Budget Delivery Committee named

Posted date: October 11, 2012 In: Lead Stories | comment : 0

Deputy Governor Hon Franz Manderson

Woody Foster of the Fosters Group of companies and Ernst & Young’s Dan Scott have been named to the new Budget Delivery Committee, recently formed in keeping with government’s commitment to Overseas Territories Minister as a condition for the approval of this year’s budget.

As mandated by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office the committee is headed up by the deputy governor, Hon Franz Manderson as head of the civil service and it will be responsible for monitoring and driving the operational delivery of the budget and the fiscal framework.

Also on the committee are Financial Secretary Ken Jefferson, the Premier’s Chief of Staff Leonard Dilbert, Chief Officer of the Financial Services Ministry Dax Basdeo, Chief Officer of the Portfolio of the Civil Service Gloria McField-Nixon and Chief Officer Public Finance Sonia McLaughlin. Serving as an ex-officio member of the committee is UK Economic Advisor Richard Holmwood.

“I fully support the request by the Overseas Territories Minister that a Budget Delivery Committee be established,” Premier McKeeva Bush stated in a release this week and expressed the hope that the committee would keep him informed of the budget’s performance on a monthly basis.

According to the release, the Budget Delivery Committee will meet monthly and its terms of reference will be published on the government’s website shortly.

Deputy Governor Franz Manderson said he would now be accountable for the delivery of the budgetary commitments made by the premier and approved by the Legislative Assembly.

“The purpose of the BDC is to assist me in carrying out this function. I am committed to ensuring that the BDC supports the Hon Premier in his role as minister of finance by keeping him fully informed of progress in the delivery of the budget and by giving him and his ministerial colleagues early warning of any significant changes to allow him and his ministers to make any necessary policy changes,” Mr Manderson stated.

Governor Duncan Taylor also welcomed the announcement of the Committee.

“The 2012/13 budget, approved by the minister for the Overseas Territories and passed by the Legislative Assembly, aims to bring Cayman’s public finances back onto a credible and sustainable track. I am confident that the Committee, under the able chairmanship of the deputy governor and with the valuable input of respected senior members of the public and private sectors, will help drive the civil service’s operational delivery of the important demands which the budget have placed on it,” Mr Taylor said.