Bob Richards, the Minister of Finance, has welcomed the findings of the Blue Ribbon Panel.

The independent panel was appointed last month and tasked with looking into the airport redevelopment project.

“I am pleased to hear that the Blue Ribbon Panel has confirmed that the airport redevelopment project is a commercially sound and reasonable project for Bermuda,” Mr Richards said in a statement released this evening.

“The panel has determined that the project reduces financial risk to the Government of Bermuda and allows Bermuda to share in the benefits of a new airport with no new Government debt.

“In addition, the Government is pleased that this panel of distinguished Bermudians has concluded that all of the entrustment questions have been answered.

“What should now be abundantly clear is that this project is commercially sound, and that more than enough information has been provided in documents, and through the Government’s expert financial advisers, to allow members of Parliament to evaluate the project.”

Mr Richards accepted that “the intricacies of this transaction have been difficult to communicate” and thanked the panel for their hard work.

“My hope is that their conclusion will provide an additional level of comfort for Bermudians,” Mr Richards said.

“I would also like to thank the Canadian Commercial Corporation and Aecon for having been ready to answer any questions the Blue Ribbon Panel had about the project.

“The panel had full access to all documentation pertaining to the project, as well as access to senior representatives of our independent, third-party financial advisers to answer their questions.

“The Government has been working on this important infrastructure project for the last two and a half years, with yet another independent evaluation of the project concluding this is a good deal for Bermuda. It is time to move forward with it. We are confident that this is the right deal for Bermuda — and at the right time.”