The fastest-growing item of the current expenditure is pensions and retirement benefits.
“It is just growing and we have to do some reforms, we just have to do something about it ” Gonsalves stated on Tuesday 2nd January 2018.
Gonsalves said in 2015 it was 55.5 Million up to the end of November, but in 2017 its 10 Million dollars more.
“ These are the provisional numbers given to me”, he said.
Gonsalves said we have reached a staged where both non-contributory pension, that is from the state, and the NIS pension both of them together more than the salary which persons get at the time of their retirement.
“ Lots of people that have begun to happen too and it will become the norm, by 2025, 2030, and that’s clearly not sustainable”.
The Prime Minister said he is happy that the unions accept that is not sustainable, and the requisite reforms will have to take place.