2012 Budget

[Scoobert Bauce]

we have a million ppl wit degrees for industriess that dont exist down here
I see marine Biology sponsored by GATE... to work where? lol

[TRAE]

Admittedly whilst the idea of GATE is nice it should be revamped though. Any rational person would know that. Even the Minister of Tertiary Education advised Lok Jack GSB that there are too much ppl with MBAs.
Everyone went and do one because it was subsidized and today we all see these ppl in our work places sour and griping that they have more qualifications but salary is the same. Education should be about capacity building/innovation or else we end up with more qualified ppl chasing down the same jobs.

in that case can we fire these shiddy doctors and hire new ones or maybe start hiring locals instead of foreign staff? that is our problem we have no loyalty or trust in our own trinis

[shake d livin wake d dead]

CEPEP and URP workers should be made to do more productive things in addition to cleaning,clear down some land and start planting,one step further to food security.

[equipped2ripp]

and they should also raise the price of gasoline... super to $3.50 and premium to $5.

[shake d livin wake d dead]

^^ well they have to make money some how inno,so it's very possible.

[Dizzy28]

and they should also raise the price of gasoline... super to $3.50 and premium to $5.

Diesel has to go up. It carries the greatest portion of the subsidy. Premium is closest to cost already why increase it 25% and leave diesel alone.

Are we going to subsidize inflation by keeping transport costs down ad infinitum??

[TRAE]

these suggestions while very responsible will however not go too well with the overall population eh... keep that in mind

[janfar]

So the man that work harder in his life should spend more money that the lazy man...

tax should be equal across the board...

[Dizzy28]

these suggestions while very responsible will however not go too well with the overall population eh... keep that in mind

Do the right thing = political suicide
Do shiet = good chance of being re elected

We just cant win.

[equipped2ripp]

If diesel is increased, it would have a ripple effect... best to leave it as $1.50, or even raise it to $1.60 and let the vehicle owners absorb the 10c cost and not pass it on to the consumer. But then again this is Trinidad, that could never happen.

[Stephon.]

I think people making less being taxed more or equal to the man that makes more is a bad way of looking at it. I think it's unfair that those that make more are taxed more to an extent but that's the way it works. Its how the systems work, you go to school, work hard, buy a nice carm buy a nice house pay tax, you die then your kids grow up and pay your taxes for you or they buy a nice car, buy a nice house etc. The older we get, the more expensive our toys get and we're being taxed for it. It's how countries work.

[Scoobert Bauce]

So the man that work harder in his life should spend more money that the lazy man...

tax should be equal across the board...

wow another retarded statement. yuh 2 for 2.

rich doent always equal hardworking and poor dosent always equal lazy.


theres people with Masters degrees who packing groceries. there's people who fukkk their way to the top

[janfar]

You dont tax people because they make more. You have to tax other things. People with more money have bigger houses and more expensive cars. Thats where more taxes come in. Not directly on the persons base salary.

[Dizzy28]

If diesel is increased, it would have a ripple effect... best to leave it as $1.50, or even raise it to $1.60 and let the vehicle owners absorb the 10c cost and not pass it on to the consumer. But then again this is Trinidad, that could never happen.

Let the ripple effect begin. We have to reach equilibrium sometime.

[Stephon.]

I'm all for super and premium prices going up. I would say diesel prices should stay the same, but more and more people are buying vans and using it as family vehicles and not for work purposes and enjoying gas for next to nothing.

[AllTrac]

hope they dont touch diesel prices.

[janfar]

Govt need to drop all subsidies. Have an auditing division which will go to companies and check on vehicles using diesel within each company and these companies will benefit from a tax break on fuel per vehicles given that the vehicle is being used for legitimate business. Same goes for taxi's using both Petrol and diesel. They also benefit from the tax break once they do their paper work and submit once per month.

This doesnt have to be rocket science but given the mentality of Trini people it will never work. We will always be a country of: drinking 10c rum and wanting to be dollar drunk.

[Dizzy28]

Govt need to drop all subsidies. Have an auditing division which will go to companies and check on vehicles using diesel within each company and these companies will benefit from a tax break on fuel per vehicles given that the vehicle is being used for legitimate business. Same goes for taxi's using both Petrol and diesel. They also benefit from the tax break once they do their paper work and submit once per month.

This doesnt have to be rocket science but given the mentality of Trini people it will never work. We will always be a country of: drinking 10c rum and wanting to be dollar drunk.

With our corruption culture this just adds a next means for bribes to pass.

[Stephon.]

Drinking 10 cents rum and wanna be dollar drunk

[equipped2ripp]

[AllTrac]

drinking 10c rum and wanting to be dollar drunk.

this can be successfully achieved by Matches in monroe road, you must investiquire sometime and call me to document your findings.

[janfar]

Munroe road hatheth no swine...

[nervewrecker]

can we get our taxpaying $$$ worth when they doing projects.....like paving the effin highway, pave it good the first time & done

btw....wtb cartoon of dumaurier before budget....

[pete]

Hopefully the ongoing battle against diesel smuggling will stop them from wanting to remove fuel subsidies.

The estimate before was 5Bn total, 1Bn for gasoline, 2Bn for local diesel and 2Bn for marine diesel.

I don't see how they could look at raising the price of gasoline which is only subsidised by 1Bn to counter the 4billion in diesel subsidies.

[phenom]

allyuh want first world country ? then stop protesting property tax...

I LOL @ this... take it from someone who WORKED on the Property Tax Project.

You taxes would have gone up by 400++%. Eg: Any house in woorkbrook (from $800-1000 to 10,000 to 15,000) Any house on the SOUTHERN MAIN ROAD, all would have been AUTO BRANDED BUSINESS (from 800-1000 to any where like 10k - 17K)

Dont be fooled... the PNM took the tax collection from LOCAL government to Central Government... I ask who is responsible for the upkeep of the country? hmmmm think and get the FACTS before you speak of Property Tax. You would have cried blood and real people would have lost thier homes. Was in a meeting with teh ex-minister and she didnt give ah fly f@ck about any of you... so THINK!

[S_2NR]

we have a million ppl wit degrees for industriess that dont exist down here
I see marine Biology sponsored by GATE... to work where? lol

i see someone has never left t&t

[hustla_ambition101]

we have a million ppl wit degrees for industriess that dont exist down here
I see marine Biology sponsored by GATE... to work where? lol

i see someone has never left t&t

Ummm, if you getting GATE you supposed to work here, if not pay your own damn tuition

[Scoobert Bauce]

we have a million ppl wit degrees for industriess that dont exist down here
I see marine Biology sponsored by GATE... to work where? lol

i see someone has never left t&t

I see someone's never read a GATE contract

[S_2NR]

is that contract ever enforced?
i know endless scholarship winners and people who went uwi who working abroad now.

and you could just pay it off and go away if u want.

[TriP]

Finance Minister WINSTON DOOKERAN will be in the spotlight on Monday when he delivers the 2011/2012 Budget. Among the surprises he is expected to announce is a pension increase for public service pensioners and retired teachers

RETIRED public servants and teachers are set to receive an increase in their pensions in the 2011/2012 budget, for which they have been clamouring for years.
Sources in the Ministry of Finance say that Government intends to raise the minimum pension for public servants and teachers who retired decades ago and have only been collecting a small payment.
Some retired public servants, who called it a day about 30 years ago, are receiving less than $2,000 a month, even though the minimum public service pension was increased to $3,000 last year. The retirees have argued that the $2,000 was inadequate.

Government wants to address the anomaly where retired public servants and teachers are collecting less money than Old Age Pensioners, who receive $3,000 a month.

Teachers who also retired decades ago receive a pension based on their salaries when they had retired in the ’80s and ’90s.

It is expected they will collect what their counterparts are earning now.

The amount would vary depending on the position held and the salary they were earning at the time of retirement.

Finance Minister Winston Dookeran said earlier this year that Government wants to widen the pension coverage of all citizens in the country.

He said that the Government has engaged the World Bank and other private consultants to work out a national pension aimed at ensuring that the people of this country enjoy a comfortable post-retirement standard of living.

Among the key elements of the new pension plan being developed is the reduction of the vesting period from 10 years to two years, which would result in persons in government service securing pensions within a shorter period of time and removal of the 33 1/3 cap on the calculation of pension benefits. He noted that persons do not accrue pension benefits once they cross this period.

A source said that Government plans to take care of the elderly. Last year Old Age pension was increased from $2,500 under the previous Patrick Manning administration to $3,000 by the new People’s Partnership administration, which was one of its 2010 election promises.

The 2011/2012 budget will be presented by the Minister of Finance on Monday in the House of Representatives.

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has hinted at some surprises coming in the budget but did not give any details.
She said some of the major projects expected to be funded in the budget included the construction of five public hospitals, the Caribbean fast ferry service and the Sport Life Fund.