All public sector employees (no matter their age) would participate in the one new defined contribution plan I mentioned above which will need to be a non-contributory plan in the early years (i.e. only contributions by employees deducted by their employer from their pay with no matching or other contributions from the employer) until it is determined the plan will be financially sound for the long-term. Care will have to be taken to ensure the new plan is administered by qualified professionals in the private sector and not by government, otherwise it will go the way that our National Insurance Fund has gone. The new plan would need to be strictly prohibited from making investments that are in any way related or connected to government other than possibly a limited amount of Bahamas Government Stock.

worth repeating:
All of the existing public sector pension plans (i.e. those of government departments, agencies and corporations) need to be rolled up into one large public sector defined contribution plan. In the case of existing defined benefit plans, the opening or starting balance for each participant in the new defined contribution plan should be based on an equitable pro rata reduction of the vested value of their existing accumulated retirement benefits based on the least generous of all the existing public sector defined benefit plans. In the case of participants in existing defined contribution plans, their opening or starting balance in the new defined contribution plan should equal aggregate contributions made out of their own pocket plus related actual realized earnings thereon to date, plus an equitable pro rata reduced amount in respect of the vested portion of the actual value of their accumulated benefits attributable to any additional contributions made on their behalf by their employer, which reduced amount should be based on the least generous of all the existing public sector defined contribution plans. This approach would give no one a free ride based on age thereby avoiding younger public sector employees and younger Bahamian taxpayers being unduly burdened in the much more difficult times they will have to work as compared to their older public sector colleagues now nearing retirement. Public sector personnel nearing their retirement age who have enjoyed a much better standard of living than their younger colleagues will likely ever experience should not be rewarded by any grandfathering initiatives based on age.....an old timer who has all along lived the very good life and failed to provide for his or her future financial needs should not now be rewarded at the expense of their younger public sector colleagues and the hard working taxpayers of this country. Broad strokes given here, but the details behind creating one new financially viable defined contribution plan covering all public sector employees (including politicians) will need to be hammered out with minimal political and public sector union involvement.

All of the existing public sector pension plans (i.e. those of government departments, agencies and corporations) need to be rolled up into one large public sector defined contribution plan. In the case of existing defined benefit plans, the opening or starting balance for each participant in the new defined contribution plan should be based on an equitable pro rata reduction of the vested value of their existing accumulated retirement benefits based on the least generous of all the existing public sector defined benefit plans. In the case of participants in existing defined contribution plans, their opening or starting balance in the new defined contribution plan should equal aggregate contributions made out of their own pocket plus related actual realized earnings thereon to date, plus an equitable pro rata reduced amount in respect of the vested portion of the actual value of their accumulated benefits attributable to any additional contributions made on their behalf by their employer, which reduced amount should be based on the least generous of all the existing public sector defined contribution plans. This approach would give no one a free ride based on age thereby avoiding younger public sector employees and younger Bahamian taxpayers being unduly burdened in the much more difficult times they will have to work as compared to their older public sector colleagues now nearing retirement. Public sector personnel nearing their retirement age who have enjoyed a much better standard of living than their younger colleagues will likely ever experience should not be rewarded by any grandfathering initiatives based on age.....an old timer who has all along lived the very good life and failed to provide for his or her future financial needs should not now be rewarded at the expense of their younger public sector colleagues and the hard working taxpayers of this country. Broad strokes given here, but the details behind creating one new financially viable defined contribution plan covering all public sector employees (including politicians) will need to be hammered out with minimal political and public sector union involvement.

As one of the world's largest service providers to the online gaming industry, would you expect KPMG to support higher taxation of the gaming industry anywhere in the world?

Nothing but a head fake threat of legal action to try and take away attention from the Carl Bethel deal struck between Christie, the FNM (Minnis and Cash) and BOB. Meanwhile, it's business as usual at Christie's very own BOB, with the support of our National Insurance funds.

Commenter "generalcrazy" above is aka Freddie Boy.

Old Eddy was mummified many moons ago...he just couldn't find the right pyramid to sleep in.

Thank you for driving this point home so concisely and nicely. We are a sovereign nation under the rule of law and no one in our government, including the PM, is above the law!

correct address for the website referred to in this article is: globalexchange.org/resources/wbimf/oppo…

correct address for the website referred to in this article is: globalexchange.org/resources/wbimf/oppo…