And while Belize remains at crossroads on whether to remain under the monarchy's rule, Lord Michael Ashcroft has allegedly threatened arbitration for what he says is a breach of the UK-Belize treaty for the promotion and protection of investments. Lord Ashcroft had written a letter to the PM back in January hinting at taking legal action if Waterloo's environmental assessments were not approved, which he would take to mean that the treaty is not being upheld.
Over the weekend, we asked the PM for his take on the matter.
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"That's his right, anybody can take us to arbitration. In this case I don't think it's arbitration, he said that he was considering and he's not done it so far. Suing government using the treaty between Great Britain and Belize about, for want of a better word, freedom for investments and he felt that Waterloo was not being given a fair shot and that's his right like any other citizen but in this case him being a British citizen also taking advantage of that treaty that was signed by both countries."
Reporter:
"One of your Cabinet members, or at least one of your parliamentary colleagues, the area representative for Port Loyola, has publicly declared his support for the port expansion. What does that mean for you, his public support, does it hold any weight in the government's support for this project?"
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"Well, he is the area representative for the port and he believes it will create jobs for the people, especially the people who live in the Port Loyola area, obviously he's doing what he thinks is in the interest of the area that he represents, his constituency, so I think kudos goes to him to be able to say, well, I want to support this project."
Email
Print