Despite tabling Jamaica’s first-ever trillion-dollar budget, Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke says there will be no new taxes. 

The Finance Minister made the announcement in his opening budget debate presentation to the House of Representatives on Tuesday. 

The announcement makes the 2023/2024 financial year the sixth consecutive financial year without any new taxes and the eighth year without any new net taxes.

Included in the budget is over $350 billion for public sector wages and salaries, which includes provisions for the second year of implementation of the public-sector compensation restructuring.

During his presentation, the Minister revealed that Jamaica’s economy, which like many others had been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, had recovered to pre-pandemic levels. 

“Countries in Central America, Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia are battling serious fiscal crises, serious balance of payment crises, triggered by the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic… and it would have been easy to happen in Jamaica… But Jamaica today stands as a shining example to the world,” Clarke said. 

The Minister also noted that Jamaica’s unemployment level is at a historic low, with more Jamaicans being employed now than ever before. 

“I am pleased to report that the number of persons employed as at April 2022, of 1,269,300 is the highest number of persons ever been recorded as employed in Jamaica’s history,” he said.