Why? Well the committee got a last minute letter from the Attorney General's office late on Friday evening. Chair of the Committee Janelle Chanona explained:

Janelle Chanona. Chair, SSSC
"Friday evening at 6 p.m. we were forwarded a legal memo from the Attorney General's Ministry indicating to the President of the Senate that there are two things that would prevent today's meeting. One is that the Senate is on recess since Holy Week and two that as a result of being on recess that the committee should not be working because decisions taken at the committee meeting may be legally challengeable."

"We responded Saturday morning to that legal memo content and up to Sunday last night we got a response again after hours from the office of the president indicating that the decision was not just to cancel our committee meetings or to advise that the committee meeting should not proceed but that all committee meetings scheduled outside of recess be canceled or within recess be canceled."

"What we do lament and what we place on record is that the timing, had we been able to get this legal opinion which I will say right off is the very first time a legal opinion on such procedure has been asked for and received but it is regrettable that Friday evening into the weekend for a Monday morning meeting that this transpired, but we definitely share the interest of everyone that want to err on the side of caution and so last night we moved very quickly to inform the witnesses."

"We had some key witnesses planned for today to say that this was a technicality that was being brought to the committee's attention and that we are looking now at a new date in May for the committee to meet and move ahead with its work."

Four persons were set to appear between today and tomorrow - including developer David Gegg, one of the landowners, and the former chief environmental officer.

Those hearings have now been postponed until after May 5th.