It seems as if the state of the country’s finances was not on as stable a footing as noted by the former Chief Finance Officer Caroline Gardner, who ended her one year assignment in the Turks and Caicos Islands sometime in August, satisfied she said, that the country’s finances are on a more stable footing.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office appointed Gardner in September of 2010 to oversee the government’s finances as a requirement of loan guarantees
for the country. The goal was to put the government on track to achieve a fiscal surplus by March 2013.
‘The $260 million U.K.-guaranteed refinancing package has enabled us to restore stability to the government’s finances by reducing the cost of borrowing, repaying our creditors, and funding the deficits that will continue until we can balance the budget,’ Gardner said prior to the end of her contract in the TCI. ‘This means raising revenues and cutting expenditure, while modernizing the tax system to provide a sound basis for the future.’
‘We’ve made a good start, but there is still a long way to go. The next two years will be critical in bringing revenue and expenditure into line.
Once we’ve achieved a budget surplus, then we can start to build the reserves we need to repay the TCI’s high levels of debt, and invest in building a prosperous and vibrant future for the people of these islands,’ she had noted.
But members of the Consultative Forum were shocked at their meeting a week ago when they learnt that the TCI is still very much in debt.
The new CFO Hugh McGarrell Groves upon assuming office noted his intent to ensure as soon as possible that we do have the financial resources the ministry needs to manage its affairs effectively.
However, speaking to journalists during the final Advisory Council press briefing last week, he explained that more accurate forecasts are now being done as more bills are being presented.
Mr McGarrell Groves also indicated a number of steps, including a restructuring of the government Treasury, to ensure financial stability after the end of direct rule over the TCI by the British.
But radio and television talk shows and local newspapers throughout the islands have been bombarded with calls and articles, suggesting there are too many Advisors in the country, when in most cases, the purpose for which they are here, could have been better served by a local person.
Chair of the Consultative Forum Mrs. Lillian Missick made the observation in her opening statement at the final sitting of the Consultative Forum when she highlighted the fact that the national debt has almost tripled from $71 to $200 million, all under the British fiscal management.
It was also an issue put forward to the Minister responsible for the Overseas Territories Henry Bellingham by Mrs. Missick when she and Advisory Council member Theo Durham, joined His Excellency the Governor Ric Todd at the Overseas Territories Consultative Council meeting in the UK earlier this month, when she informed UK ministers of the spirit of distrust and alienation that is growing among the people of the TCI.
The Chief Financial Officer, Hugh McGarrell Groves was also asked during Wednesday’s Advisory Council press briefing for his thoughts on the fact that there should be more local persons as Advisors, who know the landscape of the country and what assurance are there that persons coming from the UK that doesn’t know enough about the TCI to make things better.
Meanwhile, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Delton Jones, weighing in on the financial stability of the country, noted that when all is said and done, the record will indicate that his staff did indeed make the necessary efforts to get the TCI finances under control and is confident his staff will have the correct system in place.
