Hon Donaldson Romeo's Letters To Montserrat's Governor Prior to Ferry Services Termination

Prior to the termination of the Jaden Sun's Ferry Service on Montserrat, Member of the Opposition, Hon Donaldson Romeo had a robust exchange of letters with The Governor of Montserrat, HE Andrew Pearce.

In one exchange Romeo stated;

"Travelers on the seven seater Islander cannot practice social distancing which is an obvious epidemiological threat to health and to life; which outweighs money concerns. This is especially so as people coming from overseas pose a greater risk of transmitting the virus. By contrast, on the ferry there is room for social distancing. Other notable concerns are that most by far prefer to travel by the ferry because of the perceived danger of the small aircraft and the short runway at the airport. These concerns have been longstanding and have been reflected in the number of incidents over the years. While a 19 seater twin otter is a somewhat larger aircraft it still has lack of social distancing."

In his reply Governor Pearce said to Hon Romeo;

"Thank you for your letters of 9 and 14 September. The UK has an over-arching, strategic responsibility for Montserrat’s well-being and safety and as Governor I am committed to helping the people of Montserrat live in peace, happiness and prosperity in their beautiful island home.

But management of the ferry and airline services to and from Montserrat are responsibilities devolved to the Government of Montserrat. I recommend that you therefore discuss your concerns first and foremost with them. Local accountability and scrutiny are important and Members of the Legislature play a key role in engaging with government on their responsibilities to manage the budget and local services. You should therefore direct your questions to the Access Team, Ministry of Finance and the Premier. Montserrat’s constitution rightly confers a high degree of independence in these matters and the serious challenges presented by the Covid pandemic do mean that tough decisions have to be taken with severely stretched public finances."

A total of 4 letters were exchanged.

Download and read the exchanges between both gentlemen via the link below:{module_literature filter="item" itemId="184702"}