Tourism Minister Says Cruise Port Policy is being Revised

During Thursday’s consultation, questions were also raised with respect of an existing cruise port policy.  While we were with Tourism Minister Anthony Mahler today, he was asked about this. He says that there is one, but it needs to be updated.

Anthony Mahler

Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism

“There’s always been a cruise policy. In fact, I wrote the first two, personally wrote the first two cruise policies so there has always been. Now it had not been modernised or updated for many years and since we’ve gotten in, we have changed that. So within the next few weeks, we should be taking publicly the updated and modernise cruise ship policy that we are working on currently.”

Reporter

“Do you believe that waterloo’s E.I.A. should have been resubmitted then after that cruise port policy was updated?”

Anthony Mahler

“Look, there is a process for you to do any development and I don’t care which investor it is. That person or that entity has to go through the necessary steps – whether it is approved or denied – that is not up to me. Our role at the Belize Tourism Board and the Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relation is to ensure that cruise ships go to those ports or whatever it is that is built in Belize. We’re not responsible for the development of the port.”