DPM optimistic 'no long-term' Irma effect

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Government has decided against emergency borrowing to finance Hurricane Irma-related repairs, the Deputy Prime Minister confirmed yesterday.

K Peter Turnquest, who is also minister of finance, told Tribune Business that any repairs to homes, businesses and public infrastructure assets will be financed from contingencies and the repurposing of already-allocated Budget funds.

He said: "Cabinet has decided that we are not doing any borrowing, and so we will have to pull from various contingencies that exist in various ministries. In terms of the affect it is going to have on the Budget and the economy, fortunately for us this storm did not hit the major population and business centres. I suspect that there may be a temporary blip as people readjust to the reality that we are open to business and that we are accessible."

While islands in the southeastern Bahamas were impacted by Hurricane Irma, the storm did not score a direct hit on the Bahamas' major economic and population centres of New Providence and Freeport, unlike Hurricane Matthew in October 2016.

The Christie administration was forced to raise an unanticipated $150 million in Matthew's aftermath to finance relief efforts and repairs to public infrastructure and buildings.

Mr Turnquest said: "I think you will see business pick back up fairly quickly here. The southern islands have been devastated to various degrees, and they will have some difficulty getting back on their feet. In the Ragged Island area they are fishermen and resilient people, and they will hopefully be able to get back out to sea and do what they do.

"Morton Salt in Inagua may take a bit longer because the infrastructure there was damaged. We have not gotten an assessment from them yet in terms of what was damaged and how long it will take for them to get back in operation, but we fully expect them to.

"It appears that they still have some stock piles that didn't wash away and some product, so that they can continue to be in some form of operation. Overall we don't expect a tremendous - and certainly not long-term - affect from this."