by Linda Straker
- Parliament and Cabinet of Ministers on break during August 2025
- New session resumes 1 September with Throne Speech presented by Governor-General
- Amid the recess, US Government announced visa restrictions on Grenada’s Government officials and their families
Government officials have confirmed that both the Lower and Upper Houses of Parliament, as well as the Cabinet of Ministers, are on break for the month of August 2025, and they will resume work on 1 September 2025.
Dessima Williams, President of the Senate, at the end of the 25 July session of the Upper House, announced that Parliament will be in recess for August. “We are recessed for the month of August, enjoy yourselves,” she told Members before adjourning the sitting. The Clerk of Parliament later confirmed that the Lower House will also recess for the month of August.
Traditionally, Parliament is prorogued following the August recess and a new session is opened in September or October with the Governor-General presenting the Throne Speech. That speech outlines the legislation plans of the Government for the upcoming Parliamentary year.
A senior government official recently disclosed that the Cabinet of Ministers, which meets on Mondays, has also taken a break for August. Traditionally, the first 2 Mondays in August were holidays: August Monday to celebrate Emancipation Day, and Carnival automatically barred the Cabinet from meeting, but they may choose to meet on another day. The Cabinet of Ministers is the body of ministerial appointees appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Prime Minister to oversee the various departments of the government. They are responsible for implementing and administering laws and policies.
Amid the Cabinet recess, the US Government, on 13 August, announced visa restrictions on Grenada’s Government officials and their families. It is not known who is affected because the Government, up to 18 August, is claiming that it has yet to be officially informed. “Today, the Department of State took steps to impose visa restrictions on African, Cuban, and Grenadian government officials, and their family members, for their complicity in the Cuban regime’s medical mission scheme in which medical professionals are ‘rented’ by other countries at high prices and most of the revenue is kept by the Cuban authorities,” said a statement from the Office of the Spokesperson for the US State Department.
Referring to the medical professionals as working for their slave masters, the statement said, “This scheme enriches the corrupt Cuban regime while depriving the Cuban people of essential medical care.” The statement said: “The United States continues to engage governments and will take action as needed to bring an end to such forced labour. We urge governments to pay the doctors directly for their services, not the regime slave masters.”
In a response on 14 August, Grenada’s Government said it has taken note of the recent press statement issued by the United States Department of State. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is actively engaged with the authorities of the United States, through established diplomatic channels, in addressing this matter,” said a statement disseminated by the Government Information Service (GIS). “We assure the people of Grenada that your government is attending to this situation with the utmost responsibility and in the best interests of our nation. We urge the public to be guided by official information issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as we will provide further updates as appropriate.”
