Durrant Pate/ Contributor

Government Senator Don Wehby is promising that Jamaicans will be feeling the benefits of the island’s superb economic performance when inflation is tamed.

Speaking in the Senate during yesterday’s start of the debate on the Appropriations Bill, 2024, Wehby acknowledged that many Jamaicans are not feeling the full impact of the positive economic gains, promising that this will change when the inflation monster is tamed.

He argued that the main reason for Jamaicans not feeling the benefits is because of the impact of inflation, not only in Jamaica but across the world, noting that in the United States, inflation was 9.1%, the worst it had been in 40 years.

In the UK, he said inflation was clocking at 6.7% while Jamaica’s inflation rate is now at 7.0%, down from 10% last year, thereby moving in the right direction. “I can assure you, based on the budget presented, and the plans of the government, when inflation is brought under control, the benefits of the economic performance will be felt by all,” Wehby told the upper House of Parliament.

Bringing down debt to GDP ratio

He bragged about the Government’s success in bringing down Jamaica’s debt-to-GDP levels, noting that “the Government has committed to the attainment of the revised debt/GDP target of 60% by 2027/28. At the end of March 2024, the ratio will be 72%. This is a significant achievement when we look at where we are coming from. The debt-to-GDP ratio reached a high of 232% in 1991!”

Wehby, the CEO of GraceKennedy Group, one of Jamaica’s biggest conglomerates, declared that the Holness administration cannot afford to derail the gains made towards economic independence, arguing that the Government must continue to build on these wins. “Otherwise, we will end up in a virtuous cycle of debt. So, when I consider where we are coming from, and where we are now, in terms of our fiscal management maturity, the Opposition’s proposition to increase the income tax threshold to J$3 million demands scrutiny.”

He questioned how such expenditures totalling some J$45 billion would be funded, positing, “We would have to print money, borrow, or run a budget deficit. We can’t go back to the FINSAC-era where interest rates were as high as 60%. This Government is steadfast in its commitment to enhancing the well-being of Jamaicans, ensuring sustainability at every step. Fiscal prudence isn’t just a choice; it’s our lifeline to securing true economic independence. Let us not waver in our resolve to remain fiscally responsible.”

Public sector workers’ sacrifice

The Government senator pointed out that Jamaicans have worked too hard, public sector workers have made too many sacrifices, to reverse the gains made to reduce our debt and improve our economic outlook. He cited public sector workers having endured wage freeze after wage freeze from as far back as 2004.

Wehby declared: “Thanks to proficient economic stewardship, the Government can now champion the creation of “A Caring Economy for All”.