PM unveils a Fiscal Responsibility Act as debt climbs past 87% of GDP
Public debt hit Rs 675.4 billion in March, and PM Ramgoolam used the National Assembly to lay out what he wants to do about it. A new Fiscal Responsibility Act is coming, designed to bind future governments to harder budget discipline and force more transparency on the public finances.
PM Ramgoolam reminded MPs that the debt-to-GDP ratio sat at 58.8% when he last left office in 2014. It now stands at 87.7%, with the total tripling from Rs 238 billion to Rs 608.2 billion in a decade, and projected to reach Rs 679.7 billion by June.
A private bill in London is trying to keep Chagos British
A British peer is moving to torpedo the Chagos handover before it gets signed. A private member's bill protecting UK sovereignty over the archipelago will be tabled in the House of Lords on 5 June, as the Mauritius-UK agreement on retrocession stays in limbo.
Private bills rarely pass without government backing. But this one adds fresh political friction to a deal Port Louis has spent years negotiating.
On the Silver Bank saga, only the central bank can punish its own
Two named senior officials at the Bank of Mauritius supervisory desk are still in post, and PM Ramgoolam told Parliament there is nothing the government can legally do about it. Asked by Kushal Lobine whether Mmes S.H and U.S would face consequences for the Silver Bank supervisory failures, PM Ramgoolam said the BoM alone can sanction its staff.
The cleanest line of accountability runs back to the institution that allegedly failed in the first place.
UK parcel of drug-soaked paper ends at a Petite-Riviere post office
A 25-year-old mason walked into the Petite-Riviere post office on Tuesday to collect a parcel from the United Kingdom. Anti-drug officers were waiting. The package, intercepted by customs on 12 May after arriving on British Airways flight BA 2065, contained A4 sheets soaked in synthetic drugs.
Shorts
Sixteen burglaries cracked in the North – Four arrests and a ring of nighttime break-ins at new houses and building sites dismantled by Northern police.
Adrien Duval ruling pushed to 22 July – Rose-Hill magistrate postponed the ruling on his bid to halt the trial against him.
Reunionese can keep skipping the passport – Will more Reunion day trippers come through? The Maurice sans passeport scheme has been extended by another year.
Mauritius goes on Ebola alert – Minister Bachoo told the House that ports and health staff are on a state of vigilance over the DRC and Uganda outbreak.
Cannabis hidden in Rodrigues port luggage – ADSU pulled 9.4 grams from unclaimed luggage at Port-Mathurin container park.
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