Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has accused the previous People’s National Movement (PNM) administration of spending $114 million on entertainment, household expenses and conferences through the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) between 2016 and 2025.
Speaking during the Standing Finance Committee’s examination of the OPM’s expenditure, Persad-Bissessar said the spending included $19.2 million for official entertainment, $80.5 million for expenses associated with the prime minister’s establishment and $14.7 million for conferences and seminars.
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She criticized the former administration’s spending practices, declaring that the OPM would no longer serve as a “slush fund for the lavish lifestyles of those who treated themselves as emperors.”
Persad-Bissessar also said her administration reduced the OPM’s allocation from $1.2 billion in fiscal 2025 to $465 million in fiscal 2026. The allocation for fiscal 2027, including the development programme, stands at 462.7 million, with recurrent expenditure increasing by $26 million to accommodate higher salaries.
Opposition lawmakers declined to question the prime minister during the committee session, with Opposition Chief Whip Marvin Gonzales describing the appearance as a “PR stunt.”
The PNM subsequently voted against the 2027 budget, arguing that the government had failed to present a credible economic recovery plan, adequately address job losses and fulfill previous commitments.
The opposition also raised concerns about the country’s finances, claiming that the fiscal deficit had exceeded $7 billion by July, compared with an initial projection of $3 billion. It further alleged that more than 60,000 people had lost their jobs under the current administration, although its statement did not identify the source of that figure.
The 2027 budget was passed in the House of Representatives by 28 votes to 12, with no abstentions.
