Skerrit says August budget will focus on cost of living, tax reform and economic challenges

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has announced that the cost of living in Dominica will be addressed in the 2026-2027 National Budget Day.

His comments came ahead of the session, which is scheduled for August 4.

According to him, the budget will be presented against the backdrop of the global uncertainties that are currently being experienced.

“A number of things are shocks to the economy and not only Dominica but throughout the world. So you have these external actions, whether it’s geopolitical or the conflict in the Middle East, all of which impact on the way of life of every single citizen in the world,” he said.

Skerrit argues that every government and every country is seeking ways to maneuver around those challenges that they have no control over.

“And of course, this causes an impact on the goods on the shelves, the cost of living, and because you have a supply chain issue, freight goes up,  insurance goes up, for the shipping lines.  All of these increases are passed on to the consumers,” he stated.

The prime minister contends that his administration has offset the rise in cost with favorable tax conditions.

He continued, “But as you’ve seen, we have certainly provided a lot of relief to Dominican people by ensuring that they keep more of their money in their pockets by way of their salaries in terms of taxation. So the number of things that we do, all of which impact directly  on your pockets  in Dominica.”

However, according to him, these measures sometimes go unnoticed.

“And of course going into this budget you will see some very far-reaching and progressive policy initiatives that the government will present to the people of Dominica, which will cause there to be a reduction of the cost on the shelves and many other things…,” he emphasized. “And it is going to be a dramatic change  in our tax structure.”

Furthermore, Skerrit noted that his government will speak about ongoing projects and what they mean for Dominica going forward.

“And of course we will also make a deliberate statement on the Citizenship By Investment program in a very transparent manner,” he added.