NDP to reply to Budget in two-day session at Frenches House

The New Democratic Party (NDP) will reply to the 2016 Budget at a special two-day forum next week.

When the 2016 Budget was presented by Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves in Parliament earlier this week, the members of the Opposition were absent, the Leader of the Opposition Arnhim Eustace having declared that they would not attend, as a form of protest.{{more}}

The NDP has however written to members of the business sector, inviting them to sessions that will take place on Monday February 29 and Tuesday, March 1, during which the Party intends to reply to the 2016 Budget as presented by the Prime Minister in Parliament.

Next week’s sessions will take place at Frenches House from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. each day.

Eustace, speaking on Nice Radio on Monday said despite the threats by the Government of legislation to punish them for not being in Parliament, they would not attend as they regard the Government as illegitimate.

He further said that in a couple days, the Opposition will be presenting an alternative Budget to the one presented by the Government, which will address several areas that it finds fault with.

“You already have a kind of foretaste of what kind of Budget you are going to have from looking at the Estimates that were passed some days ago. We expressed our concerns about that, and we will be doing so in relation to the Budget itself.”

Eustace added: “We will host events outside of the Parliament to present our alternatives in relation to the Budget, because what we see in the Estimates doesn’t give much hope for growth and increased employment in St Vincent and the Grenadines… I will venture to say it can cause some further decline.”

Adamant that he and the other Opposition members are taking the matter “very seriously”, he further opined: “There is no hope coming out of the Estimates… We cannot continue on this basis.”