The Prime Minister also had to defend two of his most trusted Cabinet members. They are Foreign Minister Eamon Courtenay and Minister of State for Finance Christopher Coye.
The UDP Senator Michael Peyrefitte has written a freedom of information request asking how much these ministers' law firm, Courtney Coye LLP has been and will be paid by the Government. The firm has been retained in multiple matters.
Today, the PM justified contracting his own ministers' law firm, because the government quote, "needs to be going to court every minute":
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"Well if they would not take out these silly lawsuits over everything we do need to be going to court every minute, the reality is that, ham, the, in the attorney general's ministry most of he lawyers that we have are junior lawyers, one. Secondly, the pay scale that you have for these lawyers within the government service is very low, so you will not get good lawyers to be able to, ham, to work for the government. I think it is about $50,000.00, 40 - $50,000.00, maybe a few dollars more, which you will know for an attorney that's really not much money, so that's secondly. Thirdly when you're going to meet the likes of the former Prime Minister, Dean Barrow, who is a formidable lawyer, ahm, we can't send junior lawyers, we have to be able to get good lawyers that can be able to put up a good argument, ham, in court. So it is because of that we have to be getting people outside of the government service. I think it would be interesting if you were to ask how much did his law firm get when the UDP was in government or how much was paid to the Barrow affiliates when they were in government. And it's, I mean it's a sizable amount, and so we'll have to get that. Now how much has been paid? I really don't know; I don't have the numbers, I will be asking, I'll be asking, I will be asking the, the Secretary General, sorry, the financial secretary to be able to collate what has been paid so far and we're going to make it public, we're not hiding anything. Reporter
Ok, so do you, can you share an estimated figure? Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
I have no idea. Honestly, I really don't know. Reporter
Because… Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
Ey, I don't know! (Crosstalk) Reporter
John Briceno I will get it. Listen, it makes no sense to continue, I don't know we will make it available as soon as we collate it, we're not going to hide it. There is no conflict of interest. First of all, when both ministers came to work for the government, both of them, they got a special dispensation, I think they from the governor general, so that there can be no conflict of interest. Secondly, everybody would recognize that Courtenay Coye is probably the best law firm in the country, so we have to be able to get the best that we can to be able to defend the interest of the government and the people. So, we just go where we think we can get best. But they are not the only ones that we've been using. We've been using other lawyers."
Reporter
"More private attorneys?"
Hon. John Briceno, Prime Minister
"Yes."
