Author
Mike Jarvis
Release Date
Monday, May 12, 2014
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The Hon. Premier Donaldson Romeo and members of a government delegation currently in the UK have been updating Montserratians living there on the administration’s plans for the island including issues pertaining to the diaspora., in particular the shortage of trained teachers. <br />
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Minister Ryan informed the gathering about the problems the Ministry of Education in particular had to deal with at the start of the academic year due to the shortage of teachers.<br />
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She encouraged those in attendance who are interested in teaching or have teaching experience to consider returning to work in Montserrat either on a fulltime basis or for a year or two as cover while teachers on the island are sent off to be trained or for further training. <br />
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Meantime, the Hon. Acting Financial Secretary Lindorna Brade, and the Acting Director General of the Montserrat Customs and Revenue Service Peter White, also gave presentations.<br />
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They spoke on issues including a skills shortage in some government departments, gave details on the programme set up to assist returning Montserratians and outlined plans to improve it.<br />
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Matters relating to Montserrat’s international obligations on a range of financial and tax issues were explained, especially in terms of how they relate to Montserratians living abroad.<br />
These included the Tax Information Exchange Agreement(TIEA)obligations, the Savings Income Order and the Financial Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).<br />
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Following the presentations there was what has described as a lively question and answer session. <br />
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One of the main questions had to do with the appointment of a representative to deal with diaspora affairs. <br />
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Premier Romeo confirmed that this is being dealt with and an appointment would be made soon. <br />
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The meeting was held at the Haringey Irish Cultural & Community Centre in Tottenham, North London.<br />
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Also on the agenda for the Montserrat delegation’s visit to London are meetings with the UK Department for International Development (DfID) and attendance at the meeting of the British Overseas Countries and territories.<br />
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