The honeymoon will be short for Wagner and company as the first hundred days of his administration begin. In addition to looking into Council finances and figuring out the fate of the various projects in which the City is embroiled, there is an urgent need, according to the new Mayor, for the City to undergo […]
Prime Minister Dean Barrow also addressed lingering issues regarding practices on taxes which have been identified as harmful by the European Union’s Code of Conduct group. By the end of this year, these must be reviewed and updated to ensure Belize cannot be listed as a non-cooperative jurisdiction for tax purposes. Belize must comply, says […]
In the Budget tabled in the House of Representatives last Friday, the government proposes spending of one hundred and fifty-seven million dollars for its capital program – nearly sixty-two million in locally funded Capital Two expenditure and more than ninety-three million in externally funded Capital Three expenditure. While an increase over the projected outturn of […]
On March fifth, Justice Lennox Kirkwood Campbell took the oath as a judge on the Belize Court of Appeals. Campbell is from Jamaica and a retired justice of the Supreme Court. He succeeds Franz Parke, who left under a cloud of scandal shortly after his judicial appointment. Campbell and fellow Justice Murrio Ducille, along with […]
Concerns have been raised about a trio of bills introduced by Prime Minister Dean Barrow in Friday’s House of Representatives meeting. The amendments to the Immigration, Belizean Nationality and Passports Acts, respectively, speak to dividing the functions related to immigration and nationality services and in the case of the Immigration Act, regularizing the use of […]
The Opposition Leader John Briceño asked the government side how much G.O.B. has paid to local and foreign attorneys in connection with the arbitration cases in the U.S. courts. There are about four and Belize has had no success with any. But Prime Minister Dean Barrow dodged an immediate answer by questioning Briceño’s wording. […]
Earlier we told you that a number of organizations and bodies have been publicly condemning the recent spate of violence on young children and women, particularly during child stimulation month and on the heels of International Day of Women. The Belize National Teachers Union, the Bar Association and the P.U.P.’s United Women’s Group say that […]
Things got a bit testy at the start of Friday’s house meeting, during the section reserved for questions for ministers. Opposition Leader John Briceño wanted to know when audits of the Public Utilities Commission would be made publicly available. Weeks ago, there were reports of mismanagement at the PUC – allegations that the commission has […]
Concerns have been raised over a trio of important Government oversight posts that seemed to be neglected. Ombudsman Lionel Arzu is halfway to being re-appointed for another one-year term after the originating motion passed through the House. But Prime Minister Dean Barrow says it will be considerably more difficult to appoint a new Contractor General […]
And finally from the House tonight: Friday may have been Budget day, but the atmosphere in the National Assembly was still dominated by Wednesday’s municipal elections. After mutual congratulations and some bragging by Prime Minister Dean Barrow and Opposition Leader John Briceño, P.U.P. Caribbean Shores Area Representative Kareem Musa called out the Prime Minister for […]
The Government of Belize’s acquisition of Belize Telemedia Limited was also a feature of the Budget speech. A figure of more than half a billion dollars was widely quoted, but the final figure of four hundred and forty-eight million dollars is all fully paid to Dunkeld and B.T.L. Employees Trust. It was broken down into […]
The People’s United Party has won three of nine municipalities during Wednesday’s elections, including Belize City which is considered the most valuable asset of the ruling United Democratic Party, and from where six ministers sit in cabinet. Despite losing a majority of the sixty-seven seats that were vacant, the Opposition has made significant gains in […]
As for the situation in San Pedro, Briceño says that contrary to what the prime minister said on Thursday, that the P.U.P. had signed off on the reconciliation sheet, as well as the final statement of poll, that is not the case. In fact, lawyers are reviewing the outcome in an effort to determine whether […]
Following the interview with Briceño in Belmopan, the P.U.P.’s legal advisor, Eamon Courtenay, in an interview with Ambergris Today this afternoon, confirmed that the party will take court action on the San Pedro results because of the discrepancy in the number of ballots. Courtenay further says that the P.U.P. is calling for a new election […]
The taking back of the Old Capital by the Blue Tsunami is compared to a repossession of the most valuable timepiece in the prime minister’s prized collection. He is still left with many watches, but none as cherished as that vintage Rolex that gleams on his wrist. That’s because, according to P.U.P. leader John Briceño, […]
Port Loyola area representative Anthony “Boots” Martinez swears he has no hard feelings after Wednesday’s municipal elections victory for the People’s United Party in Belize City. He kept insisting to reporters this afternoon that the election, which the U.D.P. lost in his division, was not a referendum on him, despite the pre-election scandals. Martinez now […]
As he alluded to, Martinez is headed to retirement as a four-time area representative and will not seek a fifth term. Whether he goes right away or serves out his term, he says he has not yet decided. But as he prepares to head for the exit, he maintains that he has done the best […]
The Budget was not the only major news coming out of today’s meeting in Belmopan. Three amendments to substantive legislation and a new bill were introduced which had to do with crime issues. The Firearms Act is being amended to, among other things, increase and update fines and fees relating to firearm misuse. The Police […]
Going back to Wednesday’s election, Prime Minister Barrow has announced time and again that he is stepping down as party leader and head of government in advance of the 2020 general elections. The municipal vote was the last election he spearheaded for the United Democratic Party. Despite the unexpected outcome in Belize City, the PM […]
The People’s United Party previously held five seats and following Wednesday’s election, now claims a total of twenty-six, including eleven in Belize City. The United Democratic Party’s shocking loss here in the Old Capital may not so much an indictment of the previous Darrell Bradley city council, as it is perhaps a failure to maintain […]
Fifty-three teams paddled away at the start of the annual Belikin La Ruta Maya Canoe River Challenge in the Macal River in San Ignacio this morning. Over the next four days, the fittest teams will cover about one hundred and forty miles ending in Belize City on Monday. The first leg concluded at Banana Bank […]
Reef Week started back in 2013 as an initiative to celebrate Belize’s Barrier Reef through a week of events across Belize. Today, the conservation community launched the fifth staging of Reef Week under the theme “Our Reef Rocks: Protect It; Don’t Neglect It.” The Belizean conservation community spoke of the significant economic and cultural benefits […]
Following Wednesday’s momentous municipal elections, Prime Minister Dean Barrow called a press conference this afternoon that was chock full of news and analysis ahead of Friday’s budget presentation. We’ll have more on that later on. But first, while the United Democratic Party retained six of nine municipalities, the People’s United Party won three and scored […]
Prime Minister Dean Barrow readily admits that the loss of the Belize City Council is a heavy blow to his United Democratic Party, and not one that will be easy to get over. But speaking as much to his supporters, as to the press, he encouraged the party not to lose heart, nor to forget […]
U.D.P. Belize City mayoral candidate Dion Leslie suffered a stunning defeat on Wednesday. The People’s United Party slate, led by political newcomer Bernard Wagner, dealt the ruling party a staggering blow, trouncing them by eleven seats to none at City Hall. Today, we caught up with the beaten politician who magnanimously conceded the loss to […]
