Philipsburg:--- The newly formed cabinet of the Government of St. Maarten is looking into ways of modifying the Council of Ministers' weekly press briefing in order for the other Ministers in the Council to update the people of St. Maarten on the work they are doing in their Ministries.
Prime Minister Sarah Wescot Williams announced on Wednesday during the Council of Ministers' weekly press briefing that the Council of Ministers is currently brainstorming the changes they intend to make. One possibility might be re-branding Wednesday's press briefing to the "Prime Minister's Press Briefing". While the Council of Ministers is in discussions about the changes that will be made in the future, already another press briefing is planned for Thursday. It is not yet known if the press briefing to be held on Thursday will be aired live and how much more monies this will cost the Government of St. Maarten. When SMN News reporter asked Prime Minister Wescot Williams to shed more light on that since the country is already facing some budget constraints, Wescot Williams said that no final decision has been taken as yet. "One possibility is that instead of having the press briefing every Wednesday it might be every other Wednesday and the other Ministers could hold their press briefings on other days. No definite decision has been taken on whether or not those will be live or not."
In the past, the Ministers from the United People's Party and its leader Theodore Heyliger stayed away from the weekly press briefings for unknown reasons. It appears as though the new cabinet knows that they have approximately one year before elections and it is necessary for the people to hear from them before ballot day reaches.
French and Dutch Governments working on Securing EU Funding.
The Prime Minister also announced that the French and Dutch side are working on a joint project to obtain European funding for projects. Wescot Williams said that the documents are being prepared by the French side but the Dutch side is also participating in the preparation of the documents to send off in order for St. Maarten/St. Martin to obtain EU funding.
Finance Minister working on Documents to Finalize 2013 Budget.
Wescot Williams also announced on Wednesday that the country's budget has the undivided attention of government. The Prime Minister said Minister of Finance Martin Hassink is currently preparing a vision document which will be discussed in the Council of Ministers next Tuesday. Wescot Williams said this document will show how government intends to move forward with the 2013 budget as well as how they will continue with the preparations for the 2014 budget.
Wescot Williams also announced that the government of St. Maarten managed to give the St. Maarten Development Fund a small advance in order for them to assist institutions that need monies. One such institution is Safe Haven.
While the Prime Minister admitted that St. Maarten is facing an economic crisis especially during the low season, government still did not take a final decision on whether or not they will host TEMPO this year. When SMN News asked the Prime Minister if the Government of St. Maarten will give TEMPO the $600,000.00 they asked for the Prime Minister said they still have to decide what to do in order to boost the economy of St. Maarten. Last year, the Government of St. Maarten invested $400,000.00 in TEMPO and it turned out to be a total loss for the country. Wescot Williams said that Government has to make investments, whether its TEMPO or something else because other nations also invested in huge projects and lost in the beginning before it became successful.
SMN News also asked the Prime Minister if the new government, especially the Minister of Education has taken a decision on the report that was submitted by the committee that investigated the Department of Education and if a decision was taken on the advice given by the committee which is to remove the Department Head from her function. Wescot Williams said that while the report was discussed, the removal of the department head was not discussed.
The Prime Minister also announced that the Prime Minister of the Netherlands will be visiting St. Maarten during the month of July. During that visit the Prime Minister of the Netherlands will meet with the Council of Ministers, the President of Parliament, and the faction leaders of Parliament. The Prime Minister of the Netherlands will also visit other sites while on St. Maarten.