Above: St Lucia

By the Caribbean Journal staff

St Lucia’s government has formed a new National Security Council to coordinate the work of state agencies in maintaining security, it announced.

The council includes the Prime Minister, Minister for National Security, Tourism Minister, Attorney General, Cabinet Secretary, National Security Advisor, the Commissioner of Police, Comptroller of Customs, General Manager of the Saint Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority and Director of the Financial Intelligence Authority.

The country’s Cabinet first approved the formation of the new body in January 2013.

The government said the council’s main aims would include “acting as a body for ventilating different views on security issues and developing consensus positions,” taking the lead for government in a state of emergency, coordinating security-related activity and elaborating a “strategic framework” for dealing with current and emerging threats.

The council held its first meeting on Friday.