President Bharrat Jagdeo and PNC/R leader Desmond Hoyte yesterday resumed their dialogue and agreed on the way forward for the broadcast sector - deadlock over which had stalled their talks - and membership of state boards.

The two leaders in a joint statement also agreed to soon formalise the All Party Parliamentary Management Committee and to meet on Tuesday with the co-chairpersons of the various joint committees they set up earlier this year to review progress and make necessary decisions.

Dialogue between the two leaders was suspended for around six weeks following a disagreement over the amended Wireless Telegraphy Regulations 2001 promulgated by Prime Minister Sam Hinds and which sought to licence television stations. Hoyte and his PNC REFORM (PNC/R) had accused Hinds of undermining the work of one of the joint committees which was also addressing the broadcast sector. Following the row, the matter was referred to the joint committee which prepared a report for the leaders' consideration.

The statememt said that the President and the Opposition Leader had agreed "to accept the recommendations of the Joint Committee on Radio Monopoly and Non-partisan Boards on the Wireless Telegraphy (Amendment) Regulations 2001."

The committee's report recommended amendments to the regulations regarding the reliance on the sole judgement of the minister responsible for communications (Hinds) as to public taste and performance standards. It said too that the recommendations should be an interim measure pending the promulgation of comprehensive broadcast regulations which it estimated would take about eight months to enact.

Another decision taken by the leaders was the acceptance of "the principle of participation on State Boards, Commissions, etc broadly along the lines of the agreement between Dr Roger Luncheon and Mr L Carberry on December 8, 1998."

That agreement was the only one signed during the Herdmanston Accord-mandated dialogue sessions between the PNC/R and the PPP/Civic. It provides for the Government to consult with the PNC/R on its nominees for appointment to state bodies, naming Hoyte and the PNC/R general secretary as the competent persons to identify the persons to be nominated.

The leaders also agreed to to formalise shortly the All Party Parliamentary Management Committee. This committee has so far been meeting informally under the chairmanship of the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Reepu Daman Persaud. The opposition parties, however, are unhappy at the pace at which the committee has been working.

They are also concerned that before the National Assembly embarked on its annual recess, the government chose to ignore the committee in bringing an amendment to the Land Acquisition for Public Purposes Act, even though it had met only a few days before to consider issues to be addressed at the next sitting of the Assembly. They also expressed their disgust at the government's decision to unilaterally defer the date of the commencement of the recess by boycotting the session at which the amendment was discussed.

Jagdeo and Hoyte also agreed that they would meet on Tuesday with the co-chairpersons of the various joint committees to review progress to date and make necessary decisions.

To date, of the six committees, only the committee on border and national security issues has completed its report. The joint bauxite committee should have completed its report this month. It, however, met the deadline for the submission of its evaluation of the Alcoa proposal which it had a month to do from its establishment in May. Committees on depressed communities, local government and house lots are also part of the six.