Prime Minister Mia Mottley has warned that the nation’s global standing and economic future depend on ending a deeply ingrained “cuddear” culture that tolerates substandard performance, insisting that only uncompromising quality and value can sustain the island’s premium brand.

The colloquial Bajan expression “Cuddear”, rooted in pity, was identified by Mottley as a persistent historical obstacle to national development in the post-independence era and an excuse for subpar performance. She warned that letting standards slide out of a desire to avoid difficult conversations or consequences ultimately harms the entire population by lowering the collective ceiling of achievement.

“We have a problem traditionally in the post-independence environment of Barbados where the ‘cuddear’ mentality can sometimes step in the way and stop us from enforcing the standards that we need to enforce such that everyone is lifted,” Mottley said.