United Progressive Party Political Leader Jamale Pringle has pledged to allocate Crown land plots of approximately 8,000 square feet to Antiguans and Barbudans aged 35 and under at a cost of no more than five dollars per square foot. According to Antigua.news, the announcement was made at a UPP rally in St Mary's North on Tuesday, where Pringle outlined a range of proposals covering land, immigration and infrastructure ahead of the April 30 general election.
Pringle said a UPP government would first conduct a full audit of remaining Crown land before zoning and pricing residential plots, with a target of 2,000 allocations over five years. "We will not allow deep pockets to take advantage and buy up acres and acres of Crown land," he told supporters.
However, the proposal raises questions about how it would differ from the Central Housing and Planning Authority's existing Land Empowerment Programme, under which plots averaging 6,000 square feet are currently sold at three dollars per square foot. Housing, Lands and Urban Renewal Minister Maria Browne told Parliament in 2023 that the programme's age cap had been removed because it was excluding applicants over 35.
Pringle also pledged to stop the Antigua Public Utilities Authority from requiring new residents to pay for electricity poles and water pipes in newly developed neighbourhoods.
On immigration, Pringle announced that a UPP administration would extend the legal stay for Caribbean Community nationals from three months to six months and would make work permits "unrestricted within the industry." He framed the policy as a direct response to hardship faced by non-nationals following United States visa restrictions that took effect on January 1. "Instead of having to run to immigration every three months for an extension, we will extend the duration of your legal time to six months," he said.
Also at the rally, St John's Rural West incumbent MP Richard Lewis outlined proposed education reforms, including expanded free public education from kindergarten through A-levels, curriculum changes to incorporate national history and civics, a performance-based reward system for teachers, and the reinstatement of a two-uniform annual grant.
On health care, St Mary's North candidate Johnathan Joseph pledged that a UPP administration would reopen the Cancer Centre Eastern Caribbean "in the shortest period of time." The facility has been closed since April 2023 and was acquired by a US-based investment group for EC$13 million in 2024. Prime Minister Gaston Browne confirmed in late March that the centre is now scheduled to reopen in June 2026 — the third publicly committed deadline, after investors had previously targeted the first quarter of 2026.
