The Editor
The Anguillian
Dear Sir:
A BREATH OF FRESH AIR
I must tell you that I am at last relieved that the Chief Minister, on behalf of the Anguilla Government, which he leads, has signed the Framework for Fiscal Sustainability and Development. It is a breath of fresh air for all of us.
To me it seemed so simple and peaceful for the Chief Minister to sign the document after so much fuss and I would even say turmoil – in the sense that the entire community in Anguilla was seriously affected by the delay and the constant bickering. That is not to say that everything thrown at us from any angle must be readily accepted without question. There comes a time, however, when we too need to be reasonable especially when matters of fiscal responsibility, accountability and good governance are at the heart of any policy to which we are to conform.
We now look forward to the approval of the 2013 Budget so that the Government itself could feel relieved from its inability to spend freely, rather than run Anguilla with some uncertainty by piggy-backing on a fraction of the 2012 Budget.
The fact is that the private sector must also be relieved because it is affected or influenced by what happens in the public sector. If there is money available in the public sector, there is a measure of comfort in the private sector; and, conversely, if the private sector is at ease and flourishing, the public sector finds itself in a rather comfortable position. They are both inter-dependent and function hand in hand.
It is left for me now to congratulate Chief Minister Hughes for signing the partnership policy and hope that eventually his fears will be allayed. We await the benefits to which the document is said to hold out for Anguilla.
Apolitical
