Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Professor Biman Prasad says there is no need to have a mini budget as suggested by Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum as the Financial Management Act allows the Ministry of Finance and cabinet to redeploy funds.
Professor Prasad asks does Sayed-Khaiyum expect him to present a mini budget in January and February, and then another budget in June or July, which will just bring a lot of unnecessary uncertainty.
He also says nobody is a Superman and they do not have a Minister for Everything.
Professor Prasad says the budget is already there, the reporting lines would have changed, and there is no problem in managing that transition.
The Finance Minister says they will have a fiscal review committee soon which will look at the revenue, tax and expenditure policies.
A 2 day Economic Summit is being planned in April where the government will hear all the proposals, and the budget will then be presented in June or July.
The Deputy Prime Minister says they have a very different style, and the business community and everybody is happy with it.
Professor Prasad says while they are just 1 month in government, there is a sense of exuberance and optimism around the country.
He says there are people who are not in government and lost, and are trying to create unnecessary nuisance.
The Finance Minister says the government is clearly focused on delivering what the people of this country deserve.
He says already through their consultation, dialogue and meetings with stakeholders, they are setting a pathway, a new style of governance and a new environment, and people including investors, businesses and ordinary people, are getting a lot of confidence from the way Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has led the government so far as he has provided that calmness, the humility and the vision of what this government is going to do.
