RUNAWAY BAY, St Ann – The Peoples National Party (PNP) is warning government against including new tax measures in its supplementary budget, which the party says will cause undue burden on more Jamaicans.

Opposition leader, Portia Simpson Miller, said the PNP will remain unwavering in its stance to ensure that measures which will be implemented will not affect Jamaicans whom she said were already overburdened and struggling to survive.

Finance and the Public Service minister, Audley Shaw, presented to Parliament the estimates for the supplementary budget last week which showed government will have to find $6 billion more in revenues to meet its fiscal target for the financial year which ends March 31, 2010.

Simpson Miller said that signals sent by Prime Minister Bruce Golding since June regarding cuts in government spending were misleading and confusing since the budget will now be increased by $6 billion.

“Someone needs to tell me and the country how a 20 per cent cut results in a $6-billion increase,” Simpson Miller said. “The government came and told us they were going to subtract but they presented us with something larger . to make matters worse we have not heard how this additional $6 billion expenditure is to be funded.”

“I am warning the Government though, that whatever they come to Parliament with and whatever the prime minister is going to announce, I want to warn him, do not allow any more punishment on the backs of the middle class, no more on the backs of the working class, the unemployed, senior seniors or pensioners.

“No more on the backs of those who are suffering and struggling on a daily basis for survival of their families and themselves. we are sending a signal and a message to this government, don’t come with it, no way,” she warned.

Simpson Miller said that she is worried about the financial direction that the country is heading, describing the budget as an overinflated balloon and said the country is on course of recording the worst fiscal deficits ever.

She said that the PNP will be demanding answers from Government when members of the Opposition attend the financial committee meeting Tuesday. She said that the Opposition had an obligation to the society to ensure that their constitutional rights are protected.

“We are going to the finance committee meeting on Tuesday to get answers, we are going to be asking questions because we need answers on behalf of the Jamaican people. you will be hearing all of us and they better have answers and ‘the driva’ better take charge of the steering wheel,” she said.

“If we are going to have to go through until Wednesday morning for the debate, we are going to go through, but the opposition is going to carry out the work on behalf of this nation.”

Simpson Miller, meanwhile, denied that her comments last week, at the party conference at the National Arena, regarding the delays in talks with the International Money Fund( IMF) were mischievous.

She chided the Government for not communicating fully with the Opposition regarding talks with the IMF and said that the PNP had information which if made public, could create mayhem.

“We have information that if we should talk. they not even talking to us, when they do call the Opposition, is when they are going to make some announcement and know it can create a problem so they call the opposition to lump us into it.”

Simpson Miller also another took another swipe at the Government and the size of the Cabinet, calling on Golding to reduce its size as well as travelling by government ministers.

The opposition leader was addressing members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) at a meeting here yesterday where she said committee members will be held accountable for their functions in the party.

She said that the PNP was now united and strong but told NEC members that they needed to be more effective in carrying out their respective duties. She said that a task force would be established to ensure preparation at the divisional and constituency level.

Robert Pickersgill was returned unopposed as party chairman and Anthony Hylton as vice chairman. Senator Basil Waite, Raymond Pryce and Denise Daley were also elected to the executive. Other members include Dr Omar Davies, Wykham McNeil, Eugine Kelly, Aloun Assamba, Doreen Evans, Collin Fagan, Karlene Fenton and Richard Parchment.