Manning to meet with Blair in Nigeria

Prime Minister Patrick Manning will be meeting British Prime Minister Tony Blair in Nigeria in early December when he attends the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting. “I have a letter from him...and we will meet on a one to one basis sometime between the 5th and 8th December,” the Prime Minister said, adding that it would focus on matters concerning the relationship between the Government of Trinidad and Tobago and the oil companies operating in Trinidad and Tobago (two of which are British companies). Manning said he would be going to the US  “for high level discussions” and would be “working towards a meeting” with US President George Bush.

On the long-standing issue of the fishing agreement between Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, Manning said this country was coming to the negotiating table “with the best of intentions and clean hands.” But he noted that the fishing agreement between this country and Barbados was no simple matter, as evidenced by the fact that negotiations have been going on for the past 12 years. It is a negotiation between two sovereign states — one state seeking to protect its natural resources and the other state seeking to gain access to it, Manning said. Earlier this week, Barbados Prime Minister Owen Arthur criticised the delay, saying that his country would not be pursuing deeper political relations with Trinidad and Tobago unless this longstanding matter (of the fishing agreement) was resolved.

Manning did not want to identify the stumbling blocks. He said however that he did not think that this matter would impact negatively on the integration movement in Caricom or on Barbados’ support for Trinidad and Tobago’s candidacy to become the headquarters of the FTAA. “Fear thou not,” he said. Manning also revealed that the implications of the recent ruling of the Privy Council — that the death sentence for murder was unconstitutional — were being studied by Attorney General John Jeremie. The Prime Minister said that in the view of the Privy Council, a judge must have a discretion as to whether the death sentence should be imposed or not. The Prime Minister also stated that “decision time” was fast approaching for BWIA. He said the ministers of finance met at length on the issue on Wednesday and were now awaiting the return of the minister responsible for BWIA, Ken Valley, before taking the matter to Cabinet.