Although houses are being rented for ministers from out of town at a maximum rent of $500,000 per month, the ministerial housing allowance remains at $25,000, Clerk of the National Assembly Sherlock Isaacs clarified yesterday.
Isaacs had been asked on Monday to explain how Parliament Office had rented a home for Junior Natural Resources Minister Simona Broomes for the sum of $500,000 a month if the ministerial house allowance was capped at $25,000. Asked if the allowance had been increased to allow this, Isaacs said an increase to allow a maximum rent of $500,000 had been approved.
He has since clarified that the increase is only for rental of houses for ministers who are from outside of Georgetown. The housing allowance remains $25,000 for all other ministers. Presently Parliament Office is paying rent for Minister Broomes as well as Minister within the Minister of Communities Valerie Patterson.
Other ministers from out of town include Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Sydney Allicock and Junior Communities Minister Dawn Hastings, who are being housed at the government apartments at Echilibar Villas.
Isaacs, though asked, did not provide a document showing when this increase was approved and by whom. Stabroek News also approached Minister of Finance Winston Jordan in an attempt to source information on who authorised the increase.
Asked how and when the rental cap was approved and if it was a ministerial decision which was gazetted, Jordan did not respond.
Meanwhile, opposition Member of Parliament Anil Nandlall has written to Isaacs asking similar questions.
In a letter, dated June 26, 2017, Nandlall asked the Clerk to provide the statutory/constitutional provision or order which authorised such use of public monies.
He has also asked for copies of any other rental contracts for living accommodations for ministers of the government entered into by the Parliament Office/Clerk of the National Assembly.
According to the Ministers, Members of the National Assembly and Special Offices (Emoluments) Act, the Prime Minister, Senior Ministers and Attorney General are each entitled to occupy, free of rent, a furnished residence provided by the government or in lieu thereof to be paid a house allowance.
The Handbook for Members of the National Assembly further states that the Speaker and Vice Presidents have similar entitlements.
It also notes that the other ministers, the Leader of the Opposition and the Parliamentary Secretaries are not entitled to be provided with residence but are each paid a house allowance.
The house allowance for the Speaker, Prime Minister, Attorney General, Ministers, and Leader of the Opposition is set at $25,000, while the Parliamentary Secretaries’ allowance is set at $15,000.
According to the handbook, the housing allowance is exempt from income tax and is payable monthly by the Parliament Office with and at the same time as salary.
Stabroek News understands that prior to 2015, any rent over the $25,000 allowance was paid by the Office of the President, which also paid for domestic services used by ministers. Additionally, the Ministry of Agriculture paid for gardening services and the ministry to which the minister was assigned paid their telephone bill.
Jordan had explained that this is no longer the case. “All allowances are to be paid by Parliament. It is Parliament which pays ministers and therefore no government ministry should be covering the living expenses of a minister,” Jordan explained.
The issue of ministerial house allowance was raised after Broomes’ former tenancy arrangement was revealed.
Peter Ramsaroop, from whom Broomes was renting a house, sued the minister, the Parliament and the Attorney General over her alleged failure to pay three months’ rent. In a correspondence, Ramsaroop confirmed that the rental sum was $500,000 a month. He has since withdrawn the case.
