Prime Minister Luc Mercelina obviously sought to reassure the public when he said the delayed 2026 budget (see Thursday newspaper) has not disrupted government operations. He spoke of largely recurring and routine expenditures included annually to ensure continuity.
Nevertheless, the prime minister acknowledged that a number of new initiatives and investments not covered in the lower 2025 budget needed to wait.
He added that many of these projects requiring additional funding have already been planned and can start once the money becomes available.
The latter is good news, but the fact remains that they were postponed for several months. Should it, for example, regard revenue-raising steps, implementing these so late is almost sure to affect the bottom line.
The same edition carried a letter on its opinion pages in which the General Audit Chamber compared the current budgetary process with someone starting construction without fully calculating the total final cost. They end up with an uncompleted house lacking a roof.
But all that has now become water under the proverbial bridge. It is important is to learn from mistakes and prevent this situation from continuing to repeat itself over and over, as Finance Minister Marinka Gumbs has pledged.
Time will tell, but Parliament would do well to debate and approve the draft budget by the end of June, so it can at least be enacted within the first half of the year it pertains to.
