The House of Assembly has approved amendments to two past Budgets, along with clarifications to the Public Service Superannuation Act.

David Burt, the Premier and Minister of Finance, said the Public Service Superannuation Amendment Act 2026 introduced a series of changes to the legislation to reflect the original intent of policy reforms approved last year, which would improve clarity and remove inconsistencies

He said: “This is a technical, housekeeping Act. There are no changes whatsoever insofar as policy and the matters that were agreed with the unions prior to us advancing these reforms.”

Mr Burt said that the Government has begun work to stabilise the Public Service Superannuation Fund and ensure that the pension plan is on a stronger footing for the long term.

He added that the changes also gave the Government greater room to increase pensions for retirees, noting that earlier in the session the had tabled legislation to increase pension benefits.

Mr Burt said that public sector retirees will receive a 10 per cent increase on their pensions and, while the increase is effective April 1, the funds will not be paid until October.

Douglas De Couto, the Shadow Minister of Finance, signalled the One Bermuda Alliance’s support.

The House also approved Supplementary Estimates for 2023-24 and 2024-25, which noted higher than originally forecast spending on overtime within the Department of Corrections and Bermuda Fire and Rescue Service among other line items.

However, Mr Burt noted that the supplementaries for both years were “technical”, explaining: “A technical supplementary indicates that the requirement for additional funding can be met, and was met, within the originally appropriated estimates.”

He also said that with the supplementaries taken into account, the budget deficit for 2023-24 was $29.5 million, $14 million less than the original estimate of $43.5 million, while the 2024-25 budget surplus was $29 million above the original forecast surplus of $210 million.