Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-10-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans his Department has to transfer powers over the raising and spending of public finances from the government of Anguilla to the Government.

James Duddridge

There are no plans to remove the power of the Government of Anguilla to tax and spend. In circumstances where an Overseas Territory is in breach of its legal limits for debt, or where the UK taxpayer may be called upon to provide support, it is the established convention that reasonable assurance measures are put in place so that financial obligations continue to be met and public finances remain sustainable. The Government of Anguilla faces considerable challenges in maintaining sound public finances along with support for economic growth and the financial sector. We look forward to receiving the Government of Anguilla’s robust and credible plans, and to discussing these with them. The UK Government will continue to work in partnership with the Government of Anguilla to help ensure the long term financial security of the people of Anguilla. We also continue to keep open our offer to provide further technical assistance.