CABINET NOTES: The 2024 budget calls for XCD1.2 billion in expenditure; the Ministry of Finance team reported that XCD755 million in revenues have been collected for the first nine months of the year.
Property taxes fell behind expectation, although other major revenue sources like the Customs and Excise Division are performing well.
The Cabinet invited a team from the Ministry of Finance, which included the Junior Minister, Financial Secretary, Debt Manager, Deputy Accountant General and the Deputy of the Inland Revenue Department to discuss the health of government-owned agencies.
26 Government agencies were identified; 9 of those with recently audited financial statements were examined for profitability and liquidity.
The end result of this exercise led to the conclusion that the sample showed mildly healthy agencies that required reasonably small assistance from the central government.
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I wish the state had shares in some of the hotels. Locals will be rich.
Imagine if the state make it mandatory to buy at least 25% of goods locally.
What if we start to broadcast our local sports and sell rights to air these games to overseas channel no matter how low for now the offers are in comparison to the $0 we make for them now
Imagine how better off it would be if the government borrow money from locals with the same interest rate or lower but close to the rate they borrow overseas and truly guarantee and in fact payback locals timely
Imagine if governments encouraged and supports endeavors by Antiguans who are able to tap into billions, sorry, trillions of US dollars, lawfully, from crime and terrorism funds to assist victims and protect against victimization
Imagine if agencies/ministries like finance, national security, tourism, utilities, etcetera are headed by those with advance degree of knowledge in that field and connected fields
Imagine if some of the high positions in the government were filled by locals (getting those pay to stay and circulate more on island, etcetera)
Imagine if the government invest more into shipping goods/produce overseas
Imagine if you have an independent law enforcement agency that scrutinize and investigate how politicians are making millions in office, using government information to do so, taking governments money, abusing their positioned, giving their children substantial money and assets unlawfully acquired, etcetera.
Imagine if Antigua and Barbuda work more with the US to weed out corruption
Imagine if one politician is investigated, charged, convicted and sentence to prison time for abuse of power, misappropriation, bribery, and corruption. It is a guarantee this is happening in a small and unmonitored setting like Antigua and Barbuda since it happens in the best country with the best agencies implemented to stop these things.
And still no benefits
My Way of Helping living in fantasy world again.
Imagine if My Way of Helping gets the help he so desperately needs… Imagine that…
Communism Failed!! Stop enslaving yourself to the government.
Imagine if we allow our government to run the everyday lives of our people. How well does the strongest country in the world do when the government isnt in competition. Government cannot and will not ever run anything efficiently. How does it hire and fire people who ultimately vote for them. Would you ever let Pussy watch milk!!!
@Tenman, the help I desperately need is for the people of Antigua to get the help they desperately need.
@James Brown, I agree with you. It is why I believe the government should own shares in hotels that are privately or publicly traded.
There is a lot of money in tourism in which the people should benefit. Maybe instead it can be mandatory that hotels entering the island must sell a certain percent of shares to the Antigua public.
I want to own a percentage of sandals as an Antiguan and Barbudan, and other local hotels. Start giving locals opportunities within the biggest sector in the United Islands of Antigua and Barbuda.
It is time to try creative local wealth building. It must be mandatory for hotels to offer locals at least 5 or 10% ownership to enter into business locally (for hotels).
It is time the government borrow money locally and pay the same high interest to locals it would have paid overseas.
Make our locals wealthy.
@My way of helping, the only way politicians can make millions on a government salary is corruption and stealing.
I agree with your what if,that unless one of these politicians is investigated, brought up on charges and jailed, the nepotism, corruption and skulduggery with taxpayers money will never stop.
Politicians in other countries have been jailed for a whole lot less than what they get away with here.
How do we explain the billions of dollars collected in the last 10 years and we can’t get water,the roads are deplorable, electricity and internet are unreliable yet costly and politicians are building mansions, involved in all kinds of business with government and raping the country. Nothing is ever transparent, just clouded in all kinds of lies and mystery .
@Watching@
Thanks and completely agree.
@my way of helping
i think this is called state welfare is what your asking for … as good as your intentions i think this only leads to more dependance on government and ultimately people will always vote for the hand who feeds them and not who will do the best for the country. We are a meritocracy or we should be, the best people get the best jobs … if you don’t get the best then its probably the person that needs to reform themselves and not blame everyone else for why they are in the position they are in. If i take my money and want to open a hotel or guest house i should have to give part of my company away … No way man! that is money i made and i should be able to handle my success and failures.
“I wish the state had shares in some of the hotels.”
Let the government run the Sahara and in 3 years, they will import sand! The bureaucracy can not run the hotels nor anything else that works. The already tax companies/salaries big time and in exchange, they fix the roads. LOL!
We are pretty good at criticising this administration. We are not so good at presenting suggestions that may work. We also have many organization’s at the community level. So yes we just keep on running our mouths in an extremely disorganised fashion and hope to achieve the results that we want individually. It’s never ever going to work like that. Congratulations to PM Browne and his team for making a Herculean effort to making significant improvements.
@My way of helping, which one of the above posters is the Tinman? What the coward has changed his moniker?
Look,I don’t get this. If Badu is bragging about these “record” revenues, why the hell can’t they pay the port loan?
There are numerous dirty dealings and skulduggery going on in this country over self-enrichment that a forensic investigation is needed to uncover. Too much money running loose in Antigua and Barbuda for this to be happening.
This ALP, Gaston Browne led government is just infamous for disappearing grant money. Boys Training School, Fines,ABICE, the Barbuda Irma relief money, all projects lying incomplete.