NASSAU, The Bahamas --
The government has reaffirmed its commitment to a mortgage relief programme
that will help save the homes of persons who are no longer able to service
their loan obligations, because of underemployed, involuntary loss of jobs, or
because of chronic illness.
Prime Minister the Rt.
Hon. Perry Gladstone Christie during the presentation of the 2012/2013 Budget
Communication in Parliament on Wednesday said preliminary discussions with
representatives of the clearing banks and other institutional lenders have
already been initiated.
He said the
discussions would continue with a view to arriving at a mortgage relief
programme in the shortest possible time.
“In the meantime, we
wish to reiterate that the programme was never intended to assist homeowners
who have the means to pay their mortgage obligations but simply decided not to
do so,” Prime Minister Christie stressed.
“We therefore urge all
homeowners who have the means to do so, to continue to meet their mortgage
obligations as and when they are due.”
He also noted that the
first draft of a Bill to administer and regulate Pension Funds is now complete
and will be presented to Parliament shortly.
“As was stated from
the Speech from the Throne, we will ensure that employees have access to their
pension savings for emergency purposes, including mortgage relief.
“We will do so within
the broader context of the revised Bill to which I have just referred,” the
Prime Minister said.
Renewed commitment to National Health Insurance
Prime Minister
Christie said the government’s commitment to National Health Insurance remains
solid and the government will pursue preparations for the financially
sustainable implementation of such a plan.
He said the government
is also allocating funds to the Public Hospitals Authority to facilitate the
acquisition of new cancer screening technology to ensure all Bahamian women
have access to state-of-the-art mammogram machines at both the Princess
Margaret Hospital and Rand Memorial Hospital.
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