The Premier this afternoon stepped in to end an on-going war of words between his race consultant and one of his own MPs.

In today’s Royal Gazette Rolfe Commissiong accused former Minister Ashfield DeVent of being “a little slow”.

He made the remarks in response to comments from Mr. DeVent, who this week criticised the consultant’s stance on race as “frightening”.

But in a statement this afternoon Ewart Brown moved to quell the row. The statement said: “The priorities of this Progressive Labour Party government are protecting and creating jobs for our people, waging a vigorous war on crime and fixing our broken education system. Now more than ever we must remain focused on the needs of the people and on solving these problems.

“The ongoing exchange between Mr. Rolfe Commissiong and MP Ashfield Devent in the pages of The Royal Gazette is a sideshow and a distraction from the priorities of our people. This exchange which began as a healthy disagreement has become entertainment for our opponents.

“I am confident that the next time the public hears from Mr. Commissiong on this subject it will not be in an exchange with MP DeVent.”

* Full storry in tomorrow’s Royal Gazette.