ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada – FOLLOWING the April 2 announcement of an EC $19million economic stimulus by Prime Minister Tillman Thomas, Shadow Parliamentarian with responsibility for Economic Development Kennedy Roberts has described the initiative as “merely a PR stunt”.
The member of the opposition New National Party (NNP) said the stimulus plan offered nothing new to the economy and copied plans implemented by the previous administration.
“First of all, the PM and his team need to understand the meaning of the word stimulus because a stimulus is something additional, something new created to inject a boost in economic activity. The content of what we heard last night [included] programmes which were already in existence during the former administration and there is nothing new that we can look at.”
The stimulus plan includes an EC $3million Road Improvement and Maintenance Programme expected to provide jobs for 375 persons and an EC $3.5million De-bushing Programme that would create 1925 jobs.
It also includes an EC $2.5 million Farm Labour Support Programme aimed at revitalizing the agricultural sector.
Roberts, however, asserted that the plan does not propose any real solutions to address the crisis.
“The Farm [Labour Support] Programme started last year, and it has been improving since. Road work is nothing new; the de-bushing programme is nothing new. Putting lights in playing facilities in the country—that was in the pipeline. Feeder roads are nothing new and the agricultural content is minimal compared to what they predicted in the budget just three months ago.
“By the Prime Minister and his team coming out now to make this ‘stimulus package’, it is a clear indication that they have accepted that the Budget for 2009 has already been a disaster and has not been able to achieve its goal,” Roberts said. “They have already acknowledged that the budget for 2009 has failed.”
The government had been subjected to much criticism by the opposition regarding its response to the global financial crisis, as the NNP is of the view that the plan has not given any hope to civilians.
In its earliest response to the crisis, the government removed the National Reconstruction levy, implemented a $10 million Free School Books Program and increased the monthly allowance under the Public Assistance Program from $150 to $200.
Late last year, hoteliers and developers in the tourism sector were given tax credit opportunities, while businesses and individuals in arrears benefited from a six-month tax amnesty, which has been extended to the end of April, to give taxpayers “a fresh start”.
Grenada News