The Tribune

THE opposition PLP has labelled the governing party's changes to its election slate a case of rearranging "deck chairs on the Titanic" and said Deputy Prime Minister Brent Symonette is the latest to jump from a sinking ship. In a statement issued last night, the PLP claimed Mr Symonette announced he is leaving frontline politics in an effort to avoid allegations of conflicts of interest and questions about his role in millions of dollars in cost overruns related to government road works. The party said that, as minister with responsibility for immigration, Mr Symonette allowed too many work permits to be issued and allowed the impression to develop that citizenship applications were being fast-tracked for political reasons. "The record reflects that neither the Prime Minister nor Deputy Prime Minister feel compelled to answer repeated calls from the public for transparency on this and other matters," the statement said.