Abel to push budgets

By CLIFFORD FAIPARIK
TREASURER Charles Abel says the 2017 supplementary budget and 2018 national budget will be “rushed” through Parliament because time is not on his side.
However, Abel, also the Deputy Prime Minister, said that did not mean that the two financial plans would be poorly prepared.
“All I’m saying is that we have a short time frame to do some of these things,” he said.
“If I was doing things poorly, I would not bring up the supplementary budget.
“I bring up the supplementary budget because we have to readjust to the circumstances to make sure that we continue to live within our revenue and our debt parameters and so on.”
Parliament resumes sitting on September 26.
Abel said both budgets had to be rushed because the Government had just taken office and one of its commitments was to have a supplementary budget.
Abel is expected to brief Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and Cabinet today on what he was planning.
“I am trying to execute the 100-day 25-point plan as I address issues that confront us daily on our economy,” Abel said.
He also advised the National Economic and Fiscal Commission to prepare the provincial expenditure review reports. Abel yesterday launched the 2014 reports at the NEFC office in Port Moresby.
NEFC commissioner Hohora Suve said they were receiving information late from the provinces around the country.