Requests by the Minster of Finance to allow for an increase in Government's limit on borrowings under the Treasury Bills Act from the current limit to a sum that exceeds $20 billion has been labelled by UNC Senator Wade Mark as a gimmick by Government to acquire funds to support a potential election campaign.

"What we are seeking to do today is to give the government of Trinidad and Tobago, through the Minister (Conrad Enill), some $20 billion. What mechanisms are being put into place to ensure that the government does not use that excess cash for other purposes?" asked Mark.

During his contribution to the debate on two motions that sought to allow the Minister of Finance to borrow further sums of money for the purpose of facilitating the conduct of open-market operations by the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, at yesterday's sitting of the Senate, Mark said Government was seeking to accumulate finances and he believed that those finances were being geared toward the hosting of a general election either this year or early next year.

"What we are seeing here is a situation where the government is seeking to increase its borrowing ceiling and this is profoundly dangerous. There is no mechanisms of accountability. These motions will not bring about any relief to any of the inflationary pressures that we are seeing," he said.

"The motion before this honourable Senate reflect gross mismanagement by this government and its consequent impact on its vast majority of working people. The facts are showing that inflation has increased by more than 100 per cent, if we use 2001 as a base year."

He noted that there were four ministers in the Ministry of Finance and yet none of them were economists.

He said that while the Central Bank was trying to mop up excess liquidity, Government was "bathing and drowning" in money.

"There's something called off-budget spending. This government is spending money like it is going out of style. Production is falling and productivity is falling," he said.

Labour Minster Danny Montano dismissed comments made by Mark and indicated that any proceeds that would be removed from Government's consolidated fund would first have to be approved by Parliament.