Forever Faithful follows the emotional journeys of two women at pivotal crossroads  -  one fighting to save her marriage, the other finding the courage to walk away amicably after years of betrayal. Beautifully crafted and deeply rooted in Caribbean life, this local drama explores love, resilience, family, and new beginnings.

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Obey the laws, and you have nothing to fear. That’s the advice from Minister of Works and Infrastructure, Jearlean John, as new fines for various traffic offences commence on January 1st.

Minister John focused her attention to road safety and lawlessness, as the country begins to face new traffic penalties from January 1st, 2026.

"I know we people drive dangerously. Not everybody, I want to argue that the majority of the population are very law-abiding citizens and the few that tend to lean towards recklessness, we cannot allow them to spoil the place for everybody else because I think we all will agree that we could do better. And we are better than this. And basically what you need, you need leadership. And you cannot vote for change and expect exchange."

She also advocated technology-driven enforcement in the future.

"Obey the laws, and then really and truly, I don't think you have to fear anything. When you drive in London, the speed limit in London is about 10 miles an hour, 10 kilometres an hour. It's almost, a bicycle is faster than the car. And you know what? Everybody obeying that because together with the speed limit, you also have cameras. So I think we have to have cameras that working. And basically, when you just say that click, they take out your number plate, and they send it to you right away and you get it on your phone."

The Minister said road infrastructure is a problem the Government will be focused on.

"The roads all over the country are a mess and it didn't happen on the 28th of April, if I had to go there. Everywhere is a mess. Just pick your mess. So what we are doing right now, if you will look, through our national recruitment drive, the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure would have had permission to recruit 1,803 persons. So far we have taken on 1,000."

Starting mid-January, she said these personnel will fuel a nationwide move to repair thousands of potholes.

"If you pay a little attention you will see that overpass, lovely piece of engineering at Grand Bazaar, that's been power-washed. We power-washed the whole country to get rid of all the moss and the dirt, the grime, the built-up. All that is part of bringing order. So coming out of that, we are not only going to pick our pothole, we are going into the community and we have the data. So in some communities you have 2,000 potholes. So if you have 2,000 potholes, we come in to patch in 2,000 potholes."

The Minister also John also criticised T&T’s littering habits: "But the other thing I think the Prime Minister is looking at is the people who litter. We litter as if it's a disease, right? Somebody might say, but oh gosh, we don't have dustbin all about. So maybe you have to ease up on fines if that is impending for people who littering. But you have control over your hands. Walk with your garbage."

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The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service is urging drivers to comply with road traffic laws, as changes to penalty fines come into force from today, January 1st.

The Police Services reminded motorists that penalties have increased for 85% of listed traffic offences, including a $6,000 fine for exceeding the speed limit by more than 31 km/h, and a $10,000 fine for failing to have a valid Certificate of Insurance.

Drivers caught driving under the influence will also face stiffer consequences, with a first offence for exceeding the breath alcohol limit now carrying a fine of up to $24,000 while repeat offenders could be hit with penalties as high as $45,000.

The TTPS encouraged making responsible choices, noting that road fatalities dropped by 12% in 2025, with 109 deaths compared to 124 in 2024.

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Trinidad and Tobago underwent its first Old Year’s Night under the new Fireworks Regulations, with a stipulated time to ignite their products between 11:30pm on Old Year’s Night and 12:30am on January 1st, New Year's Day.

Despite reports of people sticking to the stipulated period to use their products, Citizens Against Noise Pollution in Trinidad and Tobago (CANPTT) reported that there are still those intent on breaking the law.

Minister of Land and Legal Affairs Saddam Hosein said from anecdotal reports, citizens did respect the new laws.

"There has been a large level of compliance with the current amendments that were passed by the government, but we still have those who decided that they will break the law. I think the Prime Minister was very clear in when she said that if you cannot adhere to the law, then we may have to, you know, do what we have to do as a government in order to bring that level of peace to the neighbourhoods."

Speaking to TTT News, local veterinarian Dr. Mahfouz Aziz said the issue of noise pollution and fireworks goes far beyond animal welfare, calling it a "public health problem."

"Not just the animals are affected by this. This is a public health problem that has to be addressed as a one medicine problem, both by the medical profession and the animal welfare and the veterinarians. This problem cannot be solved, say, just by the vets making noise or talking on TV or on the radio. We've been going through this year after year."

Dr. Aziz explained that the day after fireworks, clinics often see a surge in injured and missing pets, but he warned that humans are also affected by the intense noise.

"That is fine because the spectrum of frequencies that they can hear is a little bit different from us. But believe you me, high-frequency sounds and high-decibel sounds and loud noises and so on affect animals very badly, and I think it affects people too."

With the new regulations limiting fireworks to a one-hour window on stipulated days, the Public Relations Officer of the Citizens Against Noise Pollution, Vashish Maharaj, said compliance was mixed.

"There were other areas where they say that the noise was incessant. There's a place in South, I believe, that it was kind of terrible. But there were those cases where they basically didn't stay within the time frame, they just keep on going continuously. There were scratch bombs that were actually being exploded as well."

He said CANPTT doesn’t believe there needs to be an outright ban on fireworks at this time, noting that changing with the times and enforcement are key.

"That there was a situation, I can’t remember if it's in Charlieville or not, where the police did actually show up after a call was made, and the police did actually do due diligence so Chaguanas Police Station, we commend them greatly."

Minister Hosein, however, said the prerogative rests with the Prime Minister whether to keep the current regulations in place or ban fireworks altogether.

"But again, there are one or two persons who may have decided to break the law. If the Prime Minister, in her wisdom, says, 'Well, there's a complete ban,' well, then you have to face the consequences of your actions. The Prime Minister is very clear on that particular position."

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Parents who have gone through the process of registering their baby’s birth know it often involves lengthy paperwork and time away from both work and their newborn.

The Bedside Birth Registration Initiative aims to address this long-standing, time-consuming challenge by making the process faster and more convenient for families.

The initiative was officially launched on Thursday, New Year's Day, at the San Fernando General Hospital.

For mother of three Carla Blackman, the birth registration process is a familiar one. However, this time was different. Her newborn son, Brandon, the first baby born in Trinidad and Tobago for 2026, also became the first child to be registered through the Bedside Birth Registration Initiative.

"Sometimes you take a whole day, you have to take a day off from work in order to get this done and both parents might be able to get that done, given, you know, certain circumstances."

According to District Registrar for Births and Deaths in San Fernando, Jennylyn Barton Simon, the Bedside Birth Registration Initiative, spearheaded by the Registrar General Department, aims to ease this process, which begins before the birth of the baby. The information on the online form is confirmed after the baby's birth, and the birth certificate is generated.

Ms. Blackman welcomed the convenience of leaving the hospital with both her newborn and her baby’s birth certificate.

"So this was actually a very great initiative, and to actually have your baby and your birth certificate going home together, top-notch."

Minister of Land and Legal Affairs Saddam Hosein said the initiative aims to streamline and improve the process of registering newborns.

"So this really didn't cost us anything because we had already the IT infrastructure in place. There is one provider that we have used from time immemorial to run the civil registry, so it's really just updating the systems. The reason why we chose South West is because, within all of the other RHAs, this is the most modernised RHA in terms of IT. So therefore it was very easy for us to plug our system into their system in order to get this working."

Minister of Health Dr. Lackram Bodoe explained that this pilot project took six months to get up and running, with the intention of expanding to other Regional Health Authorities during this year.

"At the end of the day, convenience and accuracy would be important in terms of saving time. I think what is important to understand is that, you know, you have been here this morning witnessing mothers having just given birth and, of course, this is a very critical time for them. So, the convenience of having this done at the bedside rather than having to go out and spend time to do that, you know, in an office. So, that itself is an important factor."

Dr. Bodoe noted that this initiative forms part of a wider digitalisation effort throughout the health sector.

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As Trinidad and Tobago rang in the New Year on Thursday, Carla Blackman and Issac Peters ushered in 2026 with their own special celebration: the birth of the country’s first baby of the year, a son named Brandon.

Born at 12:10am on January 1st at the San Fernando General Hospital, baby Brandon brought joy to his parents and marked a happy start to the year for the nation.

On New Year's Day, the hospital was buzzing with activity as the Minister of Health Dr. Lackram Bodoe, Minister in the Ministry of Health Dr. Rishad Seecharan, and Minister of Land and Legal Affairs and Minister in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Saddam Hosein, visited the mothers and mothers-to-be present in the ward.

Dr. Bodoe said, "We have already had 12 births in the country. We have had three at the SWRHA, one at the NCRHA, four at the NWRHA, two at the ERHA, and two in Tobago. So that gives us 12 in all. I want to take the opportunity to congratulate all those mothers and, of course, to wish each and every one, citizens of Trinidad and Tobago, on behalf of myself and the Minister in the Ministry, a happy and prosperous 2026."

Ms. Blackman, a mother of three, praised her medical team, noting that she felt well taken care of.

"I'm not being biased, but I was treated very nicely. And I didn't even mention I was staff until someone saw me and was like, 'You're not working in the laundry?' And then I was like, 'They didn't tell me I was staff,' but I did it because I didn't want any special treatment. I wanted to see how the sector actually treats people. And the first time actually in San Fernando. My first two children was in Port of Spain General. And then I ended up having a C-section, which was kind of difficult, but they were perfect. I felt, all the scared, I was scared, I felt good."

Mr. Peters said he always knew what he wanted to name his son.

"I gave him Brandon, but that's a name that I always liked, from my first child. My first child is a daughter, and I always wanted a boy. So I get the boy now so I said Brandon it is."

Not only was Baby Brandon the first baby to be born in T&T for 2026, but he was also the first to be registered through the Bedside Birth Registration Pilot Programme.

The proud parents were given a hamper filled with baby items on behalf of the South West Regional Health Authority.

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TTT News got a front-row seat as New York rang in 2026 in Times Square, launching nationwide celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary.

Bridgett Leslie reports from Times Square.

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An Old Year's Day tradition, the Old Clothes Football Match at the Eddie Hart Ground, is in its 72nd year in Tacarigua and looks set to continue, judging by the turnout, with a new generation of players gracing the field.

Former Secretary of the Eddie Hart League, Joel Warrick, and player Colin Wilshire told us more.

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Locally bred horses took the feature races at the Arima Race Club's Boxing Day card.

Despite other challenges, this augurs well for the horse racing industry because the expertise and passion are evident.

Here's more from Wayne Cunningham.

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