Roadblock

Mottley lambastes timing, content of Road Traffic amendments

THE Road Traffic (Amendment) Bill encountered a huge stop sign from Opposition Leader Mia Mottley yesterday, who bemoaned the fact that the Opposition Barbados Labour Party (BLP) was only given notice of the Bill less than 48 hours before it was brought to Parliament.

Speaking in the Lower Chamber in the post-lunch session, Mottley said: “We are more than happy to engage in substance, but it seems to me that we are being asked to be a political prop today, with respect to serious legislation that will come to affect how the citizens of this country can function.”

Charging that Minister of Public Works and Transport, Michael Lashley, has treated the Opposition as members of a Debating Society, Mottley stated that yesterday’s proceedings were merely a “for the record” debate, and allowed the Minister to add a point onto his political score card, during “the dying days of this administration”.

She said if the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) was serious about the debate, a copy would have been handed to the Opposition when Cabinet met on Thursday. The Opposition leader explained that it would have been impossible to finish reading the entire document in 48 hours, adding that comparisons would have had to be made with the old Act and precedence in other Commonwealth jurisdictions analysed, to determine areas that might have been overlooked.

One of these areas she suggested was left out, was the provision for banning and provisions for rehabilitative care for persons who might be a multiple offender on the breathalyser test. She also stated that there ought to have been consultation with various stakeholders, including the Bar Association and the insurance fraternity of Barbados.

Mottley, however, commended provisions to help the disabled community, but suggested that fines could have been even higher for those who fail to comply, adding that the entire country needs to be fully accessible.

“But what we have here, is technical language when made law can make people criminals. When people get criminal convictions, they have to wait for them to be expunged. It is not fair and that is not why we have been elected to Parliament.”

Mottley conceded that if the Government is prepared to send this Bill to the Select Committee, then the BLP will work on the document in good faith.

“Without that I cannot tell you that we are in a position to speak to the details of this Bill, because we have received it without the appropriate time to study it and more importantly, without the appropriate time to consult on it. This House of Assembly that started in 1639 is a representative Assembly. It is not about who is bright, or about a Debating Society. I ask the Honourable Members of this Chamber to respect the spirit of it and let us send this to Select Committee for the widest possible consultation,” she said. (JH)

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