NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Minister of Economic Affairs Michael Halkitis yesterday pushed back against criticisms over the Davis administration’s increased spend on travel, asserting that it was strictly for government business.
Halkitis in an interview with Eyewitness News noted that the $11.8 million outlay for the 2021/2022 fiscal year was not only for “ministers and politicians” but also included public servants attending conferences abroad.
He further argued that the cost of travel and accommodations has increased significantly due to global inflation and that comparison to the prior fiscal period has to account for reduced travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There seems to be this narrative being pushed that the travel budget is purely for ministers and politicians,” Halkitis said.
“The travel budget of the government is for travel for everyone, the bulk of which is public servants so they can attend things like conferences, trainings etc.
“It’s not about ministers having a party and frankly anyone who has traveled lately, especially if you are on a tight schedule, it’s no picnic. It’s not a party you’re going to, it’s government business.”
He continued: “The other thing you have to look at is that with inflation, the price of airfare and accommodations has gone up. It’s not necessarily that government is increasing its spend on travel but that prices have gone up.
“When you’re doing a year-over-year comparison you are looking at 2021 when things were still shut down. There seems to be this comparison between the government’s travel spend and leisure/vacation. The positive is that through the reporting the public can see it and we can answer.”
The allocation for travel in the latest budget represents an 11.1 percent increase over previous budget allocations.
