The Keith Mitchell government in St. George's has finally announced an action plan aimed at curbing the constant rise in the cost of living on the island.

In delivering the Throne Speech to mark the Ceremonial Opening the Fifth Session of the Seventh Parliament of Grenada, Governor General, Sir Daniel Williams said that one of the measures to be undertaken is the monitoring of price controlled items.

Sir Daniel announced that some 46 items including powdered milk, flour, rice, corned beef and mackerel, as well as agricultural implements, medication and lumber are already subjected to price control with strict monitoring instructions to the Price Control Unit. He said that measures would be instituted to control some prices and reduce others such as brown sugar, rice and full cream powdered milk.

"Serious consideration is being given to expand the list," he told the joint sitting of the Houses of Representatives. Sir Daniel noted that in times such as these, it is the poor, extremely economically challenged and dispossessed like the  disabled, senior citizens on fixed incomes, minimum wage earners and other vulnerable groups who are hard-pressed to make ends meet.

"We know only too well the plight of mothers struggling to send their children to school who have to survive on fixed incomes while the cost of the basic food-basket spirals upwards," he said.

The ruling New National Party (NNP) government also proposes to increase the number of beneficiaries who are currently under the old aged pension scheme in addition to increasing their monthly allowance upwards from the present $130.00 per month.

Government has blamed the prevailing high cost of petroleum for the increased cost of living, bus fares, electricity, and petrol and petroleum products at the gas stations. The Throne Speech noted that Grenada imports some 90% of its goods and services.

The Governor General said while government feels the pain and anguish of every Grenadian faced with survival in a climate of austere economic adjustment, they cannot intervene and subsidise the cost of living of every Grenadian. He said government proposes to take a very serious and incisive look at just who in the Grenadian society, or what category of Grenadians ought to benefit from further cost of living assistance. He charged that the impact in the cost of living is not shared equally among all Grenadians.

"Some Grenadians are denied of certain necessities, while others are very comfortable," he said. Sir Daniel disclosed that a Risk and Vulnerability Assessment Team is being assembled with the specific mandate to examine and recommend ways in which government can further subsidise items in the basic food-basket of the most vulnerable and needy, such as flour, rice, sugar and milk, and determine the quickest time-frame in which this initiative can be implemented.

The Throne Speech called on Grenadians to exercise budget-management, and food purchasing strategies designed to offset the burden of higher prices. Sir Daniel said a special Food and Budget Counseling Desk will be established in the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development which will augment the efforts of the Grenada Food and Nutrition Council (GFNC).

The Governor General also spoke about the planned implementation of the much-delayed controversial Value Added Tax (VAT) which is now set to come in early next year. He said government has sought to transform the culture of tax compliance in Grenada by first embarking upon a public education programme on the potential impact of the VAT system, followed by the drafting of the necessary legislation which will soon be tabled in parliament.

This, he said would be a prelude to VAT's full implementation. With prices expected to further increase with VAT, speculation is rife that Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell is giving serious thought to going to the polls before the new tax regime comes into force.

It was also announced in the Throne speech that special attention is also being given to provide pension for public workers who were appointed to the Public Service on or after April 4, 1983. Sir Daniel said that the reform of the pension system to provide for a pension for that particular group of public servants will remain a priority of government.

Following the establishment of the National Insurance Scheme in 1983, the then People's Revolutionary Government (PRG) took the decision to abolish pension entitlement to public officers who joined the public service after 1983. Sir Daniel announced that government has commissioned a study into the problem via the services of an Actuary and Pension Planner from the firm of Bacon Woodrow and De Souza out of Trinidad who will examine the implications of various pension schemes, recommend an appropriate one, and make proposals for its financing. The review is expected to be completed by next February.

The Pay and Grade System is set to be completed by March 31, next year. The review involves a comprehensive examination of the 1995 Pay and Grade structure and the development of a remuneration policy, and a Pay and Grade structure which will enable government to attract, motivate and retain qualified and competent officers.

In recent years, several top managers in the public service have been bowing out to take up more lucrative job offers in the private sector.