Monday, March 10 2008

ALTHOUGH the Senate is supposed to debate the Basel Convention Bill 2008 when it sits tomorrow at 1.30 pm, more questions are expected to be raised by the Opposition UNC Alliance about plans by Caribbean Airlines (CA) to acquire an executive jet for its proposed private jet service.

Senate Minority Leader Wade Mark will ask Works and Transport Minister Colm Imbert, who has been Government’s point man on the jet issue, to provide the Senate with a copy of a report from Volvo engineers on a recent incident in which a PTSC articulated bus split in two.

Mark will also ask Prime Minister Patrick Manning when the report of the Mustill Tribunal will be submitted to Parliament and whether copies would be available to parliamentarians. That report was tabled in Parliament in January and copies were made available to both parliamentarians and the media.

Mark will ask Minister in the Ministry of Finance Mariano Browne for a breakdown of the final costs of the $148 million PM’s Official Residence and Diplomatic Centre. Independent Senator Basharat Ali will also ask National Security Minister Martin Joseph about the status of two interim vessels for the Coast Guard, pending the delivery of three offshore patrol vessels from Britain in 2009.

The House of Representatives will sit on Friday at 1.30 pm, at which time debate will continue on the Retiring Allowance (Legislative Services) Bill 2008. Debate on this bill fell by the wayside during last Friday’s sitting due to crossfire between the Government and the Opposition on the whole private jet controversy.