KINGSTON, Jamaica – Finance Minister Fayval Williams confirmed late Wednesday that new tax measures will form part of Jamaica’s upcoming budget, as the government moves to close a widening fiscal gap after Hurricane Melissa inflicted damage equivalent to about 41 per cent of gross domestic product.

In a statement, Williams said the hurricane caused an estimated US$8.8 billion in damage, sharply increasing reconstruction and public service demands while reducing government revenues as economic activity slowed in several sectors.

The comments come ahead of the tabling of the national budget on Thursday, with the government seeking to balance post-disaster recovery with its long-standing commitment to fiscal discipline. Independent analysts have said the scale of the fiscal shock makes new taxes a realistic prospect after nearly a decade without them.

Williams said the resulting fiscal gap could not be ignored and that the government would take “measured steps” to address it, confirming that new tax measures would be necessary as part of the budget response.

“We could choose to finance the entire deficit through borrowing,” Williams said, “but we have lived through the debt trap before.”

She referred to decades of high debt, heavy interest payments and limited fiscal space, adding that the government would not reverse the fiscal progress achieved in recent years.

“We will not recklessly undo that progress,” Williams said.

Borrowing would still play a role, she said, but only in a strategic and targeted manner, directed toward capital investments such as infrastructure, agriculture, logistics and digital systems that expand productive capacity and strengthen economic resilience.

READ: NEW TAXES AHEAD

“As far as possible, recurrent expenses must be financed by taxation revenue,” Williams said, drawing a clear distinction between day-to-day spending and borrowing for growth-enhancing investment.

She also sought to reassure households and businesses that equity would guide the design of the tax measures, saying the government was reviewing anomalies in the tax system to ensure the burden was shared fairly and that vulnerable groups would be protected.

Jamaica has spent more than a decade restoring fiscal credibility through debt reduction and sustained primary surpluses following repeated economic crises. Williams said that discipline would be maintained even as the country confronts one of the largest natural disaster shocks in its history.

She framed the budget as a decision point for long-term stewardship, saying the choices made now would determine whether future generations inherit an economy weighed down by unsustainable debt or one strengthened by resilience and opportunity.