CAYMAN AND UK OFFICE FOR BUDGET RESPONSIBILITY EXPLORE COOPERATION

Cayman could be in line to benefit from closer collaboration with the influential United Kingdom Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).

This comes out of discussions held in London between Hon. Minister for Finance & Economic Development Rolston Anglin  and OBR officials during the annual Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) meeting in London between representatives of the UK government and the Overseas Territories.

According to an office, Cayman Islands Government(CIG) statement, during the meeting, which opened the door for future liaison, Minister Anglin outlined the current budgeting and forecasting process, which engages the Economics & Statistics Office in developing forecasts and estimates, as well as incorporating estimates from the Revenue Unit – which like the OBR functions independent of the Government.

 Min. Anglin said he was very pleased to engage with the OBR. Further, he was thrilled to know that they acknowledged that there were no gaps in our process. He requested involvement in any future conferences or professional development offered to their staff.

 “I fully welcome any advice which helps us to further strengthen the robust estimates and forecasts currently provided by the Ministry of Finance as part of the biannual budget process. My goal as Minister of Finance is to make public finances as transparent as possible, and to ensure that the people who we serve have full trust in our projections and a full understanding of how the numbers support our policy aims to their benefit.”

The meeting with the OBR was arranged by Her Excellency Governor Jane Owen to coincide with Mr Anglin’s visit to the UK as part of the Cayman Islands delegation to the JMC.

The UK’s OBR is an autonomous body set up in 2010 to provide independent and authoritative analysis of the UK’s public finances.