Offer to cut BWA, QEH arrears if paid by September

Barbados Water Authority (BWA) customers who owe the state-owned corporation and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) have been given a chance by Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley to cut their debt by a quarter if they pay up over the next six months.
This was part of the Prime Minister’s “good news” 2023 Budgetary Proposals in the House of Assembly on Tuesday, as she declared that no new taxes would be announced in the highly anticipated presentation.
According to Mottley, who is also Minister of Finance, the Government was prepared to erase 25 per cent of outstanding debt owed to the QEH and the BWA if those who are in arrears made outstanding payments between March 15 and September 15 this year.
Management of the BWA disclosed late last year that it was challenged to carry out some of its projects because of the heavy load it was carrying from unpaid water bills, totalling $102 million, by domestic and commercial customers.
The Prime Minister announced during her presentation that her administration will also introduce an extensive programme of training for supervisory and management staff in the public sector, as the administration seeks to enhance accountability.
The services of the Barbados Institute for Management and Productivity (BIMAP) will be assisting in this retraining process. Training will also be facilitated through the Jean & Norma Holder Hospitality Institute and the Florida International University (FIU).
Mottley also revealed that FIU will be establishing a campus in Barbados within the next 12 months.
Another initiative the Prime Minister announced was a training and guidance programme for parents which will be led by the Minister of State in the Office of the Attorney General Corey Lane.
Insisting that her budget was one of transformation, Mottley said the goal was one of “onward and upward” to Bajan excellence by 2030.
As she outlined her administration’s philosophy, she said part of “mission transformation” was preparing Barbadians to demonstrate excellence at every level and for the island to become a global hub for global citizens.
According to the Prime Minister, “no one owes us a living” and the country must prepare itself and its citizens to operate in the same class as leading nations such as Singapore and Japan.
Although acknowledging that there will be threats to the country’s stability that may derail some plans, she insisted the country should “never surrender and never retreat” or allow “our spirit to be broken”.
(IMC1)