By Robert A. Emmanuel
St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves says the development of a new regional airline would be better for the Eastern Caribbean than a revival of the LIAT brand.
Speaking on Observer AM yesterday, Gonsalves reiterated his recent suggestion that a new regional airline be headquartered in his country.
Earlier this week he announced that he had been provided with a document from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) outlining a plan for the financing and operation of such a carrier.
When asked whether the airline suggested was LIAT, he replied, “my perspective and that which I am urging is a new entity [and] you can call it WIAT if you want—West Indies Air Transport—or whatever name you want to call it”.
CDB has been studying the issue of regional air transportation from as early as May 2015 and was asked once again by regional leaders in January 2023 to review the long-standing scarcity of transportation which has shackled the free movement of people within Caricom.
The Vincentian Prime Minister previously stated there is no interest in the region for publicly funding LIAT.
He also said the revitalisation of the Antigua-based airline could lead to future litigation, such as from the carrier’s creditors – something regional leaders were keen to avoid.
“I know LIAT has a particular marketing brand and has served us well until it collapsed in 2020 but I am not clear in my mind and have not been properly advised that reviving the airline under LIAT 2020 or 2023 Ltd would not present some particular hurdles and potential litigation,” he argued.
Regional air transportation has been a hotly debated topic among Caribbean leaders, as costs for intra-regional travel continue to rise and delays have continued to frustrate regional travellers.
“I believe everybody is on the same page with that particular purpose in the OECS, but persons may have different perspectives as to how we get to that,” he said.
Dr Gonsalves stated that long-time critics of LIAT were now waking up to the invaluable service that the regional airline provided during its lifetime.
“It’s amazing that in our Caribbean how people can’t be just balanced in their judgement. A regional airline of the type like LIAT, or anyone that is replacing it, is really a marginal financial proposition, but it is absolutely necessary and desirable for economic and social purposes, particularly for islands engaged in tourism,” he added.
Prime Minister Gonsalves also spoke about the compassionate payment offer made by Prime Minister Gaston Browne to former LIAT workers in lieu of full severance, which has been a point of contention between their local bargaining agent, the Antigua and Barbuda Workers Union (ABWU), and the government.
“With all the constraints and all the problems that a government has, when Gaston [Browne] offered, as I understand it, 50 percent and to give cash for some and lands or bonds or both … I didn’t think that was something unreasonable and to incur the ire of union leadership,” Dr Gonsalves said.
The ABWU has maintained that any potential agreement should be based on 100 percent of severance comprising a majority cash component and the remainder organised as shares in any future derivative of LIAT.
“I am a labour man, I am a farmer man and I am a travelling public man; I want to be fair to small restaurateurs, small hoteliers, because these people are on the margins also,” Gonsalves added.