No payment unless budgeted

PERSONS WHO have supplied goods or services to government departments and agencies, and have not been paid, may have to wait a while to get their money.

Finance Minister Audley Shaw said yesterday that although allocations have been made in the second supplementary estimates to pay outstanding bills, monies will only be paid for jobs which were budgeted.

"Whatever is in the Budget, warrants are issued for it," Shaw said in response to a question from South St James MP Derrick Kellier.

Outstanding bills

Kellier had questioned whether outstanding bills have been taken into account by the second supplementary estimates.

Several companies with which government departments and agencies have entered into agreement have been complaining that they have not been paid.

Yesterday, Shaw threatened to make departments and agencies that contract for goods and services without parliamentary approval pay from their pockets.

"I want to use this forum to send the signal to all renegade departments and agencies, stop running up arrears that are unbudgeted," Shaw warned.

"When you run up arrears that are unbudgeted you are expending money without parliamentary approval, and then you come to bawl about arrears. Stop it, because if you don't do it they will have to find that money themselves to pay that bill," Shaw said.