Government of Jamaica to reveal plans for public-sector reform next week

THE COUNTRY will be told next week about the directions in which the Government is to head with the rationalisation of the public sector.

Information Minister Daryl Vaz announced yesterday that Prime Minister Bruce Golding will outline the details when he makes his contribution to the Budget Debate next Tuesday.

"The time has finally come where we will know and get a clear indication as to the direction of the Government in terms of those decisions," Vaz told journalists during the weekly post-Cabinet press conference at Jamaica House yesterday.

With public-sector reform listed as a critical plank of the Government's 2011-2012 Budget, Vaz said Cabinet spent time during its meeting on Monday, discussing a majority of the outstanding issues that were raised at its recent retreat.

In 2009, Golding established the Public Sector Transformation Unit (PSTU) to lead, monitor, evaluate and facilitate the implementation of the restructuring of the public sector for efficient, effective economical growth.

The PSTU has already submitted a report with several far-reaching and controversial proposals.

Among the changes recommended by the PSTU are a reduction in the vacation leave given to civil servants and the closure or merger of several government agencies.