Traffic tickets expected to bring more to coffers

The Government is banking on traffic ticket inflows to provide a boost to its revenues this fiscal year.

An examination of the 2010-2011 Estimates of Expenditure, tabled in the House of Representatives yesterday, reveals that the state is projecting to collect $350 million through this avenue.

This is 75 per cent more than the $200 million that was written in the Budget as appropriation-in-aid by way of traffic tickets last year.

A total of $38.5 billion has been earmarked for spending on national security, an area the Government has outlined as a priority this year.

No Cars, but yes to police stations

No funds have been set aside on the capital side of the Budget for the purchasing of police vehicles and boats.

However, the Government is proposing to allocate more resources to the construction and improvement of police stations and other buildings.

In fact, $350 million has been earmarked for this area - $200 million of which is proposed to go towards police stations and $150 million to the police academy.

Meanwhile, the number of projects funded by international partners in the fight against crime has decreased.

Ten projects were undertaken at a cost of just over $1 billion with the aid of bilateral and multilateral partners last year.

A deportee reintegration programme, which the Government had earmarked to receive funding from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office to the tune of $224.9 million last year, is set to get $129 million this year. Only $57.5 million was spent on this programme last year.

THe Government is, however, spending more on its Jamaica Violence and Sustainable Development Programme which received only $18 million last year. The programme, which aims to achieve community safety through crime prevention strategies, legislation and strengthening the National Intelligence Bureau, is to receive $124 million.

Missing from the multilateral funding list is the Improved Governance and Citizen Security and Empowerment Programme.

Meanwhile, on the recurrent side of the national security budget, the Government is projecting to spend $37.1 billion to carry out the day-to-day affairs of the ministry.

The Jamaica Defence Force, which got $9.9 billion last year for recurrent expenditure, will only get $8.7 billion this this time around. The force is being asked to spend less on the training of military personnel - $81 million, down from $167 million last year.