 a month that are done and that need fixing.

Mr. Speaker, the people of the Belle — the Member for St. Michael East needs to look at. The people of Bellevue, Mr. Speaker, you need to look at; and the people of Bailey’s Alley, the Member for St. George North needs to look at.  

I think this country owes a lot to them — especially the people in Bailey’s Alley who live next to the reservoir at Golden Ridge. And who, in spite of living next door they have to go and carry buckets to get water. The people in the Belle, I was there years ago when a previous Labour Party Government made a commitment, and I have reinforced that commitment as Prime Minister of this country.  

I am happy to report that the project that will bring relief to these three communities will start later this year. 

And Mr. Speaker, the BWA is providing for the introduction of a conventional gravity sewage system with connection to the Bridgetown Sewage network and onward to the Bridgetown Sewage Treatment Plant for the Belle Tenantry and for Bellevue Gap districts. 

The solution for Bailey Alley, however, would be to use septic tanks and waste stabilisation ponds.  

Mr. Speaker, I want to make myself clear, I have told the Barbados Water Authority that when they start these projects this year, it will not be business as usual. This is not about hiring high priced contractors who leave out the people who live in the area who have lived with this awful reality for too long. We will seek to work with contractors, tradesmen and labourers from the respective communities in resolving the problems for these three communities. We see you, we hear you and we feel you.  

The BWA, Sir, is also improving the technical capacity of its staff. The training of plumbers, which allows for the upward mobility and progression of staff, is already underway, with us having enrolled at the Samuel Jackman Prescod Institute, 40 persons to be trained in plumbing. The BWA, for all the talk, has only had 19 or 20 plumbers in recent times.

Mr. Speaker, the external training programmes also number in excess of 36 and there are also being executed involving various universities, technical colleges and online training programmes.

We are also, Mr. Speaker, I just came back from the Netherlands, with the BWA, and we are dealing and hoping to have in place shortly, a joint Cooperation Water Programme with the Dutch Government and other institutions from the Netherlands. This would allow us to tackle many of the urgent challenges facing the authority in the country that would give us technical support, knowledge sharing and capacity building in areas such as non‑revenue water, water storage and distribution, water for agriculture, ground water management, and dealing with saltwater intrusion, which is one of the regrettable consequences also of the climate crisis.

Mr. Speaker, in addition to this, I would have some time ago announced the need for a Water Conservation Programme in a previous Budget. The Barbados Water Authority will start off this year with an estimated $1.5 million to provide water saving devises to about 1,200 vulnerable groups as well high usage Government departments.

We will also give them a further $2 million for a Revolving Loan Facility for those who will not be the recipient but who still want a grant, or who want to be able to borrow money to install water saving devises in their showers, in their kitchen, and water saving toilets, Sir.

This progress will save considerable amounts of water. Indeed, I have a range that was given to me by the officials of between 37 to 67 million imperial gallons a year just for these first 1,200 devices across these three areas that I have announced.

I am appealing to every household to do right and to be able to put in those water saving toilets, water saving devices for showers and kitchen, and once the Water Authority puts the Revolving Loan Fund Programme, those of you who need, or whose cash flow is impaired, you can borrow and the Barbados Water Authority would allow you to pay back over a two or three-year period, depending or even less because some may not want that long [a repayment period].

• Household and Community Resilience Programme

Mr. Speaker, the same thing will apply to the hurricane straps. There are too few people who are putting the hurricane straps on their roofs. The Government is giving to those people below the poverty line, free of charge, but those above the poverty line who know that when you look up at your roof you got a large overhang, you in trouble. If you can make the changes and make sure that you build with [straps]— and I have asked the Ministry of Housing to have Public Service Announcements to show people how to build for a resilient Barbados. So when people are building their own new houses, they don’t go and build it according to the houses that were built in the 70s and the 80s, but they build according to what Barbados needs in this decade of the 21st Century to survive.

• Sir, the matter of desalination plants.  

The last Government, Sir, left us with two contracts for six million gallons a day each, take-or-pay. It meant, Sir, that whether you take the water or not, you got to pay.  Full stop.  

And Mr. Speaker, Sir, we told those two contractors when we came in, we could not do that.  Because the other part of it that was awful, is guess what? The Barbados Water Authority could not take the water and distribute it. So you would be paying for a commodity that you are not receiving.

And what made it worse, Sir, is that the price that they wanted to us pay and that the last Government agreed to, was $4.02 per cubic meter, a price way in excess of what this Government will pay to any of those contractors if these contracts stay.  

Now, we are conscious that the people have rights.  And we are conscious that there is only one Government regardless of who is in power. So we will have to respect that. And we have been in discussions with the contractors to be able to change the terms of the contract. I am told that the negotiations have been going well. I am told that we can have new contractual frameworks, hopefully, before the statute of limitation kicks in within two or three months, and that we can see a price that should be no more than cost, plus 15 per cent, and that would be significantly lower than the $4.02 that was being charged for one of the two plants in the north.

So, Mr. Speaker, when I tell you that this economy has been stabilised by this Government, it is largely because we have cut out a lot of that foolishness and fat that was there. And the reality is, Sir, we will need to add water to our ground water. I am satisfied that we will. But, Mr. Speaker, as we add it, it cannot be at prices and in manners that don’t make sense, and that will see us reducing the money of the Barbados Water Authority.  

Mr. Speaker, they just send and give me this document here, and I don’t even know if to read it now or to keep it for the wrap up debate. Because the Leader of the Opposition will soon find out that the party which he has now taken the responsibility of leading, when he was over here he knew it, was responsible for a “bariffle” of foolishness. I hope that Hansard can get that. A “bariffle” of foolishness.  

And Mr. Speaker, I am now being forced to lead a Government that has to clear up all this madness while the people of St. Lucy and the people of St. John and St. George dealing with brown water; and the people of St. Peter can’t get water. And Mr. Speaker, I got now to go and look at starting a new account system from April 1. I have told them to go ahead and do it and we are going to have to go back and do the audits on a separate track, because you can’t continue carrying badness into the future, and what you’re doing then is putting all the burden on the Barbados Central Government, instead of the Barbados Water Authority being able to stand on its own two feet and meet what is the largest Public Sector investment that this country has to face going forward, because all the mains we know got put down 80 to 100 and 120 years ago.  And we have replaced less than 5 per cent — 5 per cent of the mains. And you want to know why people can’t get water in this country? 

Mr. Speaker, look at it. I ain’t want to keep people in here all night, so I will deal with this later on.  This one is for you all later on. I ain’t ready for it yet.

And Mr. Speaker, I am not telling you that this Government gets everything right, but when I find out and we find out, I deal with it.  But what we have now had to deal with is the fact that that investment of $100 million — let me keep quiet. Let me keep quiet.  

• Household and Community Resilience Programme

As I said, we introduced in 2022 a Household Community Resilience Programme, and introduced a waiver of import duty and VAT for two years, starting the 1st April, 2022, to purchase and install generators at residential homes irrespective of the fuel type to help to build resilience across communities in this country.  

We recognise that much has taken place in the last two years with global supply chain issues. I, therefore, now propose that from the April 1, 2024, Sir, the waiver of import duty and VAT, on the purchase and installation of generators and transfer switches at residential homes, irrespective of the fuel type, shall be available to persons for another two years.  

And Mr. Speaker, I do this knowing that this still will not help some of the small people I talked about earlier, who will be subjected to the power outages because of the failure to be able to renew our grid and to have the stability that we need.

Mr. Speaker, last year Barbados experienced more than four months of water restrictions and the Deputy Prime Minister had to talk the country through these water restrictions between the months of May and August. They told us about the scarcity of rain.  

In order to mitigate the impact for households, I now propose, Sir, that from the April 1, 2024, that there be a waiver of VAT on the sale and installation of water tanks, septic tanks, and electrical pumps for all residential properties for the next two years.

So, Mr. Speaker, while we help the people of the Belle, and Bellevue and Bailey’s Alley, I want all of Barbados who can help themselves to be equally capable of doing so.  

And Mr. Speaker, I am investigating whether we can increase the loan amount at the Barbados Water Authority, so that the Barbados Water Authority can act as financial intermediary as well, on some of these critical things like tanks and pumps, recognising that you pay back your water bill every month, and therefore, you can agree to amortise it to stretch it out over a year, two years or three years, as I said.  But it is not a nice thing for people to wake up in the morning and don’t have water.

Not to mention the public health implication.  Mr. Speaker, I had asked and therefore I look forward to the Barbados Water Authority executing this. I said in this speech here two years but we are open to three years in terms of repayment — or one year — but there must now execute this as a matter of urgency. I am not going to tell tales out of school, but I was very disappointed that the Water Authority has taken so long to execute this programme and it is now imperative that they do it.  

I want to urge citizens strongly, Sir, to ensure that they use these initiatives for themselves first of all, as a means of protecting themselves and becoming more resilient. This will allow us to make serious progress in our goal for water for all.

Equally, Mr. Speaker, there are residential communities in Barbados that suffer every year from perennial flooding. We know them. The sky set up and you almost feel like the flooding coming in your house already. We are therefore, Mr. Speaker, apart from the work of the Ministry of Transport and Works that they are doing and they have been doing more work than probably ever to be able to redesign our drainage infrastructure fit for the climate crisis. I want to thank Mr. Daniel Best for being seconded from the Caribbean Development Bank, the former Director of Projects there has come to work with his country and Government for the next two years so that we can redesign all of the standards. You cannot use old standards to build out a modern Barbados, if not this climate crisis will eat you alive. 

Mr. Speaker, we received a submission from the General Insurance Association of Barbados, and I am not going to get in today to the biggest fear that I have of the Caribbean region becoming uninsurable and therefore by extension un-investable because already in the Northern Caribbean insurance companies are retreating from certain types of cover in the same way that they have retreated in California from underwriting fire risk and in the same way they are also retreating in Florida and Virginia Beach from underwriting certain types of risk because of the climate crisis.

But the General Insurance Association of Barbados wrote us and requested tax exceptions for home insurance premiums. We reviewed the submissions, Sir, and I now propose that as part of the household and community resilience programme, from the April 1, 2024, that I will provide a 20 per cent rebate on the assessed land tax for residential properties that suffer from perennial flooding from rainfall and associated damage, provided that they have valid home insurance with flood insurance coverage. This will help those households in those districts and those districts can be settled by the Ministry of Transport and Works in association with the General Insurance Association of Barbados.

Homeowners will be required to provide documentation verifying payment of home insurance premiums and insurance companies would need to exchange with the Barbados Revenue Authority the necessary documentation for compliance purposes. For the avoidance of doubt, MTW and the Met Office will have to verify that there has been at least one flood event during the year that triggers a claim in order for homeowners to benefit from the rebate.

Mr. Speaker, this is a very targeted intervention.  If you suffer, you get it. If you don’t suffer, you don’t get it. This is intended to help people who are in need. The cost of this household and community resilience programme we believe will roughly be $1.5 million per year but as I have said, I will also find additional money for the BWA to continue to be that financial intermediary.

Now, Mr. Speaker, you will recall that I said at the beginning of my speech that there is one area for which an adjustment must be made in terms of rates, and I turn to that now.

• National Petroleum Corporation

The Board of the National Petroleum Corporation has strongly signalled to the Government of Barbados that given that 90 per cent of natural gas is now imported, that there must be a redesign of the pricing mechanism to ensure cost recovery for our natural gas.

Barbadians can appreciate that this is likely to be a new system that will be akin to the fuel clause adjustment on your light bill because effectively you are subject to the rates at which people will charge you for the imported natural gas. I am signalling therefore, Mr. Speaker, that once the work is completed, there will be a tariff adjustment in the near future.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t believe in googlies, even though I love cricket and, therefore, I tell the public up front what is likely to happen. Fortunately for us, natural gas is perhaps one of the cheapest commodities in this country and Bajans have benefited from it. It will still be cheap, but it will be a little more expensive than you are paying now.

• Food and Nutritional Security

Mr. Speaker, without doubt, this climate crisis continues to impact Barbados in myriad ways. Last year, we talked about the severe dry season and the water restrictions.  Last year we also heard that we lost about 30,0000 chickens. In October then, we experienced violent rains leading to fields being waterlogged very quickly and causing more damage to crops and more issues with pest. In short, Mr. Speaker, 2023 from an agricultural planning and management perspective, was not a particularly good year for farmers, given the heightened uncertainty regarding climate conditions.

Access to water still remains somewhat of a challenge given the change in rainfall patterns and nevertheless, in spite of that and I want to thank the Minister of Agriculture, the sector was able to out-perform the 2022 level by 21 per cent, in spite of all of those challenges with climate crisis.  That was crop production.

Regrettably, the extreme heat in August and September 2023 led to an overall reduction in livestock production of two per cent for 2023. Yes, it could have been much worse, but we would like to see growth and we would like to see things improve there and we are working with the sector on that with livestock.  

Having said that, to enhance water solutions for the Farmers’ Empowerments and Enfranchisement Drive, otherwise known as the FEED Programme, the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation will be expanding the irrigation networks in conjunction with the Barbados Water Authority to include pump houses and distribution piping at Wakefield. I met with the farmers there — promise made, promise being delivered to you.  

Spencers, Bath and Mount Poyer in St. Lucy, where the member for St. Lucy knows that I have taken a particular interest in making sure that also comes up, in addition to the Spring Hall areas where farming takes place [are also receiving attention].

The cost of this Water works will be $4.6 million and the money will be provided to the BADMC who will contract with the Barbados Water Authority for the benefit of those farmers.

Mr. Speaker, you will be pleased to know that as part of the debt-for-climate swap currently being negotiated with the Inter‑American Development Bank, The Green Climate Fund and the European Investment Bank, the water infrastructure for food security at River in St. Philip will be one of the key climate adaptation measures. Mr. Speaker, this again, speaks to the policy coherence being exercised by this Government.  

I turn to milk.  

Mr. Speaker, over the past decade milk production has suffered badly, such that it now requires a four‑fold climate smart agricultural intervention to turn the dairy industry around, to increase milk output and exports for the following targets:

1. To achieve a 50 per cent increase in milk output and to restart exports by the end of this year, 320 climate resilient cows need to be imported.
2.  Increase feeding to optimal levels will in short term improve productivity per cow, that is the milk yield and raise milk output.

A combination of feed concentrate and highly nutritious forages on hay is needed. Feeding highly nutritious forages also reduces livestock emissions which are significant contributor to methane levels globally and Barbados has been leading the charge internationally calling for a global methane agreement because more than even Co2 emissions, global methane emissions stand to impact the temperature and by extension, all of the things we are facing.

• Implementation of stock replacement to assure 20 per cent replenishment of climate resilient heifers.  I’m reading this thing, Sir, but I really ain’t sure what a climate resilient heifer is. But, I hope somebody will tell me.

I think the Leader of the Opposition knows about sheep not cows.  At the very least I know his brother knows about sheep, being one of the largest [farmers] and I want to commend his brother for taking the interest in black belly sheep that he has taken over the years. I don’t know if it was a case of sibling jealousy or rivalry.

After consultation, Sir, we met with the dairy industry recently and at the urging of the Minister of Agriculture, I now propose the following assistance to the Dairy Industry: 

1.  An increase in the rebate on the purchase of cows from 50 per cent up to a maximum of $4,000.00 and to 80 per cent up to a maximum of $6,400.00 per cow to assist farmers with the livestock purchase.  This is likely to cost no more than a total of $2,048,000.00. 
2. A livestock emission rebate of 45 per cent on the purchase price of hay for three years. The maximum annual cost of this hay is likely to be $528,255.00.
3. An increase in the 1999 rebate that has not been increased for almost 25 years, Sir, on establishing pasture lands and that will now go from $202 per acre, to $1,000 per acre, which would allow the farmers to upgrade and maintain their pastures and reduce their dependence on purchased hay. It is expected that this will cost us annually $446,000.00.
4. A rebate of 60 per cent up to a maximum of $40,000 on forage harvesters and trailers and other harvesting equipment to assist farmers in upgrading their forage operations, reducing their costs. The estimated maximum annual cost of $200,000 for two years is what we have budgeted, Sir.
5. To offset costs and ensure farmers are able to replenish their stock on a yearly basis, a young heifer replacement incentive of $1,000 per heifer. We estimate that this will cost us $250,000 annually at most for each of four years.
6. To assist farmers in instituting and repairing their infrastructure, it is proposed that the 2006 rebate on the livestock housing, which has not been increased since 2006— That is what, 17 years? — be increased from 25 per cent up to a maximum of $60,000 to 40 per cent up to a maximum of $60,000.  The estimated annual cost for each of two years is $240,000 per year.
7. To stimulate dairy farmers to invest in upgrading their operations, to innovative and digital technologies, a rebate of 60 per cent up to a maximum of $60,000 will be offered. The estimated maximum annual cost is $240,000 per year, for each of three years.

Mr. Speaker, I hope that this will give the dairy industry strength again as we have signals that there is the potential for a serious export market again, but we do not have the supply of milk in the country. This is critical and I am happy that the Minister of Agriculture and the farmers have been able to agree, and that the Government is in a position to help stabilise their fortunes. We wish them well. 

• Managing Public Finances

Mr. Speaker, part of building Barbados’ resilience relates to the management of our public finances. You know that is what carried us down the “lost decade”. I indicated earlier that there were no new taxes being introduced but there is a major problem that we have and I want all of us to listen and understand because it is going to represent a turning point in this country’s development practices as it relates to tax concessions. 

The issue of tax expenditures, more commonly known by the average person as a concession, continues to pose challenges with respect to securing the revenue base of this country. 

Over the past four years since the introduction in September 2019 when we introduced ASYCUDA World by Customs and Excise, remember we were one of the last countries to introduce this model of ASYCUDA and it was long overdue and when it was done there was a lot of “hullabaloo”. The member for Christ Church East Central was cursed but it has worked to our advantage to put it in place. It has allowed us the ability to track the level of revenue that is being foregone in this country through the granting of concessions and it has improved significantly our ability therefore to monitor and put policies in place.

I want to let you know what we have foregone, given the concessions that we have inherited and the ones that we have added to it.

In 2020, $585 million was foregone. Remember, this was in the middle of the pandemic so the numbers there are going to be much less because there was no economic activity taking place in most of our tourism sector for more than two-thirds of the year.

Similarly, in 2021, $613 million, the country was shut down from December 31st well into April and therefore, this reflects the reduced demand.

     In 2022, you started to see the trend going back to normal, 784 million dollars in tax expenditure.

2023, 802 million dollars in tax expenditure. And already this year, in January, $61 million in tax expenditure, and in February, $64 million dollars in tax expenditures.

Mr. Speaker, this is unsustainable.  During this exercise, people have literally produced typeset memos issued by the Ministry of Finance as far as back as 1989, 1991 and 1993, as justification for why they should continue to access concessions. It has as if their economic circumstances have not changed since that time.

Sir, the Minister of Finance has therefore come to the conclusion that we must, as a matter of course, regularise the timeframe within which these concessions are granted, and to hold beneficiaries of these concessions to objective standards of outcomes as part of the strengthening, monitoring and evaluation mechanism, which ensures that the underlying policy is relevant to the times in which we live.

In consequence, Mr. Speaker, from January 1, 2025, all beneficiaries of tax concessions, rebates or other exemptions that have been issued prior to the year, the 1^st of January 2025, will have to reapply for the grant of those concessions to the Minister of Finance.

The basis upon which those concessions will be given favourable consideration, will be limited to the provisions under the various sectoral legislative provision and onset conditions, specifically that these businesses are earning foreign exchange; depositing foreign currency into the banking system to support the country’s balance of payment; creating quality local jobs and training opportunities; greening their infrastructure as far as possible; digitising business operation systems and processes in the furtherance of public policy initiatives to build resilience; and the introduction of new technology or new business ecosystems may all trigger the issuance of these concessions, Sir.

Mr. Speaker, let me repeat it. 

From January 1, 2025, all beneficiaries of tax concessions, rebates or other exemptions that have been issued prior to the year, January 1, 2005, not 2025, will have to reapply for the grant of those concessions through the Minister of Finance.  

Further, Sir, businesses with concessions issued between the January 1, 2005 and the 31st of December 2010, will be required to reapply from the January 1, 2027, whilst those issued with concessions from January 1, 2011 onwards, will be required to reapply as the current concessions expire.

As you can see, Mr. Speaker, we are not being draconian in our approach, this is a very gradual approach and we are merely nudging the business sector into conformity with new policy approaches and market realities, while ensuring that those who enjoy the benefit of concessions are making their fair contributions to the economy.

I should tell you too, Sir, that this was highlighted by us over the last 18 months, as a day we will have to face going forward. 

Further, Sir, any entity with a current concession agreement of more than 20 years, that was issued on or before January 1, 2025, those concession agreements will remain in place until they naturally expire, or if they are not compliant with the established rules.

From April 1, 2024, new investments exceeding capital expenditure of $200 million will be provided with a timeframe of 20 years to utilise the concession granted, and will be capped at an annual aggregate concession level of up to $1 million, which can be use by the applicant to apply against any impost on goods or maintenance of equipment and systems required for the operation of the specific project they choose.

Equally, from the April 1, 2024, new investments with capital expenditures of between 100 million dollars up to $200 million will be provided with a concession timeframe for 15 years, and will be capped at an annual aggregate concession level of up to $750,000, which can be used by the applicant to apply against any impost on goods, maintenance of equipment and systems required for the operation of the specific project they choose.

From April 1, 2024, new investments with capital expenditure between 50 million dollars and up to 100 million dollars will be provided with concessions for a timeframe of 10 years, and will be capped at an annual aggregate concession level of up to $500,000, which can be used by the applicant to apply against any impost on goods, maintenance of equipment and systems required for the operation of the specific project they choose. 

From the 1st April 2024, Sir, new investments with minimum capital expenditure of 25 million dollars and up to 50 million dollars, will be provided for a timeframe of 5 years, and will be capped at an annual aggregate concession level of up to $250,000, which can be used by the applicant to apply against any impost on goods, maintenance of equipment and systems required for the operation of the specific project they choose.

Mr. Speaker, all must satisfy the conditions referred to above, and will be required to signal to the Barbados Revenue Authority and the Customs and Excise Department at the beginning of every financial year, their plans for the utilisation of the agreed concession.

The Ministry of Finance, Sir, will also, for the first time in its history, establish a Monitoring and Enforcement Unit to work with the other relevant Ministries and agencies, to ensure that the public purpose for which tax concessions are being granted is adhered to. So, if you say you gine earn foreign exchange and bring it into the country, earn it and bring it.  If you say you gine create jobs, show us the jobs. If you say you have a new business ecosystem, show us the ecosystem.

Clear guidelines will be established for each sector, such that there is equity and fairness with the administration of the tax expenditure rebates and concession process across the board. 

Sir, the Monitoring and Enforcement Unit, working together with the Barbados Revenue Authority and the Customs and Excise Department, will be conducting “show me” and other audits as required, in order to ensure compliance. In every instance, and listen carefully, where there is an infraction that is clearly the fault of the beneficiary, they will be given 90 days within which to remedy the defect.

If the defect has not been remedied after the prescribed period, then I propose that from the following date, January 1, 2025, the following penalties will be introduced:

One, for the first infraction, the beneficiary of the concession will be allowed to claim a waiver of up to 75 per cent of the assigned duties, and pay 25 per cent of the prescribed duties within a period of three months.

Two, for a second infraction, the beneficiary of the concession will be allowed to claim a waiver of up to 50 per cent of the assigned duties, and pay 50 per cent of the prescribed duties, sorry, for a period of six months. 

Three, you do it a third time, then the beneficiary of the concession will be allowed to claim a waiver of only up to 25 per cent of the assigned duties, and must pay 75 per cent of the prescribed duties for a period of nine months.

And, Mr. Speaker, infraction number four, the beneficiary status will be revoked, and you will be required to pay 100 per cent of the prescribed duties for 12 months before you can apply to benefit from that concession again.

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear, these penalties will only be imposed if the entity or the individual fails to correct the defect within the initial 90 days given.  So you have been given a large, large space within which to correct it, on each occasion. So for you to get there now, it means that you’re really, really playing the fool. These measures, Sir, are not intended to deter investment, but there are designed to ensure that Barbados remains competitive, and that there continues to be a levelled playing field within sectors and across the board.

If you have not paid your National Insurance contribution for employees, nor all of your tax obligations, nor have you an up-to-date payment plan, because this Government has introduced payment plans without having to sends you to the bank, or the credit union to be able to settle your taxes, or you have not actively participated in the various surveys by Government, because if we are not collecting data, we can’t accurately record GDP. If we can’t actively record GDP, it limits what we can spend on behalf of the citizens of this country. I will tell you about that another day. 

And, if you have violated any other relevant piece of legislation, without seeking to go remedy these problems within 90 days, then you are, my friends, tempting fate.

The truth is, Sir, based on the timelines that I have shown you, it would take at least 30 months, two-and-a-half years before a concession would be revoked.  Two-and-a- half years, Sir. And for that to happen, it would clearly mean that the entity had no intention of being compliant, given the number of chances that they would have been given to fix issues before that stage is reached.

And even with the ultimate fourth infraction after a year’s penalty, they can still come back again. So the Government is being especially fair, but not just to the beneficiary of the concession, but to the people of Barbados, in whom we have a duty to protect their interest.

C. A PEOPLE CENTRED BARBADOS

Mr. Speaker, let us move to a little more comfortable area, for a people-centered Barbados. The one that more people are likely to catch on to, because, as I said, I understand a lot of these things are very dry. But I learnt from early that when things are dry and bitter, they good for you. So, I go through it. 

As we deal with a people-centered Barbados, Sir, we turn now to spotlight on our people and the policies of this Government that will result in people empowerment, people upliftment, and people improvement.

My Government, as I say all the time, sees people, hears people, and feels people. We care about people, we respond to people’s concerns and needs, and provide solutions to their problems. We may not always get it right the first time, but once brought to our attention, we try our best within our limited capacity so to do.

You will recall that I said at the beginning of this Budget that this Budget must be people-centered; that once we grow the pie, we got to also make sure that there is fairness in the distribution. The initiative and measures I have been presenting up to this point, will make a difference in the lives and the fortunes of Bajans. 

I want to turn therefore now to the areas of direct people empowerment on which Government’s major emphasise will be placed. And I want to focus on the continued economic enfranchisement of our people, as we have done in order to be able to deal with state-owned-enterprises. Indeed, Mr. Speaker, I will make sure that there is a separate document laid with an update on the SOE restructuring, separate from this speech.

Sir, I indicated at the opening that there were six issues about which Bajans had expressed concerns.

National debt, I already dealt where that; inflation and cost of living, I will give some data but I will elaborate further on this; health care at the QEH, particularly the QEH, but also the polyclinics as well.  We will address shortly.

The state of the roads, many of you have seen the work in remediation over the last what, two months? It is well under way as everybody can see, and as everybody can feel when they are being forced into detours.

Access to jobs, well, I spoke to all of these new measures and initiatives. We have been showing job creation and decent work is likely to come, and opportunities not just for young people, but as we saw, even with the digital training, there are a number of people who may have lost their jobs in their 50s, but who can still go and train and work and get decent work from them going forward. 

Sir, education reform, this will be addressed, but suffice it to say, that there will be an extension to the national consultation period on some of the more controversial components of the reform.

And I gave a commitment to consult with the Opposition and will do so once the Estimates process is finished.

The state of the Roads

Mr. Speaker, let us therefore deal firstly with the state of the roads. I made a detailed statement at the beginning of January, and I gave a commitment about expenditure, and, suffice it to say, promises made, promises kept. People can see that the work is actually started, and, as I said, we have been running double shifts now that the rains have abated for the most part, so as to help us press ahead with as much road work as possible. And, as I said, we are using concrete, we are using asphalt, and we are also looking at other types of materials and technologies, particularly for the tenantry and smaller roads that don’t have the same traffic count. 

Mr. Speaker, we will continue to find the right and most cost-effective mechanisms in order to be able to fix our roads. And, Mr. Speaker, this also includes the bridges. I think that you have heard us say in the Parish Speaks, especially the ones in the Scotland District, this country has not repaired bridges for how long? For almost 40 years.  It is unbelievable, and this Government has had to assume the responsibility of doing that which no one had done for the better part of 30 and 40 years, Sir.

But I said the task may be daunting but it is not impossible, and so long as it is not impossible as Mr. Mandela taught us, we can get it done and we shall get it done.

Thank you Deputy Prime Minister for leading this effort and the Member for St. Andrew, as we go forward. 

And I said to you, as happened this year, I may not always start off with the amount of money that you would like, but once I see my way or we see other monies coming in, you will get additional funds because we understand that what you are fixing is not just potholes from the last 4 to 5 years, but also significant roadworks that were not done for years.

And, I want to talk to my constituents, let me be MP for a minute, and not just PM, please. Because when I came in to Office, other than when Green Hill was done in 1991, nothing was done out that side for over 30‑something years. The people of Jackson, the Member for St. Thomas will tell you that we have suffered, oh, suffered, oh, suffered. And even when a road was started on her side by the Rural Development Commission, and on my side in Canewood Hill, it took this Government to come in and finish both roads after they had been stalled for more than five or six years. 

Mr. Speaker, the people who live behind them, Friendship Terrace and Lowlands, et cetera, under the Owen Arthur Administration, we put that in a programme to be done by Rayside in August of 2007, when the Democratic Labour Party Government came into Office in January 2008, it went the way of all flesh. Nothing done. And, Mr. Speaker, while I have had a few roads done, the truth is that as Leader I had to turn and help everybody else. You know they got an old time saying my mother taught me, FSB, family stand back.  But I am here to serve notice to everybody now, that the people of St. Michael North East ain’t standing back no more; nor St. Thomas, nor St. Peter, nor St. George. 

The truth is, that there were certain contingencies that never benefited under the last administration. I want to thank you, the Ministers of Public Works, who have served under this administration, for making sure that there has been an equitable distribution of roads all across. And the people of Christ Church South will continue to benefit, as they are doing now with Thornbury Hill and Oistins, as we went and walked up to two weeks ago. 

Reducing Inflation and the Cost of Living

Let us come to the issue of reducing inflation and the cost of living.  Sir, that is a sensitive issue and I am sensitive to people, but I want also to go through what this Government has done, and what the facts are too.

Apart from direct financial support to the most vulnerable families, giving salary increases to public servants, it will be three in 6 years, when they got 1 in 10 from the last Government. 

Direct cash grants or hampers, ensuring a minimum wage across the economy, ensuring workers in the hospitality sector are treated fairly, where the employer benefit from Government concessions and freezing the taxes on freight cost of December 2019, capping the VAT on the first 150 kilowatts of electricity, and creating the basket of goods for the price compact of July 2022. 

Mr. Speaker, there has been no greater evidence of us shown for the plight of Bajans than all these measures that we have taken to fight inflation, and to ensure the lowest possible prices for most Bajans, under hostile global conditions.

We will continue to support the relief of electricity bills and therefore, from April 1, 2024, until September 30, 2024, again, I propose to extend VAT reduction on electricity bills, where residential customers will pay only 10 per cent VAT on the first 250 kilowatt hours, Sir, of electricity, instead of the normal 17.5 per cent VAT. 

Equally, Sir, Government will continue to negotiate with the food sector to maintain the lowest possible prices, particularly for the basket of goods.  Shoppers needs to be discerning, as to where they choose to buy their family’s foodstuff. When we monitor the supermarkets, we show that not only is inflation lower, but prices on several food items are lower than they were 2 years ago. Mr. Speaker, I went through an exercise about six weeks ago and I go through it again and I am going to ask that this be released to the public, because when you start to look and see all of the items that have prices that are lower than July 2022, you realise that these efforts have been successful. 

Now, I am not a fool. I know that even though we have reduced the Port charges twice in a year, that there will be ways that people will find to try to boost it back up to the consumer again. And that is why I am asking Bajans to open their eyes, to look at the information we are going to put out there. We have information on all the major supermarkets – A1, Channell, Cherish, Eddies, Fair Deals, Jordans, Lionel C. Hill, Massy, People’s Mart, Popular Discount, Price Lo, Roxy, Saving Plus, Pricesmart. And, Mr. Speaker, if you can see off of this thing, I will have to print it for you, you will see that everything that is underlined in red, is where the prices are the same or lower than they were in July 2022, because of the actions that we have taken, and because of also the reduction in shipping prices and other things.

But, Mr. Speaker, I know that there are other ways to get around it, and you heard President Biden refer to it recently in the State of The Union Address.  That you may have a bag of chips and when you open it, it has in two thirds of what it used to have. Or you might buy a roti or a cutter, and when you do so and open the roti or the cutter, it got in less meat, or less fish, or less potato, or less everything.  

So that the reality is that we are living in a world that has been challenged by inflation, but the good news is, we are seeing a tapering off of it, and the good news is that a caring Government continues to support you at a time when the prices were awful, but we now see some relief.

Self-Employed Persons

Mr. Speaker, I want to speak to self‑employed persons. When it comes to National Insurance, the NIS has developed, as we promised to do, a new, easier way for self‑employed persons to participate in, and be covered by our Social Security Scheme. 

This is intended to cover all properly classified self‑employed persons in Barbados. Contributing to the scheme therefore, will now be easy. You just have to make your payments, and twice per year, the National Insurance and Social Security Service, as it is now called, will send out the information so that each one of you knows what you are covered for, and what you are entitled to, based on the payments that you made. 

So if you make $1,000 in payments, they will tell you this is what this entitles you to twice a year. If you make $500, they will tell you this is what this entitles you to. I have asked them to also show that if you were to make additional payments, these are the additional benefits you can get.

But the days of those complicated forms that would hurt your head, put that one side, and we make in as easy as going to top up your phone. And, why, Sir?  Because you learnt in the pandemic what it is not to have insurance, what is the ad? National Insurance, it is your what? Your lifeline.  A word to the wise again is sufficient.

Mr. Speaker, this will allow self‑employed persons to know their status and increase the contributions as cash flow allows them to do, so that they can get the increased benefits that they want.

We are intent on seeing all Bajan vendors, and when I say all, I mean from the coconut vendors, to the people in Swan Street, to the mechanics, to the merchandisers, to the attorneys, to the artists, everybody will now have an appropriate easy way of guaranteeing their lifeline. 

Minimum Wage

Let me address now the matter of the minimum wage, Sir. In relation to the minimum wage, in 2021, Government, for the first time, implemented in the middle of the pandemic, and many people told us we couldn’t do it and we shouldn’t do it, and we said, no, they are people who we see, feel and hear, who need this protection. Mr. Speaker, I have never been prouder of my colleagues for allowing us to have the confidence to do this.

But this year, Sir, marks 3 years after its introduction. And the Minimum Wage Board, therefore, will be required to review the rate which currently stands at $8.50 per hour, and then of course, $9.25 per hour for security officers. 

Given the rise in inflation, there is no doubt that there will be some adjustment. However, in order to protect those persons at the bottom of the pay scale, I am proposing that going forward we will index the minimum wage, thereby making provision for an annual increase in accordance with inflation, but with a full review every 5 years to be done to ensure whether the adjustment needs to be more than inflation.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Honourable Member for St. George North for continuing to press the Government on these matters. 

Persons Living with Disabilities

Similarly, Sir, let me come to the issue of persons living with disabilities. I want to thank you, the Honourable Member for St. James North at the outset now, for continuing to spearhead the efforts on behalf of the Government.  And I want to thank the former President of the Senate, the Most Honourable Ms. Kerry‑Ann Ifill as well, for continuing to do so.

This Government has been very focused on protecting those who are most vulnerable in our society and have made special efforts to conduct the widest possible set of consultations with this community of Barbadians. 

The Minister, the member for St. Michael South has been a fervent advocate, supported by the Member for St. Michael East and others in here as well, when it comes to being able to provide a decent living for people living with disability.

Mr. Speaker, we know that the Hinkson Commission will come before this Chamber, but in the interim, we want to be focused, targeted and laser like. Persons living with disabilities and their families experience severe challenges, when compared to those of us who are considered to be developing typically and normally. 

As a society, we will be judged on how we treat the most vulnerable members of the family of Bajans.  I have said so from Day One. There are currently 833 children, I don’t have the exact number of adults, I regret that, with various special needs, attending 21 educational institutions, both public and private in Barbados.

The current regulations governing the access to non-contributory old age pensions currently limit the categories of persons with disabilities to persons who are blind and to persons who are deaf mute over the age of 18.  

I propose, Sir, that from October 1, 2024, and only because it takes time for us to put the systems in place, to broaden these categories of persons living with disabilities to include the following conditions: Persons with cerebral palsy; persons with advanced multiple sclerosis, persons with autism, as well as the inclusion of minors with these conditions. 

Mr. Speaker, for the avoidance of doubt, the special needs grant for minors with these conditions will be 50 per cent of the value of the non-contributory old age pension, while the value will be 100 per cent for adults.  

Mr. Speaker, and my colleague, the Member of Christ Church East Central, the Minister in the Ministry of Finance, we have determined that this cost of $4 million a year to the taxpayer is one that must be borne by all of us.  

In addition, Sir, transportation and mobility for persons living with disabilities still pose a challenge. The National Disabilities Unit acquired two new buses, two years ago.  

Mr. Speaker, we will purchase another two buses in the coming financial year to support persons living with disabilities. And I say to you, that as resources allow, we will continue to acquire two buses annually for each of the next three years, to ensure that the Unit can completely service the community in the need of services for transport and mobility.

I want to remind you that the costs of wheelchair adapted vehicles are high and may be prohibitive for some to acquire. Let me take this opportunity to remind all Barbadians, because people have a short memory, that when we came into office in 2018, the Ministry of Finance introduced a policy that allows persons with disabilities and their families to access wheelchair adapted vehicles, free of customs duty, excise and VAT, irrespective of the fuel type. I want to remind you that, that has existed in this country for those families who need it for the last six years.  

This policy I want to tell you as well, also applies to public service vehicles who acquired wheelchair adapted vehicles for the purpose of expanding the options of public transportation for persons with disabilities. Mr. Speaker, this is the society that we must build.  

The Barbados Health Care System

Let me move now to, Sir, to the health care system. And why?  Without life, we have nothing and without wellness, we equally have nothing.  

Mr. Speaker, there has been much public discussion on the state of health care in Barbados in recent times. It is not my intension to duck the concerns and complaints being made by residents about the health care system, particularly at the QEH and A&E.  

Make no mistake, Sir, Barbados still has one of the top health care systems and top health care institutions, even with some of the challenges that we face. And everyday lives are saved in our health care institutions.  

However, it should not be forgotten that we have just come out of the worse public health crisis in over a century and that has clearly had a serious impact on our health care system as a whole. And here is what we are doing, and I want to report to you the decisions that we have made to ensure that our health care system and all of the institutions for which it is comprised can be world class.  

In the coming financial year, the focus of the Ministry of Health and Wellness will be on the following things:  

There are plans to increase the Queen Elizabeth Hospital staffing complement by almost 250 persons over the next three years. Starting from this year.  

Mr. Speaker, I want to remind us, if we had the financial health from 2018, we would have done it already. It is only because of what we have been able to do to stabilise this economy that we can now make this type of commitment, to bring on 250 people over the next three years at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.  

These staffing increases will bring operational efficiencies and will include recruiting 150 registered nurses, 20 nurse specialist or nurse practitioners, along with various Consultants, Registrars and for those who don’t know the Consultants and Registrars are doctors.  

Additional Pharmacists, Physio‑therapists, Speech‑Therapists, Social Workers, Paramedics and EMTs and other paramedical staff.  

Mr. Speaker, once completed, at the end of the three years, we expect this to cost the Queen Elizabeth Hospital an additional $17 million a year. Some of these new hires will add to those already working in Accident & Emergency, allowing the wait time for services there to decrease, and improving coverage during the three shifts in operation. 

I should say, that some of the immediate staff which will cost us $1.5million, will also be starting at the A&E in this year.  

The final phase of the Accident & Emergency Project, let us remember that had this government not built a new Accident & Emergency when we came into office, we would have faced COVID with the old Causality and would have allowed or would have had a high risk of COVID running through the hospital with severe consequences had we not taken the policy decisions that we took, Sir.  

But the final phase of the project is almost complete and the remedial work to Phase 2, I’m told, will be completed by May, within two months.  

On completion, it will be an expanded facility where the number of cubicles for patient care will be doubled. In addition, sir, this is within two months, you know, the number will be doubled.  

There will be a dedicated procedure room, a Minor Cases room, a larger Trauma Room, a Cardiac Care Unit, an X-Ray Room, and a CT Scan Room.  

In addition, Sir, the A&E staff complement will be substantially increased, as I told you, with increased numbers of Consultant Senior Registrars, Registered Nurses, Nursing Assistants, Orderlies and Departmental Aids.  

Sir, in addition, before the end of the next financial year, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital will move from seven to nine surgical theatres being fully operational. Meanwhile, plans are being put in place to repair the roof and to refurbish the Lions Eye Care Centre. This will facilitate the opening of three additional theatres which will bring them to 12.  

And it is no secret, Sir, that I have said over and over, and I believe the Minister of Health is in agreement, that we also need to open some of these theatres to private doctors because Barbados is best when we treat the provision of health care as a national public good rather than dissecting it into public and private only.  

With these theatres, Sir, and the concomitant recruitment of additional surgeons, anaesthetists and their aids, it would allow for more operating time, thus reducing the waiting time for eye surgery, gynecological surgery, and joint replacement surgeries which had started back, I believe, within the last year at the QEH, Mr. Speaker, we take a lot for granted.

Mr. Speaker, in this year we will also be setting up the Cardiac Care Unit that will provide for more immediate attention and definitive care for those who are suffering from chest pain and from heart attacks. In fact, Sir, this care will commence from the time the ambulance arrives at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, right up until the patient enters the Unit and we believe that this will increase the chances of people surviving significantly because the rate has been, as we have said in this Parliament before, there were simply too many people being negatively affected.

In addition to this, Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Finance is in deep discussions to finalise a loan for $130 million at appropriate rates of interest, for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, to replace aging equipment and to acquire important diagnostic and therapeutic equipment which will be available at that institution for the very first time. 

Specifically, an MRI machine and a Linear Accelerator will be purchased, and I’m happy that we received separate from what we are looking to borrow for the capital expenditure, we also received last month a donation of $4 million Barbados dollars towards the Linear Accelerator from a donor, one of the expatriates who visits this country and who felt that they wanted to make a contribution back to the country.

The aforementioned capital expenditure loan will be repaid with the proceeds of the National Insurance Health Levy, so that we keep it off budget, Sir, and it will help to expand and modernize the diagnostic and therapeutic capacity of that institution.  

And, Mr. Speaker, I’ve been meeting, I think I’ve been meeting with the Queen Elizabeth Hospital over the last six weeks regularly to ensure that the modernisation that we want to see comes, including its conversion into a 24/7 facility fully, and I’ve asked that those discussions with the Union start as early as April and finish within the shortest possible time because we must deliver services 24/7. There were initial discussions that went into abeyance, we are now resuming them.

Primary Health care at the Polyclinics

Mr. Speaker, there is equally renewed focus on primary health care at our polyclinics as we continue to fight against NCDs. This will be done by paying greater attention to prevention, earlier detection and screening and treatment of diseases with resulting better patient outcomes. 

Additionally, the Ministry of Health and Wellness will be shortly implementing screening protocols for colorectal cancer, while advancing work on screening protocols for breast cancers in women and prostate cancers in men.  

Mr. Speaker, I want to pause, and I want to ask Bajans to do the right thing and go for their checkups. If you catch these things early, you can survive and you can have a good life.  

Mr. Speaker, that is why the expansion of the colorectal screening is so important too, because we know we can reach a much larger population. And then be able to see those who need to go forward for colonoscopies. There are just too many people that I can think of who I know, died unnecessarily early because of an absence of paying attention to these things.  

Mr. Speaker, I said it last year with the diabetes too, and the machines. I keep forgetting the name of the machines. You all know what I mean that does the monitoring.  

But in addition, Sir, the refurbishment or expansion of polyclinics will be pursued with vigor, including the construction of two new replacement polyclinics at Randall Phillips Polyclinic and at the Eunice Gibson Polyclinic in Warrens over the next three years. Sir, neither of those two facilities is in a position to service a modern Barbados and the communities that they currently service, and they will, hopefully, be built with climate resilient features that will allow us even greater stability in a crisis.  

We are now in discussion with the Saudi Fund for Development regarding the funding of this project and I expect that we should have this completed in the near future.

In addition, however, Sir, there will be a seminal change in how we treat to our polyclinics plant. To oversee and manage the transformation of our polyclinics, we propose to establish a Board of Management for our polyclinics. This Board will have as its remit, oversight of the planned construction, refurbishment and maintenance of the physical plants and the equipment of the various polyclinics. The Board will also be responsible for pooled procurement of supplies, equipment and materials. For the avoidance of doubt, Mr. Speaker, the doctors, all the doctors, the nurses and core staff will remain in the employment of central government but will be working in facilities managed and directed and maintained by this Board.  

This will allow, Mr. Speaker, for the efficiency that we need, rather than having the complaints after both governments of this not there and that not there, and this not there. Somebody must come to work every day to manage the plant, equipment and facilities, of the polyclinic system in this country.  

We are also, Sir, committed to addressing the challenges faced by the Locums, and a word to the wise is sufficient: You should see relief coming soon.  

Special attention is also being paid to ensure that the effective functioning of the 24‑hour walk-in clinic at the Winston Scott Polyclinic is there.  

Mr. Speaker, under the last Minister of Health, the one before, the former Member for the City of Bridgetown, Lieutenant Colonel Bostic, we established these extended hours. We are now going to recruit additional staff and additional security to be assigned there and it is expected that the refurbishment and the beautician of that clinic will be completed in three week’s time.

    Mr. Speaker, we have heard a lot about the challenges of mental health and mental wellness especially post-COVID.  Work continues in the Ministry towards upgrading our mental health legislation and upgrading the Psychiatric Hospital.  I wish we could do everything all at once, sir, but we are still limited.  We will, during the course, however, of this year, roll out five mental health action plans. Suicide prevention, psychological first aid, workplace wellness, an anti‑stigma campaign and a maternal mental health campaign. I hope, Mr. Speaker, this will go in large measure to help people be able to deal with the very, very difficult but all too common issue of mental health difficulties in this country.  

The integration of mental health care into the community will continue with the transfer of more clients of the out‑patient department of the Psychiatric Hospital to the mental health clinics at the polyclinics. The plan is also to transition the out‑patient department to a day hospital with the capacity to treat acute care situations and address various mental health crises, while reducing the need for admissions where possible.

Mr. Speaker, to further continue and support the continued investment in public health and broader infrastructure in laboratory services with effect from April 1, 2024, I propose to introduce a 50 per cent tax credit for the construction of laboratories in Barbados. Without laboratories, our diagnostic capacity is severely limited.

The Underserved Professionals

Mr. Speaker, I want to turn now to three groups of professionals. There are more, but you got to do and start one foot at a time. Three groups of professionals that are central to protecting our children and our nation’s safety and well‑being, ensuring health standards, continuing the tradition of high literacy and sound education for Barbados and safety in this country. It could justifiably be argued that these three categories of professionals have not sufficiently received the recognition, and in some cases, the remuneration commensurate with the nature of their responsibility, their national service and contribution to our country’s development.  

I speak, Mr. Speaker, this year to our police officers, to our nurses and to our teachers who, in addition to the measures I now announce will benefit along with all public servants with the ongoing regrading exercise that has started and that I expect to be finish within 12 to 15 months to start negotiations then with the unions. 

Let us deal with the men and women of the Barbados Police Service, Sir.

These people have been working flat out over the last few years to stem the tide of lawlessness in Barbados and the increase especially in firearm related violence. Many of them take higher risk and levels, higher risk, sorry, and their levels of stress are there with low pay. I want to thank them again on behalf of this entire country for their hard work and dedication and indeed at the beginning of this year, I started 2024 by thanking them because our level of murders for 2023 along with the efforts of the Member for the City of Bridgetown and all of the relevant players including the ones that are fighting with him now, we want to thank all of them for their work in being able to make a difference to the quality of life of all Bajans. This is our country and we have nowhere else to run, most of us.  

For too long it has been a given that a police man will always be there to service us. We have been slow in ensuring regrettably as a country that they have been treated fairly.  Sir, I was Attorney General when we introduced the flexi‑allowance so I know, sir, and when we introduced also the compensation for those officers who died in the course of duty. And that is why when the Attorney-General spoke to me and we spoke also to the President of the Police Association, it was clear in my mind that this could not remain unresolved.  We cannot do everything at once, but we will start.

Mr. Speaker, we believe that they make the ultimate sacrifice sometimes and we have to recognise it. In our Covenant of Hope as a political party we said and subsequently as a Government that the first call on state resources is for law and order.  Citizens’ safety and security. We have done so by enhancing and improving significantly their equipment and we are working to do so with their plant as well as we go forward.  

As I said, I wish I had a bounty from day one, but we’ve had to do it bit by bit by bit. The service needs to regain its value proposition as a satisfying career opportunity for Bajans. We all remember a time when being a police officer was spoken of as something with pride and that person was so revered in the community that they were titans. Many are calling names behind me as they are known by their soubriquets whether they approach the features of a lion or all the other names that we know police officers by.

Mr. Speaker, I want therefore to propose that from the April 1, 2024, the following initiatives:

One, the ranks of Station Sergeant, Sergeant and Detective grade in the Barbados Police Service will now be included in the schedule of the public officers loan and travel allowance so that they too can benefit from interest free loans for their cars. 

Two, there has been a practice that has developed where a Constable who has been there for a long time has been called a Senior Constable but there is nothing reflected in law or elsewhere or the compensation.  That has to stop and today it shall stop. From today there will be the establishment of a post called Senior Constable to assist with more opportunities for promotions within the ranks because we have over 300 police officers who are constables with more than 20 years’ experience.

And third, Mr. Speaker, at the front line are those who do the criminal investigations. There are 164 detectives in the Barbados Police Service. We believe that they are not seen and not appropriately rewarded. Their allowances are less than even some in uniform. This must come to an end and I therefore instructed to the Ministry of Public Service, that there will be the establishment of a criminal investigation allowance to be paid to every detective irrespective of rank every month to reflect the serious nature of the work done within the police service and this allowance must be negotiated as a matter of urgency within the next few months between the Barbados Police Association and the Ministry of Public Service. I hope, Mr. Speaker, we begin to redress some of these wrongs that should have been redressed long time ago.  

I go further though; we will also ensure that our officers work and train in the best environment possible. The Attorney General came to Estimates this year and made a case for the conditions to be upgraded and as a result, the Government has agreed that it will purchase and refurbish the Geddes Grant Building on White Park Road to house the displaced officers who were previously housed all over the place in Bridgetown. They must be in one place equipped and appropriate to the conditions under which they must function given the unsociable hours that many of them are required to work.  

Mr. Speaker, this project will usher into existence also a new model of project execution, because the Government has taken a decision to establish a special purpose vehicle that will be vested with some of these underutilised properties and will be able to in its own right to engage with the financial community to repurpose them.  

We have not had a house for a Chief Justice of Barbados for almost 20 years, the property has been derelict and every month the Government is paying rent for a Chief Justice, I have said it must come to an end and the Chief Justice’s property must be built and I can’t even say refurbish because it is completely derelict, a new property must be built and while I am at it, there will be appropriate renovations to State House because our President is living in a building that was not built in a few centuries ago, not built in the last few centuries, and now requires that we may have to ask Her Excellency to move out for a period of 9‑12 months so that we can bring that building into proper repair. This is what we inherited as a Government, Mr. Speaker, but little by little by little we are going to do it and we are going to get it done.

Mr. Speaker, Sir, I announced a year ago that it is the Government’s commitment to make sure that the full establishment of the Barbados Police Service at 1,500 officers be fully utilised, and over the course of the next three years we must do so. We have had officers retiring and we understand that we will need to significantly increase the rate at which we recruit officers to overcome the numbers who are retiring, particularly since the Attorney General has been a strong advocate and a committee will be set up to look at how we deal with either early retirement or modified use of police officers who are below certain ranks, but whose physical body may not allow them the same flexibility and activity as a younger officer.

Mr. Speaker, with respect to the expanded numbers for training, we have included in the estimates this year money to construct two modern dormitories to accommodate an additional 60 individuals. These modern facilities also will be specifically for both genders because one of the problems in taking more women in the police service has been the absence of sufficient dormitory space for women in the police service. This country cannot any longer accommodate this kind of discrimination on the basis of gender in the Barbados Police Service and hence, the dormitories will be built.

It will obviously offer us greater residential training opportunities not just for Barbados’ officers, but for other officers across the region and we have also received a kind offer from the President of Guyana to allow for greater training at different specialised levels for officers in Guyana as well, given the terrain and the other things that are different.

The Nursing Profession

Let me come to the nursing profession, sir.  Nurses are the bed rock of any health care system.  Without their passion and dedication, the quality of care provided will be significantly reduced. Last year’s budget, we included nurses in the new category of the public officer loan and travel allowances scheme and the legislation is being completed to ensure that they can benefit from the POLTA.

Mr. Speaker, this is an improvement to the terms and conditions of service, and this is important given the tremendous amount of work that our nurses are doing within our communities with patients, if we are successfully to wrestle the scourge of non‑communicable diseases to the ground and if we are to have adequate coverage in our institutions.

Mr. Speaker, with respect to the nurses, we have been meeting with the Barbados Nurses Association and the nursing directorate of the public sector and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.  We have listened to you, and we have agreed to establish a national compact between the Government and the Barbados Nurses Association to recruit and retain nurses. This compact will be a formal agreement outlining the role’s responsibilities and commitments of both parties in addressing the issues and needs of the nursing profession in Barbados.  We anticipate that the compact through various incentives financial, non‑financial, professional, educational, personal development will result in more nurses wanting to remain in the health sector at home and to continue to provide quality care for their families and their people.  

Like those in the teaching profession, however, as an act of good faith before the compact, we agree now today that members of the nursing profession will also benefit from an additional six weeks’ vacation after 15 years of continuous service in the year in which they reached that or any other year thereafter that they choose. So instead of that one year getting six weeks, they get 12 weeks in that year as happens with the teaching profession.

Mr. Speaker, we’ve also heard you with respect to the uniform allowance and the fact that there have been complications in getting uniforms from some suppliers on the part of Government and therefore, after our discussions we have agreed with you that we will give nurses a uniform allowance, instead of having you wait unreasonable periods of time to be able to get your uniform. And the uniform can be the traditional ceremonial one or the scrubs that most people like to wear now.

Mr. Speaker, there are obviously other matters still to discuss and I’m sure at the end of the discussions we will announce additional terms and conditions that will redound to the benefit of nurses in this country as part of the national compact. 

The Teaching Profession 

With respect to the teaching profession, Sir, as you are aware, this Ministry of Education is now deep into discussions on national educational transformation. This country needs it if we are to go to the next level. 

Sir, it is now clear to me, that we will have to postpone for one year some of the more controversial aspects as we continue to discuss with the public and that therefore the timeline for any future departure will be September 2026 and not September 2025.

Having said that, Sir, 80 per cent of what we are doing in education is non‑controversial and therefore, teacher training and retooling, new administrative arrangements for the teaching profession, curriculum reform, the fixing of schools and the enhancement of plant will continue apace while we deal with the other critical issues of how we treat the transfer between primary and secondary school.

As it relates to the administration of the teaching profession, the long desired and waited for Teaching Service Commission will be established in this year of our Lord for the teachers of Barbados. It will be supported by a secretariat and will be established by the Ministry of Public Service to ensure that we can be more responsive to the human resource needs of teachers in this country and to ensure that teachers are better aligned in the roles that they have with the qualifications and training that they have.  

The Commission will take charge of matters related to the teaching profession to improve efficiency and effectiveness in recruitment and appointment, in disciplinary matters, in training and professional development, in awards and recognitions, in licensing and in other developmental matters including coaching and internship to improve the quality of the teaching profession. This Government already last year agreed that effective September 12024, 22 master teachers will be assigned across our schools to support teacher effectiveness and improve instructional equality.  

We said, Mr. Speaker, that teachers should not have to go into administration to get more money and that there are some who are excellent teachers and should be allowed to be master teachers in this country. Mr. Speaker, too many people have been talking about these things for years, this Government made the promise, this Government delivers on the promise.

In addition, Sir, Government will continue to augment support for special needs education in Barbados, using an inclusive education approach, increased financial resources have been allocated to ramp up diagnostic testing and screening of a thousand children per year. Expert intervention, capacity building through teacher training, assistive technologies, individual education plans must become the order of the day and increase bursaries are there for special needs learners who cannot be accommodated within the mainstream school system.

Mr. Speaker, to further aid in the provision for special needs education, with effect from April 1, 2024, I propose to introduce a 75 per cent tax credit for the provision of educational and life skills facilities for persons with special needs to encourage private sector to invest in this area.  

In addition, sir, at the other end of the spectrum, we have gifted children who are among us and who have also to be catered for. Therefore, with effect from the April 1, 2024 as well, we propose to introduce a 50 per cent tax credit for the provision of educational centres for gifted persons.  

Mr. Speaker, we know the difficulties that life can throw our way, death in a family, illness, other emergencies. People are often hiding and ducking to deal with these matters and I want to go now to the general public service, because the child in a school sports, you want to go, you got to tell somebody that you want a sick day or for whatever reason your family come in from overseas and you got a birthday, you got to tell somebody that cover for me.

This foolishness got to stop, this belongs to a public service that does not see, hear and feel people. Well, this one does see people and feel people and hear people. So that we have given instructions that from 1st June this year, every public servant will be entitled to five paid personal lieu days for the year to deal with emergent, personal, and family matters which you can then give back to the public service in either half day or one day in accordance with what you agree with your Head of Department. The days of ducking, the days of that in the public service must come to an end.

Sir, I told you and I gave you the assurance of the regrading and I say to all other public servants, when this country grows, the public servants of Barbados must benefit as well. It is significant that this Government has given three wage increases, the third one comes the 1st of April. 

Three wage increases in six years while being in an IMF Programme and confronting a pandemic and ash fall and all others that we confronted. And the last government gave you one in ten years. This government put a minimum wage, this Government turned around and appointed over 3000 public officers with more than three years, and I’m serving notice that if the arrangements are not put in place sufficiently fast for the ones who have not been appointed, that we may see Attorney-General, a repeat of that legislation in 2024 for people who have been acting in positions three years or more. This country must do better.  

Sports Opportunities for Barbadians

I want to come to the area of sports, because we don’t talk about sports sufficiently. And the one thing the pandemic did was to remind us of how much we missed sports.  

Last year we put certain initiatives in place to help the Sports Counsel deal with some of the clubs, but I want to go further today now. And Mr. Speaker, for this we are now focusing on a number of things.  Some of you may have seen that there will be motor racing returning on a regular basis. And indeed, Sir, it is because the Government of Barbados, through the National Sports Council, has entered a partnership with the Barbados Motoring Federation and Bushy Park to provide $180,000 a year to make available a significant number of days, almost every weekend, to all of the motoring clubs and motorcycle clubs in this country in order to have Barbados as a major bustling hub for motoring events in this country, and to allow us to attract people here from the region for various rallies. I expect that the first major one will be in this summer.  

But I go further, we signal the intention to work with all interested parties to make Barbados a hub for hosting Formula E racing, consistent with our commitment to the blue and green economy. That is the electric cars, and I’m told that the extension for this track for Formula E will also accommodate the quarter mile races that are now currently only held on roads but would be much more safely held in an environment that is off road like that. Mr. Speaker, these initiatives are designed to make Barbados a powerhouse again in motor sports in the Caribbean, and we are glad that we are seeing our youngsters perform internationally and do well internationally and we believe more of our youngsters can excel in these areas.

Mr. Speaker, cricket. In terms of our cricketing heritage, it is without dispute. There will be a regional encounter on cricket in Trinidad & Tobago next month, under the lead head in this area who is Prime Minister Rowley. But as I told him, cricket is part of Barbados’ DNA. I am worried about the lack of young people coming up in sufficient numbers and I know that the leader of the opposition likes cricket too. That coming up in sufficient numbers, and a lot of our young people have been, their attention have been diverted to other things: Basketball, football, all of those things, which is great, but we have a better chance of having a Bajan participate at a global level in cricket than in almost any other sport.  

As a result, the Minister of Sports, the Honourable Member of St. John came to me with a plan that will see us introducing a T‑20 block cricket initiative, which is essentially to excite interest by people who would traditionally not be playing and to see where new talent may be. This will be led by former West Indies cricket player, Courtney Browne, and we look forward to identifying opportunities for those who have the talent and who may then move on to more sustained involvement within the field.  

In addition to that, Sir, we already indicated that part of the money that we borrowed for the refurbishment of Kensington Oval, would also go to being able to introduce technology for the benefit of our cricketers. Every major cricketing nation that is excelling globally, and even the ones that are not major that are doing well, have invested in significant amounts of technology and Barbados cannot do any less because we believe that we have, not just a heritage to defend but a talent that is abounding in our bosom in this country.

The construction of the refurbished Netball Stadium into a multipurpose facility to support netball, volleyball and basketball nation-wide will be started this year, later this year with all of the planning processes having been completed and we made this commitment when I addressed the Barbados Netball Association, ironically, the opening of the season last year, and all of the planning has been done.

Football, Mr. Speaker, we will formally discuss, but we’ve started the discussions with the Barbados Football Association, for the introduction of a semi-professional football tournament, featuring 20 teams island wide from across the parishes to play for a grand prize of $100,000 and other prizes below that, offering thrilling competition and financial support for our players.  

Mr. Speaker, you must forgive me, this will be known as the Prime Minister’s Challenge, because the last two major football tournaments in this country, one was called the LIME Pelican tournament, held by somebody who I think I know well; and the other one was called the David Thompson Tournament. And therefore, rather than choose between one and the other, I just decided to call it:  The Prime Minister’s Challenge.  

It is intended that it will culminate in November around Independence, but the important point is, that every player will be paid from match one, as was done in the LIME Pelican Tournament, so that when a fella finishes playing, he still has, and the lowest pay for the introductory games will be $100 per player. And it goes up in the different — 

Mr. Speaker, to address our need for athletic training and competition, the season is on now. We will be laying two more athletic tracks in Barbados. One in the north of the island and one in St. Philip in the south.  

Mr. Speaker, while these do not replace the most desirable place, the National Stadium, they expand opportunities for our athletes. And indeed, sir, I can report that the bleachers for the grounds across the islands will arrive soon, so that these tracks, once put down, will be able to accommodate significant numbers of persons in the grounds because we have agreed to a series of multi mini‑stadia across the country.  

And Mr. Speaker, I am told as well by the Member for Christ Church West, and the Member for St. John, that the permitting processes for the National Stadium, have now been completed and we will expect that process that will bring a new National Stadium for the first time in ‑‑ the last one was built with the help of JCs in 1970 or ’71, somewhere around there. So that this is the first major investment that we will make, and we thank the Government of China for working with us on this major investment that we look that will help us.  

We should say that the very track that our youngers are running on now, the Minister of Sport would have insisted that we help, both he and the previous Minister, the Member for St. George South, that we help the University of the West Indies to be able to relay the track at the Usain Bolt Stadium. So, while others are saying that the Government are doing nothing, we have in fact invested there and will be investing in these two more tracks to the north and the south of the island.

Mr. Speaker, I want to also announce, however, a new tax credit of 50 per cent from April 1, 2024, that would be designed to boost investments in sports venues, ensuring that world class facilities for our athletes and affirming Barbados as a premium sports tourism destination and as a destination for the development of sports for our people.  

With effect also from the April 1, 2024, I propose to introduce a 50 per cent tax credit for the provision and development of entertainment and sports venues.  

Let us come home to our thing, Road Tennis.  

We are truly a creative people. No doubt about it, Sir.  We are the birthplace of the Landship and we are the birth place of Road Tennis. It gladdens our hearts and makes us proud in recent times, when we see road tennis that fellas in the communities just used to mek ‘lil sport with, now getting global acclaim, interest and players.  Japan, China, United Kingdom, United States, Rwanda, other Caribbean and European countries, all playing road tennis or viewing it on international sports channels.  

Only today another one was sent to me with people in Canada playing road tennis with young people learning to play.  

The truth is, that there is also a man by the name of Dale Clarke that has almost single‑handedly been a champion and international promoter of road tennis and I want to thank him and congratulate him for helping us in the development in this sport.  

In all fairness, Sir, I have to go beyond words because somebody who is doing this kind of work to promote an indigenous sport at an international level, deserves the support of the Government. Enough said on that for now.

I will, however, say that this Government will now, with the help and leadership of the Minister of Sports, provide facilities and funding to establish coaching certification and licensing standards for coaches, so that people can come to Barbados for training and get a global certification that should be internationally recognised. This will have three impacts to standardise the sport, to create opportunities for foreign exchange earnings by running coach training classes, and further establish Barbados as the heart of road tennis and developments relating to it.

Housing  

The Government has identified 1652.6 acres of government land and a target of 10,000 housing solutions between public and private sector in a five-year period in one of the most ambitious housing programs that this country would ever have seen.  

Our ambition exceeded national capacity and we have had some challenges, and I said, so in October and January that there were challenges that we were beginning to address, and I would address the country about it. But given the National Houses Corporation’s long waiting list of people wanting to own a piece of the rock, and the huge pent-up demand for housing that the financial institutions tell us that we have, we have had to increase capacity to deliver, rather than to scale back the programmes and accept that what we had was sufficient.  

Let me share with you honestly, Sir, what we have been confronted with, with the Home Ownership Providing Energy Project, HOPE. 

HOPE started during the pandemic with very ambitious objectives. However, with the disruption of the global supply chain, it became clear that be needed an industrial process in order to effectively deliver climate resilient homes for low income Bajans and for lower middle income. After the passage of hurricane Elsa, Cabinet took a decision along with the National Housing Corporation to engage with an East‑West company out of China, to help with the rebuilding process.  

The initial plan, when we took the decision, was for Chinese labour to do the work. However, as fate would have it, the personnel with the expertise could not get transit visas to get to Barbados. We tried to get them out of China, couldn’t get the visas. We then tried to get them out of the Gulf states. Couldn’t get the visas. And in fact, I should tell you, the same thing happened to us with the nurses out of Ghana, but we were able with the nurses out of Ghana, because of the numbers, to be able to work to charter a plane to bring them here. And ironically, some of them who came, who could not get visas from the British, were now being poached by the British to go and work as nurses in the UK. Such is life. Such is life.  

But Mr. Speaker, what it meant was that it was a longer learning curve for Bajans going into this kind of construction. And as a result, sir, we had to use labour from Barbados, teach them, get them accustomed, and what we did was to recognise that that obviously would have been more expensive than the labour coming in, who knew it, who would be more efficient in its application initially, and who clearly were working for not as expensive rates as Bajans.

Mr. Speaker, I asked, and an independent reputable Quantity Surveying firm called BCQS, conducted an assessment on behalf of the Government and the Senior Minister for infrastructure, ensured that this was done. And this independent assessment demonstrates that whilst the costs were over the original budget, over budget, they were in line with market expectations in Barbados, compared to the resources that would have been used out of China.  

In October last year and again in January this year, sir, I told you we had some difficulties and that is why I am addressing them frontally now for the country.  

The truth is, Mr. Speaker, we have also had problems, as I said, with HOPE, and therefore, the structure and the systems in there were not sufficient, and we are now in the process, we believe, of completing those systems and the employment of persons necessary, so that we can roll out an industrial scale in terms of procurement, in terms of surveying, in terms of construction, in terms of every aspect of getting a house up and running because this is not as simple as building five or ten houses when you looking to build the kinds of numbers that we want to build.

Mr. Speaker, it includes also the execution of mortgage transactions. I am sorry to say that there is a particular financial institution that was sitting down on mortgages for how long, Minister? For almost six months, with over 100 and something of them sitting down there waiting for that. 

I believe, Sir, that we are in a better position to start to ramp up now, and the truth is, why do we need to do it? These houses are for our people. The HOPE houses in particular, we have agreed that two‑thirds of them should go to public servants, the same teachers, nurses and policemen, other public servants, because custom officers, immigration officers, all of them. Once you are earning $5,500 or less outside of allowances, you should be able to benefit from a HOPE house.  

There are also a number of private sector providers who are equally promising to ramp up significantly.  

Mr. Speaker, in the last two years 1,119 houses were built and delivered to homeowners at the very minimum, Sir.  What we did in two years, we must now be doing in one year.  And, therefore, it is not beyond our reach, but we need to be able to make it happen.  

  As I said, am I happy with the performance? No, but do I believe that we are on a path that will allow us to get there? Yes. And Mr. Speaker, we believe that that joint venture programme with the private sector as well as being embarked by the Ministry of Housing, will also open another 2,561 housing solutions separate from the HOPE matters and the matters being dealt with by the traditional private sector on their own lands.

Those 2,561 housing solutions will be predominantly in St. Philip and St. Lucy and Mr. Speaker, St. George, I believe, also is not doing badly with respect to this housing. The Honourable Member for St. George South is the Minister of Housing.  

Mr. Speaker, in addition, we will have to go back to some multi‑storey buildings and I haven’t put it in here but I’m satisfied that we cannot, Barbados is land scarce, o this only on the basis of single dwellings. I like single dwellings but the truth is we can’t do it only on that, and therefore we will have to be able to go back to some of them.  

I look forward therefore to significant progress in the next year, and years going forward, in what I believe will be that housing revolution.

THE PEOPLE OF BARBADOS ARE THE GOVERNMENT’S PRIORITY

Mr. Speaker, the truth is that there is a lot of positive and transformative things happening in this country.  There is, however, a corps of people, I want you listen to me carefully, some of whom would not ordinarily be friendly with one another but all of them have their own agendas and are brought together only by a common hatred of the Barbados Labour Party and its leader.

They see nothing good in anything that we do.  The voices of these persons have been amplified by technology.  They make it their business in podcasts and marches to specialise in fake news, false facts and scare mongering. At every step, they have suggested that this Government intends, and is doing the country actual harm and Bajans have something to be afraid of.

The operatives in this coalition of convenience as I call them, said that the Emergency Powers legislation, Attorney General, that was necessary during COVID would be abused by this Government to take away people’s property and to do other nefarious acts.

According to them, Sir, the COVID vaccine was not a vaccine at all and it would stop women from getting pregnant and was going to wipe out the country’s black population. Mr. Speaker, I still seeing pregnant women ’bout the place since COVID. I don’t know what is happening or whether those women are just fat.

Mr. Speaker, they said that the Child Protection Act was a means of ousting parental control and that the IDB survey was a weapon for similar purpose in our schools. 

After last year’s budget, Mr. Speaker, they and their associates were alleging that taxes would be increased in this country and that the economy would go into near collapse. You remember all of this? Instead, Mr. Speaker, the economy has grown and no new taxes were added.  

Mr. Speaker, their most recent pronouncement is that Education Reform in their eyes is intended to produce more dunces than the country produces salt bread.

Mr. Speaker, this is what we are hearing all the time.  And don’t forget the Trident ID.  They insisted that Trident ID is to monitor people’s whereabouts, although every child knows that cell phones have GPS and location finders and every husband and wife know it too.  So, Government does not need an ID card to tell you how it is going to locate people. What foolishness is this?  

And instead of saying that the National Insurance Scheme [was in deep trouble] after the damage done by the Dems, they were insisting that we mashing up the National Insurance Scheme when far from that we restructured it, we put money back into it and we have it healthy and now playing a role to be able to help all Bajans going forward.  

Mr. Speaker, Sir, they alleged that Barbados is part of some global conspiracy and that there is religious suppression and Governmental dictatorship. Oh dear, Mr. Speaker!

Their latest thing is that the Cyber Crimes Bill is intended to silence dissenting voices, yet, they hold their online programmes, no fear, no interference.  They speak — no fear, no interference. They march without interference. Every other Saturday you see them all through from Fontabelle, right through Broad Street, turn on the Bridge, come right back around, no interference.  

Mr. Speaker, they are freely spuing their conspiracy theories and their untruths. It is utterly fascinating, you know, Sir, because although every allegation of theirs has been proven false, they keep going and going and going like the Duracell battery.  I can only assume, as I said, that they are so consumed with building a platform for themselves that they are prepared to put the country on a scaffold. 

All who have eyes and ears can listen. They can look and they can reason for themselves, as to who really has the best interest at heart of this country and of Bajans and who is using that personal platform, as I said, for promotion while really creating that scaffold. It is a serious thing.

• Bajans know who clean up the South Coast. Go and ask them.
• Bajan commuters appreciate who get them the electric buses.
• The Bajan public experiences that they have had with the improved garage collection and the fancy garbage cans that they got now, that you can tell when somebody thief it where they carry it to.
• The civil servants of this country know who gave them three salary increases in six years. While the last Government give them one in 10. And who was responsible as well for the appointments.
• The poor and the vulnerable can tell you in this country where they got the financial support and training.

They can also tell you what is the position with the trust loans, something that they get that nobody never look at them and trust them with nothing before, Not even a good word.

• Mr. Speaker, the people at the lower end will understand and tell you how much a minimum wage has made a difference in their lives.
• All the recent graduates from the University of the West Indies can tell them and go on their programme and tell them, including one that they have all the time, who needed every extra year to pass his exams and therefore needs to be able to ensure that we have free education at the University, because he ain’t do it in the three years. Mr. Speaker, Sir, if he is honest he will tell us that.
• Small business people are now getting NIS benefits for the first time and the self‑employed that I announced today. And our entrepreneurs are obtaining tangible support.
• The vendors who used to be subject to criminal penalties in this country, criminal convictions, can tell you the difference that this Government make in their lives and we are now about to roll out the vending zones, starting in Redmans Village for them and moving across the country. We don’t believe that vending should take place in a disorderly way. We want the traffic to go to them. Mr. Speaker, all of Barbados who got property, who last year benefited at the end of the budget from not having to pay a red cent in taxes on land taxes under $300,000, can tell you what a difference this Government is making in their lives.
• Mr. Speaker, Sir, all of the people who earn $25,000 and under, who are the ones benefiting from the Reverse Tax Credit, that you can only get before when you are earning $13,000 and under, this Government giving all of them $1,300 when the year come.
• Mr. Speaker, the ones earning between $25,000 and $35,000, that have not paid a cent in Income Tax, because when they pay it they get it back at the end of the year for the last 4 years. Mr. Speaker, and every other income tax pair in this country, that is what this Government is doing for you, Sir. At all levels.
• Mr. Speaker, Sir, all who benefit from the cost-of-living shielding, Mr. Speaker, Sir, all who benefit, I can go on and on, but I ain’t gine spend all night in here. Suffice it to say that the list is so long, that we will be in here for another few hours.

No, Mr. Speaker, no. They remind me of people who want to call, see something beautiful and want to insist that this is a desert and waste land. And because they say it and repeat it enough, they are like Trump, over and over and over and over. That some people will eventually say, oh, yeah that look like a wasteland in trute, don’t find that their pockets getting full and don’t mind that they benefiting in every possible way.

Mr. Speaker, suffice it to say that the public will judge some people’s foolish talk against this Government’s promise made. But promises have been kept by this Government for the most part. We have not been perfect. The Cabinet will tell you and the members of Parliament will tell you that very often, I can sometimes be very difficult and they know it. Not because I want to be, but because I believe that we have an obligation to the people of this country. And there are some people who will not be happy about everything, but if you start to find out the full story, there is usually more in the mortar than the pestle. Enough of that for now. 

Sir, we are committed to the successful delivery of all that we do, from our Climate Investment Plan and our broad policy and capital projects. We recognise that there is investment in the sustainable areas of this country and that we can do for the future of this nation many things. One of our targets is to ensure that all that we do are aligned with our resilience targets.

Mr. Speaker, as a result of our commitment to see delivery in all of these things that we have talked about, I am asking, Sir, that a task force be set up within Government to track processes and progress and to remove bottlenecks across the system. We will work with the new Growth Council to help in that area.  These measures will be implemented to ensure that we improve implementation across the public service. And I have already appointed Senior Ministers who along with the Deputy Prime Minister and the Directors General, are charged with being able to see that we remain focused on the delivery, on the oversight of the accountability. And when things go wrong, we gine tell you when they go wrong. Like how I am not happy with what happened with the housing. When things go right, I gine tell you when they go right too. Because this is not an exam. This is life.  This is real, real life, where people live, and people die and people rise and people fall. And we have to deal with the circumstances as we find it. Where people stay and people leave. All kinds of things happen.

BARBADOS ABUZZ

This is an ambitious agenda, sir, by any stretch of the imagination, even in the best of times, far less in the challenging times that we have. But I want to remind you, Sir, that Barbados now is abuzz and don’t let nobody fool you. Barbados is abuzz with activity, confidence and positive economic indicators. The Government’s agenda for transformation that move this country was Mission Critical. We went through Mission Stabilization, we going to Mission Transformation, as I told you. And look at what we have achieved as a Government, very quietly, you know. This Government undertook pension reform and reform of the NIS which is now the NISSS, very quietly.

The Child Justice and the Child Protection Legislation gone to the committees, expected back here in the Parliament, Mr. Speaker, any minute now.  

The Vending Legislation where decriminalisation happen. We change what my grandfather and others were trying to change from the 1950s, where poor people in this country get lock up for trying to sell to be able to support their children.

Mr. Speaker, the Member for St. Michael South is bringing right now to closure the conversion of the Welfare Department and the Child Care Board into a Department of Family Services Authority. That will allow us to be far more nimble and flexible to meet the needs of the vulnerable population and we are awaiting for the Poverty Assessment Survey so that we can even be more, more nimble and laser like in our support.  And I say already that in the one family initiative, the education, the health and all of those major housing needs, will be priortised in all agencies in Barbados for the most vulnerable families. Not for the most partisan alone.

No, we are awaiting the Constitutional Reform Commission, within a matter of months. The Parliamentary Reform Commission has written for an extension until early May. The Thorne Commission on local governance is there now for the Member for St. Michael South to bring without prejudice.

The reform.  And, Mr. Speaker, all this talk about dictatorship, I am the first Prime Minister to ever reduce the powers of a Prime Minister in this country.  I came to office and I had the power to appoint judges and Chief Justice without talking to a fellow other than to consult and let the Leader of the Opposition know what I was doing. I came to office in this country and had the right to appoint a Head of State, a Governor‑General, that right now abides in the House of Parliament with a two thirds majority in both houses.  The right to appoint judges now belong to a Judicial Advisory and Appointments Committee. But you hear people say this Government is full of dictators. That the Prime Minister is a dictator. But the Prime Minister is a foolish dictator, reducing powers. You got to go and learn from Donald Trump. What foolishness I hearing.

Mr. Speaker, the Honourable Attorney General has shepherded in the largest suite of anti‑corruption and integrity legislation in the history of this country or any Government.

And, Mr. Speaker, because we can’t do like Elizabeth on Bewitch and twitch a nose and make something happen overnight, people mekking noise. It takes time to create institutions. Just because you pass legislation does not mean the institution is there overnight. You have to look at the structure, you have to look at the staffing, you have to look at the salary, you have to look at who gine serve. You have to put all of that in place. You have to look at where you going to accommodate them, that is invariably the Civil Aviation Authority, the Member for St. Michael West Central, who has been doing a wonderful job, so much that I ain’t had to talk about it today. With all the airlift that he bringing to Barbados now. 

He will tell you that the Civil Aviation Authority Legislation passed in here in August 2022, and the institution, the Civil Aviation Authority, is not fully up and running yet, because I told you, that the biggest problem I have, and going sleep at night is no longer reserves, it is not debt. It is a deficiency of skills; it is lack of people, because when I look here and I look there, and I look all around like Poonka, I can’t find the people to be able to put in what we are having. So that all of those institutions, even the Anti‑Corruption Unit, is taking us longer than we would have wanted, far less the Integrity Commission.

Mr. Speaker, the reform of the environmental issues. We are now bringing the legislation to impose the civil penalties and to do [the work to get bush].  When we heard the lady in St. James, it broke my heart.  Member for St. James North you will remember, a lady who was affected because of a virus as a result of the overgrown bush just next door to her. The woman ain’t do nothing and her whole life now has been negatively affected because people don’t understand that with the privilege of ownership, comes a responsibility of action. And one of those actions is to keep your properties clean.

The Member for Christ Church West Central, and the Senior Minister for Social Sector and the Environment are working on getting the recycling programme going.  And, Mr. Speaker, we already have the work with the Marine Conservation, with the blue bonds that we issued coming.

In financing reform, the Government has led, not just locally, but internationally with the Bridgetown Initiative. There is no public forum anywhere in the last 18 months on the issue of finance that does not speak about the Bridgetown Initiative, and the reform for the international financial institutions. None, none, none. 

And, Mr. Speaker, it is not just advocacy, there are now ensuring that the World Bank will be able to give us the natural disaster clause, the debt pause clauses, so you don’t have to go and look for money to pay when you get hit by a hurricane, but you can reschedule and have those payments at the back end of the debt, so you can focus on poor people and middle class people and rich people who have been uninsured, and under insured. Because at the end of the day, there is no insurance being made available to many countries and sectors anymore.

The pandemic clauses in our blue bonds, the first country to put it in, Mr. Speaker, we have now the debt for climate swap coming on top of the debt for nature.

And, Mr. Speaker, you heard today about business Barbados, the reforming of that sector completely.  And, the Attorney General, after two national consultations last year, is now ready to bring to this Parliament, very shortly, all of the legislation for the criminal justice reform, changing centuries of criminal justice practice in this country.

Mr. Speaker, these areas of reform and heightened delivery by this Government, and implementation, will benefit the people of this nation. A plethora of regional and international meetings. When I tell you Barbados is abuzz, let me tell you, next month for the first time the InterAmerican Court of Human Rights will have a public hearing in Barbados, in April.

In May, the IDB will host their knowledge week here. In May as well, UNCTAD which we are President of, will have the first ever Global Supply Chains Forum.  What has been the biggest concern of countries across the world since COVID and after the Ukraine War and the Gaza war?  It is supply chain. And we are there meeting to resolve them in Barbados. And who is coming? Almost every head of international agency that has the critical role from UNCTAD to UNIDO to ILO, to all over.

Mr. Speaker, we will also be reconnecting with our roots in Liberia. Many people do not know that the first Bajan to be a President in this world was not in Bridgetown, was not in Barbados, it was in Liberia.  And we have set up, and I want to thanks Senator John King who has been leading this effort for us with the people out of Nigeria, and we will be reclaiming our Atlantic destiny with a Liberian Pilgrimage coming to Barbados in May, with over 300 and something people coming. 

Mr. Speaker, in May as well, we will have the 11th Competent Authority Conference of the Global Forum on Transparency and the Exchange of Information for Tax in this country.

Mr. Speaker, we will also have, later this year, the IMF Caribbean Conference.

We will also have the Regional Security Systems CARIB Asset Sharing Forum in July; Sustainable Energy For All Global conference. Mr. Speaker, I can go on and on.

The Global Citizens Forum, Caribbean Digital Summit in November, and, Mr. Speaker, I ain’t touch World Cup Cricket, where we will host the third most popular sporting event in the world. And where are the finals? Barbados. Where is the media centre?  Barbados.  Where are the English, the Australians, the Scottish and all of them hosting? Barbados. And before you get to them, we now have the World Bodybuilding Federation event, under the distinguished leadership of Mr. Roger Boyce, who has been hosting these amateur competitions every year in this country for the body builders.  People forget that Barbados was a global leader in bodybuilding with Darcy Beckles and all the other people.

And, Mr. Speaker, you could imagine coming out this year, and from January 1, we will chair CARICOM again, and next year August, we will have CARIFESTA, and next year, for the entire year, Sir, we will be Gathering.

But, Mr. Speaker, I say to you, what does all this mean?  Supermarkets, full. Restaurants, full. Places of entertainment, full. Rum shops and cook shops, full.  Business places, full. Hair and nail salons, full. Barbershops, full. Shows and fetes, full.  Sporting events, full. Airplanes and air lift, full.  Cruises, full.

Mr. Speaker, the only events in Barbados that will be scanty in the next 18 months and poorly attended will be the Democratic Labour Party meetings those of the coalition.

And, Mr. Speaker, the problem that you gine have, like yesterday, you don’t know whether to go left or to go right. You don’t know whether to go with RA or RO, you don’t know how RO, la, la, la, la, la RO, RO, RA, RO, RA, RO, RA. You don’t know how, you don’t know where to go.

This is a wonderful country, Sir. A wonderful country.  We allow everybody to display, even if the ambition that they have carries them right to the bottom of a grave.

Mr. Speaker, I say to you that we are a country abuzz, and we are a country ready to keep moving.  Barbados is moving upward and onward. 

I close tonight as I began this afternoon, this Budget is about securing our nation today, and for the future. This Budget is about every Bajan’s dreams, making a better life for their children and their family, Sir; of increasing their income and improving their quality of life. I want to offer this Budget to this country, Sir, it is wide-ranging, it is long, but it is necessary, because we want to grow at a faster rate than we have been doing. And we want to share the pie better. But in doing all of this, we must keep resilient.

And whether it is the people living in Salmons, St. Lucy, or the people in St. Catherine’s in St. Philip, or the people in Belleplaine in St. Andrew, or Baywoods in St. James, or in Haynesville or Bush Hall, home by me, or The Pine or The Orleans, or Wotton or Gall Hill, I say to every community in Barbados, to every worker whether private or public sector, this is our country and we need you to step up to the plate, and to dig deeper and to do more.

I believe, Sir, the Government which I have the honour to lead, will give you our best. And I ask you as well as citizens of this nation, to give our best to this country, so that together we can rise to new levels of social, economic and environmental security and prosperity.

     This is what today’s conversation has been about Sir. Not about tax increases, not about arithmetic formulas, not about monetary or fiscal policy that is now solid and stable in this country unlike when it was under the Democratic Labour Party. Not immersed only in the technical language of finance but balancing what is needed there with what needed to be people-centered. Mr. Speaker, it is about talking to you as a Bajan, in everyday language. 

      It is about empowering and creating sustained wellbeing for every Bajan and every family and harnessing the sense of confidence and hope and a willingness to work harder to achieve our goals. That is the Bajan way. That is who we are. It is about the confidence that today can be brighter for all of us than yesterday was and that we must work together however, to make it even brighter tomorrow for all of our children. 

        Mr. Speaker, I can only use the language of my good friend and that social griot, I wish I could perform like him but when he holds up and he tells you Blue, Yellow and Black put it up, Mr. Speaker, we simply say to Barbados, this is our country. We love you. We are proud of you and in spite of all of the challenges, we know that we can summon from within ourselves to work together and chart a new path for our children, for our elders, for all of our people. May God bless this country Sir. May the hand of God guide and may almighty God prosper Barbados and prosper all Barbadians.

I am obliged to you, Mr. Speaker, Sir.