PM: New Budget Brings Relief to Most Vulnerable

John Briceño

In his press statement on Monday, Prime Minister John Briceño indicated that following his recent meeting with the I.M.F., Cabinet made some pragmatic decisions regarding the new National Budget. The PM said that the most vulnerable people will be included in a social policy agenda that will seek to also expand the National Health Insurance.

Prime Minister John Briceño (PM National Address)

“While the I.M.F. hailed our impressive economic performance, they cautioned that economically, we’re not out of the woods yet. Therefore, the Cabinet approved a budget that is prudent and pragmatic. We will emphasize an ambitious social policy agenda which centers on bringing relief to the more vulnerable among us, expanding the N.H.I. program, while continuing to rebuild the Belizean economy in partnership with the private sector, the unions, and non-governmental actors. We received a detailed report from the ministerial team which met with the joint unions. Significant progress was made in these discussions towards finding a path to restoring benefits for public officers and teachers. After careful deliberation, Cabinet has settled our position on these matters and we will inform the unions of the elements of that position which includes much-needed pension reform. More importantly, we believe we have found a workable compromise which includes restoring the full ten percent to public officers and teachers.”