By Warren Bertram
The Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC) has approved the Secondary Supplementary Estimates and is to prepare a report ahead of Thursday's sitting of the House of Representatives.
The Committee met Wednesday morning to discuss the estimates, which were tabled Tuesday by Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke.
The Second Supplementary Estimates allows for the channelling of more than $30 billion to the government's new compensation system for public sector workers.
Speaking Tuesday in the Lower House, the Finance Minister said the tabling of the estimates followed the recent signing of an agreement between the government and 17 public sector unions and staff associations on the new compensation system.
The effective date of the compensation system is April 1, 2022.
Dr. Clarke said the government is seeking to commence implementation this month, with the payment of arrears and new rates to some groups.
"To affect these payments, the required resources need to be reflected in the relevant heads and that is what this Second Supplementary Estimate seeks to do," he noted.
The Second Supplementary Estimate will transfer $30.4 billion from contingenies to the various ministries, departments and agencies.
