St Vincent Tourism Minister Kishore Shallow has indicated that the government is open to reviewing the existing contracts with Sandals Resorts, though he cautioned that the long-term nature of the agreements could limit how much of a review can be done.
The comments came during a recent interview on Hot97 where the Minister was primarily discussing the new cruise port partnership with Global Ports Holding.
The topic of Sandals was raised when the interviewer drew comparisons between the two developments, noting that the initial Sandals announcement was also framed to the public as a “no-brainer”. This led the interviewer to ask if there would be a “revisit of the contract or contracts” held by the resort company, specifically noting one that was signed just prior to the election before any money had been spent.
“At this stage, I don’t know how much review could be done to that contract because it was a long-term contract,” Minister Shallow explained.
Despite these limitations, the Minister emphasized that the government’s legal team is actively looking into the matter. He expressed strong confidence in the Attorney General, describing her as a “very astute professional,” and stated that “any opportunity to explore that, she will”.
Minister Shallow also revealed that the government has already initiated a dialogue with the resort company. “We have had a couple meetings,” he stated, affirming the administration’s dedication to evaluating the agreements.
The Minister stressed that the government’s priority is the welfare of the citizens. “We committed to sitting down with them and again where possible, and we could ensure that Vincentians have more favorable terms, then we’ll explore that,” Shallow concluded.