Concerts but No Audit? Panton Challenges Belize City Council’s Spending

Opposition Leader Tracy Panton laid out what she called the three biggest issues facing municipalities at Tuesday’s launch of the UDP’s mayoral slate for the March 2027 municipal elections.

First on her list was the cost of living, which she tied to the Government’s new trade licence regime. “You will note that the new trade license regime helps to increase the cost of doing business in every municipality, which ultimately is passed on to the consumer, so it’s directly connected,” she said.

Second was accountability and transparency. Panton said councils keep receiving “subventions after subventions after subventions” from the central government with little explanation of where the money goes. “That’s our money. It’s the taxpayers’ money, those who continue to work every day and contribute to the consolidated fund,” Panton said.

“We don’t know how the money is being spent,” she added as she pointed directly at Belize City Council. “The city council has used quite a bit of money for activities and concerts that we have not yet gotten a single audit report from.”

Her third issue was basic municipal services. “Clean streets, paved streets, clean drains, garbage collection,” she said. “The very function of a municipal government is to ensure that the municipality functions optimally for the city.”

The UDP launched its campaign under the slogan “911, It’s a National Emergency”, which fielded nine mayoral candidates from Belize City to Punta Gorda.

The elections are scheduled for March 3, 2027.