Minister Phillip Watts faces criticism over budget debate remarks about female MPs. The PNM women’s league condemned them.
Sport and Youth Affairs Minister Phillip Watts is facing criticism after commenting on the appearance and sexual conduct of female members of Parliament during Saturday’s budget debate in Trinidad and Tobago’s House of Representatives. Watts, the United National Congress (UNC) member for La Horquetta/Talparo, spoke during debate on the Appropriation (Financial Year 2027) Bill, 2026.
Earlier in his contribution, Watts responded to suggestions from the Opposition benches that he wanted to return to the People’s National Movement (PNM), the party he left before the 2025 general election. He rejected the suggestion and used a crude expression to do so, according to a recording of the sitting.
Near the end of his contribution, Watts praised the women on the Government benches as good-looking and said they had “moral values.” He then said he had never come across any of those women having sexual relationships with colleagues. The Trinidad Express reported that the remark drew desk thumping from some members.
PNM MP Kareem Marcelle, who represents Laventille West, invoked Standing Order 48.1 and asked what relevance a person’s appearance had to the debate. Speaker Jagdeo Singh said members had been given considerable latitude and that Watts should receive the same. He said Marcelle had himself made comments about Watts earlier in the debate. Watts then continued, comparing the exchange to a cricket match.
On Sunday, the PNM’s National Women’s League issued a statement condemning what it called personal attacks on PNM women. It alleged that Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar had encouraged UNC members and social media bloggers to target PNM office-holders. The statement did not provide evidence for that claim. Anita Haynes Alleyne, a former UNC senator and MP, also criticised the remarks. She said appearance and private life are no measure of a woman’s competence, that such commentary has “no place in a parliamentary debate,” and that the Speaker missed a chance to rule on the matter. She noted that the country’s President, Prime Minister and Opposition Leader are all women and called on the Prime Minister to state her position.
Watts, who won his seat in the 2025 general election after 14 years in the PNM, spent much of his speech defending the Government’s youth programmes. He alleged that the previous administration left several initiatives in disarray, including the Civilian Conservation Corps, which he said paid 114 people without enrolling any participants. Those claims were his own and were not independently verified in the reports reviewed. Those reports did not include a response from Watts or the Prime Minister to the criticism.
The other sections (slug, headline, standfirst, images, tags, sources sentence, WhatsApp post and excerpt) don’t need changes. Once Hansard is available, check the new paragraph against it before publishing, as noted earlier.