 Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much to honourable members including the member for Schroesel. The member for Schroesel is a very different person today. I applaud his demeanor and his behaviour today Mr. Speaker. It shows what bad company cannot do you. Mr. Speaker, I want to answer just a few questions posed by the member for Schroesel Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this borrowing today is part of an agreement that was negotiated with the Taiwanese government from 2022 to 2026. It's new. It's not anything that was there before our time. That's part of an agreement with the Taiwanese government. I want to thank the Minister for Health for thanking the Taiwanese government for this agreement with the speaker. It's a new loan. It's new money. It was not negotiated before by the previous government. The only from the previous government there was a $10 million loan which we came to parliament to get the resolution passed. That was from the previous government. But this loan is purely from the government we negotiated with the Taiwanese. Second, let me speak on the statutory interest rate. I was informed by legal minds that that 6% is set by the courts. So we have to go to the court to ask it to be reduced or to be increased. So it's not something we can do without going to the court. It's normally set by judges. It doesn't depend on the bank rate or the borrowing rates. That's how our laws are. So it's called the statutory rate of interest. We have to go back to the court. That's something we can explore. When you give us good ideas, you explore it. That's how we are. That's our nature. That is why we look into, and you brought up, we look into the dogs. The reason why there was no need, there was no need for the dogs, as I told you before, is that we had the scanners. They were either the verge of walking or they were walking. So there was no need at the time for both the dogs and the scanners. But the story of the scanners is that when I heard these things about crime, and I want to really applaud the member for cash we saw for his contribution, it almost looks like some talk show hosts are gloating, are rejoicing at the fact that we have an issue of crime in Zemlusha. But Mrs Speaker, that is not good for the country. It's not good for the country. It's not good for the future of the country. And it appears as if it affects this prime minister and us now. It appears like that. So we gloat. And we almost hear, I mean, I heard a press conference, and I heard my colleague from cash we saw spoke about when we were in a position. I can say we never did that, never. I heard a press conference and I heard a kind of almost a happiness. That things, I mean, somebody was asked what do you do about guns? You build a port in Kaldisar. If you talk about guns coming in the country now on barrels, the answer is you build a port in Kaldisar. You call it a solution now for a port in Kaldisar. I mean, let's just think about it. And these things sound, it's just like bathroom electricity. These things sound, I mean, and people say, Oh, that's a good solution. What are solutions the government is giving? Anything you say they tell you is not good enough. Anything you say or do is not good enough. But nobody can tell you what to do instead. I'm saying in the public that this government will accept anyone, including the leader of the opposition, who will come and have a discussion and have a meaningful discussion on crime and the solution to crime. This government will listen to anybody who wants to hear, anybody, anybody miss speaker. But you must remember when you were in opposition, there was a crime commission and I attended. I went to the meeting in opposition, I went because I was interested. I didn't sit back and gloat. And I didn't sit down and attack the minister for national security and say they deserve a clue. I didn't talk about weak leadership. I went to the, and people seem to forget that. I went to the meeting. They appointed me, but they never called me again. So I can't go with. I agreed, but no one ever called me. Mr. Speaker, and these are the things that people tend to forget. So when we try to make political mileage in these things, they come back and they haunt you because a member for Kastrysov made a point, Prime Minister, former Prime Minister Stephen King, had the issue, Prime Minister Kenny Anthony had the issue. Prime Minister Alan Shasne also had the issue. This issue has been in this country for a long time. And when you say, not only in St. Lucia, it's that you don't talk about, talk about other places, don't talk about other places. This, there seems to be a pandemic of crime in the region, even in the world if you want to extend it a little bit. I mean, there seems to be a pandemic since COVID. Same thing seems to be happening as far as crime is concerned. I won't come here and speak about other countries, but something seems to be happening. And what we must do is we have to forget this political mileage that we think we can gain and try our best to confront that problem. Somebody just sent me something on a British paper. Somebody sent me on a British paper quoting crime in St. Lucia. And what we are doing when we promote these things and when our headlines show this murder and that murder, what we do is we give the foreign press fuel. We fuel them, Mrs. Speaker. Now, when we give them fuel, it means that our tourism will get affected. And when you have former tourism minister making the point that you hide tourism figures, you hide crime figures because you don't want to affect the tourism industry. It is painful and citizens of this country should condemn that kind of behavior with Mrs. Speaker because supposing something happens, America happens and we get out of government tomorrow and you get in. You think the gunmen will worry about you in office? The gunmen will be gunmen. The guns will do what they have to do. The hits will continue because when these guys are committing the crime even they care about who is prime minister, I hope not. So we cannot afford and what has happened is it has never happened before because remember when we are in opposition and remember from when he was prime minister he always said the few things we can get together on is crime bananas. Remember him saying that in crime of bananas let's get together because this is very important. But what's happening now Mrs. Speaker is not good this gloating this thing about blame the prime minister oh he is the minister of national security what is he doing? My father was a policeman, not me. This thing about gloating and every day as if we are almost happy that is happening and I am missing national security so you know Mrs. Speaker we must stop it because in the final analysis all of us will pay and all and the country will not benefit. Other countries have states of emergency as we speak states of emergency as we speak because of the crime issue states of emergency but they are larger countries and then the tourism will not get affected as it would in solution Mrs. Speaker so I want us to have a rethink and a restart the minister of national security has got enough blows every day for crime we make all kinds of comparisons even you Mrs. Speaker have come into the firing line it's time it's time Mrs. Speaker because whereas we are trying to score political points the gunmen are still shooting and the crime will continue while we try to score political points Mrs. Speaker have you ever thought about the reasons why certain things happen in Sel�usha have you ever thought about it is it because of the things we say is it because of what we the threats that we make because Mrs. Speaker threats are not only threats made by gunmen politicians make threats and when politicians make threats they should be called up and an excuse should not be made for politicians when they make threats to people particularly journalists that should be condemned by everyone Mrs. Speaker but you don't make excuses and say it happened before and remember from that happened before it always happens two wrongs cannot make a right if something was wrong then it can be right now it was wrong then and it's wrong now Mrs. Speaker so Mrs. Speaker whereas we use so much resources to fight crime and I have said that the budget that we are going to be debating for 2024 the emphasis is going to be on national security that's going to be and I hope to get a supporter of honourable members it's going to be on national security Mrs. Speaker because we cannot regardless of the growth and the work that we do in the tourism industry that kind of publicity that kind of gloating this kind of headlines this kind of talk shows every day and people calling the station with all kinds of solutions that make no sense and nobody is saying to them what you say does not make sense because it's an attack on the minister of national security so nobody says does that make sense nobody says so just allow it to happen just allow the person to say it because it's an attack on the minister of national security or attack on the government just say it doesn't make sense so Mrs. Speaker I call on every citizen let us join in this fight and anybody who has solutions come forward and let us discuss it come forward and let us discuss it because what's happening now particularly the gloating and the publicity Mrs. Speaker I made a comment on how crime is reported in other countries and that is a fact I won't call any country's name but it's a fact and it will say that I want to suppress the press I want to start the press freedom because I made a comment on how we report crime in this country so many things are happening in the country that are positive Mrs. Speaker but every headline cannot be about a murder and I am not going to say I am not going to suppress the press or stifle press freedom that's an opinion Mrs. Speaker the same way that a politician should not threaten a journalist on tape and there the prime minister to disclose the tape and when the tape is disclosed an excuse is made for that tape that was disclosed listen to the sequence a threat is made to a journalist I come here and I say a threat is made I don't identify who, when, how or what I just say a threat is made I am dead or you always make accusations play the tape I say ok the tape got played I am not going to show the tape but the tape got played the tape gets played and instead of the people who were daring me to play it when the tape gets played they make excuses and say that might be the tape and somebody did that before etc instead of saying that is wrong in the environment that we are operating in solution that is wrong and you should not do that you know Mrs. Speaker that's how it is and that's how it will continue to be so Mrs. Speaker this motion as we said clearly is to fund the budget and what I want to note is the transparency in which we did that we did not hide and again no again Mrs. Speaker when the truth isn't spoken we cannot make excuses for things that are not true you saw on the Facebook page that this government had borrowed half a billion dollars sometime in October we showed proof that wasn't true none of the people who repeated that listen to me Mr. Leader of the Opposition you should not say things that are not true they prefer not to to play as if it didn't exist as if he never said so and he put it on his Facebook page he said it in public but no one is saying you must not say that that cannot be right that is a bad example Mrs. Speaker that is a bad example and you said these bad examters manifest themselves in several ways you can't openly say things that are not true on the record and you do not you never pull it back and people accept it because they support you that can't be right so let's show Mrs. Speaker what did we say about this budget on page 63 of the budget we made it clear how we are going to finance the budget and I want you to read it Mrs. Speaker on page 62 we said in addition to the 1.3 27 billion in revenue and grants the net financing needs of the budget amount to 505 million 1 in 24,000 1 in 24,000 clearly we never hid it we never said it's on the record and we further said how we are going to be raising that money Mrs. Speaker it's clear so why do you have to come and Mrs. Speaker you don't want me to say lies I wouldn't lie I wouldn't say lie you don't want me you why are you to come and deliberately deliberately mislead people on something that was clear but Mrs. Speaker total revenue projected in the budget 1.327 0.68 million total expenditure less refunds 1.832 0.80 million financing gap 505.12 million how are we going to raise that financing gap it said 79 million dollars worth of short term borrowing because we've changed we've tried to change the short term and the rest in long term borrowing which we are doing here this afternoon from short term to long term which we are doing here this afternoon Mrs. Speaker very transparent and very clear very transparent and very clear but Mrs. Speaker there are certain headwinds that we did not anticipate we did not anticipate this spike in the cost of goods and services and in the cost of the changes in the supply chain that cost freight to be so expensive Mrs. Speaker Mrs. Speaker yesterday the member the municipal commons announced there will be an increase in the price of bread Mrs. Speaker and the government has been subsidizing and will continue to subsidize even if that increase even if that increase the government continues continues to subsidize the price of flour for the simple reason we do not produce flour and that is why we are speaking about alternative means of eating and again when I made the point of eating our bananas I was ridiculed they paid children to say the prime minister wants to eat banana oil that was sad it was very sad Mrs. Speaker because right now I am going to make another point and you all can ridicule me if you want we must start to think about cassava flour that short-sightedness and that failure to understand that you have lost the government that is what causes these things to happen because with the increase the escalation in the price of flour let us think about cassava flour and banana flour this is what we have to look into this is called import substitution but if you continue if you continue instead of educating people if you continue to try to make political mileage because you believe that this is a soft on the belly of the government we will not survive because if you get the government the price will still be the same it will still be the same and I heard a leader of the opposition we didn't take his advice on how we didn't take his advice on how to improve the supply chain oh yeah it's a sensitive topic you understand that's what he said that's what he said we didn't take his advice so Mrs. Speaker so these are the challenges that we have these are the challenges we must say all countries have it is not unique to this country when the mother member of Cassie South said it's true if in this government told us transparency that we had 3 billion dollars worth of investment come to this country 3 billion no one has questioned why should a man of son, mind and intellect tell the world that we have 3 billion dollars worth of investment and in his term of office pre-covid post-covid pre-minister he hasn't built one hotel every budget we heard 7 hotels before covid and all this covid has an excuse before covid 7 hotels now after covid now after covid 7 hotels but we are not allowed to pass because we don't like the prime minister and you write nonsense about we say about mash Mrs. Speaker why are we afraid of our past and afraid of our patchy money and afraid of our heritage why do we believe that we must say we are products of countries that we don't belong to we write a whole article on on the people because you believe that I stand up for what I believe in I don't want to hide anything I'm proud of I come from why must we hide it why must we have false accents we have to be proud of born and bred in one works road why you want me to hide it for and when I said you vexed me because I said but I'm happy and I'm happy that these men and women and the people of kashi sif have elected me as a prime minister and I'm proud of it so why do you think that I mustn't say but you attack me a whole two articles on Mrs. Speaker Mrs. Speaker Mrs. Speaker we have to get a little more serious in our criticisms and a little more serious in how we handle the affairs of this country Mrs. Speaker a little more serious Mrs. Speaker because what we are doing will not help anyone and of course we will in opposition but look at the things that we criticize in opposition we criticize borrowing for the two million dollars for Lockerbie up to today the only product of Lockerbie is two playing fields two artificial artificial tools what do you call it artificial tools on and they are very not because they can't be cricketed anymore because you convert their field you convert their field where they cricket track football you convert it into no cricket field so far some of the best cricketers in so far and two you put one in denry in denry north and one in miko in the yes and one in miko that is that's what we we speak about you know we spoke about that borrowing 32 million dollars 42 million dollars from Lockerbie 32 million dollars and the only visible and I want someone to tell me that is not true the only visible sign 32 million dollars from Lockerbie is the the so far denry north and the that is the only visible sign where else so if you criticize that if you criticize that you must criticize that borrowing you must criticize that borrowing but compare it to the borrowing that we want to do in this in this bill or in this in this budget compare it to the borrowing that we got what do you do borrowing you borrow 30 million dollars to bring some people in a thing called permanent due the civil service is replete with technocrats technicians sometimes I am amazed at the qualifications that exist in the solution civil service I am amazed masters phd's two masters bachelor's degrees all kind of qualifications but you need to take you need to borrow 13 million dollars to bring people from abroad to come and tell you what to do with your systems that's what you criticize and what have you done nothing works these people don't understand the solution culture they don't understand it nothing works that's what you criticize that's what you criticize that's the borrowing that we criticize we criticize the borrowing to bill a road and this bill I was challenged again to talk about say jude and the airport now you know let me tell you about me you know I have the most in the world patience like jude and when a former colleague of mine who's lost his way used to say he said for me but now the puffer is lost his way as a member of myself as a member of the vocation staff will tell you the poor gentleman a guy that was so dynamic and so vibrant I feel so sorry for him talk for yourself that's with patience so you know all the challenge I'm challenged the tip the tip I was challenged the tip came out you see all the challenge I've been challenged about jude hospital you see all these challenges I'm saying nothing all these challenges about saying jude you know I'm saying nothing so here's what we criticize the borrowing for we criticize the borrowing for borrowing 15 million dollars to bill a road for a horse racing track and we criticize the fact that the borrow photo to change a whole airport an entire airport you've changed it you've changed the whole structure just to facilitate a horse racing track and you think that's not true there's a way to it patience yes because it's not mere saying to you and you can ask these my colleagues here on these two issues and some of them complain that I have too much patience on these two issues I was urged I said no colleagues let us get independent people to look at it first and I know some of them quietly say I'm too patient or some of them say that I must be a little more aggressive and does seem to be always on the side of being cool you want me to be more aggressive you understand so what we did two independent not investigations two to look at these two products independently and you'll be surprised to know that the conclusions from both local and foreign experts are the same yes you'll be surprised to know that you'll be surprised to know that because some of the borrowing that you did for St. Jude that is a borrowing that we criticize why in the good name that you must take a building and the debate for St. Jude will start but since talk about borrowing we have to borrow some money for St. Jude and bring it up now that debate I promise that you're going to have a full debate on St. Jude and remember for full debate on St. Jude do you know last week we went to the police we went to view fort to sign for the upgrade of the police station view fort and again I'm criticized for that so we went to St. Jude a colleague of ours is there he's not normally an emotional guy he got a headache he was actually I saw a guy visibly shaken he says to me why did these guys allow these buildings to waste and build that monstrosity the gentleman I won't mention his name because he was visibly shaken because I want to invite you remember for shows here let's go and take a walk on St. Jude now I'll drive you and you will see the difference in St. Jude now only we've cleaned up we've just cleaned it up you said difference in St. Jude now and the difference in the thing you all have there the box but you know they challenge me again when I'm going to reveal what that box is about I hope I get no one complains and no one makes excuses because even you will hurt your heart because I'm sure you don't have all the facts you don't say until proven guilty I'm sure you don't have all the facts because when you will understand that you spent up to today I have to pay a bill I have to pay a bill on the St. Jude thing up to today you understand that security at St. Jude I have to pay up to May 2023 it's about $600,000 just for the period June 20 June to May for security there must be security yes and you won't know the pass bills I mean when that debate on St. Jude will come I hope all the talk shows listen and speak about what we say because there is we seem to forget certain things this St. Jude thing and we have to borrow to fund it this St. Jude thing will call will make the most the most turn person by the way I want to tell you something I have a letter from the United Logos party to visit St. Jude I don't know if you know that there is a request and again my challenge me again I have a letter to visit St. Jude from the United Logos party yes I don't know if you know that but probably the letter I have it I will let them come and visit it I let them go when I applied when I applied to visit when we applied to visit the hospital they took me all over the place all over the place several kinds of things but I have a letter from the United Logos party to visit St. Jude I am going to allow him to do it let's go with them yes because when they have completed that visit I am sure they will have a change of mind you understand because I want you my friend to visit St. Jude now just go in there now and you will see you will see the difference and how the people in the stadium could have been there a long long long long time ago and not at the cost we spent a hundred million dollars on this monstrosity and you don't know about it yet you know nothing about it yet I am sure you do not know so all those who challenge me all those are always making this matter I, the time will come and he will allow me to forget it to debate the St. Jude hospital you will be surprised when you hear what you have to hear you will be surprised I will surprise myself but just you you will be shocked because when you see the story of St. Jude will come out day one yes I am glad you talk about day one day one because do you know that there was a handover report that you refuse to disclose that there was one sitting down here not you in your seat when we spoke about the handover report the handover report went in the public he backtracked and he said nobody never show me that the handover report that detailed how conditions were at St. Jude detailed not by politicians by technocrats we made excuses for that we invade people houses now they might write me for his money we have to pay the goods and services that you all see from the guy with the SSU I asked the commissioner of police for a report on that invasion or that search I haven't got it, I am going to write the new commissioner of police to ask for a report on the invasion because the guy is asking me for his money the guy is saying that he had goods and services that you all took away and he wants his money I have to that's not a threat the guy said he wants his money do you know Mr. Member that on the St. Jude site there is a complete theater in a container so Mr. Speaker I will talk for another show because I sometimes I get very very emotional when I speak about St. Jude because it really hurts me because I have seen nearly 300 million dollars 300 million dollars and the people still are in still the purple condition in the stadium 300 million dollars later and you talked about the Prime Minister saying from Marsha 300 million dollars and the people are still in the stadium and you have a monstrosity that cannot be used and I don't think and my colleagues here they don't even know what's happening in that monstrosity they haven't told them they don't know the state of that monstrosity they don't know you know because I have kept it to myself for now so when that debate on St. Jude will come you will understand why we have to borrow we have to borrow to fund because of what the economy calls the opportunity cost because it's the money that they wasted on St. Jude and employment due they had used it differently we will not have to borrow so much today and that is the difference but Mr. Speaker I want to thank members for supporting this resolution as I said it was open and transparent and this government will continue and even though when we make a mistake we will come and admit that we made a mistake because to air is human if we do something and the puller suffer doing it we will say yes sir I made a mistake we will give the excuse we will give an excuse why we did it but the intention is always honorable but we will not lie and lie again and only lie the first lie and lie again on the first lie and make another lie to cover up the first lie and say we never understand what we see and look for our backers to defend and practice political umbridge you know what political umbridge is political umbridge is when you compete deflect the situation that is called in the jargon political umbridge am I right it's called political umbridge this was just going to school it's called political umbridge when you know something is in one path but you completely deflect it so instead of talking about what the prime minister or the minister of finance you talk about you say you come from Marsha you know you have an article about that just because to deflect from the point of what I have to manage what I am managing and how with the help of these men and women I must say we are doing a good job in the circumstances Mr. Speaker I thank members for supporting the way and I want to tell the public the budget the budget for 23 24 is very soon a few months from now we are going to be able to give a report on the performance of the government from the last budget and the promises he made in the manifesto we are going to be able to give a report to tick off what you've done and what you've not done and why we haven't done it and look for the future of this country I must say Mr. Speaker in spite of the downside risks the future is good we've had a good report of revenue for the month of November very good report for revenue it probably is the highest revenue we've received for the year in the month of November I want to thank the technocrats in the minister of finance Mr. Speaker because when we came to government we never interfered with them we have to be like professional respect them as professionals like the police force respect the police as professionals we expect them to be a professional and we will give the guidance we must understand that he must follow the guidance of the political directly that's all we ask for Thank you Mr. Speaker