Barbados 1966 Constitution (reviewed 2007)

CHAPTER IX. FINANCE

1. 1. There shall be in and for Barbados a Consolidated Fund, to which, subject to the provisions of any law for the time being in force in Barbados, shall be credited all revenues of Barbados.

108

1. 1. 1. The Minister responsible for Finance shall, before the end of each financial year, cause to be prepared annual estimates of revenue and expenditure for public services during the succeeding financial year, which shall be laid before the House of Assembly.
      2. The estimates of expenditure shall show separately the sums required to meet statutory expenditure (as defined in section 109(7)) and the sums required to meet other expenditure proposed to be charged to the Consolidated Fund.

109

1. 1. 1. The Minister responsible for Finance shall, in respect of each financial year, at the earliest convenient moment before the commencement of that financial year, introduce in the House of Assembly an Appropriation Bill containing, under appropriate heads for the several services required, the estimated aggregate sums which are proposed to be expended (otherwise than by way of statutory expenditure) during that financial year.
      2. Subject to subsections (4) and (6), the sums voted on the Estimates by the House of Assembly in respect of a financial year shall represent the limit and extent of the public expenditure for that financial year.
      3. Where any sum is voted on the estimates by the House of Assembly in respect of a financial year and at the end of that year there is an unexpended balance of that sum, the unexpended balance shall lapse.
      4. The Minister responsible for Finance may, in case of necessity, from time to time cause to be prepared supplementary estimates of expenditure which shall be laid before and voted on by the House of Assembly.
      5. In respect of all supplementary expenditure voted on by the House of Assembly in pursuance of subsection (4), the Minister responsible for Finance may, at any time before the end of the financial year, introduce into the House of Assembly a Supplementary Appropriation Bill containing, under appropriate heads, the aggregate sums so voted, and shall, as soon as possible after the end of each financial year, introduce into the House of Assembly a final Appropriation Bill containing any such sums which have not yet been included in any Appropriation Bill.
      6. That part of any estimate of expenditure laid before the House of Assembly which shows statutory expenditure shall not be voted on by the House, and such expenditure shall, without further authority of Parliament, be charged to the Consolidated Fund.
      7. For the purposes of this section and section 108
         1. “financial year” means any period of twelve months beginning on 1st April in any year or such other date as Parliament may prescribe; and
         2. “statutory expenditure” means expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund or on the general revenues and assets of Barbados by any provision of this Constitution or of any other law for the time being in force in Barbados.
   2. No sum shall be charged to the Consolidated Fund except upon the authority of a warrant under the hand of the Minister responsible for Finance or under the hand of some person authorised by him in writing; and sums so issued shall be disposed of for meeting public expenditure authorised under section 109 or, in the case of statutory expenditure, for the purposes appointed by law.
   3. The public debt of Barbados, including the interest on that debt, sinking fund payments and redemption monies in respect of that debt and the costs, charges and expenses incidental to the management of that debt, is hereby charged on the Consolidated Fund.

112

1. 1. There shall be paid to the holders of the offices to which this section applies such salaries as may be prescribed by or under any law.
   2. The salaries payable to the holders of the offices to which this section applies are hereby charged on the Consolidated Fund.
   3. The salary and allowances payable to the holder of any office to which this section applies and his other terms of service shall not be altered to his disadvantage after his appointment and, for the purposes of this subsection, in so far as the terms of service of any person depend upon the option of that person, the terms for which he opts shall be taken to be more advantageous to him than any other terms for which he might have opted.
   4. This section applies to the offices of Governor-General, Judges, Director of Public Prosecutions, Auditor-General, appointed members of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission and members of the Public Service Commission and the Police Service Commission.
2. The salaries and allowances payable to the holders of offices established under the Civil Establishment Act and the Defence Act shall not be altered to their disadvantage.

113

1. There shall be an Auditor-General, whose office shall be a public office.
2. The accounts of the Supreme Court, the Senate, the House of Assembly and all departments and offices of the Government (including the offices of the Cabinet, the Privy Council, the Judicial and Legal Service Commission, the Public Service Commission and the Police Service Commission and government-controlled entities and statutory authorities, but excluding the department of the Auditor-General) shall, at least once in every year, be audited and reported on by the Auditor-General who, with his subordinate staff, shall at all times be entitled to have access to all books, records, returns and reports relating to such accounts.
3. The Auditor-General may on his own initiative carry out examinations into the financial management of Ministries, departments, statutory authorities and government-controlled entities, including the manner in which those Ministries, departments, statutory authorities and government-controlled entities use their resources in discharging their functions as regards the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of those resources.
4. The Auditor-General shall submit his reports made under subsections (2) and (2A) to the Speaker (or, if the office of Speaker is vacant or the Speaker is for any reason unable to perform the functions of his office, to the Deputy Speaker), who shall cause them to be laid before the House of Assembly.
5. In the exercise of his functions under the provisions of subsections (2), (2A) and (3), the Auditor-General shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority.
6. Repealed by 2007-10.
7. Nothing in this section shall prevent the performance by the Auditor-General of–
   1. such other functions in relation to the accounts of the Government and the accounts of other public authorities and other bodies administering public funds in Barbados as may be prescribed by or under any law for the time being in force in Barbados; or
   2. such other functions in relation to the supervision and control of expenditure from public funds in Barbados as may be so prescribed.