Sir/Madam: So sorry to let you know: They ARE worse and look to get even worse still. There is not enough money to pay people’s pensions – that is, the money you and I paid into the pension fund, that was deducted from our paychecks to be held for us when we are too old to work – MOST OF IT ISN’T THERE!! They used it for something else – who knows what!

There are no jobs for a lot of us, much less for our children, while folks blithely talk of cutting more jobs. There is little money for Financial Assistance for those already out of work. The Union can’t/won’t help. The programs that used to help got their funding cut last year and the year before. People are struggling to keep the roofs over their heads. Many children, and their parents too, start the morning with no breakfast, and maybe had no dinner the night before.

Perhaps you haven’t been listening for the last year or more when people were talking about this. Hopefully, you get it now and are as concerned as the rest of us. I really hope so. This isn’t about party. This is about survival.

Sir/Madam – the above statement is an outright lie which the PLP tried to perpetrate over and over again to influence the vote. The OBA absolutely did not base any part of their campaign on opposing the social programs you mention. If you can find anything in their platform that corroborates your statement, please produce it. Nor were PLP comments derided. That too is a lie.

Or maybe you forgot to read this part:

“For the Government not to present complete and accurate financial statements for audit within six months after its year end is not in keeping with current international practice for good government accountability,” she said.

“This unacceptable delay resulted in Members of Parliament and the public not having timely access to important information.”

Mrs. Jacobs Matthews noted that her audit opinion on the financial statements of the Consolidated Fund for the year ended March 31, 2012 was qualified, as it had been in the previous three years, due to “serious deficiencies in internal control over the management of various development projects that occurred in the year ended March 31, 2009.”

She explained that the “deficiencies led her to question the appropriateness of certain transactions and the underlying value of assets as at March 31, 2009.”

Why is no one debating the fact that the is the fourth consecutive qualified audit issued by the AG, the numerous “financial instruction” breaches or the fact that monies still can’t be accounted for regarding capital projects etc.?

The debt is there and can’t be simply eliminated.

The fact that this is the fourth consecutive qualified audit and the highlighting of financial instructions have been persistently breached is the real story.

There was more than $150 million in highly suspicious cost overruns on Governemnt contracts as reported by two Auditors General. Those contracts often involved flagrant violations of the Financial Instructions laws, including the failure to tender. They also involved numerous large change orders that enabled connected contractors to charge huge mark-up for massive profits.

Unfortunately Premier Cox refused to do what other jurisdictions like the US have done–give the Auditor General the power to subpoena the books and records (including bank records) of Government contractors to “follow the money” to see if they have been giving kickbacks to those that awarded them the non-tendered contracts with massive cost overruns.

If there have been kickbacks, then that is theft.

The amount of cost overruns ($150 million and still counting) may involve some kind of fraud because no government could possibly be that incompetent. (Some of these contracts came in at 100% over the original cost estimates.)

What we don’t know is what they got in return.

By giving the Auditor General subpoena power we can follow the money to discover the last piece of the puzzle. By appointing a Commission of Inquiry we can get that information even quicker.

Some comments on here are so stupid!

READ!

Another $22,000,000 to fix that little problem.

The important point here is that Minister Richards and the OBA must show their financial mettle with their first budget. They campaigned on opposing various government social programs including bus fares, daycare allowances, civil servant salaries and certain aspects of future care. PLP comments that such programs were necessary to soften the impact of the economic downturn were derided.

On the basis of their pre election promises, the OBA should be held to account to make immediate and drastic cuts. Let’s see if they cut the progams that have the most impact on the average voters!!

The alternative and easy way out will be to carry on the programs with the excuse that they have to in the short term. That will be political speak because there is no legal or other reason not to cut certain programs if they were so opposed to them in the first instance.

The ‘biggest fight’ for us all will be the necessary discussion about reducing Public Service salary payments. Do we simply reduce pay or do we go to a shorter work week, for example a 4 day work week? The tinkering we have seen thus far is laughable since Ministers are not driving GPs but we see senior Civil Servants all over the place in ‘their GPs.’

There are obviously more GPs for senior civil servants (i.e Permanent Secretaries) than Ministers. Lets see an elimination of GPs for the Permanent Secretaries as a start!!

I think it is in the public interest to cut public spending by at least $200m in the next financial year. Lets see how strong the OBA stomach is to make the necessary cuts… February 22 we will all know!

In layman’s terms, goevernment has borrowed about $1.4bn from banks and other lenders. It also owes another $1bn for things like employee pensions.

When we talk about debt, we normally talk about the amount owed to banks etc and not the other money owed – that is standard. Therefore the extra amount referred to by the Auditor General has nothing to with theft or anything of the sort.

On this basis, any comments about theft or otherwise by the former government are ridiculous. The same follows for any comments about former Premier and Minister of Finance Paula Cox. She acted with the advice of her technical officers at the Ministry of Finance.

The police should have all officers leave barracks on go onto the economy and sell non-essential buildings such as the police station in St.Georges, The government should also sell Harmony club at least 3 million a year goes towards police barracks. Prospect should be sold and Police and Regiment can consolidate their headquearters together no need for both facilities. All government hiring should be frozen including police.

The Post office should maintain one post office east, west, central and fire the 100 non required staff. Infact all personell that can retire with 25 or 30 year should be forced retired or encouraged with a buy out package.
Increas land tax on houses. User fees for parks. Parking for motorcycles. Increase postage 35cents really is too low.

Politicians and all senior managers should take a 25% pay cut. All government workers a 10% pay cut. Bring n a VAT tax of 5%.

Bring in an entry and exit fee of $25.00 at the airport and for cruise ships per person. Increase si taxes on booze and cigarettes.

Increase fines. Police should set up teams to enforce warrants oweing an publish list in newspaper.

Create the gambling and lotto agency to regulate a national lotto scratch tickets and casiono. This would create revenue, jobs and increase tourism. They could regulate church Bingo….Bermudas real gambling legacy and other bettting venues.

Give the Harmony club to Bermuda College creta 4 year programs and maasters degrees. Bring in students to learn english, to learn in Bermuda to augment tourism lw season from Sept to April. Teach what Bermuda does best the Ocean, sailing, diving, Buisness, insurance, and a nursuing program and Law.

Immmediately suspend all consulting projects maintaining the bare minimum.

Sell Bermuda Housing units to the tenants. Sell the Atlantic condos for $200,000 and $300,000 (3 Bedroom).

Bermud needs to get moving. Grant all PRC Bermuda status. Build condos in town and sell to work permit holders and locals. Get the economy moving and excited.

Eliminate government low hangining fruit.

external bond and loan debt March 31st 2011 $1,030 million
– annualised interest cost $52 million

external bond and loan debt March 31st 2012 $1,230 million
– annualised interest cost $70 million

external bond and loan debt January 31st 2013 $1,505 million
– annualised interest cost $80 million

Assuming that the deficit has not improved since March 31st 2012, it can be expected that the Government must borrow another $300-350 million to cover the deficit for the current financial year to March 31st 2013 which will add further annualised interest of $15 million, so very soon Bermuda will have an annual interest bill of $95 million ………… out of total income of less than $900 mllion!

Forget repaying the debt any time soon. The government must cut the deficit by $350 million per year just to stop the interest payments from increasing even further.

IMHO there is very little prospect of such drastic cost cutting being feasible let alone getting to the point where the debt is reduced.