St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas

Caribbean Heads of Government agreed to mount the mission to outline the Region's concerns with respect to the proposed measures, in advance of the decision to be taken in April by the EU. The EU has decided on a 36 percent reduction in the price of sugar over the next four years with the first five percent being instituted in July 2006.

The Mission will seek to convey that the measures could have permanent repercussions not only for the sugar industry but for the region as a whole.

"It is a decision that not only St. Kitts and Nevis is grappling with but it is a decision that other countries that are producing sugar in the Caribbean, in Africa and in the Pacific regions have to take similar decisions like what we have had to take in St. Kitts and Nevis," said Prime Minister Douglas, who closed the 300 year old sugar industry last July.

"They (other ACP nations) may have more room and a little more time to play, but they have to take certain specific decisions which will lead to either the closure of their industries or a leaner, much more efficient industry that will amount to the dislocation of several hundreds of people as well in their industries," said Dr. Douglas at a recent press conference.

He said that the issue in St. Kitts and Nevis is a restructuring of the National Economy, "because we would have lost so much revenue, we have made people out of work and we now have to generate new industries, new economic activities."

"They (EU) say they are willing to help us finance these new initiatives that have to be introduced as a response to the closure (in St. Kitts) or the downsizing of the sugar industry as it pertains to Barbados, Guyana and Jamaica in the Caribbean," said Prime Minister Douglas.

"We go first to London where we will be briefed on Monday and then we begin our lobbying sessions in meetings for the whole week and so it has become necessary for us to indicate very clearly and loudly to the Europeans that we are dissatisfied with the financial package that they have already offered in support of the accompanying reform measures to the Sugar Protocol," said Dr. Douglas.

Accompanying Prime Minister Douglas are St. Kitts and Nevis' Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris and St.

Kitts and Nevis' Ambassador to CARICOM, OECS and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), along with Minister Clement Rohee of Guyana and officials from the CARICOM Mission in Brussels.

During the press conference, Dr. Douglas used the opportunity to thank the British Government and specifically Prime Minister Tony Blair for the support that he has given and for especially using St. Kitts and Nevis as the country that has been singled out to have been most affected as a result of the changes in the sugar regime.

"In fact Mr. Blair during his Presidency of the European Union which ended last December, was able to take our case to that body and even after he had given up the European Presidency, he has continued to make statements in support for St. Kitts and Nevis to have more financing than the other ACP States because of the adverse effects that the changes to the Sugar Protocol will have on our national economy and the national life generally here in St. Kitts an