Former Attorney General Describes Process of Stake Bank Definitive Agreement

Michael Peyrefitte

By contrast, Peyrefitte described the process that was undertaken by Stake Bank in entering into a definitive agreement with the Government of Belize under the Barrow administration.

Michael Peyrefitte, Former Attorney General

“You reach a memorandum of agreement and when you are done with the memorandum of agreement, and you’re thinking about doing a definitive agreement which is more specific.  A memorandum of understanding is not an agreement per se, it is just an indication by the government that the government is interested in exploring the project.  When you reach the definitive agreement stage then you are saying that yes, the government not only is interested in exploring this project but you are going to do this project and for Stake Bank, they went through all the stages that they need to go through to satisfy the committee of all the things that they needed to do and when it reached cabinet, cabinet said, after having a report from the subcommittee that Stake Bank, having followed all the instructions of BELTRAIDE, all the requirements of the investment committee, that they deserve a definitive agreement between themselves and the government.  There is a proposed piece of legislation which our ministry drafted.  We came to the National Assembly, passed that law and that is how the definitive agreement came about for Stake Bank.”