The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Government is “definitely on the right track” with its promised Fiscal Responsibility legislation, a governance reform group said, while warning: “The devil is in the details”.

Matt Aubry, the Organisation for Responsible Governance’s (ORG) executive director, told Tribune Business that “buy in” from both the private sector and civil society was critical if a well-crafted Fiscal Responsibility Act is to work.

Emphasising that such legislation needed to be combined in “a one-two punch” with a Freedom of Information Act, Mr Aubry said the two reforms would improve economic development and decision-making, while also boosting consumer confidence and trust in government.

“We feel this is definitely on the right track, and that they’re on the right lines,” he told Tribune Business of the broad Fiscal Responsibility Act objectives outlined by KP Turnquest, minister of finance.

“We’re cautiously optimistic, but the devil’s in the detail and we need to see how this goes forward. Those were the critical words regarding a Fiscal Responsibility Act, but the particulars are very important. The nuances that make that happen are going to be important.”

Mr Turnquest last week told the House of Assembly that the Fiscal Responsibility legislation proposed by the Minnis administration would target an annual GFS ‘balanced Budget’, meaning that the goal is to add no new debt to the existing $7-billion plus national debt.

The Government’s other objective would be to maintain “a desirable and sustainable” debt-to-GDP ratio, Mr Turnquest said. To underpin this, the proposed law would require the Government to set out the assumptions underpinning its annual Budget, along with its longer-term fiscal targets.

Explanations would also have to be provided if Budget targets for prior years were missed, while short-term fiscal targets will have to be placed in the context of the Bahamas’ long-term objectives.

Mr Turnquest suggested that targets could also be set for some components of the Government’s fixed-cost spending, such as the civil service wage bill, while plans and timelines for eliminating any deficits will also have to be laid out.

He also suggested that the Budget process could be opened to public consultation, in a bid to obtain a national consensus around the Government’s fiscal targets, while Ministries and Departments eyeing new initiatives may be required to find the funding from their original allocations.

Mr Aubry told Tribune Business that Mr Turnquest’s comments “sound like the basis of being fiscally responsible to me”, and gave particular backing to the notion that non-budgeted government spending be justified through a cost/benefit analysis.

“We’re going to stress the importance of the private sector,” he added, “not just in holding the Government’s feet to the fire, but in helping to craft strong and positive legislation.

“Getting buy-in from the public is essential to help make this live. You can have great legislation, but if you don’t have enforcement then the intent of great legislation doesn’t happen.”

Mr Aubry said “the crux” of Fiscal Responsibility legislation lay in the details, and he expressed concern that many recent laws gave “latitude” to the responsible Minister to override certain statutory provisions.

He added that having an open, accessible and structured process for the crafting of a Fiscal Responsibility Act was vital to obtaining public support, which was why ORG had itself recently issued recommendations for improving consultation.

“Public consultation is the critical part, as it creates a platform for the open sharing of data,” Mr Aubry told Tribune Business. “Making information publicly available is essential to open, modern governance. It facilitates better economic development.”

He explained that by allowing the Bahamian public to “play an active role in stemming government spending”, they would be more understanding if social programmes had to be delayed or cancelled, and not respond in the “reactionary” manner many politicians fear.

“If people have been part of that process, you will get their buy-in, acceptance and understanding,” Mr Aubry reiterated, “and if you can show a long-term plan, when it comes to times that will be more painful, people have a sense of when that will be alleviated.

“That allows more consumer confidence, and greater trust in the Government and the democratic approach.”

ORG has been among the numerous groups campaigning for Fiscal Responsibility-type legislation, viewing it as a key tool in restraining government spending and forcing it to be more accountable and transparent over how it uses taxpayer monies.

The Government is currently seeking Parliamentary approval to borrow $722 million, which will be used to cover the estimated $500 million deficit for 2016-2017, and the $323 million forecast for 2017-2018.

With the Bahamas’ debt-to-GDP ratio now around 80 per cent when ‘contingent liabilities’ are factored in, and the national debt climbing beyond $7 billion, the need for a Fiscal Responsibility Act has arguably never been greater.