Leader of the Opposition Hon Ralph T. O’Neal OBE is to table the final report of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on the Cruise Ship Port Development Project on Friday June 13, 2014. Photo: VINO/File

Two damaging reports done on the Ports Development Project were consistent in pointing out lack of transparency. Right is the report from the Auditor General Sonia M. Webster which details corruption and conflict of interest and one from the Public Accounts Committee which said the Auditor General Report has merit and that the project requires further in-depth investigations. Photo: VINO/File

This is according to the Order Paper for the Seventh Sitting of the Third Session of the Second House of Assembly, released to media houses today June 10, 2014.

The PAC, of which Hon O'Neal is Chairman, had earlier released a damning interim report which pointed to a number of concerns about the project and which endorsed some statements contained within an earlier report by the Auditor General.

The PAC’s interim report, finding many of the same issues with the project as did the Auditor General, called for further in-depth investigations.

The PAC report had revealed that there have been “numerous apparent irregularities and questionable circumstances and actions [with] regards to the project in question.”

In addition the PAC reports stated “the Committee’s examinations thus far have revealed the apparent usurping of the duties and responsibilities of the BVIPA Board. It strongly appears that the Board was excluded from important decisions in regards to the project which give rise for further investigations.”

Also during this session of the House of Assembly, Honourable Andrew A. Fahie – First District Representative and Honourable Julian Fraser RA – Third District Representative will be putting a number of questions to members of the Government benches from issues to do with payments to Price WaterHouseCoopers to money expended on travel for Ministers and members of the public service.

Hon Fraser has posed questions in relation to the Cruise Pier project concerning the loans that the Government is seeking to access, asking the Premier and Minister of Finance Dr the Hon D. Orlando Smith to provide the House of Assembly with the written approval from the Secretary of State “as is required on an annual basis before any new public borrowing is undertaken, as stipulated in Section 27 (b) of the Protocols for Effective Financial Management signed on April 23, 2012 between his Government and the Government of the United Kingdom.”

Hon Fahie has asked what strategies Government intends to mount to fund the Police so that they can deal with escalating crime. He also asked why it is that the West End Police Station is only open to the public up to a specific time and not on a 24-hour basis.