As she took the floor in the Parliament to respond to the Finance Minister’s 2021 budget presentation, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar urged Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley and his government to consider taking a 5% pay cut as a show of solidarity with citizens who are reeling from the financial fallout of the pandemic.

Describing the 2020/2021 budget as “anti-people”, she lamented that thousands of citizens have lost their jobs- many even before the dawn of the pandemic.

“While I expect a moan and groan from colleagues opposite, they may even consider it as a short-term initiative for about 12 months,” Persad-Bissessar said.

“I think in these pandemic times another great moment of leadership has arrived. I call on this government to consider a five per cent pay cut in solidarity with suffering citizens. Follow the examples of other countries like New Zealand. While such a move may not shift the overall fiscal position, it is about leadership by example.”

She recalled that while serving as Prime Minister in 2010, she and members of her government donated 10% of their salaries to the Children’s Life Fund.

With the COVID-19 pandemic having changed the labor landscape with many now working from home, the Opposition Leader also called on Government to consider new legislation to strengthen protection for workers’ rights and lives, with a view to reduce exploitation by employers, further job cuts and retrenchment.