Announcements made by Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves on the 45th anniversary of independence.
5 percent additional tax-free salary for all nurses, nursing assistants, and nursing aides, until Dec 2025— cost over $2M
VAT relief for domestic consumers of electricity up to 250 units (kilowatt hours) Cont’d indefinitely
Duty-free concession on cement extended indefinitely
Record 104 national scholarships, nation-al exhibitions, special awards, and bursaries for university to be issued – Cost $30M
Record 2000 tuition scholarships issued
Gov’t will pay student loans for Dec 2024 – Cost $200K ( interest rate is now 4.5)
All primary and secondary school teachers and 2nd year students at SVGCC will receive free new laptops early 2025 -Cost $3M
Dec 2024 – Feb 2025, a special Cost-of-Living Allowance (COLA Special) of $175 monthly for 3K means-tested, particularly vulnerable households
The Consumer Protection Act and the Price and Distribution of Goods Act will be utilised to the fullest to curtail price gouging by unscrupulous retailers
Duty-free concessions on barrels will continue to Jan 31 2025
Payout of approximately $500,000 to the Police for 2024 T20 WC will be effected shortly
Increased allowances for particular categories of public employees including ag-grieved police officers, junior doctors, and some others, 2025
Further beefing up of citizen security institutions, including the Law Courts, the Police Force, the Coast Guard, the Prisons, and the National Commission on Crime Prevention.
Gov’t will spearhead the establishment of a Semi-Professional Football League in conjunction with the private sector, foot-ball clubs, and the SVGFF
Sports Department will be restructured to ensure optimal functioning
National orchestra and National choir to be established
Housing Repair and Reconstruction programme will continue unabated until all volcano and Beryl affected homes are re-stored
$600 monthly from October for Beryl affected Unemployed heads of households; owners of micro-enterprises; farmers + farm workers + fishers and their crew; and workers laid off in the tourism sector, via ATM cards (To be continued in 2025) -Cost $15M
320 new SET workers to begin in November. $200 increase for college graduate SET employees and $300 increase for university graduate SET employees.
