Liz Thompson mounts defence of Peter Phillips in St Lucy

With St Lucy’s long-running challenges – including persistent water problems – squarely in focus, veteran Barbados Labour Party (BLP) stalwart The Most Honourable Elizabeth Thompson joined a line-up of senior party figures torday to mount a robust defence of incumbent MP Peter Phillips, urging voters to stay the course with proven leadership.

Thompson was addressing a large, energetic crowd clad predominantly in red at Checker Hall, St Lucy, where she took the platform during the party’s celebrations on Errol Barrow Day, as the BLP moved to solidify support in a constituency that has faced significant infrastructural and social pressures.

Declaring Phillips a close friend, Thompson said her presence in St Lucy carried a simple, but urgent message: representation mattered most when times were difficult.

“Peter is a man who helps people. He is from the bosom of St Lucy and supports his constituency,” she told the cheering audience, noting that despite repeated personal losses within his family, Phillips had remained focused on serving residents and responding to their needs.

Acknowledging the seriousness of the constituency’s challenges – including water shortages that have frustrated residents for years – Thompson argued that progress should be judged by sustained effort rather than perfection.

“I admit that there are some challenges in St Lucy,” she said, adding that many of the problems residents now faced had their roots in previous administrations and were being addressed incrementally under the Barbados Labour Party.

Drawing sharp contrasts with Phillips’ challenger, Thompson told the red-clad crowd that effective representation depended on being part of a government with a record of delivery.

“We need somebody who is going to be part of a government,” she said. “We need somebody who is running with a leader who has a record of service, a record of achievement, a record of delivery in their constituency and in the country. Peter Phillips is running with such a person; the other person is not” .

Reflecting on her own career, Thompson reminded supporters that although she had not served as a Member of Parliament since 2008, she could still return to her former constituency and be welcomed by residents who remembered her interventions.

“When a person leaves their constituency and cannot walk back into it, that tells you a great deal about who they are,” she said, underscoring the link between credibility and service in public life .

Before the visibly engaged audience, Thompson cautioned against what she described as “sympathy voting” for the Democratic Labour Party (DLP), warning that elections were not occasions for political experimentation.

“Politics is not a lucky dip,” she said. “An election is not a lucky dip where you give somebody a chance. The chances have to be for you.”

She credited Phillips with helping constituents secure jobs, addressing road and infrastructure concerns, and intervening on behalf of residents facing personal difficulties, repeatedly describing him as “a man who helps the living”.

“We are not dead,” she told supporters. “We want to deal with somebody who will help us live well, live better, live longer.”

Thompson closed with a direct appeal for votes, listing what she said were tangible benefits delivered under BLP administrations, including employment opportunities, road works, pension increases and gains for public servants.

“You know that you are safer with the Barbados Labour Party,” she said, as applause rolled across Checker Hall. “Vote for the living to help the living and reap the reward. Vote for the Barbados Labour Party on February 11.” (Colville Mounsey)

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