HAMILTON, Bermuda — Transport Minister, Lawrence Scott, has confirmed he is considering taking on Home Affairs Minister Walter Roban for the deputy leadership position within the ruling Progressive Labour Party (PLP).
Transport Minister, Lawrence ScottScott, the son of former premier, Alex Scott, told the Royal Gazette newspaper he was weighing up whether to try to oust Roban, who is also Deputy Premier, at the PLP’s delegates’ conference in October.
“I told colleagues that I was considering it. That’s all it, a consideration,” said Scott, who has described Roban, as his “mentor”.
Asked whether he had outlined his position during a cabinet meeting that left Roban ““speechless”, Scott replied ““I’ve said it multiple places. I can’t talk about what is said at cabinet.
“We have had a conversation. He’s helped mentor me. He’s seen the growth,” he added.
Roban has so far made no comment. But there has been continued speculation that Premier David Burt, who is also Finance Minister, could face a leadership challenge in October.
The Gazette said Burt, became Bermuda’s youngest premier at the age of 38 when he led the PLP to victory over the one-term One Bermuda Alliance in the 2017 general election, had faced resistance at some recent party meetings.
The newspaper said some of Burt’s recent meetings with party faithful were described as contentious, while others were poorly attended, with members at a gathering in the central parishes reportedly telling the premier they felt it was time for new leadership.
Former Finance Minister Curtis Dickinson, who resigned ahead of February’s Budget following a row with Burt over financing for the reopening of the Fairmont Southampton, the island’s largest hotel, is seen as a possible challenger to his leadership.
But no MP has so far declared if they will stand against Burt in October, or if they are considering such a move.
Burt oversaw the PLP’s re-election in a snap election three years later when they won 30 of the 36 seats in the House of Assembly. The PLP first won power in 1998, ending the 30-year reign of the now-defunct United Bermuda Party.
