Colm Imbert

The Honourable Colm Imbert MP
Minister of Finance of Trinidad and Tobago
Incumbent
Assumed office 9 September 2015
Prime Minister	Keith Rowley
Preceded by
Member of Parliament for Diego Martin North/East
Incumbent
Assumed office 17 December 1991
Preceded by	Anthony Smart
Personal details
Born	(1957-07-30) 30 July 1957 (age 64)[citation needed]
Nationality	Trinidadian
Political party	People's National Movement (PNM)
Alma mater	University of the West Indies
Occupation	Civil Engineering

Colm Imbert (born 30 July 1957^{[citation needed]}) is the Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for the constituency of Diego Martin North/East, which he has represented since December 1991.^[1] He was appointed to the position despite not having any financial experience or conducting economic research to demonstrate his expertise.

Imbert was previously Minister of Health (2001–2003), Minister of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education (2003–2005), Minister of Works and Transport (1991–1995 and 2005–2010) and Minister of Local Government (1993–1995), as well as Leader of Government Business in the House of Representatives (2007–2010) during his 20-year Parliamentary career. He has served as a Cabinet Minister in the Government of Trinidad and Tobago for an aggregate of over 12 years (December 1991 – October 1995 and December 2001 – May 2010) and he is one of the longest-serving Parliamentarians and one of the persons with the most experience in People's National Movement at this time.

Corruption allegations[]

Imbert has been involved in numerous corruption scandals.

Tobago Airport Expansion[]

In addition to his position as Minister of Finance of Trinidad and Tobago, Imbert also served as a director at the Development Bank of Latin America: a conflict of interest that has somehow escaped the authorities of Trinidad and Tobago. Mr. Imbert had pursued the airport expansion since his time as Minister of Works in 1991 but the expansive design was rejected by his predecessor . He later signed off on the project once he became Minister of Finance, even given the dramatic changes to the travel industry as a result of COVID 19.

Imbert plans to expand the expansion airport to accommodate 3 million international passengers. The airport currently sees roughly 20,000 international passengers annually.

In explaining how he planned to boost international passenger traffic by 14900% to meet the new capacity, Imbert cited "cutting-edge expansion...and new loading bridges".^[2] Since 2016, the airport has seen a 4% increase in international passenger traffic (Gamestop rose by 1900% at its peak in January 2021).

Present Flights[]

As of March 2021, only Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL), the national airline of Trinidad and Tobago, provides international service out of Tobago. Condor Airlines is scheduled to resume service in November but will only have one flight on Tuesdays. The new airport will have the capacity for five wide-bodied aircraft.

Money Laundering Suspicions[]

A recent audit by the Joint Select Committee On State Enterprises revealed that despite only posting a profit once in its ten-year history, the national airline paid its general management personnel salaries that were three times higher than management at US airlines. For example, in 2015, CAL paid its executives an average salary of $US 18,000 per month compared to the average salary of $5,806 per month for managers at American Airlines (American Airlines has a fleet of 949 aircraft while CAL has a fleet of 17).^[3] Those salaries are approved by the Ministry of Finance.

Imbert's intent on pursuing the airport expansion (1) despite little demand for international flights to Tobago (2) dramatic changes to the travel industry due to COVID-19, and (3) his decision to award a shell company to manage $US 50 million follows a familiar pattern of money laundering.^[4] Along with Imbert, parties, including participant banks, expose themselves to international money laundering investigations, particularly those with operations in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Imbert attended UWI Staff School (1964–1966), St, Mary's College, Ireland (1966–1968), Mt. St. Benedict (the Abbey School) (1968–1973) and St. Mary's College CIC) (1973–1975) in Port of Spain, before pursuing a career in civil engineering and politics.

Professional/academic qualifications[]

Imbert holds a master's degree in Construction Law and Arbitration with Distinction from the Aberdeen Business School, Robert Gordon University in Scotland (2007), with a specialization in the legal aspects of procurement by public authorities, a master's degree in Maritime Civil Engineering from the University of Manchester (1982), with a specialization in coastal erosion, and a bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering with Honours from the University of the West Indies (1979).^[1] He is a Registered Engineer in Trinidad and Tobago and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of the UK. He also recently obtained his third master's degree (2016), in Oil and Gas Law, again from the Aberdeen Business School, and again with Distinction, with a specialization in oil and gas fiscal regimes.

Work experience[]

After graduation from the University of the West Indies in 1979, Imbert worked as a consulting civil engineer on a variety of construction projects in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean before specializing in Port, Harbor and Coastal Engineering in 1982. In 1985, he took up a position as a lecturer in Construction Management and Engineering at the University of the West Indies, a postgraduate programme. While at the University, he also worked as a consultant on sea defences in Guyana for the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations.

While in Opposition during the period 1995–2001, and 2010–2015, he worked as a property developer and project manager on a number of substantial building projects in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean.

Political career[]

1991[]

Imbert first entered elected politics on 16 December 1991 by winning the Diego Martin East seat for the PNM in the 1991 general elections, defeating the incumbent Anthony Smart of the NAR with 7,111 votes (54.98%).^[5] He was appointed the Minister of Works and Transport and Minister of Local Government in the PNM Administration during the four years following the election.

1995–2001[]

In the 1995 general election, which was called by the then Prime Minister Patrick Manning one year ahead of schedule, he once again won the seat of Diego Martin East for the PNM, although PNM did not win the election. He also contested general elections in 2000 and 2001, winning his seat on both occasions. In 2001, after the general election of December 2001, the PNM was appointed by the then President of Trinidad and Tobago, A.N.R. Robinson, as the government, although it had tied, 18 seats to 18 seats, with the United National Congress in the election. In this short-lived government, which lasted for 9-month until the financial year expired in September 2002, Imbert served as Minister of Health

2002[]

Imbert won his seat once more in 2002 and was re-elected the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Diego Martin East. He was re-appointed Minister of Health and served in that position until 2003, when he was appointed Minister of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education. In 2005, after the resignation of the then Minister of Works and Transport, Franklin Khan, Imbert was appointed Minister of Works and Transport.

2007[]

In 2007, his constituency, Diego Martin East, was renamed Diego Martin North/East due to boundary changes, and in the general election of 2007, Imbert won his seat again, for the sixth time. He was re-appointed Minister of Works and Transport and served in this position until the general election of May 2010, when the PNM lost the government. Imbert was also appointed as the Leader of Government Business in the House of Representatives of Trinidad and Tobago from November 2007 to May 2010

2010[]

In the 2010 general election, after the then Prime Minister Patrick Manning called a snap election, Imbert won his seat, Diego Martin North/East, for the seventh time. However, the PNM lost the overall election, winning only 12 out of 41 seats in the House of Representatives, and he became a member of the Parliamentary Opposition for the second time in his political career.

2015[]

In the 2015 general election held on 7 September, Imbert once again won the seat of Diego Martin North/East with the largest ever vote count in his political career. With a tally of over 12,000 votes, Imbert defeated his rival by a margin greater than 7000 votes. The People's National Movement won the general election with 23 out of the possible 41 seats and following this victory, Imbert was appointed Minister of Finance by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.

2020[]

In the 2020 Trinidad and Tobago general election held on 10 August, Imbert won the seat of Diego Martin North/East for the 9th time, again by a margin of over 7,000 votes. The People's National Movement won the general election with 22 out of the 41 seats at stake, giving Prime Minister Rowley and the PNM a second consecutive term in Government. Imbert was reappointed Minister of Finance on 19 August, 2020

References[]