So, while the Deputy Prime Minister was more circumspect about what will come out of Parliament, Attorney General Michael Peyrefitte says that he will support the decision of the Prime Minister.
As an un-elected Senator he can't do much about a money bill, but Peyrefitte made it clear that his gut reaction is an emphatic "no" to paying that 90+ million dollar award:
Hon. Mike Peyrefitte, Attorney General
"The CCJ made it very clear that that money has to be made available by parliament. So we don't know what will happen. The minister of finance, in my view - and we are still making sure that we get all legal advice so that we are on the right page, on the same page with everybody. But in my view, the Prime Minister as the minister of finance should not pay that 90 million until it has been budgeted for and the only way it can be budgeted for is if the matter is taken to parliament and parliament votes for it to be budgeted for. The CCJ know - and they have not claimed to be able to do it- they cannot compel the parliament to vote a certain way. And when the Prime Minister has all the relevant information then the Prime minister will take a position and as he usually does he will bounce it off the people he trusts to give him honest opinions and at that point, whatever decision the Prime Minister makes, absolutely I will support that decision."
Daniel Ortiz, reporter
"Sir, so if he should make that decision and that money bill passes up to the senate will you vote in support?"
Hon. Mike Peyrefitte, Attorney General
"Well I don't want to act in anticipation but my gut reaction is to vote no. If that passes the house, and that's a big if, I would be, I am telling you, my gut feeling is to vote no. No way the government should have ever guaranteed a loan made by the Belize Bank to the UHS. That should have been a private matter. The government should never, never have guaranteed nor signed any promissory note to pay that amount of money especially since, even though, if we were to pay it, we still don't own the hospitals. We would be paying 90 million dollars for something we don't own. Not even a syringe, not even a Tylenol in that place we own. So my initial reaction as a red blooded Belizean is to say no. Hell no."
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