Opposition Leader’s office ‘always closed’ despite $400,000 monthly rent bill –Minister Teixeira highlights
The often shut office of the Leader of Opposition on Regent Street
The often shut office of the Leader of Opposition on Regent Street

DESPITE costing the State $400,000 monthly, the Leader of the Opposition’s office is “always locked up”, and there is never anyone there, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Gail Teixeira has lamented.
This was revealed during Day Two of the consideration of estimates and expenditure of the 2025 national budget on Monday, when some $32.5 million was approved for the Opposition Leader’s office.
Teixeira, while responding to questions posed by the parliamentary opposition, told the Committee of Supply that while sums are being allocated and expended, the office remains shut.
This has presented a challenge when it comes to communicating urgent matters with the Leader of the Opposition, as oftentimes important mail is sent to the office at Regent Street, and thereafter has to be redirected to the People’s National Congress/Reform (PNC/R) headquarters (Congress Place) in Sophia.

“There are many times I’ve had to interact with the Leader of Opposition’s office, and every time we send the office assistant to deliver mail, the building is closed, and, therefore, we have to send it to Congress Place,” Teixeira said.
“We have correspondence that has to be delivered to the Leader of the Opposition office. And I do so on behalf of His Excellency, the President. Each time the building is locked up; there’s nobody there, but rent is being paid for this building of 400,000 a month,” she added.
The 2025 parliamentary budget includes an allocation of $76 million for the rental and maintenance of various buildings.

This sum covers the monthly rental of official residences for five parliamentarians, totaling $300,000, as well as $9 million for renting the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) for 20 sittings.
Minister Teixeira was further quizzed on the rental of the ACCC for the use of parliamentary sittings as opposed to using the Public Buildings for the sitting of the National Assembly.
In her response, she reminded that while the change in location was propelled by the COVID-19 pandemic, the ACCC offers more space.
And while MPs occupy this space, much-needed renovations are underway at the Brickdam Parliament Building.
These allocations form a part of a larger $2.1 billion approved for the Parliament Office by the Committee of Supply.

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