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1,300 Food Safety Controls In 2015

PHILIPSBURG--A total of 1,300 food safety inspections were conducted at food establishments in St. Maarten in 2015, Health Minister Emil Lee told Members of Parliament (MPs) during the continuation of the meeting of the Central Committee of Parliament on the draft 2016 budget on Thursday.

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Plasterk Waits For Official Reply To Dispute Regulation Proposal

THE HAGUE-Minister of Internal and Kingdom Affairs Ronald Plasterk said he is still waiting for an official reply to his recent proposal for a Dispute Regulation (Geschillenregeling). He is aware of the objections, but mostly from stories in the newspaper and not straight from the governments. Plasterk said this on Thursday during a meeting with the Second Chamber Committee for Kingdom Relations.

Plasterk notified the Second Chamber of his latest proposal two weeks ago. He sticks to his initial suggestion to have the Council of State of the Kingdom (Raad van State) act as the advisory authority Read more

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Government Reviewing Consultancies

PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten -The government of St. Maarten has reiterated its intention to review all consultancies to government and government-owned companies to ascertain whether the public resources (financial and human) are properly utilized.

Prime Minister William Marlin and Minister Emil Lee reinforced this point during the Council of Ministers Press Briefing on Wednesday, February 10 Read more

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Prime Minister Marlin Expects Opposition To Criticize Budget

PHILIPSBURG-Prime Minister William Marlin is unconcerned with opposition Members of Parliament’s (MP) criticism of the budget, which was debated in the Central Committee on Monday, February 8.

“When government presented a budget, in all my years in the political arena, only once or twice in the history that you have an opposition sort of agreeing with the government on parts of a budget,” Prime Minister Marlin said.

He noted that it’s election year and as such opposition members will try to give a negative impression of the budget Read more

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No Reported Cases Of Zika On (Dutch) St. Maarten

PHILIPSBURG-Minister of Health Emil Lee said there are no reports of persons with the Zika virus in St. Maarten. However, he has received reports from within the hospitality sector of persons cancelling their trips to St. Maarten due to the advisories relating to the virus.

“I think the French side has one or two (cases of Zika) and as far as I know these are not cases that were contracted in St Read more

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Rotary Sunrise Inducts Ruminni Rogers Into Membership

PHILIPSBURG-Ruminni Rogers was inducted as the newest member of the Rotary Club of St. Maarten Sunrise on Tuesday, February 9.

Rogers is the son of Carlyle Rogers and Ramona Riley-Juan Pedro. He is a Police Officer, a talented Calypsonian, who captured the Junior Calypso crown in 2008, and has become the youngest member of the club.

Rogers was a member of the Rotaract Club of St Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The St Dominic High School International Baccalaureate Diploma Class of 2016 is hosting a COUPLE’S RUN FOR CHARITY on Friday, February 12th, 2016, at 7:30 PM in front of Taloula Mango’s on the Boardwalk in Philipsburg.
It’s almost Valentine’s Day and the students (class of 2016) of feel it is necessary to spread the love especially those who are in need of it Read more

PHILIPSBURG:--- On Tuesday February 9, 2016, Mr. Ruminni Rogers was inducted as the newest member of the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise. Ruminni Rogers who is a Police Officer, the son of Carlyle Rogers and Ramona Riley-Juan Pedro, and a talented Calysonians, who captured the Junior Calypso crown in 2008, has become the youngest member of the club.

Ruminni was a member of the Rotaract Club of St Read more

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Hospital Faced With Bed Shortage In High Season

CAY HILL--St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) has a shortage of beds, but only in the high season, Public Health Minister Emil Lee told the Central Committee of Parliament on Wednesday afternoon.

The Medical Center has 66 beds, which are sufficient for needs in the low season. More than 80 beds are needed to cater to demand in the high sea Read more

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Tot Is ‘Disruptive’ To Growth, Says Gibson

PHILIPSBURG--The five-per-cent turnover tax (ToT) is “disruptive” and an “impediment to economic growth” due to its “multiplier effect” on the cost of goods and services, Finance Minister Richard Gibson told Parliament on Wednesday.

“We have to do away with it or move it down,” Gibson said of the ToT. He has the same belief about the country’s profit tax. It is tough to enforce the profit tax system, he said Read more

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Lee Seeking Cooperation With French St. Martin

PHILIPSBURG--Health Minister Emil Lee is seeking cooperation in the area of healthcare with French St. Martin.

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Minister Lee Strengthens Structural Solutions With French Side Health Care

PHILIPSBURG – Last week Minister Emil Lee initiated a stepped up level of cooperation between the Dutch and French sides of the island with regard to health care.

Left to right: Ramzy Dennaoui, Arnauld Benet, Jim Rosen, Sidiane Laker, Iris Blokpoel, Dr. Louis Jeffrey, Minister Emil Lee, Kees Klarenbeek, Fenna Arnell, Joanne Dekker

“As St Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:---- Last week Minister Emil Lee initiated a stepped up level of cooperation between the Dutch and French sides of the Island with regards to health care. “As St. Maarten continues with its plans for the development of a new hospital, determining the level of cooperation between the Dutch and French sides is a critical element of our development strategy” Minister Lee states.
“Our hope is that instead of two independent hospitals, struggling to provide quality care in a sustainable manner, that we synchronize our strategies.”
A formal cooperation agreement has existed since 2014 and is known as the Observatory St Read more

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Exclusive: William Brooks Approved Back-Pay For His Brother That Amounts To Over Naf 12,000.00.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Based on information reaching SMN News states that the former temporary manager William Brooks also approved NAF 12,000.00 which is "back-pay" monies he believed is owed to his brother from the year 2009. The source said that the payment is currently on hold while the internal audit is busy investigating some of the decisions taken by William Brooks while in office. SMN News further learnt that monies paid to Brooks was not due to him because he had some severe issues with the former management some of which ended up in court.
The source said that while the workers are saying that the vehicle bought for Brook’s brother was purchased just two weeks after he was hired.
As for GEBE Supervisory Board Government is busy working on getting the approval from the Corporate Governance Council to send home the board Read more

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Report submitted to Minister of Justice ---budget debate slows down the process.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Prime Minister William Marlin again stated on Wednesday regarding the suspension of controls until government could get clarity on what exactly transpired at Maho Hotel. Marlin said from Thursday night the company began sending letters where they complained as to how the controllers acted Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Brian Deher, Managing Director of Dock Maarten NV, delivered a presentation to the Council of Ministers on Thursday February 8, 2016, where he officially requested that Government initiate a thorough investigation into the many issues that surround the Harbour Group of Companies, specifically the management decisions taken by CEO Mark Mingo and his aggressive and – taking into account the history of the case – incomprehensible stance against Dock Maarten’s marina expansion project.
According to Deher “During Mr Read more

Study Financing Repayment Drops After Former Pm Stopped Collection

PHILIPSBURG--The amount of study financing repayment Government received from recipients in 2015 plummeted significantly after former Prime Minister Marcel Gumbs stopped the collection efforts.

Govt. Plans To Cut Fleet Via Vehicle Allowance

PHILIPSBURG--Government is looking into the possibility of cutting its vehicle fleet cost by moving to the payout of a vehicle allowance to civil servants who are assigned a vehicle due to their position or contract.

Prime Minister/General Affairs Minister William Marlin said in Tuesday’s continuation of the budget debate in the Central Committee of Parliament instead of buying more vehicles, Government will look into moving to the issuance of a vehicle allowance at the maximum of NAf Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VSA Emil Lee did not hesitate to inform the Members of Parliament on Tuesday when he reported to the Central Committee meeting to answer questions that the slashed budget that is being debated in parliament is what the current government inherited. Minister Lee said even though the Ministry of VSA is the Ministry that deals mostly with the lives of people they too had to suffice with the 10% cuts proposed by the Minister of Finance in order for him to be able to provide a balance budget for the year 2016, prior to the deadline while complying with the instructions given to former Government.
The Minister gave Parliament the figures of the unemployed, those figures he said came from statistics done in the year 2013 and at that time there were 1,900 people unemployed Read more

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Proposal Mp Tamara Leonard (Up): Drastic Cut In Political Salaries And Pensions

St. Maarten News: MP Tamara Leonard is the second MP in Country St. Maarten’s history to propose a pay-cut for parliamentarians. On January 16, 2014, former DP-MP Roy Marlin submitted a motion to cut salaries by 12 percent, after the draft budget showed that all members of the Council of Ministers had decreased their remuneration by 30,000 guilders for that year.

Marlin’s motion failed, because none of the other fourteen Members of Parliament supported it Read more

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Tony Harris Explores Celebrity-Marketing For St. Maarten

From left: Roddy Heyliger, Bernard Hunt, Tony Harris and Arthur Lugisse. Photo contributed

St. Maarten News: Under the umbrella of the Tallahassee-St. Maarten Foundation and in conjunction with photographer Hassan Kareem, Emmy award winning journalist and former CNN and Al Jazeera television broadcaster Tony Harris, arrived on the island over the weekend to explore marketing the destination to celebrities.

Tony Harris worked with CNN for six-years out of their headquarters in Atlanta, where he hosted CNN Newsroom for three years Read more

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‘Shotgun Budget’ Tabled In Parliament By Gibson

Finance Minister Richard Gibson (right) with MP Maurice Lake. 

PHILIPSBURG--Parliament is faced with a “shotgun budget” as the draft 2016 budget was described by Finance Minister Richard Gibson Read more

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Finally, Upgrading Work In Dutch Quarter To Start Late 2016, Early 2017

DUTCH QUARTER, Sint Maarten –– Upgrading work in the Dutch Quarter district will officially begin late 2016, into 2017, with the awarding of the contract to contractors in November.

Prime Minister William Marlin explained this at the symbolic signing for the project to upgrade the infrastructure of Dutch Quarter on Monday, February 8, in the presence of Incoming Ambassador to the European Union representing the Dutch islands Jernej Viditic, and Minister of VROMI Angel Meyers.

The Prime Minister stated that the project was signed by then Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams some three years ago, when he was Minister of VROMI.

Monday’s symbolic signing was to usher in the company that will officially supervise the project Read more

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Orient Beach Tenants Mull Legal Action If Satisfaction Not Obtained

~ Architect insists project has ‘been done by the book ~

ORIENT BAY--Three local proprietors of the new restaurant units on Orient Beach who have not signed contracts with the Collectivité based on their claims the buildings have not been constructed to French code in addition to contesting what they view as prohibitively high rent said Monday this was their “final stand.”

They alluded to a legal action if satisfaction is not obtained from the Collectivité. Meanwhile, other restaurants and boutiques in the new complex have signed contracts and opened, giving the project a half-opened look Read more

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