Economics
Jamaicans to Weigh the Cost of IMF Austerity in National Vote
- Government wants more International Monetary Fund reforms
- Opposition calls for tax cuts, spending and job creation
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Jamaica is showing signs of revival after a lost decade of economic contraction and rising poverty rates. In an election Thursday, voters must decide whether they can stand several more years of the austerity the government says has underpinned the country’s recent turnaround.
Since restructuring $9 billion of debt in 2013, the administration of Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller has imposed tough fiscal targets to tackle the heaviest sovereign debt burden in the Americas. While Simpson Miller offers more of the same, the opposition Labour Party is pledging to cut taxes for low paid workers and boost the minimum wage by 32 percent.