PORT OF SPAIN – Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, the Honourable Patrick Manning, presented a $42.2 Billion dollar budget to the people of Trinidad and Tobago for the fiscal year 2008, themed: “Vision 2020- Determined to reach our Goal”.
In his presentation on August 20, 2007, the Prime Minister highlighted the main priorities set by Government for the fiscal year, which included:
to continue efforts to combat crime and to provide a higher level of security for all citizens; to deepen and accelerate the ongoing education reform by upgrading and modernizing and expanding the system of primary and secondary schools, and expand the web of training opportunities; to continue to uplift the living standards of senior citizens, public service pensioners, the physically challenged and all those who face social exclusion; and to enhance capacity and improve service delivery in the health sector.
Some of the measures also proposed by the Prime Minister included: increases in public assistance and disability grants, as well as grants to senior citizens; a one-time payment to retired public servants to cover the months of October, November and December, given that the new National Insurance System (NIS) payment starts in January 2008; an increase in deductible claims for pensions and annuities; compensation for victims of uninsured drivers; relief of customs and motor vehicle tax for nationals returning after two years or more abroad, and an increase in the minimum wage.
Prime Minister Manning said “the Budget for fiscal year 2008 is couched in the context of a longer term plan, which represents another phase in our journey towards Vision 2020.”
Vision 2020, he said, “acknowledges that Trinidad and Tobago is in a situation of unprecedented opportunity and challenge, and recognizes, however, that economic prosperity does not depend solely on physical endowments or proximity to markets, but that it incorporates the nurturing of a caring society; it envisages that the foundation of our society is based on the creation of strong families with high moral and ethical values; that all our citizens have access to adequate and affordable housing and first class health care that enable them to live healthy lifestyles; and that we put in place new systems to support the most vulnerable in our society.”
