Concerns about government’s sources of funds, how these are spent and how people can become involved in the budgeting process were some of the issues raised by UWI Public Policy Analysis students during a guest lecture by Opposition MP Dr Roodal Moonilal.

Moonilal gave a detailed outline of how the budget is compiled prior to being brought to Parliament by the Finance Minister, and the process leading up to the budget being assented to by the President. He reminded the students that no payments could be made until the budget was passed.

Moonilal explained the purpose of budgeting in terms of government.

"Government has to account for every dollar they collect and how they spend it. The budget is the government’s public financial policy for a given period. It states how much money the government intends to spend during a year (expenditure), what it intends to spend it on (appropriation), and where it expects to get the money to pay for that spending (revenue)."

One student asked how thoroughly the standing finance committee in the Upper House examines the budget.

Moonilal said, "The standing finance committee interrogates, goes through, examines every single ministry, department, statutory authority, including the police, which has a separate accounting department by law, but accounts to the Parliament through the National Security Ministry. The judiciary as well, we have to know where the money is, because it is taxpayers’ money and they have to account for it. Nobody should be getting taxpayers’ money and not be held accountable."

The same student asked whether a President had ever denied a budget. Moonilal said this had never happened in TT’s history.

[caption id="attachment_1112302" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Opposition MP Dr Roodal Moonilal, left, speaks to UWI student Kaeshiva Shay Seepersad after the lecture on policy making and post-budget analysis at UWI St Augustine on October 1. - Photo by Gabriel Williams[/caption]

"The budget is government policy. A government is elected by the people, and while the President in law can say he/she wouldn’t sign this, that same government can impeach the President."

Another student asked, "They do projections for each fiscal year for each ministry to determine how much each ministry would need. What would be some factors in determining those projections for any particular ministry?"

Moonilal said when there is a general election, promises and commitments are made to the population by political parties.

"When you win an election, you have a manifesto and you have to implement it by changing laws. That is the policy driver. Things change in a ministry because we promised we would do something."

Moonilal gave the example of what would happen if a government wanted to make St Augustine/Tunapuna an educational city like Ithica in upstate New York or Oxford University.

"It means not just a building but having all the service support centres, research institutions, making it a publication house, creating jobs, creating new industry. But to do th