During his address to the 44th Independence Parade in Kingstown on Friday, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves made a number of announcements that will benefit nurses, farmers, vendors, students, and other categories of workers.
As of January 2024 the salary threshold below which no personal income tax is charged will be increased from the current $22,000, annually, to $25,000. Workers will pay less taxes as from January 2024. This move will cost the Treasury nearly $5 million annually.
The On-Site Program under which the government places employees at its own expense in the private sector for fixed time periods will be extended with a fresh batch of employees into the years 2024 and 2025, subject of course to the usual annual reviews of any program’s efficacy.
As of January 2024, there will be an increase in minimum wages paid to workers consequent upon the full review of the report from the Wages Council which is currently in progress.
As of January 2024, all Nurses, Nursing Assistants, and Nursing Aids will be paid, in addition to a regular salary increase which is already on the cards, they will be paid an additional monthly supplementary nontaxable income for an additional six-month period, amounting to five (5) percent of their salary to ease certain specific challenges which they currently face. We will conduct a review in this period, the first half of next year, with the aim to upgrade and reclassify these positions in the nursing profession. It is my intention, it is the government’s intention to big up the nurses in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
The relief which was granted over a year ago to domestic consumers of electricity to pay no VAT on their bills for any consumption below 250 units per month will continue.
At this moment, in this month (October) 44 additional Pryme Grants to micro-entrepreneurs are being issued. This will cost around $350,000. This brings the number of Pryme grants to over 1300, at a value in excess of 6.5 million dollars. This program will continue in 2024 and in 2025.
Earlier this week, on Tuesday the 24th of October, 66 National Scholarships, National Exhibition Special Awards, and Bursaries for university education were issued on the basis of results of the CAPE and Associate Degree examinations for the students at the Community College. This package of awards is valued at over $20 million dollars. This year, a record number of 5-year fully-funded scholarships (26) were awarded. Each of these scholarships carries a maximum price tag of up to $600,000. The government is committed to young people and the Education Revolution.
As of today, 1,185 farmers who owe the state-owned Farmers Support Company in the aggregate of 4.5 million dollars will receive a 50 percent waiver on the principal sums owed and a full waiver on all interest.
I have asked for a full and complete review of all the debts owed to the Kingstown Board by vendors with the intention to provide relief and waivers. After this review, we will provide the details of the relief and waivers early next year in the 2024 budget.
There will be a full and complete review of all debts owed by patients and their families to the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital and all other hospitals in St. Vincent and the Grenadines up to Independence Day last year (2022). The intention is to provide relief and waivers. The relevant details will also be announced in the budget.
The government intends, as of January 1st of next year, to reduce further, the extent of the interest rate and provide additional relief to students who borrowed monies from the state-owned Student Loan Company to finance their university education. More details will be available in the 2024 budget.
As of January 1 next year, in order to make sure that people, for a road safety measure, I want to encourage you, rather than having a lot of defective second-hand tyres, we will provide relief on the duty for new tyres for all motor vehicles. The Minister of Finance will provide the details in next year’s budget.
The existing time-bound dury-fee concession on cement will be extended for another year up to the end of 2024. This will continue to ensure that cement in St. Vincent and the Grenadines is the most affordable in the OECS.
The annual duty-free concession on Christmas barrels which we have put in place since 2001 will begin on November 15 and run until December 31, 2023.
