Last week, we brought you extensive coverage of the 2-day budget debate in the House of Representatives.
This budget, which features that that contentious 10% cut in public wages, was the very first offered by Prime Minister John Briceno and his government. Over the 2 days, parliamentarians on both sides debated it for almost 20 hours total, and in the end, the PM wrapped up the debate by responding to the Leader of the Opposition and the other UDP reps.
Here's an excerpt of his remarks late last Friday evening in which he said that the Opposition is attempting to downplay the state of the country's finances which they left behind after the November elections:
Hon. John Briceno - Prime Minister
"The caretaker, I noted, referred to - and I quote - '…that which has gone so terribly wrong in this country, brought on by situations of the past.' Those were his words. I wonder, are those situations of the past the recession, and then the depression he and his party handed to us? Are situations of the past, the 4.2 billion dollars or the 10 thousand dollars every Belizean man, woman, and child now owes because of UDP wild, unaccountable borrowing spree? Are those situations of the past paying 650 million dollars for a company that your own valuation has suggested is worth a fraction of that? Are those situations of the past the 30% unemployment you left behind? Yes, Mr. Member for Mesopotamia, your party left behind, or the 700 million dollars you borrowed in the last 2 years in office? Are those situations of the past the frenzied land and asset grabbing that so characterized your time in office? Those situations of the 'past' are now determining our present and our future. They may be situations of the past for you, and your few party hacks, but they are painful shackles of the present for 420 thousand Belizeans left to grapple with your mess."
"If you want to distance yourself from the sordid mess that led [to] your party's obliteration, then point the finger and call names. Or accept the blame yourself, and throw yourself upon the mercy of the Belizean people."
"Even you, Mr. Leader of the Opposition, caretaker of the United Democratic Party, was forced to admit in your listless remarks that our plan is a good plan."
"Yes, we agree, our recovery plan is reasonable. It is balanced. It shares the sacrifice. It front-loads the spending cuts. It gives time for the economy to rebound before adding any new taxes. It preserves capital investments by the public sector. It focuses on economic growth and private sector support, and most importantly, the recovery plan supports the key areas of health, education, poverty alleviation, citizen security, and national infrastructure."
This budget was passed after its third reading.
And while it was the highlight of this special 2-day sitting of the House, the elected representatives still managed to pass 7 other pieces of draft legislation.
The first is the Land Utilization Amendment Bill of 2021. This amendment seeks to strengthen the membership of the Land Subdivision and Utilization Authority.
Next, there are the Supreme Court of Judicature Amendment, the Court of Appeal Amendment, and the Court of Appeal Decision Bills of 2021. These are focused on the Court to improve its procedures.
The Supreme Court of Judicature Amendment seeks to allow for civil proceedings to be continued and determined by another judge, if the judge before whom the proceedings took place has demitted office, is removed from office, retires from office, or dies. The Court of Appeal Amendment seeks to achieve the very same thing but at the Court of Appeal level.
The Court of Appeal Decisions Amendment seeks to validate the decisions of the Court of Appeal in instances where a judge has died or vacated office.
Next, there are the Time Limit for Judicial Decisions and the Belize Constitution Ninth Amendment Bill. As we reported, the Briceno government wants to implement a deadline which sitting judges must respect. They must deliver judgments in a timely manner, and if and when these bills become law, continuous failure to meet those timelines for judgments will become an offense for which judges can be removed from office.
And finally, there is the Public Health Amendment Bill, which seeks to provide for the control and regulation of vaccines.
