SO AS to ensure that international safety standards are maintained at the airports, the Senate yesterday passed a Bill to increase the responsibilities of the nation's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
The Civil Aviation Authority (Amend-ment) Bill, passed late last month in the House of Representatives, received bipartisan support in the Upper House.
But during yesterday's debate, Govern-ment Senator Professor Trevor Munroe questioned whether the deficit-ridden body, to be renamed the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA), would be able to adequately finance its new objectives.
"This has been a matter of very serious concern," Senator Munroe said. "The deficit operated by the Civil Aviation Authority is quite huge and a lot of it has to do with non-payment."
SANCTIONS LOOPHOLE
That non-payment, he said, relates to the fees imposed on aircraft coming into and leaving the island. But the Government Senator said he was unable to detect any strengthening of sanctions in the Bill to ensure that fees are paid.
Senator Munroe said: "If it doesn't, (strengthen sanctions) and we continue in the same way, we are going to have the CAA on the public sector budget for an indefinite period of time, thereby, violating one of the aims, which is to reduce the extent of the deficit and to ultimately balance and put ourselves in surplus."
His argument was supported by Senator Anthony Johnson, Leader of Opposition Business.
Senator Burchell Whiteman, Leader of Government Business, admitted that he had no immediate and clear answer, but noted that attempts were ongoing to ensure more efficient collection of fees.
