Minister of Finance and the Public Service Dr Nigel Clarke is scheduled to table the Second Supplementary Estimates for 2021/22 when the House of Representatives resumes sitting today.

The resumption follows an over-three-week-long break, the customary Christmas recess for parliamentarians.

Late September 2021, Dr Clarke had presented his plan to fund the expenditure budget of $830.78 billion from the 2021/22 revenue estimates, which were projected at $807.32 billion. However, reiterating his declaration that there will be no new taxes to fund the shortfalls, he showed a preference to make use of the fiscal space provided by a one-off dividend of $33 billion produced by the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ).

Dr Clarke conceded that there was a crippling impact on the Jamaican economy from the novel coronavirus pandemic, and took note of the Planning Institute of Jamaica’s expectations that the economy would contract by 12 per cent in 2020/21, aided by a 70 per cent contraction in tourism.

However, despite a projected $70-billion decline in revenues for 2021/22, due to the economic fallout, he insisted that it would not have been timely to burden the economy with any more taxes. The total expenditure was expected to increase by $33 billion, while total revenues moved up by $33.5 billion for the full fiscal year.

The expenditure increase of $33 billion included increases to current non-debt expenditure of $27.5 billion and interest payment expenditure of $5.5 billion, with capital expenditure unchanged from the approved budget figure of $54 billion.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness is expected to be among the main beneficiaries of the supplementary funding. However, Prime Minister Andrew Holness has indicated that despite the threats from the pandemic, economic recovery will be his Government’s priority going forward, with agriculture and industry as well employment producers like construction and tourism expected to continue to lead the path to recovery.

Tomorrow, Dr Clarke will be called upon to give details of his planned spending for the rest of 2021/22 to the House’s most important committee, the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee, which remains the watchdog for administration and spending of government revenues.

Debate on the estimates will take place on Thursday in the House of Representatives, after the review is completed, and a report from the committee sent to the House’s Standing Finance Committee for approval.