CIG records half-year surplus of $166M
(CNS): Despite spending some $15 million more than expected in the budget by the halfway point of this year government has maintained an overall healthy surplus. According to the latest unaudited financial report to the end of June, the public purse has a CI$166.2 million surplus, $22.7 million more than budgeted for the first six months of this year. With more than $398.2 million in the bank, the government’s financial position appears stable.
The surplus is a result of higher earnings from coercive revenue, as it collected more taxes and fees than expected and made some savings in staff costs and consumable spending. But the government spent more on public services and funding its statutory authorities and government companies, though many SAGCs brought in more revenue than expected.
Compared to the same period last year, government’s core revenue increased by $19.5 million, while spending by core government was up by $12.6 million. SAGCs’ brought in $13.6 million more than the first six months of 2022.
Officials said that adherence to responsible fiscal policy continues to yield significant overall cash and deposit balances. However, the savings so far this year in personnel costs and supplies may not translate into full-year savings because of timelines, vacancies and delayed projects that could see spending increase further during the second half of this year.
“The second quarter’s performance has positioned the government to be optimistic about its performance for 2023,” finance ministry officials stated. “However, costs will continue to increase as more personnel/staff vacancies are filled and projects come online over the remaining two quarters of 2023. These costs will have to be diligently monitored to ensure spending is not incurred unnecessarily.”
The officials explained that revenues must exceed the performance of $978.1 million for core government set out in the original 2023 budget if it is to reach the revised level of $1.037 billion in the Strategic Policy Statement for 2023, which was tabled in parliament on 26 April.
While revenue is increasing, the danger is that this is not sustainable as it is driven partially by inflation and a limited number of revenue lines.
The $5.3 million collected in fees relating to motor vehicles charges surpassed the expected budget due to a higher than expected volume of imports, while the offshore sector also generated more cash than expected, especially from funds. An increase in visitor numbers in the first half of the year led to a spike in tourism revenue when compared to 2022, resulting in $19.6 million more than the first half of 2022.
Work permit fees continue to be an important source of revenue for the government as the headcount for expatriate workers continues to climb. An additional $3.2 million over the budget was collected between January and the end of June, which the finance ministry said was due to continued economic growth.
Notwithstanding the overall favourable results in revenues when compared to the 2023 budget, there were certain areas that fell short of projected expectations, such as regular import duties, which were down by $8.3 million, though the amount still exceeded the duty collected in 2022.
The government also continues to shell out big numbers to cover healthcare for those who are under- or uninsured. An additional $21.3 million was spent during the first half of the year on this budget line item (NGS 55).
“The costs for NGS 55 are currently $32.2 million and exceed prior year-to-date spending by $7.8 million,” officials warned. During this 2023 financial year, an additional $9 million has been approved by parliament for these escalating costs.
The government also spent an additional $5.4 million than budgeted on other types of community support, such as scholarships and bursaries, as well as $2.4 million more on direct financial assistance.
See the unaudited public sector results for the first six months of 2023 in the CNS Library.
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Category: Government Finance, Politics
The HSA is offering Free HIV-Aids Testing at the Red Cross, the Health Services Authority and at each District Clinic
https://caymanmarlroad.com/2023/08/14/hsa-and-red-cross-partner-to-offer-free-hiv-testing/
But what about the prevention measures to reduce tge spread of the virus in the community
Years ago the Public Health provided Free Condums to patients who came into there offices for condums
There were no HIV-Aids Preventative Marketing this service to obtain Free Condoms or if it is still offered
Little or no HIV-Aids Preventative Marketing on the number of people locally and regionally infected with the HIV-Aids Virus and no efforts by the Public Health Department to conduct site visits at bars and night clubs to issue locally and regional HIV-Aids Virus brouchers, flyers or pamplets with HIV-Aids Statistics along with Free Condums
This may not only create full time HSA employment opportunities, but may it may also help to reduce the spread of the HIV-Aids Virus locally
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/poverty/news/2014/09/17/97287/the-top-10-solutions-to-cut-poverty-and-grow-the-middle-class/
2 billion in debt and growing daily. I wonder who really owns Caymanian people?
I love the smell of welfare checks in the morning.
I love the smell of developer concessions and the taste of their boots.
you won’t record all your liabilities because it’s so bad but you can record a profit? Chef Gordon would be please with the level of cooking these people are doing with the books.
Nothing to be proud of. We cut the school lunch program 3 Million but can give concessions to foreign developers. Wonder if these politicians think they stand a chance. We will smile leading you to the severance you voted for.
I’d hate to see the comments if there were a shortfall.
The trouble is… nobody trusts UDPact to tell the truth.
Government should use some of that surplus to offer Caymanians low interest mortgages through Cayman Islands Development Bank. They teased us with a 3.5% program which only had a $15mil allocated pool to draw down from, which was gone before the program even kicked off…
this could only work if they offered this program to those who have a good track record of paying back loans on time and in full…
This is a half-year budgetary surplus on a deeply flawed balance sheet. More BS.
Increase the pay for all. Start with civil servents and private will follow or private start first and CIG follow you. Start a min wage increase immediate.
Yes. Govt making money. All private business making money. Only workers not making money. Governtment and private not giving any pay increase. All workers govt and private unite and ask for a raise.
Yet Authority workers making less than
$3000/month Full Time Wage!! Shamee
Making huge profits by under paying their staff.
The WORC system is failing Caymanians and the staffing plans with private business that is supposed to train Caymanians for permit replacements is also not being monitored.
WORC sends out a generic response that the employer places in the portal advising that a candidate is not successful and the reasons are lame and inaccurate. Just an excuse to either pay minimum wage for a person that doesn’t qualify for the position or help out a connection. It is all crap!
Government is turning a blind eye as they need the revenues from work permit fees.
generalization, work ethic matters
You are probably one of the employers that loses no sleep over paying $6 for foreign labor as they can’t speak up for themselves. So you are saying Caymanians have no work ethics????
In our words “Try so go home!!!!”
Don’t you have to be Caymanian to own a business?
No, you do not. You may need a Caymanian partner. We all know the shady fronting deals happening here.
#gottaspenditall
and no major issues facing the people being addressed or tackled…..welcome to wonderland
just more money to be wasted on the financial block hole that is the civil service.
great! now give you govt wkers a raise…they suffering financially?
How can many SAGOC Workers exist as many of these long term workers making less than
$3000/month Full Time Wage!!
All surpluses going forward are fictitious when pension liability is conveniently left off the books.
This is wonderful, can all Caymanians get a $50,000.00 payment? Just think how that will stimulate the economy. Hope so before the politicians and civil servants blow it all on special projects like the rich people and political cronies air terminal.
Now THAT is a real Caymanian response.
F150 and new boat soon come!!!
All this surplus and citizens still struggling to make ends meet.
While subsidizing thousands of non citizens. You literally could not make this up.
Oh, and of course work permit revenues are higher. Not only is the government offering a “jobs for all non Caymanians” work permit program – it is illegally refusing to grant hundreds of deserving applicants status, so they have to keep paying work permit fees for years after any such obligation should have ceased.
Fake news. Business isn’t a charity.
No one suggested they were.
Tell me – does your argument work in the UK or Canada? Can you bring in Jamaicans, Hondurans and Filipinos to do jobs there at $6.00 an hour that Brits or Canadians could and should be doing?
Didn’t think so.
But the well off are not struggling, so what is the problem mate?
My thoughts exactly! No one should be below the poverty line.
Thats not how capitalism works.
In capitalism, shortages drive up costs, and excellence is rewarded.
Your system does not allow shortages by allowing the importation of thousands of impoverished minimum wage laborers – all at rates that require wider society to subsidize abusive and exploitative labor practices, and deprives anyone the opportunity to work their way out of poverty.
Capitalism’s trickle down economics is a big lie? No one could have forseen this.