‘We should be able to sit & talk with UK’- Premier
“This is no disrespect to the UK… we are mature adults, we supposed to be able to sit down with our mother country and say listen, I know that I have to be accountable, we not running from that at all, I know that if we get monies we have to make sure that it is transparent,” he said.
Premier Fahie continued, “But other than the ratios which have to be renegotiated… to make sure that we don’t fall outside the document that you tell us to live by, those are things we need to get right up front before we come to negotiate that should have been said.”
Premier Fahie was at the time speaking at a public consultation meeting on the Loan guarantee issue at the Catholic Community Centre in Virgin Gorda on August 21, 2019.
UK should take initiative - Premier
The government is currently seeking to have stipulations in the Protocol for Effective Financial Management signed between the National Democratic Party (NDP) Government and the UK in 2012, re-negotiated. “It is only fair,” Premier Fahie said that certain ratios be readjusted to take into account the VI’s economic reality post-Irma and Maria.
He said even without asking, the UK should take it upon themselves to relax policies, “Why it’s a concern for me because people are saying that I pass the RDA, which I did at that time but in the opposition, I remember asking the question will the conditions of the protocols be relaxed,” he said.
Premier Fahie noted that the National Democratic Party (NDP) government assure that relaxing the policies was a work in progress with the UK, and they had been given assurance that it will happen.
NDP misled House?
“I said ok because you don’t want to get a loan and violate the very document for the people guaranteeing the loan and then they have to bring sanctions on you,” Hon Fahie said in relation to assurances given that the policies would be relaxed.
He said unless that happened, it would have led to the VI becoming economic slaves to the United Kingdon.
The Leader of Government Business further said that even though the previous NDP government gave assurance to the House that the agreements were being worked out, since taken up the Premier’s Office, he said, “I’ve found out there’s nothing in writing.”
9 Responses to “‘We should be able to sit & talk with UK’- Premier ”
Please let the RDA do their job. There are other things you should be focusing on.