P.M. campaign promise of lower cost of living a failure

Prime Minister Dean Barrow’s 2008 election campaign strategy focused heavily on a commitment to bring the cost of living down No Matta Wat. One year later in the House of Representatives on March sixth Prime Minister Barrow proposed a fuel tax of one dollar on fuel. He said it would keep gasoline at or below seven dollars and it would also keep diesel at or below six dollars per gallon. So has the Prime Minister’s promise of lower fuel prices been kept? We did a quick analysis of fuel prices from the beginning of 2009 and have graded G.O.B’s report card. Premium gas at the pump started at four dollars and eighty five cents per gallon at the beginning of the year and currently stands at eight dollars and eighty nine cents, an increase of four dollars and four cents. So premium is currently one dollar and eighty nine cents above the P.M.’s threshold. Regular fuel didn’t fare so well either. It started at four dollars and fifty five cents at the beginning of 2009 and currently stands at eight dollars and fifty nine cents, an increase of four dollars and four cents. So regular is one dollar and fifty nine cents above the P.M’s threshold. Diesel started the year at six dollars and thirteen cents and currently stands at seven dollars and fifty six cents, an increase of one dollar and forty three cents. The P.M. set a mark of six dollars, so that means that diesel is one dollar and fifty six cents above the P.M.’s threshold. The only fuel that didn’t increase by much is Kerosene. At the beginning of the year, kerosene cost five dollars and ninety seven cents a gallon and currently stands at five dollars and ninety nine cents, an increase of two cents. As for cooking gas, it has not fared. Since February to September of 2009, the price of a hundred pound cylinder of butane fluctuated with several decreases and increases in price. The price varied around the country, but currently range from one hundred dollars as is the case in Belize City to one hundred and five dollars as is the case in Punta Gorda. The analysis shows a whopping increase of fourteen dollars since February. Since the cost of all fuel has risen sharply, we give the P.M. a D on his promise to bring the cost of living down fuel down No Matta Wat.