Robert Hart, Staff ReporterA YEAR after the dismal state of the nation's fire services pushed Minister of Local Government, Community Development and Sport, Portia Simpson Miller, into conflict with party colleagues, the controversial funding of the essential service has been brought back on to Parliament's front burner.
As Parliament's Standing Finance Committee continued to examine the 2005/2006 Estimates of Expenditure during the early hours of Friday morning, Mrs. Simpson Miller revealed that her ministry had received only $53 million of the $115 million approved in the Capital A budget for the fire services in the 2004/2005 Supplementary Estimates.
The local government minister also said to the chagrin of Opposition members that new fire trucks expected to be purchased last year, had not yet been ordered.
The company which will provide the 41 trucks, to complement another 41 already in the fleet, is to be selected this week.
Pressed by Audley Shaw, Opposition spokesman on finance, Mrs. Simpson Miller was unable to explain why the Government had failed to provide the promised funds.
"So minister, there is $62 million short of the amount that you needed just to repair fire trucks, to purchase critical fire fighting equipment and to carry on your normal operations without the benefit of new trucks which was promised," Mr. Shaw said.
DISMAL BACKGROUND
He added: "Do you have any understanding as to why it is that a few weeks ago we came here at the time of supplementary estimates and we approved a final amount of $115 million for the fire department to do these basic critical things (and) why there should have been, against this dismal background, such a radical cut in the capital budget of the fire services?"
Mrs. Simpson Miller, responded simply: "We are still in discussions with the (finance) minister on the shortfall."
Responding to questions from Pearnel Charles, Opposition spokesman on local government, Mrs. Simpson Miller also said she had been told that a deal to supply the trucks through the aid of the French Government had fallen through.
The Ministry of Finance and Planning has been principally responsible for securing the trucks.
Mrs. Simpson Miller indicated during the tense discussion that, despite an apparent $200 million decrease in the allocation to the fire services from $1.7 billion last year to $1.57 billion this year, the fire brigade has in fact received a $300 million increase in its budget.
She explained that $500 million was included in the 2004/2005 budget to clear outstanding statutory deductions, leaving $1.2 billion for the running of the department.
DEFENSIVE CROSS TALK
But pressed by Opposition members, and despite defensive cross talk from the Government side, Mrs. Simpson Miller said that fire officials had told her that the new budget was workable, though tight.
It was during the Standing Finance Committee's examination of the 2004/2005 Estimates a year ago, that the Opposition forced a vote on a motion, chastising the Government for inadequately funding the fire services after the local government minister said the department was severely underfunded.
Mrs. Simpson Miller abstained from that vote which was otherwise cast along strict party lines.
When asked by Opposition members to estimate the true amount needed to adequately run the fire services, she avoided treading the same path taken when she sat in the hot seat last year.
Appearing at times to be guided by sotto voce reactions from Government colleagues, Mrs. Simpson Miller was warned by Opposition members that she was being sabotaged.
"If you don't know what amount of money you have received from the (finance) minister to date and you don't know what amount of money is required to bring the fire service to the level it needs to be, how can you make representation on behalf of the Jamaican public to get that job done?" an incredulous Andrew Gallimore, member of Parliament for West Rural St. Andrew, said.
"You cannot tell me what I know and don't know!" Mrs. Simpson Miller angrily struck back.
