APNU+AFC parliamentarian Amanza Walton-Desir has moved to the National Assembly to get answers from Foreign Minister Hugh Todd on the government’s recent hiring of United States (US) lobbying firm Cormac Group, including about the criteria used for its selection and whether there will be an overlap between its activities and the work of the country’s foreign service personnel in Washington D.C.
On December 28, 2020, an agreement was signed by Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Elizabeth Harper and James Link of the Cormac Group. According to a filing with the US Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), the contract, valid for a period of six months at a cost of US$25,000 per a month, is for “government relations and lobbying services” and is “anticipated to include outreach to US congressional members and staff, executive branch officials, and relevant private sector organizations.”
