On Monday 16th May 2022, the Government of Saint Lucia received funding from the Republic of China Taiwan (ROCT) as part of the Constituency Development Programme. Please see the press release below:
BREAKING NEWS
Hate Crime, motivated by racism, is still very alive and well in the United States, with white youth being nurtured to detest and kill black people. Payton Gendron, only 18 years, opened deadly gunfire on black people on Saturday 14th May, in a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, killing 10 of them, before handing himself to the police. Payton traveled 200 miles, dressed in military gear, to get to the supermarket, to carry out a...
Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre’s first National Budget continues to attract rave reviews from Saint Lucians at home and abroad. The $1.8 Billion budget attracted praise from two local commentators writing in The Voice newspaper. In his weekly column ‘Harris At Large’, veteran commentator on business affairs and former President of the Saint Lucia Industrial and Small Business Association (SLISBA) Edward Harris remarked that, ‘Finally, we have a budget where there’s something for everyone.’ In...
The majority of taxpayers will be better off from the recent budget proposals. And in some cases will be paying no income tax. A few taxpayers will however be paying more income tax. In the government’s 2022/23 Income tax Budget changes, personal income allowance increased from $18,000 to $25,000, while annual allowances have been capped at $30,000. Annual allowances include claims like mortgage interest relief, house insurance, and repairs and maintenance on homes. In addition,...
Allen Chastanet’s recent address to the nation smacks of dishonesty and disrespect for the citizens of Saint Lucia. What is it that Chastanet said in his television address to the nation that he could not have said soon after the Prime Minister delivered his budget on Tuesday 26th April? Politicians make statements that the average listener is not always able to verify for themselves, especially when the statements are statistical references. In such circumstances, the...
Let’s be honest. Was Allen Chastanet denied the opportunity to speak or did he deny himself the right to speak? As Leader of the Opposition (LOO), he has a right to speak in the House of Assembly, but he does not have the right to demand when he speaks. House rules are designed to allow the majority to govern fairly. The Leader of the Opposition’s responsibility during a budget debate is to respond to the...
Allen Chastanet got it totally wrong, again, when he decided to wait until every member of the government side had made their contribution before he made his. Hon Stephenson King had just finished a demolition job on the Leader of the Opposition when the Prime Minister indicated to the Speaker of his intention to speak, but it was only to close the debate. Chastanet, realizing that his time to speak was lost, immediately took to...
US authorities have arrested a Caribbean leader, charging him with conspiring to import drugs following a sting operation by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). According to US media reports, Premier of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) Andrew Fahie, was arrested on Thursday in Miami on drug trafficking and money laundering charges. The arrest followed a sting operation that started in Tortola in March and ended Thursday when Fahie was arrested while on a visit...
The 2022/2023 budget debate is scheduled to start in the House of Assembly today, Thursday 28th April. All 17 parliamentarians are expected to respond to the Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) Administration’s budgetary proposals, though uncertainty remains over the speaking time slot of Opposition Leader Allen Chastanet if he indeed makes a contribution to the debate. PM Pierre’s first budget as Minister for Finance, Economic Development and The Youth Economy, is aimed at repairing and...
Thomas Harris Jr— a Saint Lucian residing in the United States of America— was last month sentenced to three years and ten months in prison, as well as three years of supervised release for multiple firearms trafficking offences. 29-year-old Harris Jr. was arrested in July 2020 and subsequently charged in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for making false statements to a federal firearm licensee, dealing in firearms without a license, delivering firearms to a common...