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CCNTV6
  • 1 year ago
The Energy Minister says he regrets that his "cross talk" in a hot mic incident in Parliament last week has "unnecessarily distracted public discourse."

For this, Minister Stuart Young says he offers his "humblest apologies."

Juhel Browne reports
Transcript
00:00About one week after a hot mic incident in the House of Representatives, Energy Minister
00:06Stuart Young issued a statement on his Facebook page in which he said that in the Parliament
00:11last Thursday, during the recently concluded budget debate, he made comments which were
00:16carried by a live microphone which have gone viral and generated much attention.
00:22Minister Young went on to say that he accepts that more is expected of him as a representative
00:28member of Parliament.
00:30His comments were captured during the live broadcast of the Parliament Channel as opposition
00:34members walked out of the chamber of the lower house when the wind-up of the budget debate
00:39commenced last Thursday evening.
00:58Days later, Minister Young appeared before the Standing Finance Committee as it began
01:07its examination of the 2025 allocation to the Energy Ministry.
01:18The following day, on Wednesday, Minister Young said in his Facebook post that he wishes
01:23to record his, quote, regret that this crosstalk has unnecessarily distracted public discourse,
01:30end quote.
01:32Minister Young then offered his humblest apologies.
01:35Energy Minister also said he hopes and trusts that his record of service to Trinidad and
01:40Tobago speaks for itself.
01:42Minister Young also said be further assured that he will continue to serve without fear
01:47or favour, malice or ill will.
01:50Energy Minister is the MP for Port of Spain North, St. Ann's West and the House of Representatives.
01:57Former National Security Minister Guy Griffith, the political leader of the National Transformation
02:02Alliance, said in a Facebook post on Wednesday that he wanted to clarify his initial comments
02:07as he said he had not listened to the entire recording when he said Minister Young should
02:12not face disciplinary action.
02:15Minister Griffith said that having listened to the recording in its entirety, he, quote,
02:20can't state the full comments were indeed disrespectful and crass and requires an unequivocal
02:26apology from Minister Young, end quote.
02:29Meanwhile, TV6 News has received a copy of a motion of privileges to be submitted to
02:33the Speaker of the House of Representatives by the opposition.
02:37The motion states there is precedent that while the offending words or statements were
02:42not immediately heard by the Speaker on review of the words or statements by the Speaker,
02:48same can be subject and referred to the Committee of Privileges.
02:52The opposition's motion also states that in 2007, the then Speaker was reported as
02:58stating that cross-talk was part of the Parliament's record and covered by privilege and therefore
03:04the words or statements used by the Member last week are within the remit and subject
03:10to the Committee of Privileges.
03:13Jule Brown, TV6 News.
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