A $3.4 billion net increase in the 2004/2005 budget, driven mainly by internal guaranteed loan payments and funding for Hurricane Ivan relief efforts, was yesterday tabled by the Government in the House of Representatives, pushing the revised estimates to approximately $331 billion.

The additional spending for loan repayments accounted for $4.7 billion, while that for Hurricane Ivan was $1 billion.

The revised estimates also contained about $1 billion to cover payments due on deferred financing agreements with private contractors, $800 million for street lighting and garbage collection under the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development, and $700 million more for pension payments.

But, there were deep cuts in several ministries, including Education and Health to accommodate the increased spending. The social safety net programme PATH (Programme of Advancement through Health and Education) was trimmed by $101 million, which is likely to be a major issue when the House meets to debate the estimates next week.

According to the figures contained in the First Supplementary Estimates for 2004/2005, which were tabled by Minister of Finance and Planning Omar Davies, it is proposed that recurrent expenditures (payment of salaries, etcetera) will go up by $4.3 billion and capital expenditure (new projects) by $3.2 billion, a gross total of $7.5 billion.

However, statutory cuts, appropriations-in-aid, under expenditure and transferred items reduced the total figure to a net of $3.394 billion, including $2.4 billion in recurrent spending and $1.3 billion in capital programmes.

The estimates are to be reviewed by the Standing Finance Committee of the House of Representatives, which is comprised of all Members of Parliament (MPs), on Tuesday morning at is expected to be passed when the House meets the same day at 2:00 pm. More details of the cuts and increases will be then be given by the finance minister.

Most outstanding in the estimates was the fact that under contingent payments, in the Ministry of Finance and Planning, an additional $4.69 billion has been provided, as additional requirements, due to higher than projected contingent liabilities on internal guaranteed loans.

This allocation was increased from the $3 billion assigned in the original estimates approved in Parliament last April, to $7.69 billion in the revised estimates.

Approximately $1 billion have been set aside to meet payments to contractors who have carried out work for the Ministry of Transport and Works, mainly road work, under its deferred financing programme, in which the contractors obtain financing upfront which is repaid by the Government.

The Hurricane Ivan relief programme was granted nearly a billion more, including $300 million through the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and some $500 million through the Ministry of Transport and Works.

In the Ministry of Local Government, an additional $415 million was allocated to street lighting, bringing the total for the year to $915 million, and $421.6 million for public cleansing and garbage disposal mainly to cover salaries, travel and other operating expenses.

The Cabinet Office spent $27.4 million on establishing the ONR to spearhead and anchor the post-Ivan recovery effort. Hurricane relief figures included $300 million in the Ministry of Finance for some 100,000 victims of Ivan; $43 million as additional requirement for the relocation of hurricane victims in Portland Cottage, Clarendon; $500 million in the Ministry of Transport and Works for clearing and rehabilitation of roads; and $20 million rehabilitation efforts in the Ministry of Agriculture; and $100 million more for the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) to help refurbish damaged schools.

There was $373 million more public sector pensions, as well $190 million for teachers’ pension and $145 million for police pension.

Just under $135 million was allocated for the 150 new SUVs for the police and $99 million is being spent on the troubled Horizon Remand Centre in West Kingston.

Over $80 million more is being spent on overseas missions, including $11.6 million on the Jamaican High Commission in London, $8.7 million on the mission to the EU in Brussels, $12 million on the embassy in Japan and $12 million on the embassy in Washington DC. The Ministry of Education got $280.7 million to cover the purchase of secondary schools textbooks, but there were several cuts including $50 million from the school feeding programme.

There were also several cuts in the Child Development Agency’s budget, totalling $56.6 million, affecting delivery of children and family programmes and grants to private homes and foster parents.