A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Presidential Candidate Brigadier David Granger has issued an urgent call for the establishment of a tripartite budget committee.
The call comes before the convening of the 10th Parliament, expected to take place before the end of this month. Mr. Granger has suggested that the proposed tripartite budget committee be convened as early as possible to oversee preparation of the budget (and subsequent budgets).
According to a statement yesterday from APNU, this committee will, among other things: collaborate with the Bank of Guyana, Statistical Bureau and other departments in presenting an accurate and detailed picture of the economy; identify all sources of funds and examine potential sources of new funds;  propose tax reform measures, including the lowering of VAT and personal income tax, with their likely impact on revenue and economic growth;  propose the inclusion of programmes and projects consistent with public needs identified during the elections (e.g., a job-creation, community-renewal, improved education and poverty-alleviation programmes); and examine all categories of expenditure and recommend areas where expenditure could be adjusted, foregone, revised, reviewed, renewed or removed.
The country’s 2012 Budget must be presented to the National Assembly no later than 30th March 2012 and must be passed no later than 29th April.
Based on the declared results of the November 28 general and regional elections, however, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic administration was allocated 32 seats and the combined opposition – A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change parties – 33 seats, in the National Assembly.
Mr. Granger said that, in light of the allocation of seats, it would be inadvisable for the PPP/C administration to proceed to prepare a budget to be brought before the National Assembly without prior consultation with the opposition APNU and AFC.
Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh, in an invited comment to the Chronicle earlier this month, said that preparatory work for the 2012 national budget has already commenced, but declined to comment further.

“I would not want to pronounce definitely on this,” he said.

Singh stated that now that the new Cabinet headed by President Donald Ramotar has been sworn in, the priority, in crafting the budget, is for the Cabinet to meet and map how to proceed.

The Finance Minister explained that the new ministers will be allowed to settle in with portfolios before any pronouncements on the budget can be made.

“The technical work continues in the meantime and the preparatory work that goes into the budget will go on line with the budget cycle,” Singh said.

According to him, consultations are a must, stressing that consultations have always figured significantly in the crafting of the document.    

He stressed that contrary to some reports, there have always been consultations on the budget.

“We have now a far more advanced form of consultation, one that involved as permanent structures key stakeholders who make their contributions…we have mechanisms in place to ensure ongoing engagement,” Dr. Singh said.

The 2011 national budget was the largest budget under the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) administration, totalling some $161.4B, which was presented under the theme ‘Together – Building Tomorrow’s Guyana – Today’.