Recent headlines in the British press read: “Belize PM Warns Cameron about role for Ashcroft and “Belize PM claims billionaire backer Michael Ashcroft will rip off Britain.”
The stories were generated out of a trio of interviews that the Belizean Prime Minister had with three British newspaper at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Trinidad and Tobago. But to read the headlines, you’d think that in his war with Ashcroft PM Barrow was being so bold as to seek to meddle in the affairs of a country that is a world power. And more than that to presume to lecture the head the man likely the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, David Cameron.
Well today speaking with us by phone from Belmopan, the Prime Minister said he did not such thing. He did concede though that was the spin of the articles. But he claims, and the quotations do bear out, that he simply felt the need to put out Belize’s position and was happy to seize upon the opportunity to give an international scope to the problems they’ve been having in Belize with Ashcroft.
And while he did characterize Ashcroft as a relentless foe among other things, he says he did not presume to give any warning to Cameron and claims he only expressed worry about the possibility of Ashcroft getting a senior post in the next British government.
