 Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wish to give my full support to the resolution brought to this Honourable House by the Minister for Finance and the Honourable Member for Cass Rises to raise funds by the issue of savings bonds. Mr. Speaker, Section 3 of the National Savings and Development Bonds Act, Cap 15.25, Offerises the Minister Responsible for Finance by Authority of the Resolution of Parliament to raise funds by the issue of saving bonds money up to the amount of 2.4 billion for financing capital expenditure or other expenditure and for such debt refinancing as he or she determines. The resolution Mr. Speaker requests the approval of this House for the Minister responsible for finance to raise funds by the issue of saving bonds for the following. One, the financing of the budget in the amount of 32,100,000 and two, the amount of 433,500,000 for debt refinancing. Mr. Speaker, these funds are to be raised through the Regional Government Securities Market or Private Placement at a maximum interest rate of 7% per annum. On the issue of the financing of the budget Mr. Speaker, it is to be noted that this Honourable House recently passed an excellent budget presented by the Minister responsible for finance. The net financing requirement of this budget Mr. Speaker amounted to 288,656,156 dollars of which 256,595,192 was to be financed by external borrowing and 32,964 was to be financed by Treasury bills and bonds. The reference to this Mr. Speaker is page Roman numeral three of the estimates of revenue and expenditure 2023-2024. The Minister responsible for finance is therefore requesting approval to raise $32,100,000 to finance the budget. Mr. Speaker, we are also required to give the Minister for Finance the approval by way of a resolution to refinance debts that have matured and are due for payment. As the name suggests, Mr. Speaker, this does not represent an increase in debt, but simply the refinancing of existing debt. The amount of debt that is required to be refinanced is $433,500,000. The Minister for Finance is proposing that the maximum interest rate for raising funds is 7%. Mr. Speaker, as you know, we are a small open and vulnerable economy with a narrow margin of error and we have a narrow band of policy options. Therefore, we have to ensure that we manage this economy in a way that will give us the space so that we can create an improved framework for us to finance social services to impact positively on the lives of St. Louisians. Now, Mr. Speaker, we have witnessed the most aggressive wave of monetary tightening in four decades as countries attempt to reduce inflation. Mr. Speaker, the Federal Reserve Bank recently raised interest rates to 5.25%, the highest in 16 years. I repeat, Mr. Speaker, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates to 5.25% the highest in 16 years. We wish to note, Mr. Speaker, that the Federal Reserve rate was 0% as recently as the first quarter of 2022. As recent as the first quarter of 2022, it was 0% and it's now up to 5.25% the highest in 16 years. We have therefore witnessed a massive increase in interest rates from 0% in 2022 to 5.25% in May of this year. Mr. Speaker, this of course has implications for small developing countries such as ours in terms of the interest rates that investors will be willing to pay for government paper. This therefore explains why the Minister for Finance is proposing that the maximum interest rate for raising these funds is 7%. This of course, Mr. Speaker, has implications for our debt servicing as interest rates costs will inevitably increase. And therefore, it is consistent with prudent management of the economy to give ourselves the maximum amount of space to be able to deal with the pressing but legitimate needs of the people of this country. Mr. Speaker, whatever we can deliver to the people must be a function of the economic health of this country. Moreover, Mr. Speaker, the IMF anticipates that the federal funds rate will remain in the range of 5.25% to 5.4% until late 2024, as it expects core and headline inflation to continue to stay over the Fed's inflation target of 2% during 2023 and 2024. Mr. Speaker, this seems to be born out of the new inflation numbers released on May 26, 2023, which shows that inflation climbed to 4.4% in April from a year earlier. We must therefore be prepared to battle the strong headwinds which are outside of our control. Mr. Speaker, as we continue our path of economic recovery, Mr. Speaker, we have the fullest of confidence in our Minister for Finance in managing the situation most effectively. He has in such a short period of time proven himself to be extremely astute in managing the fiscal mess we inherited from the former Minister for Finance and now leader of the opposition. On the issue of debt management strategy, the Minister for Finance stated the following in his 2022-2023 budget policy statement, and I quote, over the past five years, we have just been rolling over the Treasury bills and essentially treating them as long-term instruments. Mr. Speaker, my government will attempt to address this untenable situation and as a result, during this fiscal year, we will seek to convert Treasury bills into longer-term instruments. Mr. Speaker, conversion of these short-term instruments is in keeping with the government's medium-term debt management strategy to lengthen the maturity profile, reduce, roll over risk, and reduce the cost of borrowing by seeking lower interest rates. On quote, the words of the member for Cassidy's East and Minister for Finance in his last policy statement, not this year, but 2022-2023. This is why my colleagues and I have every confidence in this Minister for Finance. He understands our vulnerability associated with holding so much short-term debt and will be willing to take action to lengthen the debt maturity profile. This strategy, Mr. Speaker, will ultimately result in reducing our roll over risk associated with debt refinancing. I therefore wish to give my full support to this resolution, Mr. Speaker, to authorize the Minister for Finance to raise on the regional government securities market or by private placement at a maximum interest rate of 7% per annum, 1, the amount of 32,100,000 for financing the budget, and 2, the amount of 433,500,000 for refinancing existing debt. I thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me to make this brief intervention.