United States Vice-President JD Vance’s comparison of Washington, DC’s crime levels with Trinidad and Tobago’s implies the US doubts the Government’s ability to address crime ­effectively.

This view was expressed yesterday by former minister in the Ministry of National Security Keith Scotland during a back-to-school drive at his constituency office on Piccadilly Street, Port of Spain.

He said, “This is the Vice-President speaking about the country, the UNC cannot put this at the feet of the PNM. You are now in charge and this is what the US Vice-President is saying and the response is inadequate...I am of the opinion that the US Vice-President knows, as we know already, that they don’t have the wherewithal.”