The Prime Minister,Peter O’Neill , has commended the Treasurer, Hon. Patrick Pruaitch, for developing a national budget that maintains fiscal discipline while increasing spending on free education, universal healthcare and local level development. The Prime Minister said the Government has been very careful to reduce expenditure where it could be sustained, while also continuing to invest in areas that are vital for ongoing economic and social development. “The best budgets are not those that are delivered with an abundance of revenue to draw from, but are budgets that are delivered in tight fiscal times that also increase essential services. “The difficult global economic environment with reduced commodity prices and uncertainty in key trading partners has placed pressure on our economy. “Our Government has delivered on our core promises and I congratulate Treasurer, Hon. Patrick Pruaitch, and his budget team for the careful manner in which the 2017 National Budget has been developed. “Spending on our children and their education has risen to record levels and this will set our children up for success in years to come. “Healthcare expenditure is a record levels and this will better protect our family members from sickness and help them recover from injury.” The Prime Minister said the Government’s continued devolution of authority from Waigani to the provincial and district level will be further advanced in 2017. “No one knows the people of Papua New Guinea better than our local administrations, and we are ensuring that we are further empowering local level decision making. “District Services Improvement Programs and Provincial Services Improvement Programs are now receiving record funding. “Increased DSIP and PSIP funding will help children, women and men in every district and province of our nation. “DSIPs and PSIPs are the about the best targeted and most transparent ways to disperse funding that will reach and benefit the people. “The policies that we have set in place will be maintained so that we can continue to lay stronger foundations for the future. “While commodity prices might be improving and the drought is easing, now is not the time to relax, but it is time to maintain tight control over spending. The Prime Minister said as the economy prepares to return to surplus budgets in the coming years, lessons must be learnt from the reckless spending of the past decade when revenue from high commodities was high. “Eight billion Kina in surpluses from the previous decade were squandered and disappeared in questionable ways before we came to Government,” the Prime Minister said. “Cash flow would have been in a much more positive position if this money had not been lost. “In developing the 2017 budget we are rebuilding for the future and in the years ahead we must continue to maintain fiscal discipline. Next News >> Oro University Campus to resume in 2017
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