2018/19 Budget Communication 2018_2019 BUDGET COMMUNICATION | Page 98

Ø Fourth, in light of the fact that the Government wage bill has grown by $226 million, or 40 per cent, between 2011/12 and 2018/19 in an economy that has posted little if any real growth, the necessity of exercising restraint in respect of the overall wage bill and headcount and also the need to focus on enhanced professional skills as the existing professional staff retires; Ø Fifth, the establishment and funding of the sinking fund to which I referred earlier; Ø Sixth, the vital need to establish a Disaster Relief Fund over the medium term horizon to absorb the fiscal consequences of natural disasters; Ø Seventh, the critically important need to boost capital expenditure on critical public infrastructure 95