This was a routine parliamentary sitting focused on ministerial statements rather than legislative debates. Ministers provided updates on major government initiatives including financial assistance reforms, education system changes, and the successful Agricultural Show after a three-year hiatus. The Minister of Education addressed concerns about the controversial education reform timeline and defended the need to move from middle schools to a primary-senior school structure. Opposition members asked questions about asset rules for seniors receiving financial assistance and stakeholder consultation processes.
Financial assistance reform to strengthen social protections for BermudiansEducation system reform moving from 3-tier to 2-tier structure2023 Agricultural Exhibition results and planning for 2024Electric bus fleet expansion and environmental achievementsRoyal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard operational updates
Bills & Motions
Government Fees Amendment (No. 2) Regulations 2023 - tabled for consideration
Rules of the Supreme Court Amendment Rules 2023 - tabled for consideration
Financial Assistance Reform Policy Paper - tabled for information
Notable Moments
Minister of Education acknowledged that recent stakeholder meetings "could have been conducted differently" and apologized for the approach to education reform consultations
Agricultural Exhibition generated nearly $80,000 in revenue with over 10,000 tickets sold despite rain on the final day
Bermuda won Best E-Mobility Project Award at Caribbean Renewable Energy Forum for electric bus fleet progress
Debate Transcript
398 speeches from 18 speakers
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning, M embers. The Acting Clerk will lead us in prayer. PRAYERS [ Prayers read by Mr. Clark W. Somner, Acting Clerk ]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Acting Clerk . Good morning, Members . The House is now in session. CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES [Minutes of 24 March 202 3]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers , the Minutes of the 24th of March have been circulated. Are there any amendments required? There are none. The Minutes will be confirmed as printed. [ Minutes of 24 March 202 3 confirmed] MESSAGES FROM THE GOVERNOR
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE SPEAKER OR MEMBER PRESIDING APOLOGIES
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe have been informed that the following Members will be absent: the Premier, who is in the UK for the coronation, t he Opposition Whip [Mr. Jarion Richardson] , MP De Silva , and MP Scott Simmons . They have all indicated their absence today. MESSAGES FROM THE SENATE
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. PAPERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS TO THE HOUSE
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are three papers this morning to be tabled. The first is in the name of the Premier. But I think, Minister Furbert, you are doing it on his behalf? Yes. GOVERNMENT FEES AMENDMENT (NO. 2) REGULATIONS 2023 Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, with the Governor’s recommendation and in …
There are three papers this morning to be tabled. The first is in the name of the Premier. But I think, Minister Furbert, you are doing it on his behalf? Yes. GOVERNMENT FEES AMENDMENT (NO. 2) REGULATIONS 2023 Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, with the Governor’s recommendation and in accordance with section 36(3) of the Bermuda Constitution, I have the honour to attach and submit for the consideration of the Honour-able House of Assembly the Government Fees Amend-ment (No. 2) Regulations 2023, proposed to be made by the Minister of Finance in exercise of the power conferred by section 2 of the Government Fees Act 1965.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. The next is in the name of the Attorney General. Deputy Premier, I think you are introducing that one for us? Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Good morning to you, Members of the Legislature and the listening public.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning. RULES OF THE SUPREME COURT AMENDMENT RULES 2023 Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, with the Governor’s recommendation and in accordance with section 36(3) of the Bermuda Constitution, I have the honour to attach and submit for the consideration of the Honour-able House of Assembly the Rules of …
Good morning. RULES OF THE SUPREME COURT AMENDMENT RULES 2023 Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, with the Governor’s recommendation and in accordance with section 36(3) of the Bermuda Constitution, I have the honour to attach and submit for the consideration of the Honour-able House of Assembly the Rules of the Supreme Court Amendment Rules 2023 in exercise of the power conferred by section 62 of the Supreme Court Act 1905. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy Premier. The next is in the name of the Minister of Labour. But I understand we have got a housekeeping matter to resolve at the moment? [ Inaudible interjection]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe will come back to you once the matter is resolved, okay? Members, we are going to seek your indulgence in a minute to just come back for the tabling of 1282 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report Bermuda House of Assembly that paper. So, we will just move on, …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. STATEMENTS BY MINISTERS AND JUNIOR MINISTERS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, this morning we have six Statements. The first is in the name of the Minister of Economy and Labour. Minister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Good morning, Mr. Speaker. The President: Good morni ng. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE REFORM — STRENGTHENING SOCIAL PROTECTIONS FOR BERMUDIANS Hon. Jason Hayward: In the 2022 Speech from …
Members, this morning we have six Statements. The first is in the name of the Minister of Economy and Labour. Minister.
Hon. Jason Hayward: Good morning, Mr. Speaker. The President: Good morni ng.
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE REFORM — STRENGTHENING SOCIAL PROTECTIONS FOR BERMUDIANS
Hon. Jason Hayward: In the 2022 Speech from the Throne the Government committed to expanding the Child Day Care Allowance programme and continuing work to reform Financial Assistance. Today I am pleased to table in this Honourable House the Financial Assistance Ref orm Policy Paper which maps out the framework to strengthen the social protections for Bermudians. The changes will assist Bermudians with maintaining a dignified standard of living. Mr. Speaker, the recent pandemic pl aced undue hardships on many families in Bermuda, and as a result the Ministry of Economy and Labour, responsible for the Department of Financial Assistance, is making progress in reforming the current programmes to provide additional social and economic s upport to help families to rebuild and regain confidence, allowing them to be productive contributors in the community. Mr. Speaker, the programmes under the operational guidance of the Financial Assistance Act 2001 and the Child Day Care Allowance Act 2008, together with the Regulations, offer financial assistance to eligible Bermudians who cannot meet the cost of their basic living requirements or expenses, resulting in the need for partial or full financial awards. Mr. Speaker, the Financial Assistance reform strategy aims to chart a new course by making Financial Assistance a more lucid, effective and efficient system that places emphasis on transforming and empow-ering those who have been determined to have a need. In order to ensure that Bermudian f amilies are supported and are less burdened, this Ministry proposes to make a number of changes to the current system, with the ultimate goal of increasing access to current social protections and the overall coverage of benefits. Enhancements will include, but are not limited to : • expanding eligibility; • allowing recipients to retain partial income from work; • improving support to assist Bermudian children with greater access to child day care and child maintenance; • adding new funding schemes to allow recipients to receive gifts; and • creating short -term funding for sudden hardships. Mr. Speaker, a review of th e asset rules to enhance the ability of individuals and families to become financially stable is also being considered in the proposed reform initiatives. An adjustment to asset limits will allow Bermudians to save and improve their finan-cial standing to prepare for the day that they can transition off of the system. Mr. Speaker, further changes will include amendments to the Schedule of Allowable Expenses in order to reflect current economic market costs. Families will have greater support to meet their monthly obligations following the implementation of the se changes . Mr. Speaker, in addition, the seven- year term for abled- bodied persons to be on the system will be altered. An amendment to the legislation will provide persons who have reached their sev en-year term with a standard benefit award that will include food allowance, health insurance and a room rate. Mr. Speaker, the proposed reform initiatives will be made in this legislative session to promote enhanced protections to individuals and famili es in need and to provide assurances that the Government is committed to reali sing the promises made to strengthen social protections for Bermudians. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is i n the name of the Minister of Works. Minister.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning. THE 2023 AGRICULTURAL EXHIBITION
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchMr. Speaker and honourable colleagues, last week (April the 27 th through the 29th) the Department of Parks held the 2023 Agricultural Exhibition, more commonly known as the “Ag Show.” It has been three years since the last in- person show and trust me when I say it was not …
Mr. Speaker and honourable colleagues, last week (April the 27 th through the 29th) the Department of Parks held the 2023 Agricultural Exhibition, more commonly known as the “Ag Show.” It has been three years since the last in- person show and trust me when I say it was not an easy undertaking to revive this sacred event. Mr. Speaker, I am sure that all of us here in this Honourable House today have been involved in family
Bermuda House of As sembly ev ent planning in some shape or form and can appreciate the amount of time and dedication required to properly organise. Sorting out the food, drinks, music, layout, parking, entertainment, bathrooms, the seating (because cousin Ethel cannot sit next to Aunt Mary), planning could take two weeks or more. Now, imagine taking this concept and increasing it to include over 10,000 strangers and only 12 weeks preparation time. Realistically, as the Minister with responsibility, I am delighted to say the Department of Parks pulled this tremendous feat off. Mr. Speaker after multiple consultative sessions with the A g Show Ltd . committee, who have been managing the Ag Show since 2016, in late January of this year full responsibility for the 2023 Ag Show was returned to the Department of Parks. While ideally the department would have preferred more time to take over responsibility for this iconic event, they nevertheless accepted the challenge and moved forward expeditiously to meet the constrained timeline. Mr. Speaker, the Acting Director of Parks at the time, Mr. Remi Subair (who actually in his substantive role is the Principal Electrical Engineer for the Ministry) , swiftly formed a committee to organise the Ag Show consisting of Ms. Georgette Caines, Ms. Betty Co nyers, Ms. Susan Conyers, Ms. Clare Russell, Ms. Carlita Lodge, Ms. Esther Lopes, Mr. Ronnie Lopes, Ms. McKeisha Smith, Ms. Roseann Michelson, Mr. Steven Antonition, Mr. Derrick Seymour and Mr. Paul Furtado. Together with his team, the Acting Director held numerous meetings and planning sessions with stakeholders. Mr. Speaker to support even under these financially tumultuous times, the Ministry of Public Works made available $100,000 to ensure this time- honoured tradition became a reality after several years. Let me advise fellow Members that this event was unbudgeted in the last fiscal year (2022/23) because up until January 2023 it was the Ministry’s understanding that the previous organisers would continue on in their full capacity. Nonetheless , Mr. Speaker , with the limited funding and time (again, less than 12 weeks) available, the Acting Director and company were able to secure a multitude of vendors for food and beverages ; create safety plans; organise parking; liaise with s chools and our local art industry for traditional competitions; establish a marketing and promotion strategy; organise staffing; organise the horse show; and last but certainly not least , find farmers with pigs . . . b ecause everyone loves the pigs. Just to put this into perspective, Mr. Speaker, the average time to organise the previous physical Ag Shows w as about 10 months. So, Mr. Speaker, to say the Acting Director and team were fervently running around to work above and beyond to make sure this event occurs is an understatement to say the least. Credit must be given when due, and I am sure the entire House will associate themselves with myself in stating Thank you to all in-volved in organising. And I would especially like to mention the former Acting Director , Mr. Remi Subair ; Ms. Kelly Sousa ; Mr. Roger Parris ; Ms. Georgette Caines ; Mr. Craig Burt ; Ms. Jo Anne Smith ; guest judges and the entire Parks Department staff (including those in the Skills Development Programme) for the ir hard work, commitment, dedication and sleepless hours that they contributed to put together the 2023 Ag Show. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to take the time out to thank the vendors and sponsors for coming out , all of whom contributed in varying degrees to the suc-cess of this event. Thank you to all. Mr. Speaker, throughout the three- day festivity , over 10,000 tickets were sold for the 2023 Ag Show. This number would have been greater had there not have been the heavy downpour of rain on the third and final day of the Exhibition. Now, Mr. Speaker, as we are moving into the pre-planning stages for the 2024 Ag Show, the Ministry has budgeted $150,000 for the 2023/24 fiscal year to continue our returned hosting duties. As the Department of Parks currently has more time to plan and pre-pare, the general public can expect an improved and more refined experience with the 2024 Ag Show. Thank you again to all those connected in organising this spectacle while acknowledging our local time-honoured traditions. Thank you, Mr. Sp eaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of Education. Minister. EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And good morning, colleagues, and good morning, listening audience. Mr . Speaker, I rise today to provide this House …
Thank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of Education. Minister. EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And good morning, colleagues, and good morning, listening audience. Mr . Speaker, I rise today to provide this House and the listening public with an update on education reform. I want to take this time to remind Honourable Members that education reform is critical to our country’s success and provides our students with the tools necessary to thrive and succeed in their own country. We can only progress education reform with the collaboration of our stakeholders such as aided schools , educators, parents, students, community partners, and businesses . Over the last three weeks the Education Reform Team, consisting of the Ministry and Department of Education and the Education Reform Unit [ERU ], has conducted 40 stakeholder meetings to obtain feedback on the proposed enactment of the t ransition from a 3- tier to a 2- tier system. It may surprise some, but I am encouraged that some of these meetings that have been held with school communities over the past few weeks have been filled with passion and emotion. We acknowledge 1284 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly that the content we have discussed impacts every student and their family in Bermuda differently. We also recognise that our engagement meetings could have been conducted differently to fully achieve the desired outcome, and that is to present the transition plan, accept feedback that would be used to guide the plan’s finalisation and then re- engage stakeholders to discuss again. For this we wholeheartedly apologi se, and to everyone who came out or has held subsequent discussions focused on the future of Bermuda’s children and young people, we thank you. The feedback that we have received has been used to help shape this Ministerial Statement today. After an initial analysis of the nearly 700 responses and questions we received via the online link and in person, it is clear that we need to communicate more broadly about the following: •not just why reforming public education in Bermuda is critical, but why now and what might happen if we do not; •what progress we have made thus far; •where we are up to now in that process; •what is coming next; and •how every Bermudian can get involved. Mr. Speaker, as you and my honourable colleagues are aware, although many support the general vision of education reform in Bermuda, three questions are often posed whenever the topic of education reform is raised: 1.Why are we doing this? 2.Why now, when our young people have suffered so much through CO VID-19? and 3.Why can’t we leave the system as it is?Mr. Speaker, Why are we doing this? is relatively easy to answer. While we do see some students excel, the system we currently have in place does not serve all of our children well. Less than 50 per cent of our children and young people achieve the expected standard at various points along their school journey as it exists today. The public education outcomes are not providing sufficient ly qualified candidates for employment in industry. In fact, at a recent meeting with busi-ness partners, it was mentioned that the state of our public education system could play a role in whether companies ar e set ting up in Bermuda or not. I am not dismissing the need for foundational knowledge . But this type of education needs to be improved for our young people to succeed in learning and life. And even if they were achieving better results than this, it would be against a set of metrics that had been built for the past. Many of the world’s highest -performing systems, some small island nations like ours, began this journey almost two decades ago. An example of this is Singapore. In 1997 education began to evolve from the colonial system of the past to a system that fulfils both economic needs and supports students ’ holistic development, including academic achievement, character formation, societal participation and self -actualisation. In short, it is of cri tical importance to reform public education in Bermuda. Mr. Speaker, Why are we doing this now, particularly on the back of the COVID -19 pandemic? The current education system faces challenges that must be addressed urgently to ensure a better future for Bermuda’s students. Many jurisdictions have used the COVID -19 pandemic as the springboard to shift seemingly previously described impossible- to-solve problems in their education systems. They did not attempt to snap back to how things were; they learnt, as we did, about new learning models, new forms of relationships with parents and how to better leverage technology just as we have. For us in Bermuda, reform has been promised and attempted many times before, but it still has not met the desired objectives for all students. This is one of the contributing factor s to our system being a highly inequitable one. Delaying the reform process could further hinder progress in addressing the education system’s urgent challenges and negatively affect our students’ futures and the future of Bermuda’s society and economy. Getting to this point has been a long and intricate process, albeit challenging. As many people say, reform is moving too fast , just as many [others] are frustrated with how long this is taking us. In short, our job is to strike a balance between the pace of change that can be managed and not delaying the potential benefit for children, their families and the community. Mr. Speaker, this brings me to the third question: What would happen if we do not reform public education? This question weighs heavily on my mind as well as the mind of this PLP Government. Today’s jobs are, by and large, different from those of a generation or even a decade ago. Therefore, the qualifications, credentials and experiences needed to secure the se familiar jobs have also changed. As a result, there is an emerging recognition in education policy and practice that schools can and should better equip students with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in a rap-idly changing world. Our environmental and resource pressures are intensifying. And in Bermuda we can see how the workforce is changing, fuel led by new technologies and social media and accelerated by the impacts of the COVID -19 pandemic. And as most of us know and acknowledge, our society still has deep and historical divisions. Bermuda needs an inclusive and culturally responsive public ed-ucation system that includes restorative learning that values Bermuda’s past, recognises current challenges and opportuni ties, and prepares learners to thrive and lead in Bermuda’s future. If we do not reform public education, we run the risk of condemning even more young people to increased unemployment or to seek opportunities off of the Island, increasing inequalities along the lines of the existing racial divide , and a rise in antisocial behaviour and social tension hindering the economic development and success of our island
Bermuda House of Ass embly home . In short, our society and economy depend on education reform . Mr. Speaker, I want to briefly recap the process that we have been engaged in to date and reassure the House and the listening public that education reform has not been rushed. I do not say this in a defensive mode or tone, but in acknowledgement that there are some members of our community, including those within these Honourable Chambers and the other place, whom we have yet to reach when discussing all that involves the education reform process. The past few weeks have given us a genuine recognition that we can and will have to do a better job at keeping all stakeholders up to date on the journey we have been on. Mr. Speaker, in 2017, Plan 2022 was developed following community conversations and the contributions of thousands of Bermudians. The public called for t his work. [The year] 2019 saw the development of a scope of work for education reform using Plan 2022. The scope of work was shared with stakeholders across the I sland to see if it was appropriately responding to the community calls. In 2020 the parish pri mary school consultation began with 131 submissions representing over 1, 000 consultees. The final report was published in July 2021. In 2021 the current Education Authority Working Group began the research work to establish an Education Authority. In October 2021 the History and Legacy Working Group was established and submitted its report in 2022 outlining its recommendations for estab-lishing a statutory History and Legacy Committee. In 2021 engagement on the possible Signatures took place with over 845 participants across 20- plus sessions completed, and teams of people began working on curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment and all other inside- the-building and classroom practices that were necessary. In 2021 School Transformation Teams were explicitly formed and focused on the features and learning experiences for S- 1 of the Signature Learning Programmes at CedarBridge Academy and The Berkeley Institute. In 2022 we expanded with school transformation teams focused on the features and learning experiences for Signature Schooling and P1 and P7 at the first two parish primary schools in Hamilton and Warwick Parishes. This school year, 2022/ 23, our School Transformation Teams have continued; system policy working groups have been expanded; and a new governance, leadership and delivery structure has been put in place. Since 2022 we have hosted weekly public engagement shows through the Education Matters radio show and the Education Connection online show. In May 2023 we are actively recruiting educators, par-ents, community, and business partners to expand the School Transformation Teams even further. The next wave of School Transformation Teams will focus on developing the following: •the next two Signature Senior Schools will offer Tourism a nd Hospitality with Education Services at the Sandys Secondary Middle Schoolsite; Climate, Environment and Resources and Community and Social Investment at theClearwater Middle School s ite; •Parish Primary School Transformation Teams are also needed for t he Devonshire, Smith’s , Pembroke and Paget Parishes; and t he Alternate Learning School. And work will continue through ongoing School Transformation Teams at the Warwick and Hamilton Parish Primary Schools ; and Cedar Bridge Academy and The Berkeley Institute . Leading up to the engagement sessions held over the last three weeks, we have held approximately 219 engagement sessions directly related to education reform. This includes the following : •108 Community Conversations held to develop Plan 2022 ; •19 sessions to socialise the scope of works for reforming public education ; •20 public sessions focused on the introduction of public parish primary schools; •20 public sessions focused on the identification of the appropriate Signatures ; •60 pop- up sessions led by the School Transformation Teams in the community at places like Dockyard, Crawl [Hill Esso Tigermarket] gas station, mosques and churches , City Hall and Warwick Pharmacy, to name a few, to test the features of parish primary schools and Signature Schools with the public; and •10 Parish Council and PTSA sessions (which were paused to roll out the most recent communications and will pick back up again in th e c oming months ). Mr. Speaker, that brings us to our work at the moment. As I stated in my opening remarks, the past few weeks have seen us engage in 40 meetings to ob-tain feedback and responses to the transition plan from a 3-tier to a 2- tier system. The plan has been shared with internal stakeholders and lays out the timeline for the following: •t he opening of all parish primary schools ; •the opening of all Signature Schools; and •the phasing out of middle schools . Many have asked us why we chose this moment to have that specific conversation. While much work has been underway on what happens inside of the buildings of the schools in transition, the moment the first two parish primary schools in the Hamilton and Warwick Parishes begin to be phased in ( which will start this September 2023) is the moment we have to start phasing out middle school s. We must look at the zone- by-zone implications for transitioning children from non- continuing primary school sites. At this point, our Signature Schools must be ready to accept them 1286 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly into five years of senior schooling . This is also true when our young people finish at Parish Primary School in P8. While we acknowledge that the transition plan from a 3- tier to a 2 -tier system is just one component of the plan to reform public education, it is a critical one. The plan identifies the student movement that is required to •phase out all middle schools ; •operationalise all 10 parish primary schools , eac h with three preschool streams and tw o P1–P 8 streams; and •open all Senior Signature Schools with each having five years of senior schooling, and th e Exceptionalities Signature School and the Alternative Education Signature School. We acknowledge that these are difficult conversations, and this kind of change is unset tling. The passion, care and concern for Bermuda’s children and young people are abundantly clear. We must recognise the declining birth rate and public school enrolment (currently standing at 4,003 students in 2023 compared to 7,715 students in 1988) and that human and fiscal resources are presently spread inequitably across 18 primary schools. Although it is uncomfortable, we must accept that to realise the outcomes our children and young people need and deserve, we must reduce the number of schools. Mr. Speaker, we acknowledge that all stakeholders need more information to grow confidence in the plan and the approach for education reform . To this end, we will [do the following ]: •continue to meet with stakeholder groups most affected by the change and community groups that are forming in response to education reform plans ; •follow up in writing with all internal stakeholders so that they have copies of the information shared in the initial sessions ; •publish a series of frequently asked questionsfor all st akeholders ; •begin the process of scheduling the next roundof engagements with each school community ; •understand that unique circumstances depend on the parish being discussed and address each parish community considering these unique circumstances ; and •increase our presence in the media and at community events. This will begin this comin g Mond ay where we encourage those attending the Children’s Reading Festival to come and find our tent at Victoria Park.As I stated in my opening remarks, we can only progress education reform with the collaboration of our stakeholders, so we hope to actively engage as many people as possible in the change process. Mr. Speaker, education reform is complex and at times disruptive work. It is not glamorous work, and it takes a long time to see the fruits of the labour. However, I want to thank those in the background and foreground working hard to make this happen. I also want to thank the teachers and supporters who have reached out over the past few weeks to offer myself and the team encouragement for the work being undertaken. We still have a ways to go, but the commitment remains as it did when the PLP committed in 2017 to reform public education and provide our country with a world -class 21 st century public education s ystem. When our first Signature school students graduate in 2026, they will leave our system equipped for the challenges they will face. They will not just leave with a Bermuda High School Diploma. They will leave with real -life experiences, internationally recognised certifications, micro -credentials and critical -thinking skills that will allow them to take their rightful place as valued and highly sought -after people in their country — Bermudians who are educated to lead personally and professionally, compete locally and contribute globally. That, Mr. Speaker, is the intent I believe all of my hon-ourable colleagues want, and this Government will do everything necessary to achieve it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of Transport. Minister. CELEBRATION OF THE ELECTRIFICATION OF THE PUBLIC BUS FLEET Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is with great pleasure and pride that I announce the distinct achievement of …
Thank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of Transport. Minister. CELEBRATION OF THE ELECTRIFICATION OF THE PUBLIC BUS FLEET Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It is with great pleasure and pride that I announce the distinct achievement of the Department of Public Transportation team who won the Best E -Mobility Project Award at the Caribbean Renewable Energy Forum (CREF) for the progress of the electrification of the public bus fleet. This is a significant accomplishment for the department and Bermuda, and a testament to our commitment toward a more sustainable fu-ture. The year 2023 marks the fifth year that the industry awards were presented at the CREF. I am gl ad that the Deputy Premier was able to pick up the award for us here in Bermuda. Bermuda stood tall amongst the industry elite in the Caribbean with awards issued in 10 categories. It is an honour to be recognised as a leader in the Caribbean energy sector . New Energy, the host of the CREF, considers those who have won, leaders “who are making a lasting impact on the development of resilient and renewable energy systems in the region. Many award winners are first -movers, carving a path for project development in the region.” Mr. Speaker, the E -Mobility Project Award presented on April 27, 2023, recognises the most innova-tive and sustainable project in the Caribbean region
Bermuda House of Ass embly t hat promotes the use of electric vehicles and their associated charging infrastructure. The department’s emobility initiative was selected from a pool of highly competitive projects, and we are honoured to be recog-nised as a leader in this field. This award is a recogni-tion of our collective efforts toward a more sustainable future, and we will continue to work tirelessly toward achieving our goals. Mr. Speaker, we salute the purchase and the one-year anniversary of the operation of electric buses in Bermuda on April 4, 2022. I am delighted to report the level of momentum we have gained in the past year toward a greener, cleaner and more sustainable trans-portation system. The introduction of the electric buses has had a significant impact on Bermuda both environ-mentally and economically. These buses have reduced our carbon footprint, helped improve air quality and have also provided a more comfortable and quieter mode of transportation for the people of Bermuda and our visitors. One of the most significant benefits of these electric buses is their contribution toward reducing our carbon footprint (as I mentioned before). Our commitment to sustainability is reflected in the reduction of CO2 emissions of 440 tons in the past year alone. This is a remarkable achievement, and we are proud to have taken this important step toward a more sustainable fu-ture. Moreover, the introduction of the electric buses has had a positive financial impact. By investing in electric buses over diesel, we have saved $222,000 per bus. Additionally, we have reduced our dependency on fossil fuels, saving $176,000. Mr. Speaker, the feedback from the people of Bermuda has been overwhelmingly positive. The elec-tric buses are more comfortable and quieter and have improved the overall public transportation experience. We are proud to provide a more sustainable, efficient and convenient mode of transportation for the public. We will continue to work toward expanding and improv-ing our public transportation system, which of course is signified by the next set of 40 electric buses arriving in groups of 10 from July 2023. In conclusion, I would like to reiterate my sincere gratitude to everyone who has made it possible for Bermuda to achieve such a significant milestone of successfully progressing toward the full electrification of the public bus fleet . Most importantly, I would like to thank the Department of Public Transportation, the De-partment of Energy, our partners RMI and the public of Bermuda. We have come a long way in the past year, and we are committed to continuing our efforts toward a greener and more sustainable Bermuda. We encourage everyone to embrace these changes and support our collective vision for a cleaner and more sustainable future. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of National Security. Minister. ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good morning. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to provide an update on the strengthening of …
Thank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of National Security. Minister. ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good morning. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to provide an update on the strengthening of the Royal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members will know the Royal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard launched in February 2020 as a marine force for the protection and security of Bermuda’s inshore waters, including 24- hour search and rescue capability. Mr. Speaker, while maritime security is a cross - government activity, the Royal Bermuda Regiment continues to progress the operational capability via training, international assurance assessments, self -sustaining maintenance practices and routine operations. The Royal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard is currently deeply engaged in building capacity within the unit. Captain Jason Harrell was promoted to the role of Second in Command effective April 1, 2023. The filling of this role reduces the risk of having a single point of failure in respect of leadership, command and access to institutional knowledge. Mr. Speaker, four additional posts of Boatswain’s Mate will be filled by June the 5 th, and a further 13 part -time officers will be integrated into the Operational Support Diving section, three of whom are ad-vanced open water divers. Notably, of the 13 part -time officers, 7 are Bermuda Police Officers, evidencing the continued multi -agency partnership required for a strong and effective Coast Guard unit. Mr. Speaker, the Royal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard continues to evolve its engagement with the Blue Shield and has placed meaningful effort into expanding its operational footprint outward within the EEZ. To this end there is a continued focus on training and acquisition of modern equipment. Specifically, the team recently completed online training for UK Over-seas Territory staff under the Blue Belt and Blue Belt Ocean Shield programmes. This fisheries enforcement training was accessed through the UK Marine Management Organisation’s Learning Management System. Further, Mr. Speaker, as with the land element of the Royal Bermuda Regiment, the Coast Guard engages in monthly training exercises, often with mem-bers of the international maritime community. Also, [our] Coast Guard engages in daily briefings on the Bermuda EEZ fishing vessel situational awareness with the United States Coast Guard 5 th District and the Marine Management Organisation. Mr. Speaker, officers continue to work toward certifications via participation in Royal Yachting Asso-ciation courses. Between 2022 and 2023, officers successfully completed Royal Yachting Association 1288 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly courses at both the individual and advanced instructor levels. In January, operation support divers undertook training in special response dive physiology and search techniques, with divers becoming Rescue Diver certi-fied. Mr. Speaker, our aim is to build a first -class Coast Guard for the benefit of Bermuda, hence the significant focus on training. Over the past year, training has been robust and far reaching. Supplemental train-ing events and activities during the period include [the following]: 1.attendance at the Maritime Security Conference in Miami; 2.St. John’s Health Care Provider re- certification; 3. Multi -Agency Gold Incident Commander Course (or Magic for short); 4.oil spill training; 5.deep dive wreck penetration; 6.underwater navigation, body bag pr ocedures, search and recovery; and 7.body camera training. Mr. Speaker, the Coast Guard is actively enhancing capability via the acquisition and upgrading of specialised tools and equipment. In March, body camera commissioning was completed and the standard operating procedures are currently being documented and finalised. Further, an automated identification sys-tem was acquired, and testing is in progress. Mr. Speaker, a vessel management system is in the process of being installed on the Coast Guard vessels for trial. The vessel management system provides for au-tomated protocols to support the management and maintenance of the unit’s vessels. The Royal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard lends daily support in the enforcement of maritime law. The unit conducts on- vessel inspections on safety equipment. It monitors vessel registration, speed limits in no wake zones and impaired driving, and responds to emergencies on the water. The unit also undertakes regular day and night patrols of key fishing grounds and popul ar mooring locations as well as provides support for events on the water. Finally, Mr. Speaker, the Royal Bermuda Regiment Coast Guard continues to work closely with and align with sister agencies to support the reduction of illicit activity via our waters . Mr. Speaker, warmer weather brings increased maritime activity. Bermuda can be assured that our Coast Guard is well prepared and is growing in capacity and capability with a focus on standards, operations and a well -trained cadre of officers to monitor and protect our maritime environment and ensure the safety of all as we enjoy our summer season on, in and around Bermuda’s beautiful waters. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is that of the Minister for Tourism and Cabinet Office. Minister. KING CHARLES III CORONATION STAMP RELEASE Hon. Vance Campbell: Good morning and thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise briefly to remind this Honourable House that tomorrow is the …
Thank you, Minister. Members, the next Statement this morning is that of the Minister for Tourism and Cabinet Office. Minister. KING CHARLES III CORONATION STAMP RELEASE Hon. Vance Campbell: Good morning and thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise briefly to remind this Honourable House that tomorrow is the much- anticip ated coronation of King Charles III , an event that is expected to attract an audience in the hundreds of millions. Mr. S peaker, the new British monarch was born Charles Philip Arthur George Mountbatten- Windsor in Buckingham Palace in 1948, the eldest son of the late Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip, the Duke of Edinburgh. Mr. Speaker, Prince Charles was nine years old when he was given the title Prince of Wales. He is now 74 and will be formally crowned on May 6, 2023, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, 2022. Mr. Speaker, in ascending to the throne on the passing of his mother, Charles did not change his name as was previously speculated. He will be known as King Charles III. Mr. Speaker, although there are divergent views on the British Monarchy both here and around the world, as a British Dependent Territory, this first cor-onation in nearly 70 years is a historic and significant event for Bermuda. Irrespective of opinions, this coro-nation will usher in a new reign that is likely to be very different from that of Queen Elizabeth II. Mr. Speaker, to commemorate this rare occasion, the Bermuda Post Office will be issuing a Corona-tion stamp and first -day cover later this month. The stamp will be entitled The Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III. Mr. Speaker, the post office is produc-ing 1,000 first -day covers and expects sales to be brisk and eventually to sell out, with stamp collectors and fans of the royal family eagerly awaiting its release. Mr. Speaker, the first -day cover will be post -marked May 6, 2023, at issue to enshrine this important date in the his-tory of the Monarchy and the United Kingdom. Mr. Speaker, the post office is to be commended for having the foresight to issue a $35 King Charles III Express Stamp in March 2023. In so doing, we were the first country in the entire Commonwealth to issue a high- value King Charles III s tamp. Mr. Speaker, His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty the Queen Consort Camilla should be cel-ebrated at this time, and our releasing this stamp is a fitting and proper way to do so. This stamp release will also memorialise the event for future generations of Bermudians. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Members, this brings us to a conclusion of the Statements this morning. Before we move on to the next item on the Order Paper, I am going to ask your indulgence as I had indicated earlier so that Minister Hayward can table the Bermuda House of As …
Thank you, Minister. Members, this brings us to a conclusion of the Statements this morning. Before we move on to the next item on the Order Paper, I am going to ask your indulgence as I had indicated earlier so that Minister Hayward can table the
Bermuda House of As sembly paper that he was to table under Papers and Other Communications to the House that we needed to get the housework done earlier. I think it is all sorted out at this time. Minister. PAPERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS TO THE HOUSE [ Recommitted] MINISTRY OF ECONOMY AND LABOUR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE REFORM INITIATIVES 2023 — STRENGTHENING SOCIAL PROTECTIONS FOR BERMUDIANS Hon. Jason Hayward: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to attach and submit for the information of the Honourable House of Assembly the Ministry of Economy and Labour Finan-cial Assistance Reform Initiatives 2023—Strengthening Social Protections for Bermudians. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Thank you, Members, for your indulgence. REPORTS OF COMMITTEES
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. QUESTION PERIOD
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAs we look at the Question Period this morni ng, there are two written questions that were down for an oral response today. Those questions were for the Premier, who is off the Island attending tomor-row’s coronation. So those answers will be deferred un-til the next sitting. That moves us …
As we look at the Question Period this morni ng, there are two written questions that were down for an oral response today. Those questions were for the Premier, who is off the Island attending tomor-row’s coronation. So those answers will be deferred un-til the next sitting. That moves us on to questions from the Statements that were given today. And, Members, we do have questions for today’s Statements. And we will begin with the first Statement this morning from the Minister for Labour and Economy. Minister, MP Jackson would like to put a question to you. MP Jackson.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning. QUESTION 1: FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE REFORM - STRENGTHENING SOCIAL PROTECTIONS FOR BERMUDIANS
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes, I have a couple of questions for the Minister around the Financial Assistance Statement. And in particular I am interested in the re-form strategy that he mentioned. And I am wondering if this reform strategy is going to also include the number of people who are living with disabilities …
Yes, I have a couple of questions for the Minister around the Financial Assistance Statement. And in particular I am interested in the re-form strategy that he mentioned. And I am wondering if this reform strategy is going to also include the number of people who are living with disabilities who would like very much to be included in a more lucid, effective and efficient system, and whether they will be able to apply and be a part of this strategy as well?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister. Hon. Jason Hay ward: Mr. Speaker, the disabled community in Bermuda is the second- largest group of recipients on financial assistance. As a result, all of the benefit changes that pertain to pay -outs to individuals who are on financial assistance will also benefit those individuals.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Supplementary?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSecond question. Go right ahead. QUESTION 2: FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE REFORM - STRENGTHENING SOCIAL PROTECTIONS FOR BERMUDIANS
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonThank you, Mr. Speaker. My other question is around asset rules. So I would like to ask the Minister if these asset rules may include allowing seniors who are on financial assis-tance or who are in need of financial assistance to be able to hold on to their real estate …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My other question is around asset rules. So I would like to ask the Minister if these asset rules may include allowing seniors who are on financial assis-tance or who are in need of financial assistance to be able to hold on to their real estate assets, if they will be able to live in their own homes but be able to apply for financial assistance in order to survive?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, seniors who currently possess a home are currently eligible for financial assistance. And as a result, I think that the question does not accurately reflect what is taking place within the current system.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? SUPPLEM ENTARY
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes. I am wondering if the Minister might be able to tell us what is actually hap-pening in the system.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, that [question] is extremely broad. But I will attempt to answer it. 1290 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly What is actually happening in the system is —
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonMr. Speaker, a point of clarification? Hon. Jason Hayward: Can I answer the question?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerClarification. POINT OF CLARIFICATION
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonAs it pertains to seniors and their real estate assets and being able to have financial assistance.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. [The Honourable Member] tried to define it so it would not be so broad, Minister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, currently if a senior possesses a house which is an asset, that senior, if the individual is over the age of 65, is eligible for full benefits under Financial …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSecond supplementary or new question?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister, that was the conclusion of questions for you on that Statement; thank you. The next Statement this morning that has questions is [that of] the Minister of Works. Minister of Works, MP Cannonier would like to put questions to you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning. QUESTION 1: THE 2023 AGRICULTURE EXHIBITION
Mr. L. Craig CannonierMy question is . . . and I want to give accolades also to Remi Subair and his team for the Ag Show. I had the opportunity to attend and had a great time with my grandkids. Does the Minister have any idea of the total revenues that were attained …
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchMr. Speaker, I have no idea of the concession fees. That is not something that those entities would report. But I do have full details (so far, initially) on the attendance records and the money raised. So I will give the broad totals, and I am quite happy to share …
Mr. Speaker, I have no idea of the concession fees. That is not something that those entities would report. But I do have full details (so far, initially) on the attendance records and the money raised. So I will give the broad totals, and I am quite happy to share all of this information with the Shadow Minister if he so wishes. On the first day there were 889 adult tickets sold and 773 seniors or students, for a total of $8,890 from adults and $3,865 from children or seniors for a total of $12,755. On the second day there were 2,895 adult tickets sold and 2,258 children or seniors for a to-tal adult, Mr. Speaker, of $28,950 and for children and seniors $11,290, for a total of $40,240. And on the third day there were 1,969 adult tickets sold and 1,443 chil-dren or seniors for a total of $19,690 for adults and $7,215 for children or seniors. [ Desk thumping]
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchSo the estimated number of tickets sold over the three days is 10,227, and the estimated revenue was $79,900. I would just say that these figures are estimated because they are coming in from all over the place. But the actual finance of collecting tickets and producing these results was …
So the estimated number of tickets sold over the three days is 10,227, and the estimated revenue was $79,900. I would just say that these figures are estimated because they are coming in from all over the place. But the actual finance of collecting tickets and producing these results was done by the accountin g section in Ministry Headquarters led by the Comptroller of the Ministry, Ms. Joanne Smith. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary or new question?
Mr. L. Craig CannonierAnd congratulations on that. I mean, I think it is fantastic. It shows that Bermuda was looking for this to happen and to continue. So also con-gratulations on . . . the Minister mentioned he would be increasing the grant amount to about $150,000, I believe. So that is good. …
And congratulations on that. I mean, I think it is fantastic. It shows that Bermuda was looking for this to happen and to continue. So also con-gratulations on . . . the Minister mentioned he would be increasing the grant amount to about $150,000, I believe. So that is good. When I mentioned concessions (I would just like to clarify the question there) I meant we know that many of the companies that were there selling their goods, I know that we charge them a fee to be on the ground. I do not know what that is. But we certainly do get funds from that as well. Is he aware of . . .
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchMr. Speaker, I am not aware. This is the first I have heard that groups would have to pay. Usually they are charities. I will look into it, but I would be surprised if there was a fee.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Are there any further questions?
Mr. L. Craig CannonierThank you very much. Bermuda House of Ass embly The Speaker: No further. Minister, that concludes questions for you this morning. We now move on. Minister of Education, there are Members who have indicated that they have questions for you. MP Jackson, would you like to put your question to …
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes, Mr. Speaker, I will get started. I would like to ask the Minister, on page 4 — [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, you are drowning out the Member who wants to put her question. QUESTION 1: EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonThank you, Mr. Speaker. On page 4 about a third of the way down, the Minister had read out that in 2021, a total of “845 participants across 20- plus sessions completed . . . curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment and all the other inside- the-build ing . . . …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On page 4 about a third of the way down, the Minister had read out that in 2021, a total of “845 participants across 20- plus sessions completed . . . curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment and all the other inside- the-build ing . . . practices . . .” And I am wondering why the Minister has not shared that pub-licly, the results of that?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, first a clarification. The Statement actually says that engagement sessions on the possible Signatures took place. And then after that, teams began working on curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment and all of the inside-the-building and classroom practices. This information has been shared, …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, first a clarification. The Statement actually says that engagement sessions on the possible Signatures took place. And then after that, teams began working on curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment and all of the inside-the-building and classroom practices. This information has been shared, and it is shared at every opportunity that we get when we meet with members of the public. And we invite them to meetings, including the Opposition has been invited to meetings on that. But, Mr. Speaker, this has also been shared because that was the work that went into devel-oping how and when the Signature schools would open. The Signature schools opened in September 2021. But as I mentioned in the Statement, the work still continues to continue to develop the S2, the S3, the S4 and the S5. But this work was done to develop Sig-nature schools specifically, and the Signature schools have opened, and that work has been shared on numerous occasions.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPut your supplementary. SUPPLEMENTARY
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonI would like to ask the Minister as a supplementary, Why are the stakeholders such as the parents, teachers, students in some cases, being always invited in rather than the Government delivering the information out publicly?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, it is our aim to ensure that our stakeholders are able to give the ap-propriate comments on the plans as we go forward. And because the stakeholders are the ones who helped develop the plan moving forward. Once the stakeholders have had …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, it is our aim to ensure that our stakeholders are able to give the ap-propriate comments on the plans as we go forward. And because the stakeholders are the ones who helped develop the plan moving forward. Once the stakeholders have had an ability to say what it is they would like and give their feedback and we have had adequate consultation with them, we then make public statements to the general public on what happened in those meetings and what direction we are moving in.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary or new question?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. QUESTION 2: EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonFurther down on page 4 the Minister had mentioned that in May 2023 there is going to be active recruitment of educators, parents, commu-nity, et cetera, in order to introduce and discuss the next wave of the School Transformation Teams that are going to be focusing on the next two …
Further down on page 4 the Minister had mentioned that in May 2023 there is going to be active recruitment of educators, parents, commu-nity, et cetera, in order to introduce and discuss the next wave of the School Transformation Teams that are going to be focusing on the next two Signature schools which are on tourism and hospitality in the West End at Sandys Secondary; and Climate, Environment and Re-sources in the East End. So my question to the Minister is, In making an announcement like that, how does he propose getting around the pushback that any child who may live in the East End is going to have to travel all the way to the West End in order to go to tourism Signature schools? And vice- versa, a child in the West End who may want to study biosciences and such will have to travel all the way to the East End. Something that may sound as simple as that on paper could be a major pushback in the community. And I am wondering how the Minister is hoping to han-dle that?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I may not be as old as the Member who did s peak. [ Inaudible interjections] 1292 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: I may not be as old as the Member. …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I may not be as old as the Member who did s peak. [ Inaudible interjections] 1292 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: I may not be as old as the Member. But I do recall a time when we had eight high schools, and it did not matter where you lived, you could go to the high school that was assigned to you or to the high school that you applied to. One of the pur-poses of education reform is to remove the geographic restrictions that have been placed that the community has asked to be removed. And so what we are trying to put in place is a system that if a Signature speaks to you and a Signature is something that you are inter-ested in, you are able to travel to that Signature wher-ever you are. However, we do acknowledge that as we continue to develop this, the ability to pursue the minors while whistled at a different school will be possible. As a matter of fact, as one of the initiatives that they developed at CedarBridge Academy now that we have been prototyping is virtual reality, and the idea of being able to be virtually in another classroom in another part of the Island or in another part of the world is part of the thing s that we are looking at. But simply, one of the reasons we are in the dire straits that we are in is that we are trying to do too much with what little we have. It is just not feasible for us to have every Signature at every school. It is just not feasib le for us to do that. So this is something that we are looking forward to introducing, so providing our chil-dren with more options than just going to a school that is in their neighbourhood, giving them the opportunity to explore and get to know persons fr om other parts of the Island.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonBased on my age and having been around a little longer than the Minister, I can say that the economic and social environment of decades past was much more secure, much more lucrative. People lived as a community. They were not working so hard. They did not have to spend …
Based on my age and having been around a little longer than the Minister, I can say that the economic and social environment of decades past was much more secure, much more lucrative. People lived as a community. They were not working so hard. They did not have to spend so much money. And so I am asking the Minister, [considering] today’s major cost of living increases, the strain on people to work numerous jobs, the inability to afford transporta-tion to get around the Island is going to be a concern for a number of people in this community, I just am seriously asking the Minister if he is considering the fact that there is going to be pushback from this community because going to the East End and the West End in order to attend school may not be the best option. Is he actually going out there and getting the feedback and working with the community to come up with the right solution? And I would like to also say that we have plenty, plenty of information —
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberPoint of order, Mr. Speaker. The S peaker: Point of order. Point of order. POINT OF ORDER
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberMr. Speaker, the Honourable Member is going on with a monologue. This is Question Pe-riod.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint taken. Member, if you can just wrap your question up, or wrap your comment into a question.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonMr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to ask the Minister how he is going to handle the pushback from the community when he makes the announcement that he wants children from the East End to travel to the West End and the West End children to travel to …
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to ask the Minister how he is going to handle the pushback from the community when he makes the announcement that he wants children from the East End to travel to the West End and the West End children to travel to the East End in order to attend high school? Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYour question is, How will he handle the pushback? Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And that is a good question, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Signatures that we intended that were decided on by public consultation were announced in 2020. It is now 2023. And …
Your question is, How will he handle the pushback? Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And that is a good question, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Signatures that we intended that were decided on by public consultation were announced in 2020. It is now 2023. And actually that is the very first person who has raised that particular comment. I am not saying there are not other people who are thinking that. But it is something that will be taken into account as we speak. Well, she has had foresight three years too late. [ Inaudible interjections and l aughter]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, let the Member speak. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: And also, Mr. Speaker, I will remind Honourable Members in the House that all schoolchildren catch the bus at no cost. So in terms of cost of transportation, it is no cost to our students. That is both public and …
Members, let the Member speak. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: And also, Mr. Speaker, I will remind Honourable Members in the House that all schoolchildren catch the bus at no cost. So in terms of cost of transportation, it is no cost to our students. That is both public and private. So to get around on the bus does not cost anything.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? Supplementary? Yes. Put your supplementary. SUPPLEMENTARIES Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary, Mr. Speaker, and good morning to you, colleagues and listening audience. Can the Minister confirm reports in the media today that East End primary students will not be moved to Whitney?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, as I responded to the news, I will respond to that Member. We are still analysing the questions that have come in. I mentioned in my Statement there were over 700 questions that have come in. We will analyse those. And the …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, as I responded to the news, I will respond to that Member. We are still analysing the questions that have come in. I mentioned in my Statement there were over 700 questions that have come in. We will analyse those. And the sole pur-pose of having those engagement sessions was to get feedback so we can go back to the communities and listen to the feedback and present and change if we do care to change, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. I take that answer as, No, it cannot be confirmed. So I appreciate the Minister’s answer that they will take the feed-back on board. Can the Minister give the assurance that at the West End of the Island, their feedback will be …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain : Mr. Speaker, all stakeholders who give feedback, it is taken into account.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Supplementary from anyone else? None? Supplementary. SUPPLEMENTARIES
Mr. L. Craig CannonierThank you, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to know from the Minister, then why was the solution to send the kids, these same kids, to Whitney before it had been approved by the Whitney Board then stated?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rab ain: Mr. Speaker, as I spoke about this particular process, it is very intricate. It is very hard as you move forward. And there are a lot of mov-ing parts. We spoke with the Whitney Board prior to speaking to St. George’s. And while …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rab ain: Mr. Speaker, as I spoke about this particular process, it is very intricate. It is very hard as you move forward. And there are a lot of mov-ing parts. We spoke with the Whitney Board prior to speaking to St. George’s. And while we did not have assurances for them, they told us that they would look at the various ideas and come back with their opinion at a later date. At that point we continued on, Mr. Speaker. And as I said, all stakeholder feedback has to be taken into account as we continue to evolve the transition plan that must take place in order for us to progress education reform.
Mr. L. Craig CannonierYes, supplemental. Then why was that actual answer not told then at the meetings with the East End schools? In other words, why were they not informed that the board was then taking a look at it? It came across as if it had al-ready been done.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, the Statement that I read today apologised and made very clear that some things that have been done could have been done better and done differently. And we have taken that on board as well as all of the other comments. And …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, the Statement that I read today apologised and made very clear that some things that have been done could have been done better and done differently. And we have taken that on board as well as all of the other comments. And when we go back and talk to the relevant stakeholders, we will learn from the missteps that we made moving forward with education reform.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Likewise, Mr. Speaker, can the Minister confirm that reconsideration would also be given to West End Prim ary School? Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, as I said, we are taking all feedback into consideration. And …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? None. MP Cannonier, did you want to put your question? [ Inaudible interjection]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOh, oh, I am sorry. MP Jackson; that is right. We were on your questions. Sorry. You still have a third question to put. Would you like to put your third question?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. QUESTION 3: EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE
Ms. Susan E. JacksonI have a question. I would like to ask the Speaker [sic] why there is —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe Minis ter. The Minister. Bermuda House of Assembly 1294 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Ms. Susan E. Jackson: I would like to ask the Minister (excuse me) —
An Hon. Member An Hon. Member—through the Speaker, through the Speaker.
Ms.
Susan E. Jackson—through the Speaker if the Minister might be able to explain to us why in six pages of Ministerial Statement I do not see any reference to exceptionality school except the bottom of the second-to-last page when he mentioned exceptionality Signature school. So I would like to know why the …
—through the Speaker if the Minister might be able to explain to us why in six pages of Ministerial Statement I do not see any reference to exceptionality school except the bottom of the second-to-last page when he mentioned exceptionality Signature school. So I would like to know why the exceptionality school for primary children is not included anywhere in this Statement.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I believe the Member has answered her question. She said where it was mentioned. And that is where it was mentioned.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes, Mr. Speaker. At the bottom of page 5 it just says, “Exceptionalities Signature School . . .” I would like to know why the Minister has not included any mention of the exceptionality schools for our primary school students.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rab ain: Mr. Speaker, I am grappling to try and understand what exactly the Honourable Member is asking. We talked about the exceptionality schools on page 5, and we talked about the opening of those schools. And it will happen. The transition plan talks about …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rab ain: Mr. Speaker, I am grappling to try and understand what exactly the Honourable Member is asking. We talked about the exceptionality schools on page 5, and we talked about the opening of those schools. And it will happen. The transition plan talks about that fully, of the school for exceptionalities. But I will, Mr. Speaker, humour that Member —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou do not have to humour her. You can just answer her. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Okay. And wish her to understand that the Bermuda Public School System is the only system in Bermuda that provides resources, classes for our children with exceptionalities. We are the only school that …
You do not have to humour her. You can just answer her. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Okay. And wish her to understand that the Bermuda Public School System is the only system in Bermuda that provides resources, classes for our children with exceptionalities. We are the only school that provides functional academics, func-tional skills, autistic programmes, programmes for hard of hearing, programmes for hard of seeing, hard of sight —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerVision. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: —within the public school system from pre- school to primary to middle to high. It already exists, Mr. Speaker. And we are adding addi-tional classes in our primary schools this September for functional skills at the primary school level.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes. And I would like to ask the Minister why he is not making the exceptionality school —because it is the only source of support for many of our students and our most vulnerable —a priority and speaking more about in the community? They need to hear it.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe Speaker[The Honourable Member] asked, Why is the Minister not promoting it more? That is the ques-tion. She asked why. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, again I am trying my very best to understand the line of questioning. We are promoting all of our students equally. We are promoting …
[The Honourable Member] asked, Why is the Minister not promoting it more? That is the ques-tion. She asked why. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, again I am trying my very best to understand the line of questioning. We are promoting all of our students equally. We are promoting all of our students equally. I simply cannot say any more than that.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. All right. No further questions?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. MP Cannonier, you had indicated that you had questions. Did your supplementary cover it or do you want to put your question?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo ahead. QUESTION 1: EDUCATION REFORM UPDATE
Mr. L. Craig CannonierYes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Unfortunately, I do not have [the Statement] in front of me. But I believe on the first page the Minister mentioned that there were 40 stakeholder meetings. I just wanted to ask the Minister, out of those 40 stake-holder meetings, how many did he attend?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Ho n. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I believe I personally was at four of them. But via video presentation, I spoke at all 40 of them. Bermuda House of Ass embly The Speaker: Supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARIES
Mr. L. Craig CannonierSupplementary. Would the Minister consider that physically being there to answer questions —which is one of the major concerns that folk had that they were not getting questions answered— would the Minister consider that potentially not being there at these meetings was a mis-take, especially to the West End and …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I was at the West End meeting. I was not at the East End meeting. However, Mr. Speaker, I know the Honourable Member said he did not have the Statement in front of him. So that does mean he has not read …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I was at the West End meeting. I was not at the East End meeting. However, Mr. Speaker, I know the Honourable Member said he did not have the Statement in front of him. So that does mean he has not read it. I reiterated several times within the paper that we acknowledged that mistakes were made. We acknowledged that we could have done better, and we acknowledged that we will learn from what we did do and we will do things differently in the next round.
Mr. L. Craig CannonierYes, Mr. Speaker. For the record, we were not able to get the Statements. We actually got one physical printout one, and we made sure that the substantive Shadow Minis-ter had it. So that is why I was not able to . . . because it was not online for …
Yes, Mr. Speaker. For the record, we were not able to get the Statements. We actually got one physical printout one, and we made sure that the substantive Shadow Minis-ter had it. So that is why I was not able to . . . because it was not online for me to read. But I did listen intently. Unfortunately, we were not able to have that. So supplemental to that, the Minister said that he attended the West End. I did at tend the West End meetings as well, and I did not see him at that particular one. Of the number of meetings that were held for the West End and the East End schools, how many of those did [the Minister] attend?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Ra bain: Mr. Speaker, I must say I did not see this Member at the meeting that I had with the West End in Port Royal either. So obviously we missed each other. [ Laughter] Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I attended …
Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Ra bain: Mr. Speaker, I must say I did not see this Member at the meeting that I had with the West End in Port Royal either. So obviously we missed each other. [ Laughter] Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I attended that. I also did not see the Member at the three meet-ings that I have held at Sandys Secondary middle school for persons in the West as well. So I cannot ex-plain why I did not see him at the four meetings that we have had in the West or —
Mr. L. Craig CannonierPoint of order, Mr. Speaker. We are not talking about whether or not he saw me. That is not the question. [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWait, wait, wait, wait. Wait, wait, wait! Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: His question . . . his question—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWait, wait, wait, Member! Member. Member. When you rise for your points of order, let it be acknowledged first before you continue—first p oint. Second point: Your point needed clarification, but it was not necessarily a point of order. So the Minister can continue; you can clarify afterwards.
Mr. L. Craig CannonierOkay. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I do not even know where we are at this moment. [ Laughter]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI think you are just making reference to the number of meetings that you did attend. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: All I can say is we have held meetings. I have attended some of those meetings. The Honourable Member is saying he attended some of those meetings. We did …
I think you are just making reference to the number of meetings that you did attend. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: All I can say is we have held meetings. I have attended some of those meetings. The Honourable Member is saying he attended some of those meetings. We did not see each other. I do not understand what he is asking. [ Inaudible interjection and laughter ]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAny further supplementaries? No further supplementaries. Minister, Members, thank you for your exchanges on that Statement. This brings us to an end of that Statement. Members, the next Statement that had questions this morning is [that of] the Minister of Transport. MP Jackson, would you like to put your question? …
Any further supplementaries? No further supplementaries. Minister, Members, thank you for your exchanges on that Statement. This brings us to an end of that Statement. Members, the next Statement that had questions this morning is [that of] the Minister of Transport. MP Jackson, would you like to put your question? QUESTION 1: CELEBRATION OF THE ELECTRIFICATION OF THE PUBLIC BUS FLEET
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonGood morning, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to ask the Minister about the award that was granted to the Bermuda Transport De-partment for its electric vehicles. They are saying that the department’s e- mobility initiative was selected from a pool of highly competitive projects. I am just wonder-ing if …
Good morning, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to ask the Minister about the award that was granted to the Bermuda Transport De-partment for its electric vehicles. They are saying that the department’s e- mobility initiative was selected from a pool of highly competitive projects. I am just wonder-ing if the Minister might just give us a few of the other 1296 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly competitive projects that are out there in the Caribbean just to give us some comparison. Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I do not have that answer.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Do you want a supplementary? Supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARIES
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes. So who . . . Then maybe the Minister can explain who and how did we get this award then? [ Inaudible interjection]
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes, but I understand it is an organisation in the Caribbean. But did somebody go and get an award? Did somebody send you an email? I am just trying to figure out . . . please explain to us how we got this award. [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerJust for a little background, it is an organisation that recognises green technology move-ments and progress within the Caribbean. I know; I have participated in other roles in the past. But, Minister, if you want to respond. I was there for the initiation of that organisation. But it is not …
Just for a little background, it is an organisation that recognises green technology move-ments and progress within the Caribbean. I know; I have participated in other roles in the past. But, Minister, if you want to respond. I was there for the initiation of that organisation. But it is not for me to answer, I am just giving background. If the Minister would like to answer. Minister. Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I know you know how to answer that question. But I know that the Deputy Premier was in Miami, and he picked it up on behalf of the Minister of Transport.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes. So I am just hearing my fellow [MP] in the background saying that there were tons of companies there. And also my question is, Well then, did we, Bermuda, make an application, submit an application for this award? I am just trying to get some context as to where …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerIt is a recognition for what we do. [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, Members, Members. Everyone is entitled to . . . everyone is entitled to their opinion whether we agree or disagree. Just remember that, Members. Members, Members, Members. Members, Members. Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I will answer that. Last year Barbados, I believe, received the same award that …
Members, Members, Members. Everyone is entitled to . . . everyone is entitled to their opinion whether we agree or disagree. Just remember that, Members. Members, Members, Members. Members, Members. Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I will answer that. Last year Barbados, I believe, received the same award that we received. Countries from time to time may send in infor mation to the group, the Caribbean group, and we received it this year.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Any further questions?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister, I believe that brings us to a conclusion of questions for you this morning. The next Statement that has questions this morning is the Statement from the Minister of National Security. MP Dunkley, would you like to put your question to the Minister? QUESTION 1: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST …
Minister, I believe that brings us to a conclusion of questions for you this morning. The next Statement that has questions this morning is the Statement from the Minister of National Security. MP Dunkley, would you like to put your question to the Minister? QUESTION 1: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to congratulate the Minister on continuing to move the Coast Guard forward. I am sure there is somebody who sits just behind me that is pleased to see the update on it. Ques tion to the Honourable Minister: On page 4 the Minister mentioned the automated identification system. Can the Honourable Minister please give some background on the cost of this system? Because I un-derstand the cost in many jurisdictions is viable. In some jurisdictions it could become less viable because of the installation and training costs. So could the Minister please provide a bit of an update on that? Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do not have the exact costs in front of me. But we are definitely in the early stages of putting the Coast Guard in place, and we are putting different systems in place. If I need to produce the exact …
Minister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I do not have the exact costs in front of me. But we are definitely in the early stages of putting the Coast Guard in place, and we are putting different systems in place. If I need to produce the exact costs I will do that at another time. Yes, and we do have a budget for it. Yes, yes. I will produce it at another time. I do not have the information in front of me.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY Bermuda House of Ass embly Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister did give an undertaking to provide a budget and the costs. I appreciate that. Supplementary, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will it be mandated that all vessels that travel through our waters will have …
Supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY
Bermuda House of Ass embly Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister did give an undertaking to provide a budget and the costs. I appreciate that. Supplementary, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will it be mandated that all vessels that travel through our waters will have the sensors in them? Because obviously the AIS system does not work unless the vessel and the onshore location have their sensors. So I do not know if it is currently man-dated worldwide that all vessels have the sensor. So can the Minister give an update on that?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSo your question is whether it is mandated for them to have it? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Correct. To travel in Bermuda waters.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, again I do not have that information in front of me. And I will undertake to get that [information]. I am trying to move the Coast Guard forward, but I am not the real expert on it. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Understood, Mr. …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerStop, stop. Okay. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Last supplementary and then I will have another question after that.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell, Opposition Leader, is your supplementary related to the first supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Yes.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerLet me take yours first. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you. Can the Minister confirm whether or not, when vessels are in our waters and the AIS is turned off, there are any penalties for being in a jurisdiction with the AIS system turned off? And if there is …
Let me take yours first. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you. Can the Minister confirm whether or not, when vessels are in our waters and the AIS is turned off, there are any penalties for being in a jurisdiction with the AIS system turned off? And if there is no penalty, can you also investigate that with the Coast Guard, as he said he will do?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The systems are still being developed. We are still in the early stages of the Coast Guard. So as they develop, I have no problems on undertaking to bring the developments, as we mature in putting a Coast Guard together, to …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? You are good. MP, you can continue with your second supp. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr . Speaker. To the Honourable Minister: As the Honourable Minister said, the system is still being developed. What is the anticipated range of the AIS system once implemented?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As I had earlier suggested, the system is still being developed. As we finalise those kinds of items, we will definitely bring them back to the House.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? I mean second question. You had your two supplementaries. Second question? QUESTION 2: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, I thank the Honourable Minister for his desire to keep the House informed. And I will make a note and I appreciate that. Second …
Supplementary? I mean second question. You had your two supplementaries. Second question? QUESTION 2: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, I thank the Honourable Minister for his desire to keep the House informed. And I will make a note and I appreciate that. Second question, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in this Ministerial Statement today, the Honourable Minis-ter gives an update on the Coast Guard, strengthening of the Royal Bermuda Coast Guard. That is the first line of the Statement. So, to the Honourable Minister: Can the Honourable Minister please provide an update on the current facility that the Coast Guard operates in and any further development of that facility or additional fa-cilities?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The current facility is located up in Boaz Island. And there has been a budget for development of another facility down in St. David’s. This is in the early stages.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? SUPPLEMENTARIES Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary. Mr. Speaker, t he Honourable Minister mentioned the budget. What is the budget for the develop-ment of that facility in St. David’s?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. 1298 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, I do not have that in front of me. But it is actually in the Budget Book becaus e that is one of the items that we really wanted to put …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOr third question? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I asked that because the Honourable Minister during his 4 hours and 45 minute presen-tation did not mention that facility. I will look in the Budget Book. Mr. Speaker, if it is in the early stages, can the …
Or third question? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I asked that because the Honourable Minister during his 4 hours and 45 minute presen-tation did not mention that facility. I will look in the Budget Book. Mr. Speaker, if it is in the early stages, can the Ministe r inform this Honourable House if plans have been submitted for approval of that facility?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, I will bring updates accordingly for the full development of the Coast Guard. I will definitely leave no stone unturned in making sure that the House is fully apprised as to how the Coast Guard is coming along physically and the num-ber of …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Third question. QUESTION 3: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, while I appreciate the Minister’s intention to keep the House updated, it is a simple question.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPut your question. Put your question. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Where do we stand with planning permission for that facility in St. David’s? Simple question. And the Minister should know that if he brings the Statement to the House on the Coast Guard.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, the plans have been submitted, but where it stands I cannot tell you that.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Thank you, Minister. Thank you, Minister. MP Pearman, would you still wish to put questions to the Minister? QUESTION 1: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE
Mr. Scott PearmanYes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good morning to the Honourable House, and I thank the Honourable Minister for his Statement to the House today on the Coast Guard. In the Statement the Honourable Minister said that the aim is to build a first -class Coast Guard. An d I think …
Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Good morning to the Honourable House, and I thank the Honourable Minister for his Statement to the House today on the Coast Guard. In the Statement the Honourable Minister said that the aim is to build a first -class Coast Guard. An d I think that is a statement that most if not all would support. But what I would like to know from the Honourable Minister is this: Minister, what do you consider to be the primary purpose of our Coast Guard? Because there are a number of items that you identified in the State-ment that they do. I am just wondering, Why are they getting up every day? And what is the primary purpose and function that they are supposed to serve?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The purpose of the Coast Guard is to protect and monitor and patrol our shores and work with their sister agencies to help to make sure that we have a safer Bermuda.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary or new question? Mr . Scott Pearman: Supplementary.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo ahead. SUPPLEMENTARIES Mr . Scott Pearman: Thank you, Minister. In terms of a safer maritime, safer Bermuda, what is the scope of the sort of search- and-rescue function? You know, the vessel rescuing function of our cur-rent Coast Goard?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Well, the current Coast Guard is still under review, and we are expecting to up-grade our Coast Guard vessels so that we could control the . . . not just control, but patrol the waters up to, I think the EEZ zones are 12 miles …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThis is the second supplementary.
Mr. Scott PearmanThank you, Minister, for that helpful answer. In terms of the upgrading function in order to patrol the waters, and I think the Minister has just given Bermuda House of Ass embly an i ndication of the 12- mile zone, is it the current intention or potential future intention that …
Thank you, Minister, for that helpful answer. In terms of the upgrading function in order to patrol the waters, and I think the Minister has just given
Bermuda House of Ass embly an i ndication of the 12- mile zone, is it the current intention or potential future intention that that will be expanded beyond the 12- mile zone out to the 200- mile zone?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: As we stand, Mr. Speaker, it is currently the 12- mile zone. And as we develop, I think as our capabilities develop, then we will look to expand the range of the Coast Guard.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Second question? QUESTION 2: ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT COAST GUARD UPDATE
Mr. Scott PearmanYes, second question. Still on the same theme here. So, if something happens in our territorial waters but beyond 12 miles, but within the 200- mile radius, how is that search- and-rescue function for vessels dealt with by our Coast Guard, or do they pass it on? How does that …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo ahead. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Our Coast Guard . . . I am sorry?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, thank you. Our Coast Guard works in tandem with the US Coast Guard. So, we will go as far as our capabilities are, and as a partner the US Coast Guard will go where we are not able to go at this time.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Supplementary? Mr . Scott Pearman: Supplementary.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. SUPPLEMENTARY Mr . Scott Pearman: In terms of that . . . so there is a handover from our Coast Guard to the US Coast Guard. If a ship is in distress within our 200- mile territorial waters but beyond the 12 miles that we can cur-rently go, what …
Yes. SUPPLEMENTARY Mr . Scott Pearman: In terms of that . . . so there is a handover from our Coast Guard to the US Coast Guard. If a ship is in distress within our 200- mile territorial waters but beyond the 12 miles that we can cur-rently go, what is the response time for the US Coast Guard? Are they at a fixed station? Would they then come? Or are they out in our 200- mile territorial waters in any event?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The US Coast Guard is in and around our territory because they are in close proximity to us. So, they are out there patrolling their waters also.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThird question or supplementary? SUPPLEME NTARY
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonYes, just a supplementary, Mr. Speaker. I am just curious if the Minister could provide us with the number of vessels that we currently have for the Coast Guard and whether there are any projections to buy any more and how many more we would have to buy?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think we currently have two vessels. And we will be looking to purchase another vessel in the near future.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThird question? No? Okay. Members, this brings us to a close of the Question Period for this morning. And we thank you for your participation. And let me just reset the clocks for us at this moment. CONGRATULATORY A ND/OR OBITUARY SPEECHES
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWould any Member wish to make a contribution at this time? We recognise the Minister of Education. Minister, you have your three minutes. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to start on a sad note and have the House send condolences to …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: And I associate everyone who wishes to be associated with that.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerDo the whole House. Do the whole House. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Beverly was a long- time employee of the Department of Education. As a matter of fact, whenever I visited schools, she would just always shock me by being there. She was always good to help 1300 5 …
Do the whole House. Do the whole House. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Beverly was a long- time employee of the Department of Education. As a matter of fact, whenever I visited schools, she would just always shock me by being there. She was always good to help 1300 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly out. She was alw ays there to take any assignment, administrative assignments, whatever. I have known Beverly since I was 18 years old when I worked within the tourism industry. And she was the one who trained me in what we were doing back then. So it was a very spe-cial re lationship I held with her, and it was very shocking to receive the news that she had gone on to her glory. Mr. Speaker, I also would like condolences sent to the family of Junior “Bubba” Harris, father of Laurie, Laveta and Kelly Harris of Loyal Hill. Not only was Bubba a constituent of mine, but he was an in- law, a former in- law of mine as well, Mr. Speaker. And he was predeceased by his wife Daphnie, but definitely he lived a very good life. I believe he was 90 when he did pass just last week. Thirdly, Mr. Speaker, condolences to the family of Anthony “Too Ton” Rabain, great uncle of mine. I am sure I can associate Mr. Cole [Simons], Mr. Cannonier and Mr. Swan with that. Husband of Aleathea Rabain. I did say he was a great -uncle of mine, Mr. Speaker. He was a brother to my grandfather. Mr. Speaker, on a happier note I want to send congratulations to all of the competitors of the KPMG 18 th Investment Challenge. The winners were announced earlier. The winners were announced yester-day, Mr. Speaker. And I am pleased to say that the pub-lic schools took three of the top four spots, with Cedar-Bridge Academy taking the number -one spot with only two members, which was amazing to me, Simar Tara-vas-Place and Chelsea Minors, Mr. Speaker. But also very special for this competition was the first time a mid-dle school had entered, and that was Clearwater Mid-dle School, who finished fourth, Mr. Speaker. Second place was Warwick Academy, and third place was Berkeley Institute. And that was out of 15 teams. Mr. Speaker, I do encourage all Members and the public to visit the Bermuda Society of Arts Gallery in City Hall for the middle and high school annual art show that will be on display from May 2 nd through the 16th. I also encourage persons to look out for post ers for Springing into the Arts that will be happening throughout Bermuda over the next couple of weeks. [ Timer chimes]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. MP Lister, I think you are the only one rising. Would you like to make your contribution at this ti me?
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberHe jumped up before me. [ Laughter]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou have your three minutes.
Mr. Dennis Lister IIIGood morning, Mr. Speaker. Good morning to the listening audience. Mr. Speaker, it is always with sadness having to find out that someone has passed. But, Mr. Speaker, I was surely shocked this morning to open the Royal Gazette and see in the obituaries someone had passed whom I knew, …
Good morning, Mr. Speaker. Good morning to the listening audience. Mr. Speaker, it is always with sadness having to find out that someone has passed. But, Mr. Speaker, I was surely shocked this morning to open the Royal Gazette and see in the obituaries someone had passed whom I knew, a young person. So, I was really shoc ked by that. I would like to send condolences to the family of Mr. Robert Wendall Fox in his 45 th year, of 30 Cashew City, St. David’s. I know him. Even though he is from the other end of the Island, I do know him. I worked three years with him over 20 years ago, Mr. Speaker. When I was in high school, I worked at sum-mer programme at the Department of Parks, and I used to cut the grass and all the schools in the western end of the Island. And I associate MP Ming. [ Inaudible interjections] Mr . Dennis List er III: I associate MP Swan. My apologies, MP. [ Laughter]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerJust talk this way. Direct your comments this way. You will be all right.
Mr. Dennis Lister IIIBut, Mr. Speaker, I spent three summers working with him. And as earlier mentioned by MP Jackson about exceptionalities, he was deaf, Mr. Speaker. But [I was] working with him for three years — three years, throughout three summers I should say, Mr. Speaker, three summers. He was deaf, but …
But, Mr. Speaker, I spent three summers working with him. And as earlier mentioned by MP Jackson about exceptionalities, he was deaf, Mr. Speaker. But [I was] working with him for three years — three years, throughout three summers I should say, Mr. Speaker, three summers. He was deaf, but you would never have known, Mr. Speaker. I could sit and have a conversation with him. We would joke around. I associate MP Foggo also. So, Mr. Speaker, again it is with sadness I had to find out in the paper today that he had passed. But I send condolences to his family on the loss of their son, brother, uncle and friend. Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to send condolences to the family of Ms. Cora White of 47 Middle Road, Southampton. I also know her, Mr. Speaker, as she was not a science teacher, but she raised my cousins, I would say. She was a live- in housekeeper —I cannot remember the exact phrase. So, I know her from young growing up, and again send condolences to her family. And last but not least, Mr. Speaker, I send condolences on behalf of my family to the rest of my family for the loss of my uncle, Michael Showers, who was buried this past Sunday. A very sad moment for us, even myself. You know, I had to read the tribute, and I was not even able to get them out, Mr. Speaker. It was a sad moment. But again, condolences to the families of those three people, Mr. Speaker. And I will take my seat with that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. [ Timer chimes] Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Oh, right on your three minutes. Deputy S peaker, y ou hav e your t hree minutes. Hon. D errick V. B urgess, S r.: Thank y ou, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like this House to send …
Thank you. [ Timer chimes]
Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Oh, right on your three minutes. Deputy S peaker, y ou hav e your t hree minutes. Hon. D errick V. B urgess, S r.: Thank y ou, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like this House to send condolences to the family of Ms. Madge Daniels, a long-time resident in Hamilton Parish. Certainly she will be sorely missed. And she was from Somerset, I believe. But she came to live in God’s country. [Inaudible i nterjection] Hon. D errick V. B urgess, Sr.: Well, y es, s he did. She will s orely b e missed by her c hildren, D oris, C harles, S haron an d Robert. Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to send condolences to the family of Cubitt “Tussey” Smith. Tussey was from Frog Alley, Heritage Place. I would like to associate [Honourable Members] Kim Swan, Diallo Rabain, Minister Weeks. Also he was the great-u ncle of MP Minister Tinee Furbert, Mr. Speaker. Tussey knew me all of my life. We were neighbours, and he was very , very pleasant, alway s pleasant. I never saw him vexed at anything. He was always laughing and joking, Mr. Speaker. Probably one of his firs t jobs was down in Mid Ocean when he worked in the caddy shop. And many of the people from Mid Ocean during that time would know Tussey as a very pleasant person. And he was a good golfer. And the former President of Mid Ocean, Michael Dunkley, whom Tussey taught how to play. Did not do a good job for him but he did teach him. He leaves to mourn his wife J ules [Juliette], his children Meryl, Merly [Marilyn], Elroy, Brenda and Gina. Also, Mr. Speaker, my las t one, I would like to send condolences to the family of Diana Mahoney. She was a v ery personable person, probably one of the best dental hygienists I hav e ever known. She worked for Dr. Dickinson. Certainly, her death was a shock to me. I mean, she was a gem. And I am sure she will be missed by her husband and her two c hildren and grandchildren and all of the staff at Dr. Dickinson’s practice down there near the hospital. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. Does any other Member? MP Foggo. Ms . Lovitta F. Foggo: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And again, I would like to be associated with the condolences given for Mr. Robert Fox who indeed was one of my constituents. Robert was a very friendly, friendly person, a well …
Thank you, Deputy. Does any other Member? MP Foggo. Ms . Lovitta F. Foggo: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And again, I would like to be associated with the condolences given for Mr. Robert Fox who indeed was one of my constituents. Robert was a very friendly, friendly person, a well -liked person. And he will be greatly missed in the community of St. David’s. I would also like to give condolences to the family of Valeria “Valerie” O’Connor, who did just recently die, another constituent. Valerie was like the vil-lage mother because she was the babysitter to many young ones in St. David’s. She had been home for quite some time, then found herself landed in hospital after taking a severe fall. Valerie, while she was at home for years on end, knew everything that was going on in St. David’s. I used to just shake my head and wonder how. But Valerie will be greatly missed. Lastly, I am sure this person was mentioned previously, but it would be remiss of me if I did not ask for condolences to be sent to the family of Kereen Rich-ards, who also was a constituent and died earlier this year. She had a stellar, stellar career in nursing I think for over 40 years, worked at the hospital. Ms. Richards will be g reatly missed. And on that note, Mr. Speaker, I will take my seat. Th e Speaker: Thank you. Does any other Member? MP Cannonier, would you like to have your three minutes at this time? Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to extend my condolences to the Rabain family and to the Minister, of course, for the passing of Anthony. I got to know him very well through his wife, Aleathea, [with whom] we managed People’s Pharmacy for many years. But he was an extremely en-ergeti c fellow. I used to tease him all the time. He was not but four feet tall. [Lau ghter] Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: And we became very close friends through a membership group of [those of] us who collect swords and knives. And we used to give him the name Bl ade. [Inaudible interjection] Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: Yes, there is a group that does that. And he was also a member of the rifle club as well. But they would have their dinners. And the only thing they would eat with were these ornate knives.
An
Hon. Member An
Hon. MemberKnights of the Round Table. Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. That is what they called them. That is right. So, I had the privilege of being very good friends with him, many times at his home discussing some of the things that we enjoyed together. So my condolences to …
Knights of the Round Table. Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. That is what they called them. That is right. So, I had the privilege of being very good friends with him, many times at his home discussing some of the things that we enjoyed together. So my condolences to the family on the passing. (Hopefully I can get some of those collector’s pieces he has got.) [Lau ghter] Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: I put my bid in. Also, I would like to give congratulations going down to the East End this time. Many o f you who are in the East End and some who are not would know that 1302 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Temptations moved to the entrance . . . of entering into the Corporation of St. George’s. [ Inaudible interjection]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierYes, six months ago but no one has mentioned it . [ Inaudible interjection]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierIs that right? My apologies! Well, I tell you what. [ Inaudible interjections]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierMaybe I was not here. Maybe I was not here. But I want to congratulate them because it has been a step up in what they have done, where they have moved. The food is fantastic. I am waiting to see if there is going to be a fellow working …
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberWhat is wrong with that? What is wrong with that? [ Laughter]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierBut they have done a fantastic job. And their pastries are second to none. So I would encourage any of us if we have the opportunity to get down to St. George’s to visit Temptations, certainly being run by St. David’s folks and some St. George’s folks there as well. …
But they have done a fantastic job. And their pastries are second to none. So I would encourage any of us if we have the opportunity to get down to St. George’s to visit Temptations, certainly being run by St. David’s folks and some St. George’s folks there as well. It is a great place to visit and to go to. Their hours are 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. Yes? Through the week. There you go. And great codfish on Sundays.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, thank you. MP Whip, MP Tyrrell. You have your three minutes. Mr . Neville S. Tyrrell: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And good morning, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, I ask that condolences in the first instanc e be sent to the family of the late Bridgit Riley of …
Thank you, thank you. MP Whip, MP Tyrrell. You have your three minutes. Mr . Neville S. Tyrrell: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And good morning, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, I ask that condolences in the first instanc e be sent to the family of the late Bridgit Riley of Spice Hill in Warwick. Ms. Riley came from a strong Ri-ley clan in Warwick, all supporters of the Progressive Labour Party. She was obviously a constituent of mine. And I also had the pleasure of working with her. We worked for the same company, obviously not in the same department, but I had to go to her often for infor-mation. And she was always friendly and helpful at the same time. I certainly feel Bridget (as I affectionately call her) has left us much too soon. She will be missed by her very large family and friends, and especially her daughter, Tasha Sharalle, who is actually one of my branch executives. So I have a very close association with them all. So I do hope my friend will rest in peace. On another note, Mr. Speaker, I would ask that congratulations, or in fact I offer congratulations to the teaching body and school body (the student body) of Purvis Primary School in Warwick. I had the opportunity and I will call it good fortune to be part of a community outreach exercise that was done with the school recently. We actually did a feeding of the student body, the entire student body and the teaching faculty as well. And one of the reasons why I feel that congratulations should go to them is because, and it was within a two-hour period we had the opportunity, as I said, to feed everybody. Just picture trying to feed 100- odd st udents at lunchtime. I found them to be very polite and well-mannered. So therefore, I congratulate them on that, and I also congratulate, as I said, the teachers who are obviously instilling in them good manners, which is something that I think is lacking a lot in our society right now. So again, I ask that congratulations be sent to the Purvis Primary School. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. Thank you, Mr. Whip. MP Jackson, you have your three minutes.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonThank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to send out congratulatory remarks. And the first is to Mr. Joseph Matthew. He is a senior technician at the Public Transportation Board. And he has just celebrated 50 years as a mechanic at the bus depot. I want to send him out …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to send out congratulatory remarks. And the first is to Mr. Joseph Matthew. He is a senior technician at the Public Transportation Board. And he has just celebrated 50 years as a mechanic at the bus depot. I want to send him out best regards. In his reflection over his career, one thing that really stood out to me was the East Broadway Bus Depot. I do not know if people remember that.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonBut that was a big part of his beginning in his early days. I certainly had a smile on my face as I was reflecting on him and what he was doing and the East Broadway Depot because that was a huge part of growing up in Bermuda. It was …
But that was a big part of his beginning in his early days. I certainly had a smile on my face as I was reflecting on him and what he was doing and the East Broadway Depot because that was a huge part of growing up in Bermuda. It was one of the more exciting places to drive by as a child. So I certainly want to send him congratulations. I wish him all the best. I understand that he is now pursuing and very much involved in the electrification of buses. So he has diversified his skills. And I really wish him all the very, very best, as I believe that he has certainly reached a high point and a pinnacle in his profession. I would also like to send out congratulatory remarks to a young person. This is Rowan Vickers. He is a young actor in the theatre scene. He has just com-pleted his first film, which will be on Apple TV. He is very much getting involved in the entertainment world, and I wish him all the luck. The most important part about this young man, Rowan Vickers, is that he is bringing his talents back to Bermuda and is going to hold an intensive summer theatre programme for our young people. And it is highly commendable for any young person who has the foresight and the graciousness and humility to come back to their home country
Bermuda House of Ass embly and be able to share their skills and their experiences with other young people in order to generate a next era of young people in Bermuda interested in the theatre. And I wish Mr. Rowan Vickers all the best in the future, and certainly we welcome him when he comes home for his theatre intensive. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Jackson. MP Ming, would you like to take your three minutes at this time? Mr s. Renee Ming: Yes. Good morning, Mr. Speaker and listening audience.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. Mr s. Renee Ming: Mr. Speaker, this morning I will start on a sad note. St. George’s has been truly taking its licks. First of all, I would like to give prayers to the family of [Wilfred] Mansfield “Woody” Brangman, commonly known as Woody around St. George’s. …
Go right ahead. Mr s. Renee Ming: Mr. Speaker, this morning I will start on a sad note. St. George’s has been truly taking its licks. First of all, I would like to give prayers to the family of [Wilfred] Mansfield “Woody” Brangman, commonly known as Woody around St. George’s. His children, his family have mourned, and I just want them to know that they are in our thoughts and prayers. Also, to the family of Claudia Baker, another well-known St. Georgian auntie to most of us, who passed away some time ago. And also, to the Bassett family, who Ms. Leonie Bassett’s daughter Debra Bassett -Nesbitt. She passed the day before yesterday. And I would like to associate MP Foggo with those comments. Everyone who knew Debra knows she worked down at Frangipani [Shop] in St. George’s for many, many years. Recently she was at the drugstore, which is also another commonly used place in St. George’s. So, she will definitely be missed. And I would just ask that those families and their friends and their associates be kept in our prayers, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, on a much lighter note, I would like to give birthday congratulations to a resident of the Dorothy Crane [Nursing Home], which happens to be in constituency 1, Ms. Leona Thompson. She celebrated her 106 th birthday. And that is, I am pretty sure for all of us, a milestone. We can only hope to get there. But you have got to be from good St. George’s stock to get there.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell . . . Well . . . Mr s. Renee Ming: You know, that is all I will say to that part. And also, to Aunt Cath Boatney . Most of you know her as Aunt Cath. She celebrated her 95th birthday. And also, I just want to make …
Well . . . Well . . . Mr s. Renee Ming: You know, that is all I will say to that part. And also, to Aunt Cath Boatney . Most of you know her as Aunt Cath. She celebrated her 95th birthday. And also, I just want to make sure that if you get the information, you get it correctly that Temptations is open Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 3:00, Sun-days from 8:00 to 2:00. The Sp eaker: You are advertising now. Mrs. Renee Ming: I look forward to seeing each and every one of you down there enjoying all of the St. George’s restaurants, cafes, bistros and grills. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Does any other Member . . . Minister Weeks, would you like to take your three minutes at this time? Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share about an event that makes me particularly proud to be Bermudian. It is an event that all Bermudians should have beamed with pride about and one that inspires our young people, Mr. Speaker, to set their …
Go right ahead. Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share about an event that makes me particularly proud to be Bermudian. It is an event that all Bermudians should have beamed with pride about and one that inspires our young people, Mr. Speaker, to set their minds on a goal safe in the knowledge that good atti-tude and hard work truly pays off. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in congratulating newly appointed Deputy Commissioner of Police, Ms. Na’imah Astwood. [ Desk thumping] Hon. Michael A. Weeks: She joined the Bermuda Police Service as a police cadet 28 years ago and since then has risen to lead the organisation alongside our commissioner. She has served in a number of roles within the BPS including community policing, criminal investigation, serious crime and strategic change man-agement. Ms. Astwood holds a bachelor’s degree and graduated from the FBI Academy in 2018. She also attended the prestigious Strategic Command course held at the College of Policing in Britain, which she com-pleted in 2020. In celebratio n of women in the uniformed services, I highlight that she was the first woman Black Rod for the convening of Parliament in 2010, the first female to command the Police Parade Guard, and Ms. Astwood now joins retired Deputy Commissioner of Po-lice, Ms. Roseanda Young, as the second female dep-uty commissioner. Ms. Astwood also received the Overseas Territories Police Medal in the 2018 Birthday Honours List. I want to stress, Mr. Speaker, I also wish to highlight that with Mr. [Darrin] Simons as Commissioner and Ms. Astwood as Deputy Commissioner, it is the first time in the history of the Bermuda Police Ser-vice that both of the top two posts are held by Black Bermudians. In closing, I wish her every success and pledge my support for her as she leads the women and men in the Bermuda Police Service as they continue to serve our community with honour to help make Ber-muda safer. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. 1304 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly [Crosstalk and laughter ]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Caesar, you have your three minutes.
Ms.
Crystal CaesarThank you, Mr. Speaker. I also rise this morning to add my condolences to those for Ms. Cora White. She was also a very avid supporter of the Progressive Labour Party out of Som-erset and a constituent of mine of Southampton West and constituency 31. I also want to make …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also rise this morning to add my condolences to those for Ms. Cora White. She was also a very avid supporter of the Progressive Labour Party out of Som-erset and a constituent of mine of Southampton West and constituency 31. I also want to make sad mention that my cousin- in-law, Mrs. Madree Furbert, passed recently. Wife to my dear cousin Donald Furbert and also she was predeceased by her son, Lerone. So, I make men-tion that our family, yes, and also sister to Aunt Nita whom many know her affectionately [as], who also pre-deceased her. One that is near and dear to me as well, Mr. Speaker, is the passing of Mrs. Barbara Shahidah Bashir. Mrs. Bashir was well known in the Somerset area living up on Cook’s Hill Road, mother to —yes, I associate all of those who would like to be. Her daughter Andresa was my contemporary in my class at the West End Primary. I know her as a very kind and loving woman, very faithful to Islam and gave me a healthy respect for the religion and including me when I was younger in taking me to the Masjid to celebrate many of their celebrations. She was a very, very good friend of my mother. The two of them would always be on the phone at some hour in the evening, talking and just enjoying each other’s company. So I also would just like to send out my condolences to the family and especially to my mom. This is a hard one for us. On a lighter note, Mr. Speaker, I would like to, well, maybe prematurely, but say congratulations to the sorority of Delta Sigma Theta, my sorority, the Ber-muda Alumni Chapter who will be holding the Chil-dren’s Reading Festival on — [ Inaudible interjection and laughter ]
Ms.
Crystal CaesarAnd all of those who want to be associated, all of the D -9— [ Laughter]
Ms.
Crystal CaesarYes. Associate t hem on our pinnacle event that is coming up on Monday, the annual Children’s Reading Festival —the Royal Edition of which is our most notable event in our calendar and also in the community. Many young people come and get free books. And we are doing it …
Yes. Associate t hem on our pinnacle event that is coming up on Monday, the annual Children’s Reading Festival —the Royal Edition of which is our most notable event in our calendar and also in the community. Many young people come and get free books. And we are doing it up this year. So I just want to say congratulations to the committee on going to put on a fantastic, fantastic event and invite all to please come by. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Caesar. MP Swan, are you on your feet?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. MP Swan, you have your three minutes.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanMr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the condolences being offered to Debra Nesbitt, nee Bassett. Actually, the Ferry Reach family are reeling as well. My good friend, Bronky, where she lived for well over 30 years even prior to his wife being passing away, she lived in …
Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the condolences being offered to Debra Nesbitt, nee Bassett. Actually, the Ferry Reach family are reeling as well. My good friend, Bronky, where she lived for well over 30 years even prior to his wife being passing away, she lived in the same house out there all that time. May she rest in peace. And to the Robertsons’ family where she worked and of course her own family and friends. [I] as sociate with the condolences to young Robert Fox, whom I have known pretty much all of his life. His m other Peggy, who was a good friend of mine as well. I am very sad. She passed away not too long ago, and to see that he had passed, condolences to the family and friends there. Anthony “The Blade” Rabain, certainly a South Shore boy and certainly the brother of many Rabains, but Frankie Rabain actually brought me close to his younger brother Blade who always liked to ride that big bike and polish it up and show how big his muscles were. And that was Anthony “Blade” Rabain. May he rest in peace as well. Also, I would like to be associated with Ms. Leona Thompson from North Shore, St. George’s, who now lives at Dorothy Crane [Nursing Home], and who is the epitome— and MP Foggo would like to be associated with those congratulations sent by MP Ming ear-lier. The epitome of longevity, but a very delightful lady as well. And so glad that she is continuing on. Betty Smith of Wellington’s Slip Road just recently celebrated a milestone birthday —I am not allowed to share any lady’s birthday like that. But we all know that she will do it up in a big way. And finally, young Nick Jones, the son of Eardley and the grandson of the great Leonard Jones, made it, won the local qualifying of the US Open in New York and advances to the sectional qualifying, which is a very good feat for that young man. And MP Tyrrell, who represents all of them in Jones Village, would like to be associated with those remarks. [Nick Jones] has done well, and he is an employee at the Bermuda Government golf courses, and we will support him in tryi ng to help him over the next four weeks get prepared for that event. And it is an honour. Both his mother and father have passed, so we wish him well and will be praying for him to have great success at this event.
Bermuda House of Ass embly [ Timer chimes]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. Would any other Member like to make a contribution? Opposition Leader, you have your three minutes. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to associate myself with the comments made in regard to a numb er of people. First, I …
Thank you, MP. Would any other Member like to make a contribution? Opposition Leader, you have your three minutes. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to associate myself with the comments made in regard to a numb er of people. First, I would like to speak to Michael Showers and Bridgit Riley; they are both from Warwick. We went to school together, and I tell you it is making me rather nervous that my contemporaries are passing away in such an untimely manner. In addition, I would like to associate myself with the comments made in regard to Anthony Rabain. He was a close family friend. He has been a friend of my father’s forever in the shooting clubs, the Coral Reef Rifle Club and the Knights of the Round Table. I w ould like to send condolences to Melvin, his son, and Mel-vin’s wife. And let us not forget his wife Aleathea and his wife who passed, Gloria, and his late daughter Eulamae. I would like to also send congratulations to the organisers of the Ag Show. I went two days. It was a great event, and I am glad that the Government has resumed that national event whereby everyone participates and has a great day. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratulations to the Mount Zion AME Church. They had their Men’s Day on Sunday. It was the first in three years. It was phenomenal. And I thought Rev. Dr. Jahkimmo Smith did an excellent, excellent job. And the guest speaker also did a phenomenal job. He is Evangelist Mark Darko. Mr. Speaker, I would like to also send condolences —or associate myself with the comments made in regard to Diana Mahoney. She is a constituent of mine. I have known her for many, many years. Aga in, [I am] concerned that these people, my contemporaries, are passing on. Mr. Speaker, I would like to also send— associate myself with [the congratulations for] Rowan Vick-ers. I have known him as a youngster. I am a trustee in the Arts Foundation, and he was one of the first recipients and he is doing great things in the theatre and TV overseas. And he is a shining example of what Bermu-dians can achieve when they set their minds to it in the arts. Mr. Speaker, I would like to also associate myself with t he comments made in regard to Deputy Police Commissioner Na’imah Astwood. I saw her at the Peppercorn ceremony. We had a great chat. She is very excited and ready for the challenge, and I wish her all the very, very best. And in closing, Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the One Bermuda Alliance and the people of Bermuda, I would like to send congratulations to King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla on their coronation tomor-row. And I would also like to send my best wishes and support to 14 Royal Bermuda Regiment soldiers and Bermuda Police Service professionals who will be par-ticipating in the coronation tomorrow. Thank you. [ Time chimes]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Thank you. MP Anthony Richardson, would you like to make your contribution at this time?
Mr. Anthony RichardsonMr. Speaker, to Members present and those in the listening audience, I want to do two positives. The first one might seem a bit strange, but it is a positive. And that is to recognise the life of Ms. Sheila Yvonne Simons -Johnson. To me she was my primary school …
Mr. Speaker, to Members present and those in the listening audience, I want to do two positives. The first one might seem a bit strange, but it is a positive. And that is to recognise the life of Ms. Sheila Yvonne Simons -Johnson. To me she was my primary school principal. And it was interesting because we went East End Primary, because we went full circle. At that time for me it was in 1974 when she be-came the East End School Primary Principal. And in more recent times she was actually one of my constit-uents. And I smile because I went canvassing one day and guess what? I could not find her. Ultimately, I found her at another constituent’s house, who was Mr. and Mrs. Italian and Peter Sousa. And as part of the com-ments at her homegoing service, they commented that she was —everyone knows a long- time and long- term educator. But one of her comments was guess what? She believed in disciplining the old- fashioned way, the strap. And she could not imagine teaching children nowadays because of course we have removed cor-poral punishment from the school system. So that would not have gone very well for her. I also want to comment on what I believe is one of Bermuda’s church secrets. And that is the location where her service was held at the Crawl Gospel Hall. It is such a small physical site on the side of the road, but when you go and attend, it is absolutely beautiful inside in terms of how they were able to renovate and extend it to a very, very magnificent facility.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSounds like your first time there.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSounds like his first visit, eh? [ Laughter]
Mr. Anthony Richardson—actua lly the entire ecosystem at Harrington Sound Primary for two things. One is belated in terms of they were successful in the 1306 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly interschool sports for the primary schools. They actually won both the boys and the girls …
—actua lly the entire ecosystem at Harrington Sound Primary for two things. One is belated in terms of they were successful in the 1306 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly interschool sports for the primary schools. They actually won both the boys and the girls divisions. Plus, some of the children, some of the students who were actually the high—I mean they won the best when it came to the athletes. Secondarily and more recently, last week I was able to attend the Spring into the Arts, as the Minister mentioned earlier. For them, they focused on the P1 and P2, children aged five and aged six. And the idea was to talk about the gardens in our lives, about how there are weeds sometimes, and how do we deal with the weeds? So, to the Principal, Ms. Cindy Weeks, the entire [student body], the parents and the educators who are there, I was also impressed that as always happens whenever children are involved, the assembly hall is completely full. I do not know one of the chil-dren’s names, but I want to say to the Cauliflower, she was absolutely excellent. For some reason something happened and she started crying. She went off and came back and finished out in a wonderful set. So, to Harrington Sound Primary, congratulations and well done. [ Desk thumping] [ Timer chimes]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister Furbert, you got up pretty quickly that time. You have your three minutes. Hon. Tinee Furbert: Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I do want to send condolences to three of my constituents within the St. David’s commu-nity. And I am just going to associate MP …
Thank you. Minister Furbert, you got up pretty quickly that time. You have your three minutes. Hon. Tinee Furbert: Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I do want to send condolences to three of my constituents within the St. David’s commu-nity. And I am just going to associate MP Lovitta Foggo as well. Mr. Ricky Pitcher, sending condolences to his family; as well as Mr. Llewellyn Fanshaw Pitcher com-monly known as “Tommy,” condolences to his family as well; and then also Ms. Helen Francis. Ms. Helen Francis was a supporter of the Progressive Labour Party. People may know her from Shopping Centre, as well as the Bermuda Historical Society Museum in St. George's. She worked there as well. She often helped my constituency out with events. And so she will be a huge miss to our particular branch. And I am just wanting to send condolences to the family of —all three families and the community at St. David’s Island as well. I wanted to send special congratulations to Yushae Andrade, who represented Bermuda in the World Boccia Cup competition. She won a silver medal for Bermuda. I am going to associate everyone in regard to Yushae’s achievements. Well done, Yushae! Also wanting to send congratulations out to —I have to do this. I have to acknowledge this. And this is the charity, HOME. You may have seen recently in the paper they have released their annual report of what they provide, the service that they provide in our community for the prevention of homelessness. All of those charities that are out there or organisations that are out there providing services, trying to help with the preven-tion of homelessness, I applaud you. But particularly HOME, who has newly come on board. They have been able to house 52 formerly homeless persons, pre-vented 70 cases of homelessness and taken on 70 clients and provided intensive case management to 24. It is a very challenging conversation when it comes to homelessness. However, I do want to applaud all of those charities who are willing to commit to put their annual reports out to the public so that they can demonstrate how they are using their funds to be able to help persons in our community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Pearman, and then the Deputy. Mr . Scott Pearman: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to send condolences to the family and friends of Mr. David Mello who for many, many years worked at HSBC and before that at the Bank of Bermuda. He died suddenly and unexpectedly …
MP Pearman, and then the Deputy. Mr . Scott Pearman: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to send condolences to the family and friends of Mr. David Mello who for many, many years worked at HSBC and before that at the Bank of Bermuda. He died suddenly and unexpectedly last week. I think it might have been Wednesday. He lived up near the Rubber Tree in Warwick. And I would like to specifically send condolences on behalf of the Op-position to his wife, Irene, and his children, Nicola and Caitlyn. I would also like to associate the Opposition Leader with my remarks. He worked with Mr. Mello for many, many years and considered him a close personal friend. While I am on my feet, I would also just like to be associated with the Opposition Leader’s remarks in respect to the Monarch’s coronation tomorrow. And I will be glad to be associated with those remarks. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Deputy Premier, you have the floor. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to give brief remarks at this time. I would definitely wish to be associated with the statements by the Minister of National Security around Na’imah Astwood. [I have] always …
Thank you. Deputy Premier, you have the floor. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to give brief remarks at this time. I would definitely wish to be associated with the statements by the Minister of National Security around Na’imah Astwood. [I have] always been an admirer of her and her leadership within the police service. So the fact that she is now the second in charge is suitable and is a good recognition of her longstanding deve lopment as a Black Bermudian woman and as a leader in our community.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSomerset girl. Hon. Walter H. Roban: That probably had something to do with it too.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerVery much so. Bermuda House of Ass embly Hon. Walter H. Roban: I also wish to be associated with the condolences already given for Ms. Beverly Tavares, longstanding friend of mine but also a constit-uent. So her passing was quite a shock to many. And as the Minister of Education …
Very much so.
Bermuda House of Ass embly Hon. Walter H. Roban: I also wish to be associated with the condolences already given for Ms. Beverly Tavares, longstanding friend of mine but also a constit-uent. So her passing was quite a shock to many. And as the Minister of Education said, she was of great ser-vice to so many people in what she did generally. But she was that type of person who helped many, had enormous administrative skills and was just a great per-son overall. Also a constituent of mine, Joan Desilva Smith who recently passed and will be funeralised soon. I certainly want to mention the passing of Randy [Randall] Butler, who I believe was interred yes-terday.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Known to many in this House, he was the uncle of a former Parliamentarian and known by many.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Hon. Walter H. Roban: So I am sure the whole House would like to be associated with the mention of Mr. But-ler. And I would just like, Mr. Speaker, to finalise my comments with giving congratulations to Bermuda. Following on from the statement from the Minister of Trans port …
Yes. Hon. Walter H. Roban: So I am sure the whole House would like to be associated with the mention of Mr. But-ler. And I would just like, Mr. Speaker, to finalise my comments with giving congratulations to Bermuda. Following on from the statement from the Minister of Trans port on the award which I had the honour to receive on behalf of Bermuda and the Ministry of Transport at the CREF (Caribbean Renewable Energy Forum) 15 th Conference held in Miami last week. I was happy to have received this on behalf of our Island. It puts our Island in a very big position. Because of the development of what we have been doing in e- mobility, once the most recent consignment is brought on Island we will have the largest electric bus fleet in the region of all of the islands in the Atlantic and Caribbean region. This is a great testament to our Island and what we are doing in this area. This is a tribute for Bermuda, not for our Government, not for just an individual. It is for our Island and what we are doing. And also, I do not want to miss in mentioning that we have led the way in a number of ways. But par-ticularly I want to mention BELCO in this.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell, give congratulations now, not a statement. It is congratulatory. Hon. Walter H. Roban: It is congratulations to Bermuda, I said at the beginning, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Hon. Walter H. Roban: But also to BELCO for actually having led the way in commercial e- mobility itself and leading the way that others can follow. [ Timer chimes]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood. Good. Thank you. MP Dunkley. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratulations and thanks to the Government for putting on the Ag Show again this year. It is a great cross -sectional community event and was well attended. And I …
Good. Good. Thank you. MP Dunkley. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratulations and thanks to the Government for putting on the Ag Show again this year. It is a great cross -sectional community event and was well attended. And I think people really look forward to it not only this year but in the coming years. Mr. Speaker, I would like to also add my voice to the congratulations to the Deputy Police Commis-sioner Na’imah Astwood on the momentous appoi ntment. A fine lady and well -deserved appointment as the Deputy Commissioner of Police. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to send congratulations to Fire Chief Dana Lovell on being appointed the Chief Fire Officer. I was blessed to be in the volunteers with Chief Lovell in the early 1980s. And I reflect fondly on the training and the ca-maraderie and the good times we had with that entire class. It is indeed heart -warming to see the old man progress up the chain. I think he will do a very good job. Mr. Speaker, I would like to support the Honourable Opposition Leader in the congratulations to King Charles and Queen Consort [Camilla] on the cor-onation tomorrow. I wish them the best of health, happiness and progress going forward. And, Mr. Speaker, on a sad note I will end with condolences to [the family of] a constituent of mine, Mr. [Joao] Veloso, who passed away just recently. A very, very strong family man who was never home when I went by but could be shored when I was canvassing. And associated with the Deputy Premier, Walter Roban. I always missed him when he was [not] home, but he would always catch me when I was out canvass-ing on a drive- by with his car. And he would be sure to stop. And so, to his family, deepest condolences on the passing of a fine man, fine family man. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister Campbell, you have your three minutes. Hon. Vance Campbell: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratulations to two young Bermudians, Mr. Tah- mi Williams and Jaquan Burrows. They both have recently completed an 18- month leadership development programme at the Hamilton Princess. …
Thank you. Minister Campbell, you have your three minutes. Hon. Vance Campbell: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratulations to two young Bermudians, Mr. Tah- mi Williams and Jaquan Burrows. They both have recently completed an 18- month leadership development programme at the Hamilton Princess. Mr. Williams will be taking up or has taken up a position in the 1609 Res-taurant as Assistant Manager. And Mr. Jaquan Burrows will be taking up a position of management in the Housekeeping section. I want to wish them all the best as they embark on a new career, and well done! 1308 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly I also would like to thank the owners and management of the Hamilton Princess for continuing to invest in the development and training of young Bermu-dians. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. MP Famous, it looks like you are the anchor this morning.
Mr. Christopher FamousI would like to start off with some sad news, the passing of Mr. Charles Paul, orig-inally from Pond Hill; Ms. LaVerne Burch from Devon-shire; Clarkson Smith from Green Acres, Devonshire (whom cousin Bishop mentioned earlier); Mr. “Bubba” Harris, who was uncle to Minister Rabain; Ms. Tiffani Raynor of Upland …
I would like to start off with some sad news, the passing of Mr. Charles Paul, orig-inally from Pond Hill; Ms. LaVerne Burch from Devon-shire; Clarkson Smith from Green Acres, Devonshire (whom cousin Bishop mentioned earlier); Mr. “Bubba” Harris, who was uncle to Minister Rabain; Ms. Tiffani Raynor of Upland Street, Devonshire; Ms. Mary Lowe of Cloverdale Close, Devonshire; and as MP Caesar said, Ms. Madree Furbert, Aunt Madree; and Major Butler, who was one of the gentlemen who taught us to be officers and gentlemen; and also someone from close to this area, Mr. Michael Wade, also known as “ Sabie .” For anyone who has ever frequented an establishment down the road called Swinging Doors, they would know that Mr. Sabie was one of the (what is the word they call?) mixologists. [ Inaudible interjections]
Mr. Christopher FamousYes, mixologist; right. Mr. Speaker, echoing what the Deputy Premier said, I would like to give congratulations to the Depart-ments of Energy and Transport for their work in electri-fying our bus system. We are the envy of the OTs [Overseas Territories]. None of them have public trans-portation, much less electric …
Yes, mixologist; right. Mr. Speaker, echoing what the Deputy Premier said, I would like to give congratulations to the Depart-ments of Energy and Transport for their work in electri-fying our bus system. We are the envy of the OTs [Overseas Territories]. None of them have public trans-portation, much less electric transportati on. Also echoing the comments —and I declare my interests —comments of the Deputy Premier, BELCO is leading the way in renewables as well, contrary to what some peo-ple think. Mr. Speaker, one of the challenges of long breaks is that when we come back here we have these long lists of persons who have passed. And I would like to also give condolences to your family, the Showers family, for the passing of your brother -in-law. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Does any — Ah, MP Wade, you have your three minutes. Mr . Jason Wade: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is with great sadness that I would like to extend my condolences to the family of Ms. Adulcie Zuill in her 104th year of 193 Middle …
Thank you. Does any — Ah, MP Wade, you have your three minutes. Mr . Jason Wade: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, it is with great sadness that I would like to extend my condolences to the family of Ms. Adulcie Zuill in her 104th year of 193 Middle Road, Southampton. She was one of my oldest cons tituents. And I thoroughly enjoyed visiting her house, speaking to her son, Kelly Zuill, throughout my time canvassing so far as an MP of the area. So I just wanted to extend my condolences to her family. And now for some more positive news, I wanted to reiterate the stance that the Minister of Edu-cation took on the congratulations to the CBA [Cedar-Bridge Academy] team in the KPMG challenge. To win that with a two- person team with all of the other schools involved was indeed a great accomplishment for the team, for the school and for those individuals. I also wanted to extend my congratulations to the Bermuda Cricket Board, Mr. Speaker, for the youth league that they have put together this year. It has kicked off with great success. I wanted to extend my congratulations to the Southampton Rangers on the 11 team that won their first game on Monday. And I also wanted to extend my support and encouragement for the Southampton Rangers Senior Cricket Team with which I am associated. Mr. Speaker, it has been a re-building season so far for Southampton Rangers Sen-ior Cricket Team. But it is encouraging to see over 20 young men at training every week, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday so far this season. So it is encouraging to see the rebuilding process. And I just wanted to give those young men a word of encourage-ment to tell them to keep at it and the wins will come. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. MP Adams, would you like to make your contribution at this time? Mr . Jache Adams: Yes, Mr. S peaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. Mr . Jache Adams: Good morning, Mr. Speaker. Yes, good afternoon. First of all, I wanted to send some condolences to [the family of] a constituent of mine, Mr. Duane Crockwell. I actually know his wife quite well as a former colleague of mine. So I would …
Go right ahead. Mr . Jache Adams: Good morning, Mr. Speaker. Yes, good afternoon. First of all, I wanted to send some condolences to [the family of] a constituent of mine, Mr. Duane Crockwell. I actually know his wife quite well as a former colleague of mine. So I would remember when I would go out and canvass the area, and naturally most of the conversation that I would have would be with his wife. And people would often tell me how quiet of a person he was. So again, I would continue to have these conversations with his wife. And I remember canvass-ing several weeks after, and Mr. Crockwell was walking his dog. And I can tell you that what was introduced to me as a quiet man certainly had a lot to say when he had me one- on-one. And he had a whole list of things and visions that he had whether it be within the immediate area or the country as a whole. So I certainly want to pass on my condolences to Ms. Alena Crockwell and her family as well. And also, Mr. Speaker, speaking of condolences, I would like to send my condolences for the
Bermuda House of Ass embly pas sing of Ms. Christine Pearman. I know her daughter quite well, and so many times —I grew up with her daughter —I would be in their household. And I remember some of her teachings of numerology which she was passionate about and showing the connection we had with numbers. So that is something that I certainly will take with me on her passing. But on a lighter note, Mr. Speaker, I do not know if this has been said, but I want to send congratulations to all of our athletes who represented Bermuda in the most recent CARIFTA Games. [ Desk thumping] Mr . Jache Adams: Whether it be on the swim team or the track team, all of them collectively represented Ber-muda well, and we are proud of their accomplishments and achievements. I will end on this note by congratulating Mr. Marico Thomas on his new role as the President of the Chamber of Commerce. As Chair of the BEDC, both he and I had some early conversations on how the two or-ganisations can find synergies for the betterment of entrepreneurs and the owners of small and medium- sized businesses. So I wish him well. And with that I will take my seat. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Adams. Any other Members? Minister Burch, I see you looking around this time. Would you like your three minutes?
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchYes, Mr. Speaker. I did not feel like exer cising myself by jumping up and down. [ Laughter]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell, you have the floor now.
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchThank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to be associated with the congratulations to both the new Deputy Commissioner of Police, Ms. Na’imah Astwood, and to the new Chief Fire Officer, Chief Lovell, both of whom I obviously had an opportunity to work with when I was in the Regiment …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to be associated with the congratulations to both the new Deputy Commissioner of Police, Ms. Na’imah Astwood, and to the new Chief Fire Officer, Chief Lovell, both of whom I obviously had an opportunity to work with when I was in the Regiment and found them both to be outstanding officers in their fields. And I wish them the best and the greatest suc-cess in their new endeavours. I would like to also be associated with the condolences to [the family of] Ms. Adulcie Zuill, who has been a neighbour of mine for about 40 years, maybe a little longer than that actually. And of course I know her son well, Kelly Zuill. I extend condolences to their fam-ilies. I would also like to extend condolences to the family of Major Randall Butler, whom I served with in the Regiment for a number of years. He never changed. He was always the same, calm, cool and collected, and willing to help anybody as he came along his way. So, I extend condolences to that family. Mr. Speaker, I guess I would also like to extend condolences to the PLP in the acknowledgement of a former Member of this House, Mr. Reginald Burrows, in renaming their headquarters after him for the considerable work that he did in support of the party. [ Desk thumping]
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchIt was an outstanding occasion on Sunday to witness his widow participating in the unveiling of the name of the new building and to express her and her family’s thanks for the acknowledgement of Mr. Burrows. I never served in this House with him, but he was my MP for …
It was an outstanding occasion on Sunday to witness his widow participating in the unveiling of the name of the new building and to express her and her family’s thanks for the acknowledgement of Mr. Burrows. I never served in this House with him, but he was my MP for a number of years, he and Mr. Lowe before single -seat constituencies, and a neighbour. So I fully supported the decision by the conference of the PLP to rename the building. So I congratulate them on acknowledging a distinguished for-mer Member of this House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? There are none. Before we move on, I think MP Famous summed it up correctly when he said that when we are away from this House on these breaks, it seems like we come back …
Thank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? There are none. Before we move on, I think MP Famous summed it up correctly when he said that when we are away from this House on these breaks, it seems like we come back on this first day (so to speak) with numerous acknowledgements of those who have passed and done other things in our community. But it seems like we have had an extra high number of deaths during this period of members throughout our community. And there are many that I would like to be associated with. And I am going to leave it at that because if I went down all of the list, we would be here for some time longer. The only one I would like to add to that would be the family of Jackie [Jacqueline] Wilson. Jackie Wilson was not a daughter of the soil, but she was an adopted daughter of the soil. She married Mr. Sammy Wilson, a Bermudian from Sinky Bay, and Bermuda be-came her adopted home and her family. Those in the church community know her well from her singing up and down the Island to many of our churches, not only in the Adventist community but in many of the churches. And her death was extremely untimely for all who knew her. And we would like to express our con-dolences to her husband Sam, her son Zachary and her daughter Samara. And there are many others in the room today who would like to be associated with that. And as I said, of the many deaths there are many of us who would like to be associated with all of the remarks that have been said today. With that, we will now move on. It is 12:25. We are going to make sure we get the Bill tabled this mor ning before we break for lunch. How is that? 1310 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report Ber muda House of Assembly MATTERS OF PRIVILEGE Th e Speaker: There are none. PERSONAL EXPLANATIONS Th e Speaker: There are none. NOTICE OF MOTIONS FOR THE ADJOURNMENT OF THE HOUSE ON MATTERS OF URGENT PUBLIC IMPORTANCE Th e Speaker: There are none. INTRODUCTION OF BILLS GOVERNMENT BILLS Th e Speaker: There is one Bill to be introduced this morning by the Minister of Transport. Minister. FIRST READING INSURANCE AMENDMENT ACT 2023 Ho n. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am introducing the following Bill for its first reading so that it may be placed on the Order Paper for the next day of meeting: Insurance Amendment Act 2023. Th e Speaker: Thank you. And that was introduced on behalf of the Premier, who is off the Island. Ho n. Wayne L. Furbert: On behalf of the Premier, yes. Th e Speaker: Yes. There are no other Bills to be introduced this morning. NOTICE OF MOTIONS Th e Speaker: There are none. ORDERS OF THE DAY Th e Speaker: It is close en ough to that 12:30 mark that I am going to ask the Deputy Premier to rise at this time. Ho n. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move that we do adjourn now for lunch until 2:00 pm. Th e Speaker: Are there any objections? There are none. The Hous e now s tands adj ourned for l unch until 2:00 pm. T hank y ou, Members. [Gavel] Proceedings suspended at 12:26 pm Proceedings resumed at 2:01 p m [Hon. Dennis P. Lister, J r., Speaker, i n the Chair]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood afternoon, Members. I trust everyone had a nice lunch break and are ready to resume business this afternoon. [Gavel]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe Hous e is now in session, and we can proceed with t he afternoon’s business. Members, this morning when we broke, we were in the process of starting with the Orders of the Day. And the first item to be debated this afternoon is the second reading of the …
The Hous e is now in session, and we can proceed with t he afternoon’s business. Members, this morning when we broke, we were in the process of starting with the Orders of the Day. And the first item to be debated this afternoon is the second reading of the Companies Amendment Act 2023 in the name of the Minister of Finance, but the Minister of Health is going to lead the Bill for us this afternoon. Minister. Hon. Kim N . Wilson: Thank y ou. G ood afternoon, Mr . Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood af ternoon. Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, I move that the Bill entitled the Companies Amendment Act 2023 be now read the second time.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAr e there an y objections t o that? There are none. Minister, proceed. BILL SECOND READING COMPANIES AMENDMENT ACT 2023 Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the Bill before the House this afternoon is the Companies Amendment Act 2023. The aim of this Bill is to …
Ar e there an y objections t o that? There are none. Minister, proceed. BILL SECOND READING COMPANIES AMENDMENT ACT 2023 Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the Bill before the House this afternoon is the Companies Amendment Act 2023. The aim of this Bill is to make two sets of amendments. One amendment relates to the Companies Act 1981 and the Limited Liability Company Act 2016 in connection to digital asset businesses that wish to form an exempted company or exempted LLC in order to engage in busi-ness in Bermuda. The second amendment relates to the Companies Act 1981 in connection with the requirement to advertise the reduction of a company’s shared capital.
Bermuda House of Ass embly Mr . Speaker, both of these amendments emanate from a request by industry to streamline statutory procedures which are costly and, equally more im-portant, create inefficiencies which in turn act as barri-ers to business and investment. Mr. Speaker, regarding digital asset businesses, an exempted company is the most suitable corporate vehicle to apply for a digital asset business licence from the Bermuda Monetary Authority pursuant to the Digital Asset Business Act 2018 [DABA]. Cur-rently, an exempted company subject to certain exemp-tions specified in section 129A of the Companies Act is unable to carry on business in Bermuda unless the Minister of Finance grants it a licence. Nonetheless, a sec-tion 129A licence does not permit an exempted com-pany to engage in retail trade in Bermuda with any other person. The same restriction applies to an ex-empted limited liability company. Mr. Speaker, the Bermuda Business Development Agency’s [BDA] technology subcommittee and le-gal focus group has advised that these restrictions do not lend themselves to digital asset businesses enter-ing the Bermuda market. Two examples provided by the BDA are as follows: 1.Cryptocurrency exchanges and tradin g pl atforms may be unable to permit Bermuda residents to trade on their exchanges which is a disadvantage to Ber-muda residents who are forced to utilise overseas exchanges. 2.FinTech businesses, particularly in the payment service provider space, may b e unab le to provide services to Bermuda residents. Meaning, some of the proposeddigital currency initiatives being promoted by Government, such as the ability to pay taxes and government fees in Bermuda indigital assets, cannot be provided by theinternational businesses which Bermuda istrying to attrac t. Mr . Speaker, we propose to remedy the restrictions in section 129A(1) by amending section 129A(4) of the Companies Act. Section 129A(4) ex-empts two types of exempted companies from section 129A licensing requirements; namely, an exempted company that carries on business (a) as an insurance manager or broker as defined in the Insurance Act 1978 or is registered under that Act, and (b) trust businesses as defined in the Trusts (Regulation of Trust Business) Act 2001 subject to the circumstances specified in sec-tion 129[A](4)(b). Mr. Speaker, the Bill therefore proposes to amend section 129A(4) of the Companies Act to ex-empt digital asset businesses that are licensed under the Digital Asset Business Act 2018 from having to ob-tain a section 129A licence. And similarly, Mr. Speaker , it is also proposed that section 24(1) of the Limited Lia-bility Act be amended to exempt digital asset busi-nesses licensed under the Digital Asset Business Act 2018 from having to obtain a section 25 licence. Mr. Speaker, regarding the second amendment in the Bill relating to the requirement to advertise the reduction of a company’s shared capital. Section 46(2)(a) of the Companies Act prohibits a Bermuda company from reducing its share capital unless not more than 30 days and not less than 15 days prior to such date of reduction the company publishes in an ap-pointed newspaper certain details of the proposed re-duction. Mr. Speaker, this requirement has been in effect since the Companies Act came into operation in 1981. Section 46(2)(a) is no longer considered as providing any useful protection to creditors. There are three reasons for this, Mr. Speaker. First, it is not the case now and nor has it ever [been] that a company’s paid in or stated capital has any bearing on its ability to pay its debts. It merely re-flects whether the full par value of issued shares has been paid and has no bearing on the financial situation of the company after the shares are issued and paid for. Second, it is doubtful whether the creditors are aware of this provision rendering its use moot. This is particularly true of the creditors of exempted companies, the majority of whom are based outside of Ber-muda. The Bill therefore proposes to eliminate the requirement to advertise the reduction of a company’s share capital. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? Opposition Leader, you have the floor. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is a very interesting piece of legislation and I thank the Minister for her brief. As was …
Thank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? Opposition Leader, you have the floor. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is a very interesting piece of legislation and I thank the Minister for her brief. As was said, for efficiency and variance to trade, the industry has called for a streamlining process in regard to incor-porations or licensing of digital asset businesses. I note that they have said that they would basically no longer have to follow the requirements of the Companies Act if these digital asset companies were licensed through the Digital Asset Business Act 2018. Mr. Speaker, my concern is this: I, and my team, in essence, are for expanding our economy and being innovative. The challenge that we face is that this industry is evolving, and the regulatory framework is evolving internationally and Bermuda is basically on the cutting edge of the regulatory framework. And people are looking at our jurisdiction and using what we have done to date as a framework to go forward and they are moving their businesses here so that our legislation, our digital asset legislation, provides them with some type of legitimacy. And that is where I come unstuck. 1312 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly I am for securing business, but I am also concerned about the level of KYC [Know Your Customer] that is required on the players and principals of these companies. And I think more needs to be done to en-sure that these businesses bring partners to this coun-try that we want to do business with. Mr. Speaker, I do not want Bermuda as a jurisdiction that will legitimise people’s businesses, be-cause we have a sterling reputation and because of our sterling reputation it is going to support these busi-nesses going forward. I would like to have blue- chip businesses coming to Bermuda to operate on their own merit and that we will review the KYC and AML [anti - money laundering] for the owners of the business so that we are satisfied that these are people who have a reputation, who have the knowledge to move their industries forward and also partners that we want to do business with. Mr. Speaker, I am saying that because as you will know from international media, a lot has happened in this industry and a number of regulators, the UK, the US and even Canadian regulators, are concerned. If we look at what is happening in the industry, if we look at the FTX implosion, the FTX implosion resulted because of a deficit of $8.9 billion. It was the first bank-ruptcy of a cryptocurrency exchange and that company to date could not determine where that $8.9 billion cus-tom money went to. Binance, again they had a relationship with Bermuda. Its US subsidiary paid a $25 million settle-ment to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. After t he US Office of Foreign Assets Control [OFAC] and finan-cial crimes enforced a network, found multiple sanc-tions programmes and wilful violations of anti -money laundering and suspicious activity reporting requirements. Mr. Speaker, are these the people who we want to do business with in Bermuda? Do we want to sully our reputation? And let’s not forget Arbitrade. Arbitrade, as you know, bought Victoria Hall and they had all these grand plans. But what happened to Arbitrade? Again, Mr. Speaker, the US and Canadian regulators accused Bermuda’s Arbitrade, and insiders, of a $51 million crypto investment fraud. Again, are these people— people, the type of characters —who we want to do business with in this country? Again, if you look further afield, the cryptocurrency industry has basically brought Silicon Valley Bank to its knees. It is one of the second- largest bank failures in US history. In addition, it impacted Credit Suisse Bank and the Signature Bank. Again, [this] in-dustry has its inherent risk. And this r isk, in essence, is contagious and has caused challenges to major indus-tries, beta banking industries that basically are mammoth compared to what we have here in this country. So, if the US regulators [and] the UK regulators cannot come to grips with this then how are we going to deal with the challenges faced in this industry? And like I said, Mr. Speaker, I am not saying that there are no opportunities. What I am saying is, let’s be more discerning in regard to the players who come here. I met with the S&P, and I met with a few other regulators. And I said what I am saying now, Mr. Speaker. There are opportunities on a digital asset business. And it is the way forward, Mr. Speaker. But again, we need to make sure that the players are de-cent people who can help Bermuda progress its agenda and maintain its blue- chip sterling reputation. Mr. Speaker, in closing, as you know, a number of US regulators and UK regulators are saying that the industry is in crisis. There has been a loss of confidence in the industry, and we are promoting that industry. And I know the Premier has a techy background, and I ap-plaud him for his energy. But I am saying slow down. Let’s make sure that we cross our T’s and dot our i’s to ensure that we have decent people. If you get quali fied reputable people, the business model will work. And all I am for is sustaining our reputation as a blue- chip jurisdiction, as a blue- chip financial service industry, and I do not want to do anything to compromise that repu-tation that we have taken years to build, Mr. Speaker. On that note I will take my seat and I will have some questions when we get into Committee. But again, I want to be clear. We feel that there are oppor-tunities in the digital asset business as well as the blockchain business. But we have to slow down, be more measured; do not rush, do not be overeager to oversell our jurisdiction, and at the end of the day get people working in this country who may cause [irrepa-rable] reputational risk to this country. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Th e Speaker: Thank you, MP Opposition Leader. MP Caines, would you like to make a contribution at this time? Mr . Wayne Caines: If it pleases you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. Mr . Wayne Caines: I would like to thank the Minister responsible for bringing this legislation. This is a step in the right direction. The Government has led in this space since its inception. The Opposition Leader highlighted some concerns, not just concerns that he has, concerns that we …
Continue. Mr . Wayne Caines: I would like to thank the Minister responsible for bringing this legislation. This is a step in the right direction. The Government has led in this space since its inception. The Opposition Leader highlighted some concerns, not just concerns that he has, concerns that we all have. The reason why this legis lation constantly continues to evolve, and we constantly need to amend is because we understand that this is nascent digital technology. And being in the forefront of anything, you have to keep up with the legislation, you have to keep up with the amendments and that is what we are doing. When you look at when the legislation was first put in place, sovereign authority was given to the Ber-muda Monetary Authority. The Bermuda Monetary Au-thority has appendages that look at the Digital Asset Business Act. They go through KYC. They look at the
Bermuda House of Ass embly ac tors. They make sure that people are fit for purpose. In a number of the cases that the Opposition has highlighted, the very reason why they did not set up in Ber-muda, is because of our legislation and the fact that our legislation was that squeaky [clean], was that difficult, it was that onerous that they went to other jurisdictions for that purpose. Now when people speak of Bermuda being a blue-chip jurisdiction for finance, this is something that is not lost on the Progressive Labour Party leadership. That is why you will see the amendments coming through. That is why you will see the Premier and his team constantly on the road, making sure that they understand the technical elements of it, making sure they understand the governance pieces of it, making sure they understand the pieces around KYC. We under-stand Solvency II. We understand the significance of Bermuda getting off the black list and being in a place where we can do business all around the world. And we, through legislation such as this, want to make sure that we keep our pristine reputation all around the world. Take anything and you find the outliers of people who are doing bad things and nefarious actors and you highlight them as the standard, and then you c reate a narrative that this business is attracting bad players. We are saying that there are bad players in this arena, but we are making the legislation so clear, so transpar-ent, so obvious that if you are indeed doing a DABA — . . . or, excuse me, are indeed doing a crypto exchange, or something of that nature, Bermuda is not your juris-diction of choice because of the legislation that is being put in place. If you see this legislation, it is going further, one step further, to make sure that our jurisdicti on is well managed, it is properly legislated, and that it has a clear independent regulator through the Bermuda Monetary Authority that looks at every exchange, it looks at every DABA customer/client to make sure that they find the right people who fit th e Bermuda matrix. If we were to follow and say, You know what? There is one bad actor so we should stay out of that industry, then . . . let’s look at the hedge fund industry. Will we paint everyone with a “Bernie Madoff” brush? We don’t! We say, This was a bad actor. He and his cohorts must be held accountable for it. We understand what it did to the hedge fund market. The significant impact we had on it. We now in our industry say that, Yes, there have been some bad actors coming out of other jurisdictio ns. But that is the reason why this Government’s evolving, emerging, continuously growing legislation allows us to continue to lead in this space. And I would like to thank Minister Wilson for bringing this legislation. It, again, keeps us in the evo-lution in this area and keeps Bermuda at the forefront, never compromising our safety, never compromising our blue- chip status, never compromising our regulatory responsibility, never compromising our KYC that we owe to this country and that we owe to our business partners, that we owe to our overseas partners, that we owe to the businesses coming into Bermuda. This is something that will constantly [and] always be in the forefront of our minds. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to make a contribution? MP Pearman, you have the floor. Mr . Scott Pearman: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Honourable and Learned Minister for her presentation on this Bill and I am also grateful to the speech by …
Thank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to make a contribution? MP Pearman, you have the floor. Mr . Scott Pearman: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Honourable and Learned Minister for her presentation on this Bill and I am also grateful to the speech by the Opposition Leader highlighting cer-tain concerns about the digital asset business industry, and I also thank the speaker who just spoke prior to me— Mr . Wayne Caines: Learned.
Mr. Scott Pearman—the Honourable and Learned Member — Mr . Wayne Caines: Gallant. Mr . Scott Pearman: No, I don’t think he is gallant. Are you gallant as well? He is gallant I am told. He is self - declared gallant. [ Inaudible interjection] Mr . Scott Pearman: —for his observations that …
—the Honourable and Learned Member — Mr . Wayne Caines: Gallant. Mr . Scott Pearman: No, I don’t think he is gallant. Are you gallant as well? He is gallant I am told. He is self - declared gallant. [ Inaudible interjection] Mr . Scott Pearman: —for his observations that there are bad actors in every sphere. I actually do not want to discuss the question of who we do business with. We have a Digital Asset Bill that is coming through and that is not what we are talking about today. We are talking about a Companies Amendment Bill which happens to touch on digital as-set businesses. Instead of talking about who we do business with, I would just like to touch very briefly on how we do business. Because what this Bill is doing is effectively two things. It is trying to reduce red tape by duplicative registration. That means, I arrive on this Island and I have to go and register over here and I also have to do the same thing over here. And the Bill is saying that this does not really make sense. If you go and register here and you clear the proper thresholds, then you are through the door and you are able to operate, why does our law make you go and do it all over again? So that is one of the two things that this Bill is doing. In relation to the Companies Act generally, and, yes, specifically to digital asset businesses, but in relation to the C ompanies Act generally. The second thing that this Bill is doing is that it is revisiting the concept of advertisement. And this has been there for decades, I believe. I don’t know if it pre-ceded the 1981 Companies Act or not, but it used to be that you had to go and advertise when you proposed to 1314 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly carry out a reduction in the capital of your business. Now, of course, since then we have seen a global change in the approach to business solvency and there are now solvency requirements. And indeed, the Hon-ourable and Learned Minister, when she opened with her brief, said that she was going to identify three reasons why the abandonment of the requirement of publication was a good thing, I think she stopped at two, but let me add the third reason for her. And th at is, if you are looking at the issue of the protection of credi-tors or businesses, if you have a solvency requirement, that is far greater protection to a creditor then an advertisement which may or may not be seen or understood in a gazette somewhere. A nd so, that is the second thing this Bill is doing. It is getting rid of an old approach that really didn’t protect creditors, and replacing it . . . well, this Bill is not replacing it, because it has been re-placed by solvency requirements. Turning from the specific to elements of this Bill, which we support, as the Opposition Leader ob-served (subject to his caveats on being careful about who we do business with), it is attempting to lessen the red tape. And this is important because in the global market place, Bermuda is out there every day competing with other jurisdictions. And we do, obviously, as the Opposition Leader made clear and I agree with him, need to be very careful about who we do business with. But we also need to be very alive as to how we do busi-ness. We cannot have barriers to entry. We do need to be an open, welcoming, pro- business jurisdiction. We do need to stay at the forefront of company law and we need to recognise that we are a preeminent blue-chip international financial centre. And to stay there we need to stay on top of these things. So, again, my remarks are not intended at all to comment on digital asset businesses generally but just specifically at the way in which these adjustments and these amendments in this Bill are seeking to improve and enhance the way in which we do business. So, for that reason, I believe we are supportive of the Bill, subject of course to the observations and concerns, which I am sure both sides of the aisle share, that we must, particularly in the digital asset business space, do better at recognising that there are some bad actors. We have been pretty lucky so far. I think the Bahamas to our south bore the brunt of some very, very bad publicity, but there but for the grace of God go we. So, Mr. Speaker, with those few brief observations I thank the Honourable Minister, I thank the Opposition Leader, and I thank the Honourable Member behind me who is self -described as gallant (I am told) and I will sit down. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Does any other Member . . . Minister Hayward, would you like to make a contribution at this time? Hon. Jason Hayward: Good afternoon, Mr. Speaker. The Speaker: Good afternoon. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, thank you for allowing me to provide an intervention in today’s debate. I …
Thank you. Does any other Member . . . Minister Hayward, would you like to make a contribution at this time? Hon. Jason Hayward: Good afternoon, Mr. Speaker. The Speaker: Good afternoon. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, thank you for allowing me to provide an intervention in today’s debate. I do not really support fully what the last speaker discussed in terms of reducing the redundancy of having to go and do something twice in two different places. What we are discussing here is that a company needs a licence to register in Bermuda as an interna-tional business. But to practice or carry out those ser-vices in our community, there is a separate licence that is required. And as a result, this is what this part icular legislation, the amendment, is making. It is actually cre-ating a bridge so that persons, digital asset companies that are underneath our double legislation automati-cally get rights to practice their activities within our economy. And this is extremely important because the type of licences individuals receive are somewhat unique in the Bermuda context. Bermuda provides a tiered system of licensing for digital assets, starting out with Tests [T], then Modified [M], then a Full [F] licence. Persons within the Tests arena, the way in which we develop the ecosystem is to allow those companies to come to Bermuda and use Bermuda as a beta centre for some of their innovations so that they can ultimately scale up and move to a Modified and a Full licence in a controlled environment using specific guardrails which are set out by the Bermuda Monetary Authority. As we travel the globe and we continue to promote Bermuda as a first -class business jurisdiction, Bermuda has a value proposition, and part of our valu e proposition is our regulatory environment. That regula-tory environment is one which is prudent but also flexi-ble. And I believe that is why you do not see the high volume of digital asset companies coming to Bermuda, but you see high value companies coming to Bermuda because companies want to participate and operate in that regulatory environment because investors want to ensure that their investments are put in the right place. But also, customers want to ensure that when they are dealing commerce with a company that their funds are also protected. And I think Bermuda provides that comfort. We have done well in the insurance space as it pertains to having high quality regulations and I believe that all we are doing is carrying that momentum and that ethos on to the digital asset space in terms of continuing with a high- quality regulatory environment. And so, it is extremely important that if we want to build a technology ecosystem in Bermuda, we cannot have an ecosystem which is absent of companies being able to operate in Bermuda. So, this change, while it may seem small on the face of it, it would have a major impact on how those companies are able to operate. And it is a significant step forward in terms of building a tech-nology ecosystem in Bermuda and a significant step forward as it pertains to our overall aim and our view
Bermuda House of Ass embly and our vision of having a first -class technology environment which kind of creates and nurtures this culture of innovation where persons are able to come with their concepts, put capital behind their concepts, get to mar-ket in an efficient manner, and then scale up using Ber-muda as a centre of excellence. So, thank you, Mr. Speaker, for those interventions.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? Deputy Premier. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you for the opportunity to make my own contri-bution to this debate. I hadn’t originally wished to do so because there is quite a …
Thank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? Deputy Premier. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you for the opportunity to make my own contri-bution to this debate. I hadn’t originally wished to do so because there is quite a capable cadre within our team who can speak to these matters around company . . . around the digital asset business and the issues that are connected to that. And I am certainly appreciative of the Honourable [and Learned] Minister of Health who is carrying the brief for the acting Finance Minister as well. I listened carefully to the submissions of the Opposition Leader. Perhaps that is what has moved me most to [make] a comment, because I think . . . and I just want to be complimentary, certainly, of the contri-butions of all Members, and I don’t think that there were necessarily any matters or attacks to anyone. And certainly what everybody has said has added texture to the interest in this area. As has been stated, the digital asset area, not only from a local but an international perspective, has gotten an extreme amount of attention lately. And perhaps not that insurance/reinsurance is sleepy or uninteresting, but it certainly has not as an industry gar-nered the sort of attention that digital asset business has received internation ally, in particular, with some of the things that were referenced. But it is from those industries of which Bermuda has a long history, as the Honourable Minister for Economy and Labour articu-lated, we have a long history of building a strong regu-latory framework not only to manage the scope of the industry, but alongside it we have also created the op-portunities for spaces for innovation. And we have become so good at it most other countries are trying to copy what we do. Th e Speaker: Mm-hmm. Hon. Walter H. Roban: This is the sort of maturity that we have taken, along with the Bermuda Monetary Au-thority [BMA] who, as has been clearly articulated by the Honourable Member who sits for constituency 14, is the independent regulator of that space. So, under-standing how the Opposition Leader made his comments, I think they sort of went over the top with describing the Government’s enthusiasm being too fast, too far and not taking care. If that were ever to happen, the BMA is there to manage that momentum. And I believe they have done an excellent job in doing so. And the care and attention that we have taken since the passing of the Digital Asset Business Act was attracting . . . the endeavour to attract the right companies in a very, as was mentioned, nascent and evolving industry is paying off. Recent announcements have shown that. We are attracting the blue- chip companies to Bermuda while the other companies go somewhere else and then their demise or fortunes go elsewhere. And we have seen [companies like FTX] (just one that is mentioned) that may have tried to come to Bermuda but our rigidity of regulatory framework, our insistence on high standards, did not make them and perh aps other companies’ applications successful. But as we have clearly seen, we did the right thing. And it is our endeavouring, [in making] amendments as have been proposed today, and other amend-ments in this space, to attempt to keep up with the changes that are happening but, at the same time, cre-ate spaces of innovation and opportunity where we have attracted the best in class will continue. And sometimes, as all of us know, if you want the best in class, the other more enthusiastic players just won’t come your way. And sometimes that is a good thing, because as perhaps the Honourable Member who sits in constituency 14 can tell you, and others can tell you who have worked in this space, will tell you is that we got a lot of flak for not being able . . . not accepting the Binance- type of companies. And as we know, sometimes the occasional company might slip through that might not be as good for your marketplace. This is not unique to digital as-sets, it goes on in other spaces of business as well. It happens . And then you ensure that your system can deal with that. But we have shown through our maturity of providing good regulatory framework, spaces for in-novation, good enforcement that we can attract the best. I do believe that on that basis, some of the comments by the Opposition Leader in particular that were stated, though understandably because he went through the whole list of some other things that have gone on [with] other companies, I think Bermuda is do-ing this in the right way. And yes, some of the larger regulators seem to be having some difficulty with trying to fit where some of these digital companies in the dif-ferent types of our . . . into the regulatory frameworks that they are trying to devise. But this is why I would disagree with the Opposition Leader. This is how he put it, and he can correct me if he wants, just because we are small doesn’t mean we cannot do it as well or better as the SEC [Securities and Exchange Commission] or other large regulators around the world in Canada— Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, point of order.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou have a point of order? 1316 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly POINT OF ORDER [Misleading] Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: The Deputy Premier is misleading the House. I never said that. I never implied that. All I said was slow the pace dow …
You have a point of order? 1316 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly POINT OF ORDER [Misleading] Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: The Deputy Premier is misleading the House. I never said that. I never implied that. All I said was slow the pace dow n and let’s do a more thorough job in ensuring the adequacy of our reg-ulatory framework. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. You’ve made your point. Member. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, he made his point, but I know what I heard. And he did make a point that sug-gested that because the SEC and the US are having difficulty, we should actually maybe do . . . follow them. Or …
Okay. You’ve made your point. Member. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, he made his point, but I know what I heard. And he did make a point that sug-gested that because the SEC and the US are having difficulty, we should actually maybe do . . . follow them. Or imply that we cannot do it best if they can’t do it themselves. I would suggest — Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, point of order. The Spea ker: Point of order. POINT OF ORDER [Misleading] Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: The Deputy Premier is misleading the House. I am not undermining Bermuda’s capabilities in this space. I recognise that the US and the UK regulators have challenges in crafting thei r own regulatory structure. It has nothing to do with us. All I am saying is let’s make sure that we do it thoroughly.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMm-hmm. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you again, Mr. Speaker. It was the Honourable Member who brought up this point. So, I am just referring to a point that the Honour-able Member made.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMm-hmm. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I am not putting this in . . . like it is coming out of the air. Just because the US and Canadian regulators and the EU have problems with doing something does not mean that we should have a problem as well. In fact, …
Mm-hmm. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I am not putting this in . . . like it is coming out of the air. Just because the US and Canadian regulators and the EU have problems with doing something does not mean that we should have a problem as well. In fact, recent visits by the Premier and his team from Fi-nance, and perhaps the BMA, to the United States speaki ng around these issues in the House of Representatives, has shown that actually we are doing things that they are having difficulty trying to figure out. And we are creating spaces for these types of companies that are actually attracting the best in this space. And it is not like we are getting criticism from them for what we are doing. If they are having difficulties with trying to figure it out, well, I am sure they will figure it out at some point. The point is that the reason why Bermuda is attracting the business that it [has] is because we have figured out a way to attract the best companies in this space at this time with a framework that is comforting to them. That at least from an international standpoint meets the best standards. And actually, because of our experience . . . because, frankly, we started doing this long before the United States and Canada and the EU have done. I think that is what has become very appar-ent. And because of our experience we are benefiting from that. They are just getting on board. Because we know that we used to hear from people like [Jamie] Dimon and others about how crypto is dead and it is not a worthwhile area of investment. But now they have all changed their tune because they realise that this is an area of financial activity that is here to stay. So, Bermuda many . . . you know, two or three more years ago passed a legislation to begin a process of how we can attract this business. And our maturity in this space is much more mature than some of the larg-est regulators on the planet, [and it] has shown to be of benefit to us. And we are attracting the best companies. I am not discouraging the concerns of the Opposition Leader around care and attention. I happen to believe that this is appropriate. But I want to assure him that this is actuall y what is going on in this space with us. And we will bring amendments; we will ensure that legislation . . . just as we do with other bodies of legislation —the Insurance Act, the Investment Business Act and all the other pieces of legislation —that we constantly bring to this Legislature to pass, to accede to the changes that may be going [on] around us in these large international markets. Because the companies that are in Bermuda do not necessarily just operate here, they operate around the world in jurisdictions that they themselves have to satisfy stringent requirements. And Bermuda, being the base for some of these companies, must have the highest requirements as well. We will continue to do that as we do in other sectors. But I am making the point, Mr. Speaker, which I think everybody in Bermuda can have some confi-dence in. I’m not saying it should be blind confidence. But it should be confidence in that the maturity that we have accumulated over the years in the areas of insur-ance and reinsurance and other areas of financial services is benefiting the work that we are doing in this nascent (and I will use my colleague’s word) space of new financial activity. And it is benefiting Bermuda in a positive way. We will continue to be working with the BMA to ensure that the highest standards are followed. And I can assure you, and I am sure even the Honourable Opposition Leader and others in this House know that if the Government were to get slightly overexuberant, we have the BMA there to put us in the right scope of where things should be because it is their responsibility as the independent regulator of our financial services
Bermuda House of Assembly spac e to make sure that Bermuda adheres to the highest standards in all of our activities in these areas. And we will continue as Government to bring legislation like has been presented today to do just that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Th e Speaker: Thank you, Deputy Premier. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? There appears to be none. Minister. Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I would also like to add thanks to the Honourable Mem-bers who contributed to in support of this piece of leg-islation. Mr. Speaker, we as the Government do share the same sentiments as raised by the Opposition as it relates to our desire to ensure that any policies and legislation that is advanced by this Government will con-tinue to maintain our sterling blue- chip reputation. With particular emphasis on the continuation of an open, transparent and independent regulatory environment that is being maintained by the Bermuda Monetary Authority. And with that, Mr. Speaker, I would like to move that this Bill now be committed. Th e Speaker: Are there any objections? There are none. MP Foggo, would you take the Chair for us ? House in Committee at 2:42 pm [Ms. Lov itta F. F oggo, C hairman] COMMITTEE O N BILL COMPANIES AM ENDMENT ACT 2 023
The ChairmanChairmanHonourable Members, we are now in Committee of the whole [House] for further consideration of the Bill entitled Companies Amendment Act 2023 . I call on the Minister carrying the Bill to proc eed. Minister. Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you, Madam Chairman. I would like to move all …
Honourable Members, we are now in Committee of the whole [House] for further consideration of the Bill entitled Companies Amendment Act 2023 . I call on the Minister carrying the Bill to proc eed. Minister. Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you, Madam Chairman. I would like to move all four clauses, please. Th e Chairman: It has been moved that all four clauses . . . do I have agreement from the floor? So moved. You may continue. Ho nourable . Kim N. Wilson: Thank you. Madam Chairman, the Bill seeks to amend the Companies Act 1981 in section 129A to enable an ex-empted company that is licensed under the Digital Asset Business Act 2018 to carry on business in Bermuda without the need to be additionally licensed under sec-tion 129A(1) of the Companies Act 1981; to remove the requirement under section 46(2)(a) of the Companies Act [1981] for a company intending to reduce its share capital to publish certain details of the proposed reduction of capital; to amend the Limited Liability Company Act 2016 in section 24 to enable an exempted limited liability company that is licensed under the Digital Asset Business Act 2018 to carry on business in Bermuda without the need to be additionally licensed under section 25(1) of the Limited Liability Company Act 2016. Clause 1 is the standard citation clause. Clause 2 amends the Companies Act 1981 in section 46 [by] repealing subsection (2)(a) for the purpose of removing the requirement for a company intending to reduce its share capital to publish certain details of the proposed reduction of capital. Clause 3 amends the Companies Act 1981 in section 129A(4) for the purpose of enabling an exempted company that is licensed under the Digital As-set Business Act 2018 to carry on business in Bermuda without the need to be additionally licensed under section 129A(1) of the Companies Act 1981. Clause 4 amends section 24 of the Limited Liability Company Act 2016 for the purpose of enabling an exempted limited liability company that is licensed under the Digital Asset Business Act 2018 to carry on business in Bermuda without the need to be additionally licensed under section 25(1) of the Limited Liability Company Act 2016. Thank you, Madam Chairman. Th e Chairman: Thank you, Minister. Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? I recognise the Opposition Leader. You have the floor. Ho n. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Madam Chairman. I do have two questions. I would like to direct you to [clause] 2, Amends section 46 of Companies Act [1981]. And the repealing of [subsection] 2 and the re-quirement of . . . that surrounds the reduction of capital. During the debate there was an issue of solvency requirements. So, can the Minister provide details of the solvency requirement for the legislation to ensure that there is adequate protection for the clients and share-holders of the DABA companies? The second question is a comment and a question. And this pertains to [clause] 3 whereby it is no longer required to have licences in the Companies Act if you have DABA licences. My question is this: When I first read this . . . and the same thing applies to [clause] 4, the Limited Liability Company Act. When I first read this, what came to mind for me was we have some checks and balances. And I heard what the Minister 1318 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly said for efficiency, getting things done, being more attractive as a jurisdiction and that it was promoted by industry. And yes, industry wants things done efficiently without red tape and ease to market. I understand that 100 per cent. But when I read what we are doing here, in essence, I felt they were removing a check and balance— [ Inaudible interjection]
The ChairmanChairmanExcuse me. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: My question is — [ Inaudible interjections]
The ChairmanChairmanJust a minute. Just a minute. He has the floor. Is there an objection? [ Inaudible interjection]
The ChairmanChairmanNo. Opposition Leader, can you make your question specific so that the Minister will know what you are seeking. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: So, my question to the Minister, for both [clauses] 3 and 4, does she take the pos-sible view that we are eliminating some checks and balances …
No. Opposition Leader, can you make your question specific so that the Minister will know what you are seeking. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: So, my question to the Minister, for both [clauses] 3 and 4, does she take the pos-sible view that we are eliminating some checks and balances because we are only having one (for a lack of a better word) regulatory body reviewing the applica-tions? Before there was a KYC review of applications in the Companies Act —
The ChairmanChairmanHow about just put the question so that— Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: ––that–– I was expanding on my question. So, I asked her, did she believe that there was a diminishment of checks and balances by eliminating the requirement for the Companies Act licensing process and the limited liability …
How about just put the question so that— Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: ––that–– I was expanding on my question. So, I asked her, did she believe that there was a diminishment of checks and balances by eliminating the requirement for the Companies Act licensing process and the limited liability process being removed if the company is incorporated under the DABA 2018. That is the question.
The ChairmanChairmanOkay. Thank you. Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: [I have] a third question that I just thought of.
The ChairmanChairmanI recognise the Opposition Leader. You have the floor. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Now, being a sceptic —
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberWhich clause are you speaking to? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Three and f our.
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberA sceptic of what? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Being a sceptic —
The ChairmanChairmanSpeak to the Chair. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: My question is this: Are we managing the risk by shifting from Government’s Com-pany legislation (i.e., the Government and the regula-tory requirements under the Companies Act), out of the Government’s purview to the independent regulator which is a quango? And so, …
Speak to the Chair. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: My question is this: Are we managing the risk by shifting from Government’s Com-pany legislation (i.e., the Government and the regula-tory requirements under the Companies Act), out of the Government’s purview to the independent regulator which is a quango? And so, the risk is taken off of Gov-ernment’s book and put on the quango’s book. And that is my question. Is that part of the strategy as well?
The ChairmanChairmanOkay. That sounds like a part two of the first question that you put to the Minister. Thank you. Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? There being none . . . Minister. Ho n. Ki m N. Wilson: Thank you. And I …
Okay. That sounds like a part two of the first question that you put to the Minister. Thank you. Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? There being none . . . Minister. Ho n. Ki m N. Wilson: Thank you. And I thank the Honourable Member for his questions. With respect to whether or not there is a concern, I would say no because the application for the li-cence under the Digital Asset Business Act is still scrutinised by the BMA —wit h great care, I might add. And the BMA being the regulator of digital asset businesses here in Bermuda, and as part of their regulatory envi-ronment — [ Crosstalk] Hon. Kim N. Wilson: As part of their regulatory environment they obviously do comply with all of the CFATF regulations as it relates to money laundering, know your client[/customer], all of the regulations that —the 14 regulations, actually, that come under the Proceeds of Crime Act. The BMA obviously has a whole tribe over there that ensures that they do that for the companies that are registering as well as those under DABA. As well, the analysis by the BMA, Madam Chairman, in-volves considering whether a company is fit to pr ovide the service both in retail and wholesale as well, regard-less of whether they are local or an overseas company, and where appropriate the BMA will make use of its regulatory tools in accordance with the provisions un-der DABA, such as applying conditions and restrictions to limit licence activity. Therefore, any additional licensing requirement will be unnecessary. Hon. Jason Hayward: Madam Chairman.
The ChairmanChairmanIs there an objection? Because the Minister was still speaking. Mi nister, did you want to . . . do you have a point of either information or clarification that you would like the Minister to yield to? Hon. Jason Hayward: Yes, certainly.
The ChairmanChairmanMinister, do you yield? Hon. Kim N. Wilson: No. [ Laughter] Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Yes. Hon. Jason Hayward: I just wanted to add a level of clarity to the level of supervision that takes place un-derneath the Digital Asset Business Act —
The ChairmanChairmanProceed. Hon. Jason Hayward: —which will hopefully provide the Opposition with some comfort, that these compa-nies are being monitored on an ongoing basis. Under our Modified licence, there is monthly supervision of these companies underneath that particular Act. And under a Full licence there are annual returns and onsite supervision …
Proceed. Hon. Jason Hayward: —which will hopefully provide the Opposition with some comfort, that these compa-nies are being monitored on an ongoing basis. Under our Modified licence, there is monthly supervision of these companies underneath that particular Act. And under a Full licence there are annual returns and onsite supervision of these companies. And so, the supervi-sion activities does not stop at registration of the com-panies. There is ongoing monitoring.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Minister. Minister, were you finished in totality? Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Yes, I was.
The ChairmanChairmanOkay. Thank you. Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Yes.
The ChairmanChairmanI recognise the Opposition Leader. Ho n. N. H. Cole Simons: With all due respect, I am still waiting for an answer in regard to the solvency require-ments under DABA.
The ChairmanChairmanIs that clause 2? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: That is clause 2. Because we talked about reduction of capital. And I am just concerned about how we are ensuring that there are adequate solvency requirements within our legislation. So, if she could speak to that and provide me with …
Is that clause 2? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: That is clause 2. Because we talked about reduction of capital. And I am just concerned about how we are ensuring that there are adequate solvency requirements within our legislation. So, if she could speak to that and provide me with that comfort I will be obliged. Thank you. The C hairman: Thank you, Member. Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? There being none . . . Minister. Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you, Madam Chairman. I am trying to follow the line of questions. With the greatest respect Mr. Opposition Leader, you are referring to section—
The ChairmanChairmanClause 2. Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Clause 2. Amendments to 46? Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Yes.
The ChairmanChairmanSpeak to the Chair. Yes. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: What I am saying is, if we are reducing the capital . . . and I understand the history behind the capital reduction and why you are doing it. So, what comes up for me, if we are going to …
Speak to the Chair. Yes. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: What I am saying is, if we are reducing the capital . . . and I understand the history behind the capital reduction and why you are doing it. So, what comes up for me, if we are going to reduce the capital then what solvency protective measures do we have embedded into the legislation that will provide comfort to the shareholders and clients that the company is adequately capitalised or . . . they haven’t . . . they meet solvency requirements.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Opposition Leader. Minister. Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Yes, Madam Chairman, with respect to section 46, that ties in also with the advertise-ment requirement. If I can just provide a little bit of a background. The purpose can be determined from the original makeup of section 46 which included …
Thank you, Opposition Leader. Minister. Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Yes, Madam Chairman, with respect to section 46, that ties in also with the advertise-ment requirement. If I can just provide a little bit of a background. The purpose can be determined from the original makeup of section 46 which included a requirement f or two directors to swear an affidavit that (1) on the effective day of the reduction either the company is solvent, or (2) all creditors had expressed in writing their concurrence to the capital reduction. And the advertisement requirement was intended to alert creditors of the company of the coming reduction and allow them to prevent the reduction from taking place which the Act permitted them to do so at least if two directors were not willing to swear that the company was solvent. And by section 46(2), amended in 2000, to remove that affidavit requirement and as a result even if creditors are made aware of a reduction, they are now unable to take such action to prevent a reduction so those provision does not provide any additional protec-tion to creditors of a company. In practical terms, Madam Chairman, whilst not providing any creditor protection, the advertising re-quirement can be difficult to comply with given the pe-riod of time that must elapse between the placing of the advertisement and the effective date. Thank you, Madam Chairman.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Minister. Bermuda House of As sembly 1320 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report Ber muda House of Assembly Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? There being no other Member, Minister, you have the floor. Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Madam …
Thank you, Minister. Bermuda House of As sembly 1320 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report Ber muda House of Assembly Are there any other Members who wish to speak to clauses 1 through 4? There being no other Member, Minister, you have the floor. Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Madam Chairman, I move that the preamble be approved. Th e Chairman: It has been moved that the preamble be approved. Are there any objections? Agreed to. Continue. Ho n. Kim N. Wilson: Madam Chairman, I move that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Th e Chairman: It has been moved that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Any objections? Agreed to. Hon. Kim N . Wilson: Thank y ou, Ma dam C hairman. The C hairman: Thank y ou, Mi nister. [Motion carried: The Companies Amendment Act 2023 was considered by a Committee of the whole House and passed without amendment.] The C hairman: We will c all on t he Speaker t o resume his seat. House resumed at 2:56 pm [Hon. Dennis P. L ister, J r., Speaker, i n the Chair] REPORT O F COMMITTEE COMPANIES AMEN DMENT ACT 20 23
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, are there any objections to the Bill entitled the Companies Amendment Act 2023 being reported to the House as printed? There are none. The Bill has been reported as printed. Thank you, Members, for your participation. And this brings us to a close of that matter. We will now …
Members, are there any objections to the Bill entitled the Companies Amendment Act 2023 being reported to the House as printed? There are none. The Bill has been reported as printed. Thank you, Members, for your participation. And this brings us to a close of that matter. We will now move on to the next item on the Order Paper for discussion today. It is a motion to be moved by the Hon-ourable Lieutenant Colonel David A. Burch, notice of which was given on the 24 th of March [2023]. Minister Burch. MOTION DISSOLUTION OF THE BERMUDA LAND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY (BL DC) SO THAT IT MAY BE AMALGAMATED WITH THE WEST END DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (WEDCO)
Lt.
Col. Hon. David A. BurchThank you, Mr. Speaker. I move that the House do now take under consideration the following Motion, notice of which was given on the 24th of March 2023: BE IT RESOLVED that this Honourable House in accordance with section 8 of the Base Lands Devel-opment Act 1996 (“the Act”), approve …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I move that the House do now take under consideration the following Motion, notice of which was given on the 24th of March 2023: BE IT RESOLVED that this Honourable House in accordance with section 8 of the Base Lands Devel-opment Act 1996 (“the Act”), approve the dissolution of the Bermuda Land Development Company (BDLC) so that it may be amalgamated with the West End Development Corporation (WEDCO). Th e Speaker: Are there any objections to him proceeding? None. Go ahead, Minister.
Lt.
Col. Hon. David A. BurchMr. Speaker, I rise to seek the approval of this Honourable House for the dis-solution of the Bermuda Land Development Company (BLDC) in accordance with section 8(b) of the Base Lands Development Act 1996. Mr. Speaker, the House will recall that on July 15, 2022, I informed this House that …
Mr. Speaker, I rise to seek the approval of this Honourable House for the dis-solution of the Bermuda Land Development Company (BLDC) in accordance with section 8(b) of the Base Lands Development Act 1996. Mr. Speaker, the House will recall that on July 15, 2022, I informed this House that Cabinet, exercising fiscal prudence, had approved the merging of the West End Development Corporation and the Bermuda Land Development Company Limited into one new entity as these two quangos shared similar objec-tives, mandates, skills, accounting procedures and staffing levels. Mr. Speaker, for the past eight months the boards and management teams of WEDCO and the BLDC have worked tirelessly to advance this merger with a view to bringing it to fruition by January 2024. Mr. Speaker, section 8(b) of the Base Lands Act 1996 provides that unless authorised by the Legis-lature a member of the company, that is the BLDC, shall not procure the dissolution of the company or its amalgamation with any other person or body. Mr. Sp eaker, as a member of the company, I am seeking approval of the Legislature to dissolve the company in accordance with the Act. Following the agreement of the Governor, the resolution will become active by notice in the O fficial Gazette. Mr. Speaker, this concludes my presentation. Thank you. Th e Speaker: Thank you. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? MP Cannonier. Mr . L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. Yes, Mr. Speaker. Let me first say thank you to the Minister for his briefing.
Bermuda House of Ass embly [Crosstalk and laughter ]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierAnd thank you for updating us that the dissolution of the Bermuda Land Development Corporation is to take place officially, I believe he said January of 2024. This is by no means a surprise that we are looking at this. The Minister has clearly stated, especially during the budget time …
And thank you for updating us that the dissolution of the Bermuda Land Development Corporation is to take place officially, I believe he said January of 2024. This is by no means a surprise that we are looking at this. The Minister has clearly stated, especially during the budget time the moves that he has been looking at in order to bring about what I would consider to be better symmetry between the two quangos. Certainly, both have had their challenges but we can fairly say that WEDCO has done a great job with the mandate that they have created for themselves. Especially with it being a tourist hub, of getting things going. The bringing together of the water plant that we have seen that also not just ha ndles WEDCO but is extended into the community as well in providing potable water . . . has been a huge success. We have tended to look at this amalgamation more to do as a cost savings as opposed to discussing some of the opportunities that might exist with this here. And so, I would . . . there are some of us who would agree that such a symmetry will bring about potential savings. No question about it. There are others who might believe, on the other hand, or may be just slightly concerned about the move in that it may jeopardise some of the nuances between the different communi-ties. WEDCO being a completely separate area, [at the] opposite end of the Island, that decision- making going forward may not take into play some of the nuances of the East End when it considers the potential for there. I happen to be of the belief that both of these can be done, and done successfully. What I am disap-pointed [in] is that BLDC, with such a vast amount of property, still to this date has not put its mark on creating a revenue- driven entrepreneurial opportunity for Bermuda that generates income for all, and opportunities. It has had some successes, yes. But by and large certainly there is so much more that can be done in this particular area. It is a vast piece of pr operty. One of the major concerns . . . and doing the history, one of the major concerns that came out of the Southlands was that it didn’t have a grocery store. Well then it got a grocery store. And I don’t know all of the reasoning behind why it was not a success. Having been in that industry before, it certainly was oversized and I think it was an overreach by what was there and put there because the cost was through the roof. But suffice to say, the community still today believes that a grocery store w ould be a number -one thing that would be desired in the area. So, as we are moving forward to January of 2024, I think it would be important for us to really un-derstand more about what is the plan going forward. There have been plans put in place for Southlands, but as we bring the amalgamation of both . . . well, th e dissolution of the BLDC, I am assuming that the corpora-tion or that the quango name is going to maintain itself as West End. I don’t know. I would think that it probably would change that. And maybe the Minister can at a later point let us know about that. But I would assume that at January 2024 they probably would have decided to create a new title to the quango because it would be one. And I can agree with some of the statements that the Minister has made in the past where, you know, we are amalgamating and we are doing away with some of these duplicated positions. We have asked questions before about, you know, are people going to lose their jobs and the likes. That still is to be seen. The Minister has intimated that there should not be a loss of positions. How they obtain that . . . you know, we will still wait to see how that works out. But no question about the fact that something needs to happen. And I believe the Minister is making this move because he wants to see something happen. I am as-suming that it is not just for cost savings. I am assuming that it has to do with the progression of what will be the former BLDC. Because when you look at the area and the history of the area, I know that studies have been done questioning the St. David’s community and others who work and are on BLDC, well, what are the great things about it? And I think that out of that study came, number one, it is quiet, it is tranquil. These are some of the words that were being used. And one of the other things that we all know, is that St. David’s still, as a community, is very much so, a community. [It is] one of the last places on the Island that you can say . . . I know Somerset as well operates very much like a close- knit community. You have heard the Honourable Member from constituency 3, the Honourable Member Ms. Foggo, mention all the time about her constituents and how they know all of what is going on. But St. David ’s, in and of itself, has made some huge sacrifices for the Island. And as we take a look at the history of the area, I would like to see (and I am sure that the Minister concurs with this here) more of an effort brought back to the sacrifice that was made by the St. David’s islanders to ensure that it did its part in the World War and that we see a vibrant area down there as opposed to what it is right now. Every Easter, you know, Good Friday we go down there and we enjoy the go- cart races. Everyone from Dockyard down comes to enjoy the community there. And I would like to see this area have some pur-pose. WEDCO’s got cruise ships coming in. We have a massive waterfront down there. And [there are] other areas that could be created as waterfront as well. But we already have a massive area, an infrastructure that has been put in place by the Base Lands where smaller ships can come in. Obviously, we know that there is a hump in that area just beyond the dock that prevents some of the major ships coming in, but maybe that could be imploded or whatever the case may be, so that we can get larger ships in there and dock there. But what a huge opportunity! And to this day . . . I mean, this has been going on before . . . well, was it in 1996 1322 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly that it was . . . somewhere around there? The Minister is shaking his head. I am trying to remember the dates here but my goodness, since then we have not seen anything really major happen. And a huge opportunity . . . I mean, hotel, you name it! All kinds of things can be done on that waterfront. Ships coming in. It would be a great area in my estimation to find other resources. We have had dis-cussions in the House here . . . other resources for bringing in goods at better pricing if we go direct as op-posed to always going to the United States for some of these goods. Go directly to the source who is sending it to the United States. It is a great opportunity that we could explore for this area to be bringing in goods and maybe relieve Hamilton of its eyesore on the waterfront and make that pristine as well and bring the ships down to St. George’s. I don’t know. But the opportunity does exist and there are huge, huge potentials for us to go out to the community . . . and even with 36 of us, to talk about what possibly could be done. It can’t just be all about, and I know that the Minister is not saying that, although he was brief, that it is just about cost savings. And I am assuming that because of the success of WEDCO that we are trying to bring some of that thinking, that intellec tual capital to the table. I know it was extremely frustrating for me at the time when I was Minister just trying to get a report from BLDC on what could be taken there. So, I wel-come this opportunity. I would like to educate the public a little more on some of the polling that was done. I mentioned that some of the most liked things was that it was quiet, it was tranquil, the community aspect of it, the beaches. Of course, if you go further on out to NASA Beach there . . . Clearwater is not the beach. If you go further out from Clearwater where they had the satellites and NASA—
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberScuba diving.
Mr. L. Craig CannonierYes. Yes. If you go further out to Cooper’s Island, where the beach is there, we call it NASA Beach there, the sand is so soft and pristine and largely because it didn’t have a lot of people going out there. It was always blocked off. But it is beautiful. …
Yes. Yes. If you go further out to Cooper’s Island, where the beach is there, we call it NASA Beach there, the sand is so soft and pristine and largely because it didn’t have a lot of people going out there. It was always blocked off. But it is beautiful. Just beautiful. And not only does it have beachfront property on the southeast side, but also on the western side of it wh ich is going into the Castle Harbour area. It has a beach there as well that is on that side that is pristine as well. Not as large, and [there is] a lot of natural life over here. In fact, I used to go over there as a teenager with my uncle who was a former MP of the PLP, Reverend Larry Lowe. He was the one who taught me how to catch sharks off there on the reefs. And so, there is a lot that could be explored there as far as adventure is concerned. [ Inaudible interjections] Mr. L. Craig Cannonier: Sorry? [ Inaudible interjections]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierOh, absolutely! Absolutely! From the AME Church. [ Inaudible interjections and laughter]
Mr. L. Craig CannonierSo, interestingly enough, I am hoping that once the dissolution of the BLDC comes about that we are going to hear more from the Minister about what the plans are from this amalgamated group on how we can really make something happen. It needs a purpose, and I think that …
So, interestingly enough, I am hoping that once the dissolution of the BLDC comes about that we are going to hear more from the Minister about what the plans are from this amalgamated group on how we can really make something happen. It needs a purpose, and I think that is what is missing right now; a singular purpose of how and what it shou ld be. I always was a proponent that, listen, you know, approxi-mately 250 to 300 native St. David’s islanders lost their land because it had to be filled [in] for the World War. I would have loved to have seen those original families be reinstated back on some of these areas. Because before it was filled in, this was pristine land on beaches. Homes on beaches were pristine that were lost because we needed to build an airport there. So the sacrifice was made and so with that sacrifice, knowing also the history of shipbuilding, the St. David’s islanders be-ing the ones who were able to teach the rest of the world on how to sail into the wind, and not having to kowtow to the wind but sail into the wind just as fast as you could with the wind, there is a lot of h istorical stuff that could be used for tour guides and the likes. And you know, I go over there, and it is literally like a ghost land sometimes. And you know, of course, it has had it challenges. It was thought to put in a grocery store, as I said before, it has had its challenges. And we have got to find a way to bring back that piece of property to the fact that it can do a lot for Bermuda and in helping with the economy bring about some great entrepreneurial opportunities. Even a seniors’ home down there, overlooking the airport, there is a piece of land there that would be pristine for our seniors to be there overlooking the beaches and the likes. And so, some of the things that were least liked, Mr. Speaker, was that it doesn’t have a grocery store right now. And the other main issue that came about, which we do need to fix, is that we need to get our Minister of Transport to get reliable transportation service into the Island. And one of the areas that I think is affecting some of the historical things that could be done, is that people just can’t get in and out of St. Da-vid’s on a relatively timely and regular basis. One of the other least liked things is that it was poorly maintained. I recognise that this is always a chal-lenge for the Minister and for the quangos, of trying to keep up with the labour cost of keeping these lands pristine. And so again it goes back to . . . we know about the movie theatre. Now that is gone. And so, we got to figure out what we can do, at the end of the day.
Bermuda House of Ass embly There are at least 85 acres, Mr. Speaker, of land that is not earmarked for anything. That is quite a bit of land that we can come up with some creative ideas and thoughts as to what it is exactly that we can do. St. Da-vid’s for the longest time was closed doors for anybody coming, especially past the town area coming down into St. David’s. When I was a young kid it always . . . except for Somerset, actually. For whatever reason Somerset people could come down there and it was okay because there was a dislike between the St. David’s and St. George’s —
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberThat’s right. Tell them the history.
Mr. L. Craig Cannonier—but the Somerset people could come down there and it was fine. That was back in the day when St. George’s wouldn’t let St. David’s guys on the cricket team.
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberThat’s right! Tell them the history.
Mr. L. Craig Cannonier—with the new generation. It eventually changed. And so I believe that this is fortui-tous that the West End Management Team can come down to St. George’s and lend a hand. I know that we have something big as far as a water plant. I believe there is a water …
—with the new generation. It eventually changed. And so I believe that this is fortui-tous that the West End Management Team can come down to St. George’s and lend a hand. I know that we have something big as far as a water plant. I believe there is a water plant to be happening over there with all of the digging up. I don’t know. There was talk about it, but I don’t know for sure. You can let us know. That would bring potable water. I mean, St. George’s is probably one of the only communities left now that doesn’t have piped water to its homes. I mean, there was a pro-test by the water truck drivers way back in the day. They would not bring that water across the water . . . I mean, the pipe across the bridge there. But it is high time that we get that done so the east enders are not having to pay $120 for a truckload of water [but] they can get piped water into their homes. So, I am not sure, I was hoping to hear a little more about the plan on how this is actually going to work, Mr. Speaker. I was hoping to hear a little more about some of the thoughts, but I would assume that this is coming, that it is to come as to what we can see happen. I certainly would not want to disregard the fact that this dissolution is going to happen, but look for the better of this here in hopes that it means a new begin-ning to entrepreneurial opportunities and revenue being driven by the East End and the West End coming together with their minds. So, I will wait I guess to hear a little more from the [Minister]. I probably would have had questions if there was more to hear from. So, I will spare us all from more history about St. David’s, but more has to be done. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Speaker: Thank you, Member. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution? MP Richardson.
Mr. Anthony Richardson—my fellow colleagues and those in the listening audience. Mr. Speaker, I am going to capsulise my comments today in the context of He who feels it, knows it. Clearly, I support what is being proposed in terms of combining BLDC and WEDCO. But the context for me in saying …
—my fellow colleagues and those in the listening audience. Mr. Speaker, I am going to capsulise my comments today in the context of He who feels it, knows it. Clearly, I support what is being proposed in terms of combining BLDC and WEDCO. But the context for me in saying He who feels it, knows it, is because we often say that all politics is local . In this instance, Mr. Speaker, politics is personal. I am actually, whether it be good or bad, one of the by -products of this combination between BLDC and WEDCO because I was actually the former Chief Fi-nancial Officer at a point in time when the decision was made. And I will also say this, Mr. Speaker, that there is this narrative that tries to enforce the PLP having this agenda of having friends and family. And today I want to be sure, very clear, very forceful in debunking that with the three Fs —friends, family and foolishness. And I say that in the context of this, Mr. Speaker. The current intent to combine these two quangos demonstrates the PLP Government’s foresight to understand that we need to do things in a more efficient manner. And so, Minister Burch has said in the past that the one aspect of combining it is to save costs. The former speaker gave the implication that this is the only reason why they are being combined, which is actually not the case.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint of order. POINT OF ORDER
Mr. L. Craig CannonierThat is not the case at all. I wish Members would listen a little closer to what is being said. I did not intimate that this was the only reason. I gave accolades to the Minister that I felt that this was not the only reason why he was doing …
Mr. Anthony RichardsonThank you, Mr. Speaker. The person who spoke before me, gave the indication . . . implication . . . and if to no one else but me, that he thought that the only reason why they were be-ing combined was based on cost, which is not the case. Mr. …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell, he clarified his position. 1324 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Mr. Anthony Richardson: All right. The mandate, Mr. Speaker, of the two are very similar which would give the rationale as to why those two would be combined and the Minister can elaborate …
Well, he clarified his position. 1324 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Mr. Anthony Richardson: All right. The mandate, Mr. Speaker, of the two are very similar which would give the rationale as to why those two would be combined and the Minister can elaborate on the fact that a study was done to actually consider whether there should be a combination between BHC [Bermuda H ousing Corporation], WEDCO and BLDC, and after fuller thought process it was decided that the BHC has a sufficiently different mandate that it should not be a part of the three and therefore that is why the two came together. My point, Mr. Speaker, right now is to certainly empha-sise or clarify the fact that cost was not the only reason why those two would have been combined. If I do go further, Mr. Speaker, I want to give an example though of how the practical side and the financial side came together, because BLDC, as we know, is located in the east and WEDCO is located in the west. However, under the BLDC mandate also came Daniel’s Head which had to have grass cut and those sorts of things. What is amazing is that there [were] times during the week where you would have to send probably a team of maintenance persons up to Daniel’s Head to cut the grass, for example. Which was not practical, of course, because WEDCO is a short distance away. It would be more practical to have the WEDCO team do the maintenance at Daniel’s Head ra-ther than the St. George’s team. So that was a very ob-vious example of how combining those two together [was beneficial] and therefore you could simply have a maintenance team do whatever was necessary. Mr. Speaker, the point I want to make for sure in emphasising how much foresight this speaks to and the fact that the Government is prepared to make those hard decisions, is because in 2018 when this really came to the fore there was a decision, as I said, that I would be one of those persons who would have to separate from the company at the time even though I was actually a Government Senator at the time and this had a major impact on me. So, I am emphasising again, Mr. Speaker, that the Government is prepared when necessary to make the hard decisions notwithstanding the direct impact on certain individuals. I also want to emphasise, Mr. Speaker, and again it is to those in the listening audience, that as I said earlier, sometimes what we do actually has a per-sonal impact. Whilst the immediacy of the decision is quite difficult, take heart, because there is always a to-morrow. In that context, Mr. Speaker, I am referring even to Minister Hayward from the point of Workforce Development because he talks a lot of times in terms of right now, based upon where Bermuda is, very often workers may be displaced and they need to retool. And through the Workforce Development there are the opportunities to help to retool. So again, Mr. Speaker, I will say that this was a personal situation. And in 2018 it was a black day for me professionally. However, as I said just now, we need to press on and so there is a much bigger mes-sage here than any individual person. And that is to un-derstand that the PLP Government does have the fore-sight. We are able to look further into the future. We are able to understand the broader economics and there-fore make decisions that are going to be practical to everyone. Mr. Speaker, the comment was also made a few minutes ago in terms of the potential opportunities that are going to be down at BLDC. And I want to say as an encouragement that the land space and the op-portunities in the east are actually an entrepreneur’s paradise because just as the [previous] Member who spoke [said], there is so much that can be done. B ut there needs to be a clarion call for all those persons to approach the board, to approach the entity and express what they want to do but to do their homework first. And that way we will see a lot more activity. One of the interesting examples was the grocery store that MP Cannonier spoke about. Yes, poten-tially the grocery store itself was oversized. But if there is an intent to have the grocery store there, there is go-ing to be a strong need for the community to under-stand . . . to support their own in that context, because the grocery store itself cannot succeed (if you think about it) in the context of there are probably more than 1,500 households in that area. And 1,500 households have to pass the former grocery store to go wherever else to buy groceries and then bring them back. And that was one of the challenges in terms of the community needs to support the activities that are in the community to ensure that those activities themselves can be sustained. That is sometimes a difficult message be-cause as new operations begin, people are sometimes sceptical. But there is a need to actually invest your ac-tual effort in those entities to ensure they can become more stable and therefore provide longevity. I used to always smile, Mr. Speaker, at the fact that persons who were in St. David’s would actually drive [past] the grocery store (even when it was open) with carloads of groceries [from other stores] not realising that . . . if they had supported the [local] grocery store, then the grocery store itself would have then been able to sustained for a longer basis.
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberYes, yes.
Mr. Anthony RichardsonMr. Speaker, I also obviously understand from MP Cannonier and others in the community that there is a strong drive to also recognise the history that is part of both the Southside area and the entire St. David’s community. And I will commend MP Foggo, who is a former Chair …
Mr. Speaker, I also obviously understand from MP Cannonier and others in the community that there is a strong drive to also recognise the history that is part of both the Southside area and the entire St. David’s community. And I will commend MP Foggo, who is a former Chair of the BLDC, because I know that under her leadership the board— [ Inaudible interjection]
Mr. Anthony RichardsonCurrent Chair, sorry. Under her leadership the board took a significant or made a significant effort to more closely engage Bermuda House of Ass embly t he St. David’s community and, as a result, there was so many different things done to refocus the activity of the BLDC to more …
Current Chair, sorry. Under her leadership the board took a significant or made a significant effort to more closely engage
Bermuda House of Ass embly t he St. David’s community and, as a result, there was so many different things done to refocus the activity of the BLDC to more enhance the St. David’s community. The comments even in terms of a seniors home, that was definitely thought through and if that can be done, i.e., someone being prepared to go the full distance to make it viable from an economic point of view, th en by all means they need to make sure that they make the approach because what I want to ensure is that the message is not that Government must do all these things. There has got to be an element of the en-trepreneurs who are prepared to come and do. Because even now, Mr. Speaker, there are many small businesses that are BLDC and they came, first of all, with an idea. We worked with them to flush- out the idea, and we even assisted to some degree with their financ-ing to ensure that they could become stabilis ed. And now we have a successful commercial park based upon that mandate. So again, the comment is: For those who actually have an interest in economic oppor-tunities, they need to make sure that they are prepared to do the work and make it a reality becaus e that is a way by which the Southside community can come to life. Mr. Speaker, I did neglect to declare my interest in the sense that at some level the BLDC provides services to what I do in a private capacity. And so, I commend [them] also because they are very receptive to our requests, to our needs, and when things do not go quite right, we know that it is easy to make a contact to get those things fixed. I guess the final comments I will make is that what has been quite interesting and amazing is tha t the BLDC have taken the tremendous decision in terms of ensuring there is more stability for both potable water and wastewater in the East End. [ Inaudible interjection]
Mr. Anthony RichardsonAnd so now, yes, potable water is drinking water, MP Canno nier. Po- table, pot - able, fine. You say tomayto, I say tomahto. It is the same thing. It is drinking water. [ Inaudible interjections]
Mr. Anthony Richardson—we give credit where credit is due. And yes, of course, I heard the interpola-tion. And sometimes, Mr. Speaker, I said to you, I said in this House before that we get offended. Right? But ignorance is based upon not knowing, and some of the interpolation right now is based …
—we give credit where credit is due. And yes, of course, I heard the interpola-tion. And sometimes, Mr. Speaker, I said to you, I said in this House before that we get offended. Right? But ignorance is based upon not knowing, and some of the interpolation right now is based upon ignorance. And so, Mr. Speaker, we want to make sure— [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, we . . . direct yourself this way.
Mr. Anthony Richardson—that we are prepared to give credit where credit is due and to know that whilst there is significant trenching taking place in the east, which does cause some inconvenience, the benefit is going to be ultimately experienced w hen they do bring online the full ability for wastewater treatment …
—that we are prepared to give credit where credit is due and to know that whilst there is significant trenching taking place in the east, which does cause some inconvenience, the benefit is going to be ultimately experienced w hen they do bring online the full ability for wastewater treatment in the east and also for po- table/pot -able drinking water. Because that is going to assist everyone, especially as MP Cannonier is saying now in that he wants to ensure that there is the ab ility for those in the east to actually get water at a less expensive cost. And so, I will conclude by saying this, Mr. Speaker. The experience, when I was first fully aware of the intention, was certainly difficult. But for today I want to emphasise again that this is a different day. It is a tomorrow. And it is a better day when we understand the full implication of what is being done today in terms of combining (I call it combining) BLDC and WEDCO and we should now be able to see how things will progress going forward with one entity that now has the mandate to progress both the East End and the West End that it is going to be able to capitalise on one set of resources as simple as, obviously, the one CEO, one CFO and all the rest of it, which should then bring a greater benefit to Bermuda. And I trust that we will see in another 10 years, for example, the full benefit. And for those persons who gave comments today based upon ignorance it will be a better able for them to actually speak. So, thank you, Mr. Speaker. SPEAKER’S STATEMENT [Standing Order 19 —Rules of Debate]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers. Members, I would like to think that every Member who walks in this House speaks from their own perspective. And that fact may mean that some Members are more knowledgeable on the subject than others. It doesn’t mean that those who are less knowledgeable are ignorant. I think we …
Members. Members, I would like to think that every Member who walks in this House speaks from their own perspective. And that fact may mean that some Members are more knowledgeable on the subject than others. It doesn’t mean that those who are less knowledgeable are ignorant. I think we should be respectful of the fact that all of us come here with the best interest of heart to try and do what they have to do. And I don’t want us to start . . . this is the first day. So, I am going to remind all Members that there are certain tones that I am not going to tolerate. And you are a new Member, a young Member, and I think you have a good future ahead of you. I think you should try and practice the way that respects the fact that you bring something to the table, and you need not to slip down a road that you shouldn’t slip down. 1326 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Everybody has an opinion. Everybody has an opinion. And everybody has a right in this House to express their opinion and that opinion comes from where they stand, the view that they look at stuff and they look at the issues set before them. And that background forms those opinions. Some of us sit in a position where we have been exposed to more detail and so we can speak from a more detailed perspective. But the fact that other per-sons do not have that benefit does not diminish their opinion, and we should not try and diminish the individ-ual because of that. Members, does anyone else wish to speak? MP Swan. [ Debate on motion continuing]
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanYes, Mr. Speaker . I was minded to weigh in on this debate this afternoon from a perspective of having come into Gov-ernment in 1985 for the purposes of managing a new quango. And from that lens had to formulate another quango, and from that position was involved in the …
Yes, Mr. Speaker . I was minded to weigh in on this debate this afternoon from a perspective of having come into Gov-ernment in 1985 for the purposes of managing a new quango. And from that lens had to formulate another quango, and from that position was involved in the c onsolidation of another quango some 12 years later, for somewhat the same reason that we see consolidations taking place today. Economies of scale are important. Duplication of areas in which one is reliant on the Gov-ernment to get funding after [some time has passed] does not make sense and I am very pleased to be supportive of this amalgamation. I was minded to contribute because as you look back at what has taken place at WEDCO, what takes place at BLDC, it reminded me and I was chuckling to myself of when I first came to Government in 1985 managing a quango, I always heard a word called ”crown lands.” And crown lands were very much what those properties were. They were crown lands. Espe-cially in the St. George’s area. And Works and Engi-neering workers of the 1960s and 1970s grew out of crown lands. And many of the persons who maybe would be 10 years older than me can tell me about their parents and their brothers and sisters who may have worked first with crown lands that became Works and Engineering. But I remember coming into Works and Engineering at that time in the early 1980s when there were depots. There was the Eastern Depot, there was the Western Depot, there was the Central Depot and there was the Quarry, that still exists today. And the commu-nication, without fax machines at that particular time. There was a Telex machine, but they did not exist at the quarries. Right? Communication took place. The daily person who runs between those areas with the mailmen still does it today. You see it running the inter-nal communications. But the one area, Mr. Speaker, that I think is necessary as we look at these crown lands that have emerged into BLDC, WEDCO, golf courses and the like, is being able to ensure that the workers there know that number one, their ultimate employer, notwithstanding the separation being somewhat independent, is government. Getting their money from the government because of the government. And I think it happens over time that people do lose sight of that. And why do I say that? Because in the time when I had to come in and start a quango, I started with the Ministry of Works and Engineering. It was then called Public Works Depart-ment, PWD. And I know very much . . . I will say this on the floor of the House. I have said it privately many times before. Public Works Department at that time had some of the best [kept] records that you would ever want to find. Persons like Mr. Hunt and Mr. Smith, up there, the office managers and the workers, the people who were in there. You could go there and you couldn’t touch a file unless you signed for it. And when you did something, you crossed your t’s and dotted your i’s. Okay? I do not know if computerisation, digitisation, whether or not all those particular records were saved and transferred but I am sure there is an archive some-where you can find those wonderful great records of which I can put hand over heart to say. I was just looking . . . writing an article and I found a picture that reminded me . . . I am looking here. I saw a picture of Terry Benevides and Bruce Ellison and Linda Russell and it looks like Irvin Hayward then. It must be an old golf picture of persons of that era who were very much involved. And I chuckled that when I looked at . . . (the Minister is back) . . . I chuckled at Linda Russell when she was designated as the secretary of the board that was looking to turn this entity into a quango and she reminded them, Yes, I might be the secretary of this committee, but I am an engineer. Right? And that was a pioneer lady back in the 1980s, working there who was actually an engineer. [She] married a St. Georgian and lived in the great area of Ferry Reach. Now, let me go to this. I recall that sometimes it takes time where water was a major issue back in the 1990s. And when Club Med was sitting dormant for many, many years and we were trying to figure out what was going to be done and we had a golf course func-tioning there, Mr. Keith Claridge, who was the water en-gineer, gave me a great education about water and about how to turn sewage into water that was good enough to be irrigation, that will eventually get back into the lands. But he even went one step further and said, Listen, out in the Far East they are taking that and turn-ing it into potable water.
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberPot-able. Po -table.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanPotable water. Potato, potahto. You know, tomayto, tomahto. I mean, you know, I am taking a cue from my good friend. But I am here to tell you— [ Inaudible interjections and laughter ] Bermuda House of Ass embly Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. Swan: But you know what I am …
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanAnd that was the advice that was given to me in the early 1990s. And here we are some . . . what? Twenty, thirty years later. We are getting there. And I am very grateful. And when I saw those water lines being dug up . . . and …
And that was the advice that was given to me in the early 1990s. And here we are some . . . what? Twenty, thirty years later. We are getting there. And I am very grateful. And when I saw those water lines being dug up . . . and I called Member Foggo and certainly spoke to the Minister. And I have seen how that is going to benefit. My late friend, Thomas Paynter, who spent many years before he recently passed, kept abreast with how the opportunity to get that water is whether or not —and he was a water trucker, I might add, for many years — residents can have access to that water to fill up their tanks. But let me say this. A long time ago, back in the late 1980s, I had some interest up there on the South Road in Warwick. Warwick residents had access to that type of water back in the late 1980s. [It was] $9.00 for 1,000 gallons. Fill up your tank for $9.00. And if you were fortunate enough to have a property and water, right? If you were lucky enough to have access to that water, you could fill it up and some folks had water trucks and were double dipping. So, I am here to say that it is a very good thing that these particular facilities are being integrated. That the whole Island will have the benefit of what some communities have had because of business being there, because of hotels, you know, it was no secret that to go up to Warwick meant . . . because you had the Princess up there. And we certainly hope that this comes to fruition and everybody who is jumping on the “no” bandwagon could appreciate how important it is to have businesses flourishing in this country. And so, I am here to support this and I will defer now that the Minister has returned. But I want to say this: It is important to have the continuity and the con-sistency. And so, with the amalgamation of these two entities, those persons who work will have that type of consistency. And there are other quangos out there that could benefit from that consistency as well. And I declare my interest as being a chairman of one of those who sees the benefit of that type of partnership. And the partnership could even be not as formal but on an ad hoc basis. So, thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me to make a contribution.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Minister, you are already rising to your feet, so I assume that you are ready to conclude this? Oh, Opposition Leader. You would like to have a few minutes? Well, Opposition Leader, you have time on the floor. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. …
Thank you, Honourable Member. Minister, you are already rising to your feet, so I assume that you are ready to conclude this? Oh, Opposition Leader. You would like to have a few minutes? Well, Opposition Leader, you have time on the floor. Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speak er. Mr. Speaker, as the former Premier, the Honourable Craig Cannonier, said, we have no objections to what is being proposed today. The Minister has been very clear of his intensions. He has done two State-ments, one on July 15, 2022, and then a later one on March 24, 2023. In his [Statement] he indicated that there will be a clear roadmap transitioning to the amalgamation, and I was hoping that he would summarise some of that journey in his Statement today, but I am hoping that he might provide the inf ormation during his windup. Mr. Speaker, my question to the Minister is . . . when we do mergers of this nature, we must have some vision in mind. And so, the question that I have for the Minister is, can he provide some type of vision for St. George’s? The acting CEO has been there for a number of months. And we are on this journey, and I think the journey begins with a vision. And I am hoping that the vision is provided to this House and shared with this House. Mr. Speaker, at the end of the day, we t ake this action, not only because of efficiencies because we as a jurisdiction need to have some positive economic development. And I take the view that the BLDC should be part of our economic development programme, and so again, in that economic programme it should be part of the vision and strategic plan moving forward. And so, I am hoping that the Minister will provide more flesh on the vision and strategic plan moving forward with the BLDC. Mr. Speaker, the Minister in his March [Statement] said the transition would provide an additional $700,000 this year alone. Can he provide details on the cost of this transition and what it is going to cost the Government coffers and the proposed revenues that will offset some of these recommendations moving forward? Mr. Speaker, in regard to the other issue that I would like for the Minister to speak to is the issue of tenants. We have many, many tenants in St. George’s at the BLDC. Have we (we, meaning the Government) shared our plans and visions with the tenants? Because [the BLDC] are a major landlord in this country. And have they had input as stakeholders to ensure that they are on board with this transition and how it has been sold to them? In addition, Mr. Speaker, there is the issue of NASA. I would like the Minister to see whether there would be a challenge with NASA given that we have this amalgamation. I don’t know . I don’t see why it should be, but I would like for the Minister to speak to that as well. Mr. Speaker, from a personal point of view, I have no stakeholders in St. David’s, as far as family. I know when I bring visitors to the Island, I have no hes-itation in taking them into Dockyard because of all the work and Dockyard is always buzzing. And you have the stores, you have the restaurants, you have the the-atre, and I am just hoping that the same vibrancy, once this merger takes place, happens at the BLDC in St. 1328 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly George’s. As my colleague the Honourable Craig Cannonier indicated, we have to basically transition from a industrial site in some places down at St. George’s to a vibrant waterfront, like they have in Boston or South [Street] Seaport in New York. There is no reason why we can’t do that to attract visitors. As I said in my opening remarks, we want to ensure that there is some economic activity in St. George’s and at the BLDC. And I think it is imperative that this should also be a priority moving forward. In addition, St. David’s has a rich history. Again, this can be part of tourism. And part of our tourism strategy to attract locals and tourists to the Island on a regular basis to celebrate the culture and history of St. George’s. Again, the beaches are world class. And I know personally that if I go to BLDC, I go down to Clearwater, cool out for a while, and I go back home because there aren’t many restaurants down there [where] I can cool out, have cocktails, host my guests with because it is not as lively as in Dockyard. And so, I am hoping that we will bring the vibrancy [like] you see in Dockyard, to St. George’s to St. David’s and ensure that the residents benefit as well as our international guests and tourists. So, with those brief comments, as I said when I opened, we are supportive of this initiative. We understand that it makes sense economically and we under-stand that there are great opportunities for revenue generation and an economic driver for the East End. So, on those brief comments, I take my seat, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. MP Famous.
Mr. Christopher FamousYes, Mr. Speaker. I wonder if I can just get some clarity from the Minister. Is it the Government’s duty to create these private entities that the OBA keeps talking about? Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. I guess the Minister can respond to that when he gets his time to wrap up. Would any other Member like to speak? MP Jackson.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonThank you, Mr. Speaker, and good afternoon. I have a couple of questions for the Minister around the amalgamation of BLDC and WEDCO. So, do I understand, having looked at some background in-formation and the rest, that the Minister is working very hard to make sure that the members of …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good afternoon. I have a couple of questions for the Minister around the amalgamation of BLDC and WEDCO. So, do I understand, having looked at some background in-formation and the rest, that the Minister is working very hard to make sure that the members of staff at both WEDCO and BLDC are able to amalgamate and come together and that any future decrease in the size of the organisat ion would be done through retirement or attrition, et cetera, and that the Minister is working with the unions and the like to make sure that everything says kosher. But my question to the Minister really is around the management and the future . . . sort of the future oversight of the property that both WEDCO and BLDC have within their remit. And what I am getting at, Mr. Speaker, is this: As I am doing my research and looking at this I see WEDCO. WEDCO has done an amazing job up at Dockyard. I personally believe that Dockyard really started with a clear vision. And although I may have been too young at the time to remember, but I believe that the vision was that of Dr. Brown’s. And so, execut-ing on that vision was clear, it was systematic and it was done. And so WEDCO was in a position where they managed it on a day -to-day basis. So now we have the BLDC. And from what I can see through observation and reading, ultimately, they have been caretakers. Now, they have been care-takers of a huge piece of Bermuda’s property —400 acres, according to their website. We are talking about Southside, down in St. David’s. We are talking about Morgan’s Point where they have property. We are talking about Daniel’s Head, up there in Somerset. And I believe there might be one more. Tudor Hill, up in Southampton, which is probably a best kept secret. But what I am getting at is that if we are going to amalgamate these two quangos, are the staff going to be fully aware of not only the responsibility of such precious property in Bermuda but also how the poten-tial negotiation, the potential development, the revitali-sation of some of these properties and sections of Ber-muda are going to evolve in the future for Bermuda? And this is a huge responsibility. And it is very different from WEDCO managing Dockyard with a clear vision, a clear plan executed [and] there it was, and BLDC which has for a number of years been caretaking. And to be honest, and not to criticise BLDC, but to look at the reality of it all, they have had to fight a lo t of fires. They have been fighting because the water supply in Southside has been inconsistent over the years. They have had to fight fires around waste mate-rials being left down there at Southside. So, they are constantly behind the eight ball in a number of areas. And so, when we amalgamate those two quangos, is there going to be a real push forward to see what can we do with these properties? Should we do anything with these properties? And probably the most important [question] is, how are we going to negotiate and manage those properties which either may be very attractive for future development with a vision that within the quangos, a vision that might not even been thought of as yet. Now, the Premier and Minister of Finance has actually shown us a vision for Morgan’s Point, as an example. And there is a lot to that, Mr. Speaker. [It is] much different than Dockyard. Dockyard was a sort of home- grown, locally based, this is what we are going to do. But something like the vision that the Premier laid out for something like Morgan’s Point, and I am just us-ing that as an example, Mr. Speaker, requires a lot more than that. It might require international investment. It might require all kinds of changes of leases,
Bermuda House of Ass embly c leaning up a lot of property on the brown sites that are down there. But what I am saying is that it is very, very different. And so, I ask the Minister whether the extent and the scope of responsibility for the land that is there, is going to be taken into consideration? Given the fact that we are now amalgamating it is going to be a bigger team of people in this single quango and whether they are prepared to move forward? Or will they sort of con-tinue what I am going to describe as sort of mainte-nance and firefighting? Now the other thing about all of this, Mr. Speaker, that I want to raise is the idea that we are also not just speaking about land, but we are talking about communities. We are talking about people who are liv-ing in the areas where many of the BLDC properties are or WEDCO, and how we are going to manage their ex-pectations, whether we are going to make sure that we are even still wanting to be in the business of property management and landlord/tenant relations. And you know, are we ultimately going to have to look at priori-tising what is the best for the quango moving forward? I am just putting the question out there.
Ms.
Susan E. JacksonAnd finally, Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to bring up the point around what we are going to do with the mistakes that we may have made. And the one that comes to mind is Daniel’s Head. Now, whatever has been left up there, whatever negotiations, whatever has happened in …
And finally, Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to bring up the point around what we are going to do with the mistakes that we may have made. And the one that comes to mind is Daniel’s Head. Now, whatever has been left up there, whatever negotiations, whatever has happened in the past, the past is the past. But it was interesting because it was just this past Sunday that a Bermud ian family called me because they were up at Daniel’s Head enjoying a beautiful Sunday afternoon on the grass out there at Daniel’s Head. And of course the dad is sitting up there having all of these ideas. You know, can Gov-ernment . . . can the quangos sell off these huts and could we create . . . just people in the community are starting to brainstorm. And so, my question to the Minister is, How much of a community input might this quango be pre-pared to entertain as they evolve into something new and whe ther we will have an opportunity to look at entrepreneurship? It is not the last time or the first time that I have ever stood up in the House of Assembly and talked about what I love to dub as innovative districts, places where we are able to create an environment that pulls the local community in, creates hubs of supportive businesses in an effort to really generate economies, especially when we are looking at some of our more remote areas within the Island. And so, there is also that idea that is out there that has its possibilities, especially in areas, Mr. Speaker, where there is already the beginning or the traces of community and entrepreneurship which could be Southside. It could even be the likes of a Daniel’s Head. And so could we, and is there an opportunity for this amalgamated quango to look at how could we maybe create and build up and make more sophisti-cated some of our smaller communities and create re-ally thriving satellite areas for economic growth and de-velopment. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? MP Dunkley. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To those Honourable Members who want to move on, I will keep my comments straight and direct and to the point. And one of the …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNot tonight. It is afternoon. It is afternoon. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: It is afternoon, but it depends what time you wake up in the morning too.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWhere you wake up. [ Laughter] Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, because quite often people say when we are in the House of Assem-bly is that all we do is argue. And today, so far, the Op-position has supported the Government on the two pieces that we debated here …
Where you wake up. [ Laughter] Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, because quite often people say when we are in the House of Assem-bly is that all we do is argue. And today, so far, the Op-position has supported the Government on the two pieces that we debated here today. And this is the sec-ond piece. This move obviously makes sense, Mr. Speaker. And there is a couple of things that I just want to add to the debate from colleagues who have spoken to me. One is, while the move makes sense, logically you would think that there might be some savings in the overheads and the running of the organisation, but I do not necessarily think that is going to be the case because I have not seen the business plan going forward and how it is all going to be set up, what the organisa-tional chart is. I am not saying that as a negative. What I am saying is that it is going to be a much larger organ-isation in terms of what you would expect in Bermuda. It is going to have a tremendous responsibility to get things done. And the Government needs to be in the position to ensure that they put the right people in place to actually deliver on that mandate. Now, Mr. Speaker, when we referred to WEDCO . . . and my colleague who spoke before me made some pertinent and good points. WEDCO had a foundation for success in that we managed, even with some controversy along the way, to build what I would say in this p art of the world is one of the most sought - after cruise destinations to come and tie up for a few days. And that was the base for a lot of the economic 1330 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly activity that takes [place] up there. It keeps the restaurants vibrant seven months a year. We still have those shoulder seasons and I think we can work through those. But it keeps the restaurants vibrant. It keeps the shops vibrant. It has allowed more of a marina to be set up there. It has allowed tours to go out of there. It has allowed the Maritime Museum to get more footing and be an attraction for that [area]. It has even allowed a small grocery store to be there for the marina and the people around there. So, that was a good initiative and [it took] foresight by people to actually make it happen. And that should sustain economic development in that part of the Island for some period of time. But what we are talk-ing about now with the Bermuda Land Development . . . and I am saying this not just to be critical, but the fact is that I think this Government and the former Govern-ment and the OBA will accept that the Bermuda Land Development [Company] has not seen the progress we need to be a beehive of activity for this country. And an Honourable Member who gave a very short interjection on the speech asked about private entities. Well, when it comes to this type of organisation, it is for the Government through the quango to allow the opportunity, and then private entities and entrepre-neurs get involved and make that happen. So, there are a couple of things that are important here. B ecause when we look at the areas which my colleague Susan Jackson identified, especially in the East End of the Island, it has been slow to have the economic develop-ment that we should get from it. From the time that the United States turned it back over to us [in] 1996, there have been many people who have come to the table but [there has] not [been] much action because of it. Many people come to the table, and quite often the opportunity they discussed was not something that was accepted by either governing party at the time, or the decision to allow approval for those projects to go forward has taken longer than expected by investors. And we must make sure that as we move forward this way . . . and this is not throwing a jab at the governing party. This is a reality that investment money —certainly in today’s world where we are opening up after COVID -19 again—wants to move at a relatively good pace. Investors do not run from oversight and scrutiny; but they do want their money to be able to be invested and get a return on that in a relatively reasona-ble period of time. And so, we need to make sure that when we bring investors to the table, that we give them the opportunity to move forward once they have passed all the background checks that we require. Secondly, Mr. Speaker, you know, on the E ast End of the Island, after the US left there were created many different opportunities. And I think Minister Burch in a previous time in the Government tried to do that by creating housing. I was invited to the opening of the housing on the waterfront there just as you come into the second gate. We tried to create some type of com-munity spirit going forward. And my colleague from the East End of the Island, the former Premier Craig Cannonier, talked about the grocery store. And I am not saying this publicly to go at people, but I am stating the reality. That grocery store was a good hub for that community. And it was not successful, in my view, because of poor management. That has nothing to do with the Government or the BLDC. It could happen to anybody. And we need to live and learn and move on from there. Right? So, as we try to attract [investors] to that one specific end, the E ast End of the Island, there is tremendous opportunity there wi th the waterfront, the size of the land, some of the infrastructure left, some of the buildings left by the US bases, Mr. Speaker. There is tremendous opportunity. But right now, what we have is . . . in some cases, we have the eye sore of the marina, whic h you know it seems to be just a storage place for boats with nothing else happening there. But there is an opportunity to move forward. And this Govern-ment has an economic plank which they count [on] to help move this country forward. With this change and with land available and with opportunities available, in my view, there is an increased opportunity for eco-nomic improvement throughout this country, Mr. Speaker. So, we have an opportunity to get this right. And in doing so, Mr. Speaker, the last point t hat I will make is that . . . and this is not a criticism of any party or any government. But the last point that I will make, Mr. Speaker, is that in the world we live in now-adays, transparency and accountability are always at the top of importance of things you need to undertake to get things done. And so, when we move forward with initiatives in this new organisation, we need to make sure that we do the best that we can to communicate what those initiatives are, communicate how they will impact the community in positive ways, communicate how they might impact any part of the community in ways that people do not understand or accept. Because if we do not do that, these initiatives will get held up and money might walk away, or it might never take place. So, we need to start from a position of transparency and accountability in this. And there are many examples that people can draw from —the recent controversy down at the East End at the land development with the business that was given the opportunity down there. So, Mr. Speaker, there is tremendous oppor-tunity here, but it still takes a lot to make it happen. And the most important thing is that once this Government sets this up we need to have a team that we can count on to deliver on that opportunity that is presented. And if they do not deliver, it is our problem—all of us , throughout Bermuda. And we have resources that are here for us to use to help Bermuda move forward and we need to use those in the most appropriate fashion. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Bermuda House of Ass embly The Speaker: Thank you, MP. Does any other . . . no movement. Minister, would you like to do your wrap- up?
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchMr. Speaker, let me first say that if you were my principal, I would happily accept detention today. [ Laughter]
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchAnd I say that because I say to everybody in the Ministry who says, You said that last week , or You said that last one, you do not need to say it again. But I believe in repeating myself because I know that it takes a while for messages …
And I say that because I say to everybody in the Ministry who says, You said that last week , or You said that last one, you do not need to say it again. But I believe in repeating myself because I know that it takes a while for messages to get through. The Opposition Leader . . . and I am going to answer most of the questions that were asked quite easily off the top of my head, mainly because I have said them all before. The Opposition Leader pointed out that I gav e a Statement in this House on the 22 nd of July last year and again on 23rd of March this year. So on that basis, I figured I did not need to repeat it. And so I did not. And I paid the price for that. In any case, let me just start by saying that this journey began 20 years ago with a 2003 report on U ntangling Bermuda’s Quangos [–A review of Quangos in the Bermuda Government ]. And it covered all the quangos in government including the three that were men-tioned in this exercise. And so, it has been a 20- year journey. I was present 20 years ago when we started this, and so I am kind of getting a little personal satis-faction out of actually getting it across the line and hopefully setting a standard that we can do it a little quicker than taking 20 years. So let me just say that . . . and we will use that as a basis. And the Opposition when they were in Gov-ernment had a report called — [ Inaudible interjections]
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchYes. SAGE Commission. The SAGE C ommission did talk about quangos. And so, that was 10 years later. And now we are 20 years on. In any case, let me answer some of the easy ones. There will be a name change. I announced that. I also said that I …
Yes. SAGE Commission. The SAGE C ommission did talk about quangos. And so, that was 10 years later. And now we are 20 years on. In any case, let me answer some of the easy ones. There will be a name change. I announced that. I also said that I have no skill in that regard and so I have given it to the two boards to come up with a name. And I think they are going through a process of asking the staff. We will get there. But there will be a new name for the new entity. There is no challenge from NASA. The roadmap that we set out a little more than a year ago now about how we would get from two entities to the end of this journey touches all of the bases of both en-tities, and that includes establishing the number of staffing, establishing . . . they are currently in the pro-cess of negotiating with the BIU identical CBAs [ collective bargaining agreement s] so that the CBA for WEDCO and the CBA for BLDC will be identical so that when the entities merge, there will be no need for any discussion with the unions, either the Bermuda Indus-trial Union or the Bermuda Public Services Union. There is a roadmap. The first part of the work in this regard that has been completed was to amal-gamate the two financial functions. In fact, I believe since last month the physical functioning of all of the accounting work currently takes place at Dockyard. So, all the staff from BLDC —all the accounting staff — moved to Dockyard and they have amalgamated. They are still running both entities in two parallel sets of books, but they are getting used to working together with one another. About 20 years ago, both BLDC and WEDCO and the [Bermuda] Housing Corporation [BHC] purchased the same computer system and have since, I guess in the last dec ade, amalgamated that arrangement with that entity so that there is one contract that the three of them share in order to e ffect some savings. There will be no loss of jobs. We can definitively say that now. When we returned to Government in 2017 we had the conversation with the three entities’ CEOs. And Mr. Richardson referred to some of those conversations. And we said to them that we are back on the amalgamation page, and we would like for the three of them to spend the next year looking at how that migh t happen. And so, that included Anthony and the then CEO of the BLDC, the general manager [GM] of the [Bermuda] Housing Corporation and chief financial officer [CFO] and the general manager of WEDCO and the chief financial officer there. In a year’s time we met again and decided that we could do with one CEO and one CFO, and we entered into an agreement with both of those individuals to separate from BLDC. And when that happened three months later, we arranged for the GM of BHC to take on the responsibilit y of BLDC as well as BHC. He did that for a year, slightly more than a year, and then we switched CEOs to take on that responsibly. So the cur-rent GM of WEDCO has been at BLDC for about a year. And in doing that, the GM of BHC has since retired. So he is o ut of the equation. But when we sent Andrew Dias , who is the general manager of WEDCO , to BLDC, we did it with the full knowledge and understanding that he had led WEDCO from a dormant former military base to what it is now. And WEDCO is considered by the country as the cruise port of the country, and this will continue. In the case of BLDC, I think it is fair to be brutally honest. All three of the Governments that have governed Bermuda since 1996 are guilty of not advanc-ing work at BLDC . And that is for a variety of reasons, not to say that people have done anything wrong. It is like this process has taken 20 years. In the case of BLDC, it has taken almost 30 years to get to a point where you can actually make some advances. 1332 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Where we are in terms of the future for BLDC is not something that Burch is going to decide, or anybody else is going to decide, actually. We are currently . . . we did a survey last year in St. David’s called the Draft St. David’s Community Plan, which involved all of the residents of St. David’s and all of the businesses of St. David’s. And that plan has been put into the public domain for consultation that is due by the 30 th of June this year. The number one issue in that plan from the people of St. David’s is they want a grocery store. And the current management of BLDC said, Fine. We will work on that. BLDC is not going to produce a grocery store but is going to invite private enterprise to come and pro-duce a grocery store. And I think it is generally ac-cepted that it will not be the same square footage as the old White’s. It was way too big. And it needs to be appropriate for the constituency and where you are putting it. So, we are working with the community to come up with a vision. The idea is Dockyard is the cruise port; St. David’s needs to have an identity similar to that. To be fair , though, to all three of the Governments that have managed BLDC, a significant reason for the lack of forward movement there in terms of de-velopment has been the infrastructure, both the water and sewage and everything else on Southside. There is no roadmap of where those pipes are and where other things are. But colleagues will be aware that we spent $30 billion addressing that very issue.
An Hon. Member An Hon. Member[It was] $30 million.
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchWe would have a lot more things going on if they gave me $30 billion. [We spent] $30 million dollars sorting out that problem, and we expect that we will be able to market Southside now with some reliability to be able to come up with new ideas about how …
We would have a lot more things going on if they gave me $30 billion. [We spent] $30 million dollars sorting out that problem, and we expect that we will be able to market Southside now with some reliability to be able to come up with new ideas about how it can be developed. And the . . . I lost my train of thought now. There was a meeting two months ago with homeowners. We had an approach about two years ago, I think. Some of the homeowners at Southside (there are about 28, I believe) were sold properties on leasehold and they requested to go to freehold. The Government has no objection to that, and we have been working with them. We figured out that the process can advance a lot swifter once there is an amal-gamated entity. And the reason for that is that BLDC does not own any of the land it has at Southside. It is leasehold land and that is the reason why they could only sell it as leasehold. WEDCO, on the other hand, already has [it] set under its Act, and so the amalgamated entity will have similar Landholding Authority as WEDCO does and we will be able to advance that. We met with them about two months ago I think and had a conversation about that process and how we can advance it. The Government has agreed not to charge stamp duty so we will work with them to get that resolved as soon as the amalgamation has been brought to a close. There will be no challenge from NASA. The arrangement there is a leasehold agreement that will remain in place. I think that answers all the questions that were asked in a general sense. In relation to most of the questions from MP Jackson, the St. David’s Commu-nity Plan and the interaction with the businesses in St. David’s will go a long way to being able to bring to-gether all of those issues a bout opportunities for entrepreneurs and a vision for St. David’s, for Southside, that will help in that regard. One of the things that has happened in the interim at Southside physically is that for most of those . . . what is it, 37 years? [From] 1996 . . . no, 27 years. For most of those 27 years, a lot of the fencing and gates and what have you from the old Base Lands were left in place . We spent the last two years taking most of that down so that the barrier, the physical barrier be-tween the community of St. David’s and Southside , could be removed so people would not think that they cannot go there because there is a fence on the B ase. So, there has been a real effort by the management at BLDC to both reach out to the residential community and have the m understand that we welcome their input and support and contribution. Also, there has been a significant outreach to the business community where some of the businesses in St. David’s are struggling. And BLDC, as WEDCO did during the pandemic, provided r elief for both residents and businesspeople in Southside so that they would not have to meet the natural financial commitment if they were having business challenges. A number of businesses in St. David’s have an arrangement that includes profit sharing as opposed to a standard rental rate so that it fluctuates based on the success of the business. This will continue. In relation to the physical location of the headquarters, I am personally of the view , and promoted with both boards , that Bermuda is 21 square miles . It takes 45 minutes to drive from one end of the Island to the other, so we can manage Southside or St. David’s with one headquarters and an outpost. The reality is that wherever it is, both entities have workshops, both entities have headquarter s with staff. We are amalgamating those, so wherever the headquarters ends up,
t here will be an outpost at the other entity to be able to manage the people who work there. The last question that MP Cannonier I think asked was about not losing the St. David’s identity because of the influence of people from the west. I can tell you that the reason why I can say there will be no redundanc ies is because we have had two people who we separated first at our choice, we have had a number of people who have left BLDC for other reasons who have not been replaced by hiring new staff. In the case of business management, the business manager from WEDCO has been resident at BLDC several days a week , and so she does both. The same is true of the various other entities. About four years ago, we implemented a process MP Richardson mentioned where the property at Daniel’s Head, which is owned by BLDC, is sending people to cut grass. It was an arrangement with WEDCO before the amalgamation. They are down in Somerset with lawn mowers and staff. So, they do it. The piece of land at Tudor Hill is basically . . . there is nobody on it. It is up for development. In the case of Daniel’s Head, about three years ago, we got approval from the Cabinet to take Daniel’s Head off of the tourism table because the challenge for a number of years had been that everybody loved Dan-iel’s Head, and in the first meeting we had, What are you going to do about the cow farm because the smell does not work with tourism? So we took it off the table and said people should concentrate on hotel properties that are already developed and they should concen-trate on them —Elbow Beach, Lantana, you name them. So it has been off the table from a tourism point of view. WEDCO in this process has been looking at what we can do at the property at the moment. Our view is that . . . the suggestion was made by somebody to rent out the tented places. It is a non- starter. It really is. The maintenance of it. It is a good idea. It will probably work better somewhere else. But here it is not a good look. So, we have actually been selling some of the places for people who want to have Airbnbs in their yard. Planning has approved the process. And so, we will do a wider advertisement of that should the time come to see if we can sell some more. I think that covers all of the issues. What I will undertake, Mr. Speaker, because the process is that on the passage of this R esolution all this does is give the Minister the ability to now move forward with the rest of the work that needs to take place in terms of this path-way. Let me just say this , though. The one thing I meant to point out to MP Cannonier, so I am not accused of misleading, is that this process is to be completed by January 2024. We expect at this stage, since we are ahead of the game in terms of touching all of the points that we need to do, the passage of this R esolution being one of them, that if we are finished early or when-ever we are finished, we will move. And so that is where we are at the moment. Let me just add some other things. The WEDCO board is appointed by the Minister of Public Works annually along with other boards. BLDC is not. It is a Limited Liability Company so they must have an AGM [annual general meeting ] in order to be able to make any of those changes. That usually takes place in July. We expect it will take place in July this year. In the case of WEDCO, at the beginning of this year, the new board at WEDCO included some of the people from BLDC, and the idea is that the board that will form the new entity will be an amalgamation of people from both of those entities plus some other expertise if they are lacking. And by that I mean in the case of BLDC, we recently had the lawyer who was on the board retire and he has not been replaced because the AGM has not happened yet, and so we may have to find a new lawyer so that we have that expertise on the board. Mr. Speaker, I am quite happy to take more questions or move the motion.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell, you cannot take more questions. We are in the House.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe are in the House. Everybody speaks once in the House.
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchWell then, in that case, I will happily move that this Honourable House in ac-cordance with s ection 8B of the Base Lands Development Act 1996 approve the dissolution of the Bermuda Land Development Company and that the appropriate message be sent to the Governor.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections? There are none. The motion has been approved and moved. [ Motion carried: The House approved the dissolution of the Bermuda Land Development Company .]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, we thank you for your participation once again. And that actually brings us to the close of the items on the Order Paper for today. Now we will do the third reading for the Companies Amendment Act [2023]. SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21 Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, …
Members, we thank you for your participation once again. And that actually brings us to the close of the items on the Order Paper for today. Now we will do the third reading for the Companies Amendment Act [2023]. SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21 Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, I move that Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move the Bill entitled Companies Amendment Act 2023 be now read a third time by its title only.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there an y objections? Bermuda House of Assembly 1334 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly There are none. [ Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.] BILL THIRD READING COMPANIES AMENDMENT ACT 2023 Hon. Kim N. Wilson: I move that the Bill be now read …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe Bill has been read a third time by its title only and is now passed. [ Motion carried: The Companies Amendment Act 2023 was read a third time and passed.]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThat is the only third reading. The next item on the Order Paper would be for the Deputy [Premier] to move us to motion to adjourn. However, before we go there, I am going ask the indulgence of the House because the Deputy [Prem ier] has some good remarks that …
That is the only third reading. The next item on the Order Paper would be for the Deputy [Premier] to move us to motion to adjourn. However, before we go there, I am going ask the indulgence of the House because the Deputy [Prem ier] has some good remarks that he would like to do at this time. I am going to call on the Deputy [Premier] to make those remarks on behalf of the House at this time. Please indulge him and support his remarks. I am sure you all will. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker and I also thank the House for their indulgence and the opportunity to move this motion. SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21 Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I move that Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move that a message be sent to King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla conveying our congratulations on their coronation.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAny objections to that? Continue, Deputy. [ Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.] MESSAGE FROM THE GOVERNMENT TO HIS MAJESTY KING CHARLES III AND HER MAJESTY QUEEN CONSORT CAMILLA Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I move that the following message be conveyed through Government House to His Majesty King …
Any objections to that? Continue, Deputy. [ Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.] MESSAGE FROM THE GOVERNMENT TO HIS MAJESTY KING CHARLES III AND HER MAJESTY QUEEN CONSORT CAMILLA Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I move that the following message be conveyed through Government House to His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty Queen Consort Camilla: The Speaker and the Members of the Honourable House of Assembly of Bermuda desire to extend our heartiest congratulations and best wishes to Your Majesties on your coronation to be held on the 6 th of May 2023. May you enjoy a long and happy reign.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to deliver that.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Thank you, Members for supporting the comments that were made by the Deputy Prem-ier. Deputy Premier, would you like to move us now to the motion to adjourn? ADJOURNMENT Hon. Walter H. Roban: Absolutely, Mr. Speaker. With that said, I do move that the House do adjourn until the …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAny objections? There are none. Would anyone like to speak to that? MP Caines, I take it you rise to have your 20 minutes. Mr . Wayne Caines: Indeed, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. MISUSE OF MARIJUANA —IMPACT AND RESULT Mr . Wayne Caines: If it pleases you. Mr. Speaker, about three weeks ago, I received a call —one of those calls that we all dread. Mr. Speaker, it was a call from a university roommate, fra-ternity brother, and the call …
Go right ahead. MISUSE OF MARIJUANA —IMPACT AND RESULT Mr . Wayne Caines: If it pleases you. Mr. Speaker, about three weeks ago, I received a call —one of those calls that we all dread. Mr. Speaker, it was a call from a university roommate, fra-ternity brother, and the call was to share with me that his son died. As a matter of fact, Mr. Speaker, his son committed suicide. I was horrified. It was a family friend. A lot of us in the room know the family, watched the young man grow. He was abroad on a full university scholarship f or both football and academics at Columbia. He was a phenomenal young man. Everyone got along with him. He was struggling in school. He was doing well in school and COVID -19 came, and when COVID -19 came he went and he was doing everything remotely, and he was struggling. In that, Mr. Speaker, he started to smoke marijuana. This was . . . and I am going somewhere with this, Mr. Speaker. He started to smoke marijuana and had a significant psychosis as a result thereof. He could not cope. His family did everything to get him help. He went back to university. He did not want to play football anymore. He was in a really diffi-cult state. He got the best medical treatment that money could buy. They thought everything was going well. They got the call that every parent dreads, Mr. Speaker, and it was that he actually took his own life
Bermuda House of Ass embly w hilst in university. I went to the funeral —one of the saddest moments of my life. I listened to his parents talk. I listened to what they said about their son’s life. And something struck me. It struck me, that thing that changed his life. The thing that changed his life was his grasping, his moving toward marijuana. I am going to speak on that today, something that is not going to be popular. And anyone who takes anything that I say, I am asking you to take it in context, understanding what I am saying, understanding the challenges that I see in our country. For a number of years, marijuana in this country h as been something that has been an illicit tra de. Many of our uncles and our brothers were placed o n what we call the “ stop list ” for small or large [amounts] of marijuana and they were not able to travel. They were incarcerated. Some sta-tistics say that around the world over 50,000 people are incarcerated for the sale and the distribution of marijuana. Now, I am not one of th ose people who will stand and decry the plant. I want to be clear. I am not one of those people who is going to decry a plant. I am quite aware of the medicinal benefits of it. I am aware of the CBD. Mr. Speaker, it is no surprise to you. You know that I suffered from prostate cancer. I used CBD products that helped me through that process. I watched many other people smoke it, do a number of things , and found relief from a number of things. So, whilst the arrogant amongst us will look down on those who smoke marijuana for whatever the relief is, let’s not forget those who use Ambien, Valium, alcohol, sex, food, all of those things to get through a difficult period. So, I am not here to decry a plant. As a matter of fact, there are religions that hold marijuana as a sa-cred sacrament —as a sacred sacrament. Whether you agree with it or disagree with it, there are those who look at drinking wine as the blood of Christ; they see that equally as challenging. We have seen how marijuana has been used by a number of people. So my point today is not to decry a plant. In the Caribbean, we look at countries like Jamaica that ha d . . . in the 1970s, there were entities that saw the benefits that Jamaica had with this plant . And herculean efforts went around the world to limit the trade, to limit the sale, and to decry it —the American Government specifically . . . if you look at countries like Saint Vincent. And today these very countries that de-cried the Caribbean’s use of m arijuana have a thriving trade in the same. Canada . . . they found a way to bank it. So, we are not here to talk about the properties, the use of it. In Bermuda we have decriminalised up to seven grams of marijuana. But there is something else at play. Doctors say that the adult brain matures at 25 years of age. I recently read documents from the “ Cannabis, Race, and Mental Illness in Great Britain[,1980-1993].” Another article o n “Race, culture and ‘cannabis psychosis’: The role of social factors [in the construction of a disease category”; “Schizophrenia in black Caribbeans living in the UK: [an exploration of underly-ing causes of the high incidence rate”; and] the “Highpotency cannabis and the risk of psychosis. ” Mr. Speaker, there is something that has happened and is happening to young people who are using marijuana at a young age before their brains are fully developed. And in certain instances young men are developing a psychosis because of the misuse — let me say that word again, the misuse— of marijuana. We now need to start having different conversations. We need to have conversations with our young people about our family history of mental illness. We need to have conversations about the developing of the [brain] and the need to pay attention to when brains fully de-velop. Science has shown that there is a direct connection in certain instances to the triggering of a schiz-ophrenic or a psychotic gene that is predominantly in males of Caribbean and African decent when they use marijuana before the brain is fully developed. That is something in three studies that I just quoted which has been highlighted. What does that mean? That means that in our community there are young men that when they smoke marijuana recreationally . . . now remember, I am not talking about the rightness or the wrongness of that. That is for you; that is for the person’s family; that is for their pastor . That is for them to decide. But I must highlight, Mr. Speaker, that we have to have the conversation about what is happening in our community to many Black men who are seeing a significant increase in psychoses that have a direct connection, a nexus to marijuana misuse. There is something in our DNA helix that is triggering this schiz-ophrenia or this psychosis in our young men. The studies that have now been done extensively in the UK have highlighted this fact. And what we need to do now is to start having a different conversation. The conversation in Bermuda is that the majority of our substance abuse facilities are full. Our substance abuse facilities in Bermuda have waiting lists. There are no dual diagnosis treatment facilities on Island. So, we are now seeing that families are not understanding that their sons are not just waking up one morning and being rude or being unmanage able or falling into it; there is something happening to them psy-chiatrically through this misuse of marijuana that is now starting, Mr. Speaker, to plague our community. And we need to pay attention. I went to a recent football game to see my beloved team play. And I went to the field. Now, remember I am not afraid of anything in our community, but I do get concerned when in public I am watching 12- and 13-year-olds smoke marijuana. I am concerned based on a number of factors. I think in our community weneed to start having a different conversation, Mr. Speaker, about our mental health. It is Mental Health Awareness Month. I watched a family spend all of their money on their son’s education, making sure that he went to the best private 1336 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly school. Mr. Speaker , he was in an Ivy League university. His parents did everything right. He was in a difficult position. He was stressed and he found relief in smoking marijuana. Again, to those who are prone to being haughty, remember your friends on Valium, Ambien, alcohol, sex, overeating, junk food. We all have a point in our lives where we seek support and need support and help and guidance. We are living in a community where oftentimes we are not having the right conversation. Mr. Speaker, I hate to say this. The weed from 20 years ago is not the weed that they are smoking now. The weed that a Bubba Dread smoke s in Jamaica through his cadunga (excuse the common parlance , Mr. Speaker ), and when he is smoking and doing that , that is not the same weed that is being made synthetically. They are putting things and adding stuff to it. Oftentimes, you take a person who has a DNA helix that has a predisposition that lies dormant and the schizophrenic gene, and to make that matter worse, somebody is chemically inducing a greater high and putting that in the marijuana. What do you think happens to that person? For a very long time, we spoke about . . . we know the Tumin Report. We were being imprisoned exponentially high for small amounts of marijuana. We know that. Got it. We know that there are a number of our uncles, our family members who were not able to travel because of small amounts of marijuana. And we wanted to rectify that. Got it. But there is something else that we have to start having conversations about. We now see young men in Bermuda disproportionately being affected by mental illness. We now need to have this conversation with our kids. I have a 25-year-old. I have friends in my circle of friends who are telling their kids, We don’t mind if you smoke as long as you are smoking at home where it is safe. An interesting conversation and an interesting shift to the para-digm where we think being at home makes it safer. There is something different, Mr. Speaker. There is something that we cannot see. We cannot see. And understand there is little FDA control over it. We are not understanding who is making it, what they are putting in the Purple Haze, the Cotton Candy, what they are putting in the different marijuana that you are get-ting. Why and how is the high getting stronger? Why are you feeling these specific ways? Well, this is being manufactured by people who are hydroponically grow-ing these things to get a greater and more prolific high. That has a downside to it. That has something . . . and it is now bl owing back on our very small community. It is affecting Bermuda exponentially. Speak to those in the helping services . They will echo what I am saying. Speak to those at the treat-ment facilities . They will echo what I am saying. Speak to people in the mental health court . They will echo what I am saying. Speak to people in the drug treatment court . They will echo what I am saying. We have to un-derstand that everything that we are doing has a con-sequence. And so, if we continue to make sure that our young men do not go to jail because of marijuana, we want to make sure that we decriminalise specific amounts for seven grams. And we did the right thing, [we went in] the right direction. But there is something new that is starting to affect our community exponen-tially, Mr. Speaker. We must see it. We must triage it. We must have the right conversations with our young men in our sporting clubs. We must have the conversations as a family. We must have the conversations as a community. We must start to talk about how mental illness is a stigma in our community where we say to ourselves and to each other, That person is crazy , or they are a St. Brendan’s patient. We must now start talking to our young men and women about ultimately what has challenged them, having our kids seek therapeutic interventions, having our young people being able to get therapy, dealing with the root cause. I am not suggesting that every body who smokes marijuana has a problem and is smoking to get away from something. There are people who clearly smoke marijuana for recreational purposes. Again, that is their prerogative. Yes, everyone has a different moral code. I am saying now that there is something else that we have to look at because [previously] we focused on the legality of it, the morality of it, the financial aspect of it. Now we are seeing a price that is becoming very difficult for us to pay. We see the zombies on our street. We see the young men in our community, the young women in our community. Just ask. We are all being affected by it. I stood there as they laid the coffin of my godson, and I promised his father that I would do my part, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. [ Desk thumping]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Simmons, Jamahl Simmons, you have the floor. Mr . Jamahl S. Simmons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I would like to give kudos to my colleague for that very powerful statement that he made.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DISPLAY HUMANITY AND MAKE THIS COUNTRY BETTER Mr . Jamahl S. Simmons: Mr. Speaker, you know, it is interesting the difference three years makes . A couple of years ago we were all in lockdown and learning how to use masks and hand sanitiser and all …
Yes. OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DISPLAY HUMANITY AND MAKE THIS COUNTRY BETTER Mr . Jamahl S. Simmons: Mr. Speaker, you know, it is interesting the difference three years makes . A couple of years ago we were all in lockdown and learning how to use masks and hand sanitiser and all that. And you know, for the most part we exist in a world now where, while there are still cases, we mostly feel as though it
Bermuda House of Ass embly i s over even with the announcement that the US Government is opening the borders to the unvaccinated. But Mr. Speaker, we as a people have not had the opportunity to actually pause and reflect on the impact of what we have been through. I mean, to our credit , we kept moving. We kept moving. We did what we had to do. But the impact, whether it was the impact of that young man and his tragic suicide or the many other people who have taken their lives or tried to take their lives because of the stresses created over the past couple of years, people who lost employment, lost eco-nomic opportunity, lost homes, lost family members, lost so much, we have not really taken time to acknowledge that. We just kept moving. One of the things that I think . . . we got through that pandemic. And I am not going to give the clichés of Oh, Bermudians always come together when there is a storm or a crisis . But I am going to say this. There is a lot of disillusionment, disenchantment, disengage-ment, disappointment in our community today. And a lot of our people are looking for some hope. And I have had some time to reflect on this, Mr. Speaker. You know, there are problems that are in our community right now post -COVID19 that are man- made; there are some that are beyond our control. But I think each of us, whether you hold elective office or not, whether you aspire to elective office or not, have an obligation to do a little more to be more compassionate to each other. Bermudians are very proud people. A person who is struggling to figure out how they are going to pay the next bill may never show it, but a lot of us i n our community are quietly carrying that pain. So, the one thing that I would ask each of us to start considering and thinking more about is being a little more patient, compassionate, and understanding with each other because we are all carrying crosses that people do not see. The other thing is that if you are in the position to help, if you know that your activities, your policies, your approach is creating harm while it lines your pocket, you need you to think about your country and your people and do your part to alleviate some of the suffering. We have so many of our people who have become disconnected from each other. So whether it is the passing around of video footage of a motorist dying from a car accident or from a gunshot wound or something that would seem so simple as illegal dumping of trash, if we do not see the value in each other, if we only see a person as footage to pass around and build some clout on, if we only see a spot as a place to dump things, we see the erosion of our society, our culture and our way of life in ways that we cannot predict. And so, we need to be a little more compassionate, a little bit more understanding. But also try and be more see-ing of the humanity in each of us. This is needed. I spoke earlier about people feeling disillusioned and disenchanted. If you feel that way, what I have found is that you can be fulfilled by giving just 1 per cent more, doing your part to make Bermuda 1 per cent better in your space wherever you can, because that is what we need right now. If we had just 20 per cent of our population giving 20 per cent more, giving 1 per cent more, giving away the notions of greed and selfishness, giving away the notions of look-ing down on each other and discriminating [against] each other, we would be in a much better place. We have been through a lot, and I think we sometimes do not give each other enough credit for what we have been through. But I think that we all need to take a moment to reflect on the people we lost, reflect on the damage to our economy, to business, to homes, to children. You know, there have been some studies oversea s dealing with the impact of remote learning on children who are in primary school. There has been analysis of people in other jurisdictions who are now using credit cards to extend their monthly payment and to keep their lights on and to do different things like that. These are all happening in our country, it is not just in other countries. So, as a Government, there are some things that are coming that I am very excited to see in terms of helping provide relief to our people. [It is] very exciting to see and I am looking forward to seeing them become a reality. But now in the interim, each of us has a role to play in making this country better. And we can-not abdicate that responsibility. We absolutely cannot, because too many people are suffering. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Simmons. MP Famous, you have your 20 minutes. HOUSING TO ACCOMMODATE AN INCRE ASE IN POPULATION—THE LACK OF
Mr. Christopher FamousMr. Speaker, I will not even be that long. Mr. Speaker, earlier I know I heard the word debat able, po- table/pot -able. . . I won’t get into that. But I know I did hear an Honourable Member in this Ho use say and I quote, The speed of …
Mr. Speaker, I will not even be that long. Mr. Speaker, earlier I know I heard the word debat able, po- table/pot -able. . . I won’t get into that. But I know I did hear an Honourable Member in this Ho use say and I quote, The speed of which investors get ap-provals. Mr. Speaker, I remember going back about 10 years ago, there were cries —I won’t say cries , but there was a concerted campaign —to get us to start thinking about being like the Cayman Islands. There were proposals and there were policies in place to loosen our immigration. Some worked. Some did not work. And all this was to say we need more population. Okay. That may be true. But Mr. Speaker, every single individual, whether they be rich, poor or whatever , needs somewhere to live. There is a thing called physics, right? You have to balance the equa-tion. Correct? E=mc ². You cannot have an increase in population unless you have an increase in housing. Right now, we have very little housing in this Island. Let me declare, I am . . . until the C olonel says so, I am the C hairman at the Bermuda Housing Corpo1338 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly ration. We have no hous es. People are paying extraordinary amounts of money —I should say extorted— for paying rent. We have no houses in this country, affordable housing. The more housing that goes toward those who can afford it, there is less housing for those who cannot afford it. So, when we have people saying we need more people on the Island, well some of those same people are like, No, you cannot build there. No, you cannot build t here. Well, where can we build then? In the water? In the air? Where should we build? Mr. Speaker, I am not saying that any political party has it all right. But what I am saying is if Bermudians have to accept that we need more population, then the next segment of Bermuda has to accept that we need more housing. So, we need to have less and less grandstanding of persons saying, No, no housing. No, no housing. BRITISH MONARCHS PROFITED FROM BRITAIN’S INVOLVEMENT IN SLAVERY
Mr. Christopher FamousMr. Speaker, like you and others, I was raised on principles. If you support this side, you stay on this side. If you support that side, you stay on that side. You cannot be wishy -washy. Mr. Speaker, over the next couple hours /days, £125 million will be spent over …
Mr. Speaker, like you and others, I was raised on principles. If you support this side, you stay on this side. If you support that side, you stay on that side. You cannot be wishy -washy. Mr. Speaker, over the next couple hours /days, £125 million will be spent over in the United Kingdom, or has been spent , celebrating the coronation of the latest monarch. Now, some might say, Well, you know it is tradition. Yes, it is tradition. But guess what ? The British Government would spend that money in a heartbeat. Last year, they spent how many untold millions on a 70- year birthday or whatever they call ed that for so mebody . . . Jubilee, and then spent more money on the funeral, all for one family. But not one dime is going to the people who have been enslaved. Not one dime is going to the people whose land has been taken from them. Mr. Speaker, there is a thing called anecdotal evidence and a thing called real evidence. There is this newspaper of note from Manchester called the Guardian. They have a habit of doing series, fact-finding. On April 6 [2023] they published this, “12 British monarchs sponsored, supported or profited from Britain’s involve-ment in slavery,” inclusive of Charles II (the guy who is going in the chair tomorrow is Charles III) and Elizabeth I. I say that, Mr. Speaker, when you have a monarch that gives a ship to a pirate called John Hawkins in exchange for profits from slavery, how do you re-spect that institution? Slavery that killed Black people, slavery that committed genocide around the world — how do you respect that institution, Mr . Speaker? Are we suffering from Stockholm syndrome where we are sympathising with our captors? Mr. Speaker, as people who have been colonised, we have been conditioned to revere those who have done the wors t to us. Recently the Church of England has admi tted that they have made $10 billion off of slavery —$10 billion. And guess what, Mr. Speaker. They said over the next 10 years they will give $100 million to organisa-tions to make people aware of what slavery did. Some people would say , That is $100 million; that is a lot of money. But I went to Berkeley , right? ( Or as the C olonel would say, Berkley .) And my math says $100 million is only 1 per cent of $10 billion. So, we have the Church of England that made $10 billion off of slavery and is willing to give up 1 per cent, not even 10 per cent like the tithes. Right? One per cent over the course of 10 years. So that is only the interest. So, I say, Mr. Speaker, in closing, I was brought up on principles. There is no way I am going to stand here in this House and say congratulations to anybody who is part of enslaving millions of people. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Famous. Does any other Member wish to make a comment at this point? MP Cannonier. MISUSE OF MARIJUANA —IMPACT AND RESULT
Mr. L. Craig CannonierYes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am going to congratulate the Honourable [Member] Caines for the subject matter that he brought up. If you have been in the health field, you would know that Bermuda is suffering tremendously from our young men having major mental challenges. And it has come …
Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am going to congratulate the Honourable [Member] Caines for the subject matter that he brought up. If you have been in the health field, you would know that Bermuda is suffering tremendously from our young men having major mental challenges. And it has come about, in some part, unfortunately from the misuse of drugs, primarily starting out with weed. The reason why I decided to at least say something about it is because personally (and I am not afraid to speak about it even though my family has not in the past) my father at 16 suffered from a major bike accident and was in the hospital. And back in those days they did not have the same medical facilities that they do now. He was in a coma for two months and resorted to smoking weed to alleviate the pain. Which made sense. It was not regulated in any kind of way, and no one was saying, you know, you need to just use a little at a time. What I can say is that years later it did . . . not years later but eventually it brought about schizophrenia. And just like Minister Caines had said, bright young men. This was a bright young man. You would know [him] —[a] cup match player, captain of the St. George’s cricket team, [the] St. David’s cricket team, [the] football team. You name it. But unfortunately, the schizophrenia set in from marijuana use and it led to harder drugs. And this does not happen in every case for those who are using it for medicinal purposes and the likes. This is not every situation, but there are far too many situations like this where we are losing good, smart men, young men, unfortunately self -medicating themselves. I recall [when] I was about 18 or 19, trying to understand a little more about how he got to where he was and the position that he was in. And you know it
Bermuda House of Ass embly l ed to some pretty funny moments, quite frankly. But most of my childhood was drowned out in some very aggressive behaviour that would scar anyone, espe-cially to see policemen . . . and back then it was primarily White policemen who would burst into your house—five or six of them— take your dad on, beat him up, carry him out in handcuffs, [with] no appreciation for what re-ally was taking place. And those are the lighter things that I had seen as a young man, certainly not some of the darkest stuff I had seen because of this early use of marijuana, which led to harder drugs. So, it touched my heart when the Honourable Member came to speak about the fact that this was a bright young man who we have lost. As I say, you fast forward to today. All you have to do is walk around the City of Hamilton. You can smell the weed being smoked right in the City of Hamilton, and you can see the individuals who are mentally disturbed, [who] need help, quite frankly. And a large part of this is due to the early stage of marijuana use but also the fact that there were studies being done quite some time ago. And I will back up the fact that the for-mer Minister Caines has looked at some of these studies, that unfortunately for us . . . and there was a study looking at Bermudians as well as part of the Caribbean that we had a propensity for schizophrenia for early use of marijuana. So, somehow and in some way, we have got to address this. You know, there is a law side, and you know I get it. We just saw a massive amount of weed that was taken off of the streets. I must say immediately when I said that I was li ke, Oh-oh. That is going to be a problem for people who are trying to self -medicate. That is going to cause some more problems. But the fact is that I had to sit down and think about it. We may have just saved some lives —
Mr. L. Crai g Cannonier—because of that. And we know that in a small community we know some of those who are involved in this activity. We have got to blot this scourge out, come to a better understanding of these drugs, yes, I do agree, for the medicinal purposes a nd the likes. …
—because of that. And we know that in a small community we know some of those who are involved in this activity. We have got to blot this scourge out, come to a better understanding of these drugs, yes, I do agree, for the medicinal purposes a nd the likes. But as of right now, we have far too many people who have made wealth and gained houses and the likes off of selling this stuff. And I see Black people selling it to Black people. Now that is not to say that you do not have others in the community who are selling it as well, but we know that [we], our own, are selling it to ourselves all for money, all for the gain of money. And we certainly cannot, when we are in that position, start saying that, Oh well, it’s another community or somebody of a different persuasion— it’s their fault. We are doing it to ourselves. And I encourage the police officers and the Commissioner to continue to crack down on those in the past and the present who are involved in this activity. But as a community and legislators in this House we need to come to a resolution on the benefits and the scourge of this and come up with a balance that meets the needs of our young men who are already dy-ing off. We have so many [more] women than men. And then we lose our men to drugs, and then [they are] imprisoned—and some unfairly, as the former Minister just said— locked up. The family unit is done. And then we have a good family that we just heard of who has lost a son. Now thank goodness our families stuck together throughout t he whole thing. And it led to his early death, unfortunately. And I am just one of many in Bermuda. I am sure that others in the House of Assembly are touched by it. We know it. We see it. Something has got to happen because that one young man could be the Speaker of the House, the next one to pass 34 years in the House. [It] could be! But we are losing them, and so something has to happen. We were walking into town. I saw the Honourable Member Jason Hayward walking around town. I know he is seeing what I am seeing as well. We have got to get to it. Some of these guys are extremely intel-ligent, Mr. Speaker. You know it. But we are losing them to the simple fact that we are not, in a collective way, addressing this issue. And I am speaking to us as a community of those of colour. We have to do more and do better amongst ourselves and hold each other accountable when it is needed. When things like that do happen . . . at least I had a safety net. The St. David’s community stuck to-gether because they loved Legay Cannonier. And they stuck together to make sure that my mother and my sister and I were taken care of. And that is the story you know, Mr. Speaker, of the past. Today, unfortunately (in common language), these young byes ain’t got that community to stick together around them. Everybody is suffering. Everyone is struggling trying to make ends meet. So, unless we stick together, including in the House, on these kinds of issues to bring about the right change for us . . . we are already experiencing a rude awakening. Who are the next people to come into the House of Assembly to take our seats? The pickings are getting slimmer and slimmer. So, I appreciate the fact [that], once again, the Honourable MP Caines has brought up another touchy subject in our comm unity, but we have to do more. And we have to encourage our officers to do what they have to do. They seem to be really clamping down on things. But we here in the House of Assembly also have to do way more at ad-dressing this issue and make it a collective thing so that we can save our young men, because our young women need that. We are losing way too many. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Cannonier. Does any other Member . . . MP Swan, you have your 20 minutes. 1340 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. Swan: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNot that anyone else has used their 20 minutes, but you have yours. A HISTORY OF HOTELS IN BERMUDA
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanThank you. I will use it wisely, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to speak today ever so briefly about the importance of tourism in our county for our economy. I think it is safe to say that the presence of international business in Bermuda has been able to develop …
Thank you. I will use it wisely, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to speak today ever so briefly about the importance of tourism in our county for our economy. I think it is safe to say that the presence of international business in Bermuda has been able to develop and thrive because of a very successful tour-ism industry that was cultivated in Bermuda from the first Hamilton Hotel in 1861 to the Hamilton Princess in 1865 to the proliferation of hotels with Furness Withy developing the St. George Hotel, developing the golf courses there—which proved controversial for many families who were displaced in the process of doing so with the development by Furness Withy of the Bermu-diana Hotel which eventually went to Trusthouse Forte, Mr. Speaker. And so, by [the] time Bermuda started to really move into the international business in the 1960s and 1970s and really mushroomed up into the 1980s, the hotel industry was flourishing, Mr. Speaker. I remember as a young man coming into politics. I ran in 1983, and I remember us sitting in places where some early legislation was introduced. I remember the Condominium Act 1986 coming into play. And I believe I can safely say the Condominium Act 1986 came in probably around the early 1980s. Mr. Speaker, I just want to list, if I can, a few hotels that I remember. And I want to star t from the west. I am not going to start with 9 Beaches, that no longer exists. I am not going to start there because it was not around in the period that I am referring to. But I am going to say to Lantana, a very nice property. My mother worked there. Ledgelets was right next door. And a bit of Ledgelets still exists today. But Lantana, right next to where my Anderson family used to live in that community, no longer exists today as a hotel. You had Somerset Bridge Hotel right across the street. Former Member of Parliament the Honoura-ble Walter Roberts owned that property. I remember when my uncle . . . We took the boat across to the dock to take photos in the 1960s. I was very proud to be just a shot sitting on the bow of the Torn Porpoise there at Scaur for that photograph. That is now, I believe, apartments. So that is the beach right down there in the valley just below there [that] hosted a number of rooms for many years. It is now a beach club owned by the Hamilton Princess, Southampton Princess which was opened in 1970. I declare my interest. Up there where the cycle shop was, my great -grandmother’s property was compulsorily acquired to build that important hotel in 1970 around the same time that the Holiday Inn was opened in 197[3], right near where t he St. Regis sits today. So, like was replaced for like; and thankfully there is a hotel still there to replace one that was built in 1970. Might I add there was a St. George Hotel that was there back in the early 1920s that was built also by Furness Withy, and a golf course that was there, nine holes. There were two golf courses in the St. George’s town because the garrison hotel, the military, was there as well, as well as Shore Hills out in Ferry Reach, which was another hotel that I omitted to put on my list. Horizons Hotel I believe is apartments today, some type of housing development there, and the people still play pickle ball on the courts. Elbow Beach, closed. Zero hotels. Zero rooms there. The Belmont was transformed into condominiums, although at some point we were expecting Belmont to be hotel rooms as well. It was combined with Newstead. So, Newstead was also a cottage colony associated with Waterloo House in Coral Beach Properties there with the Smiths, H. A. & E. Smith and all that English sport shop connections. Yes. My golf connec-tions; I remember all that. Waterloo House is now office space, right? Maybe [there are] some rooms there, too. Belmont Ho-tel. Glencoe down there in Salt Kettle used to be a small boutique hotel. Zero rooms now. Bermudiana became an iconic office space. We cannot fault the amount of contribution to Bermuda society. But that housed the very large hotel that I mentioned was built by Furness Withy. Zero rooms today. Ariel Sands. I used to do a lot of business with Ariel Sands when I used to bring my golf tournaments there to market outside of St. George’s. And the ladies’ pro tournament we used to do was there with Ariel Sands with Ms. Hayward. And I used to always enjoy seeing Johnny and Danny and Dr. King there every morning having breakfast there during the week. And great conversation would take place there, business conversation. And Ariel Sands, White Sands —controversial again. Both of those properties [are] looking to get back into the hotel business. Controversy. White Sands, Ar-iel Sands, Southampton Princess —controversy. Let’s go down a little bit further. Palmetto Bay. Oh, Palmetto Bay was one of the first that was going to retransform into hotel space, and it is what? Condominiums today. Zero. And the hotel in Hamilton Parish owned by . . . [a] family -owned hotel. It was a small hotel, Clear View, [and it] is now residences. [ Inaudible interjection]
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanYes. And I forgot about . . . thank you. Liberty bought that. That was Coral Island. But before that it was Frascati, and there was a ninehole golf course up there that became a housing devel-opment. I believe the Opposition Leader lives where a golf course once was. Bermuda …
Yes. And I forgot about . . . thank you. Liberty bought that. That was Coral Island. But before that it was Frascati, and there was a ninehole golf course up there that became a housing devel-opment. I believe the Opposition Leader lives where a golf course once was.
Bermuda House of Ass embly An Hon. Member: I think he was on the other side of the fairway.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanWas on the other side. What point am I making with all these hotel properties that gave rise to the Bermuda that we enjoy today? They no longer exist! They have moved over time into commercialisation of residences, one way of the oth er, or office space without objection to …
Was on the other side. What point am I making with all these hotel properties that gave rise to the Bermuda that we enjoy today? They no longer exist! They have moved over time into commercialisation of residences, one way of the oth er, or office space without objection to sustainable thinking. The people that want to talk about sustainable development today were not forward- thinking to see that if you kept eroding the stock of hotel properties in this country and not replacing like with like ––like Ariel Sands is trying to do, White Sands is trying to do, Southampton Princess is trying to do–– that we would come to a place where a country that was built on tour-ism that employs more people would have the problem it has today. And I would dare to say that anyone who lives in a condo participated in the erosion of what this country is built on—tourism. Look at the fundamental. And I put it there. And I put the list up. And I look, and I show people, Look at the list. Zero in that column. Anybody? The erosion of Bermuda’s tourism product is probably in the hands and feet of everybody who participated in that erosion who may live in condos, who may have benefited by it from condos, who may have conveyed condos, who . . . who . . . who today want to stop the country from really looking at what it really needs to do to survive. We are in a critical stage when it comes to hotels. We even passed a law at one point in time when we were building the hotel industry, when Furness Withy was coming to Bermuda. We even had laws that prevented us from using cruise ships as hotels so as not to compete with hotels. And then as we started dwindling down our stock to where now we have zero base beds. Really, we are closer to zero than when we were in our heyday. And we have everybody objecting to anything that is on the table. And we wonder how we are going to come forward with solutions. I have always been [asking], Where are the solutions to this? One solution is that we need hotel beds. And I know a little bit about the politics of no. Often times I have conversations with Dr. Brown. It starts like this, Wow. (I am up there teaching golf on number 17 at Belmont —beautiful view overlooking Granaway Deep.) And what is coming down there? A cruise ship [that] look s like a speedboat going from Dockyard down through . . . what is that? . . . Two Roc k . . . toward Two Rock through the islands . I am saying, My gosh. I remember when it was so fashionable to tickle them up on building these fast ferries. How we could re- divert. Where would we be without fast ferries? Where would we be without fast ferries? It was said in this very House today, Mr. Speaker. It was said in this very House today that Dockyard is the capital of cruise ships. But the politics of no . . . there were . . . and I participated in it, so I am participating in it. But you cannot. I am prepared to say that every politic of no did not do Bermuda good.
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberI agree.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanRight? Because right now where would be without fast ferries and where would St. George’s be—
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberAt the airport.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. Swan—without cruise ships because we do not have cruise ships because they do not build cruise ships that size? [ Laughter]
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanBecause, look . . . Do not talk about . . . do not take away my few minutes on airports because I travel to countries, big countries. I go to Gatwick and Heathrow far more than I care to right now. And you are shuttled into Heathrow. You do …
Because, look . . . Do not talk about . . . do not take away my few minutes on airports because I travel to countries, big countries. I go to Gatwick and Heathrow far more than I care to right now. And you are shuttled into Heathrow. You do not drive up to Heathrow. You are shuttled in. Okay? I happen to know the person who owns it, too. I am trying to bring them here to get some infrastructure going. It is difficult when they look and see where everything that people are saying is, No! We cannot be the country of no when it comes to the need because it is a national imperative that we get hotel beds. There are three properties that are try-ing to do something, but one particular property is look-ing at 500 and villas with conversions into hotel beds. Maybe what the people who are trying to tickle every-body up are saying is, Make sure all of them convert to hotel beds. Maybe that is what you should be saying. But you should not be saying something that is going to stifle the fact of what we need in this country to survive. And let me say this while I am winding up. The greatest economic boom this country ever experienced was under a PLP Government. And many of us would like it to be that way again —the economic miracle— no matter which Governm ent is presiding over it. Participate in that. Stop participating in the politics of no for the sake of no . And I am here to say, Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Labour has already said in this country we need to expand the labour pool because persons like m e who are getting a pension need those young people. You think I am overseas promoting Bermuda. I am trying to tell people Bermuda is a great place to come. We need to expand our labour pool too. But where are they going to stay? We need to improve and increase our tourism. We need to get more airlift here. That will happen when we have a greater presence in the hotel rooms so that we can get more room nights. And finally this, Mr. Speaker, I often say that the opportunities in tourism are in the shoulder months between November and March. And I am old enough 1342 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly now to know when that was the period of our tourism. It was only the advent of cruise ships that made sum-mer more fashionable. We were the place people came to in the winter months. And yes, we are competing against those islands down in the south and all those warmer places all over the world. But there are still enough people in the world that would appreciate the Bermuda experience between November and March. Great novels were written in this country . Great inspiration has come from this country in those months. We need to sell what we have. We need to be proud of who we are. We need people here and we need to go places to get [those people] who live in those colder climates —North America, [the] Eastern Seaboard, Canada, England, Europe. And we need to celebrate our bread- and-butter activities like golf, like tennis, like sailing, and sports that do well during those months, and like what the Minister of Education is promoting with signature schools and the like. My good friend Minister Weeks always talked about [a] sports academy. Why not a sports academy for sailing in partnership with some of these Nordic countries or countries that participate in major . . . Why not have academies here connected with the schools? Why not have . . . I am . . . I will tell you. I am working on bringing an academy in connection with the PGA of England to have the winter home here. Why not? We have got to start partnering, and have that conversation in earnest, Mr. Speaker . They need to take some of our young people to their countries and do cross pollination—it’s not a one-way street, it’s a two- way street —so that those young people make those relationships that I have to-day so that 30 –40 years from now they will be st ill regenerating and passing it down the line. That is what we need to do in this country. And I am encouraging the purveyors of no to change their tune to find out how a no could be a solution rather than stifling because we need those rooms ever so desperately. It depends . . . our future depends on it. I need a little water.
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberTake your time, brother. Another Hon. Member: Two minutes left.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanYes. I do not need two minutes. Mr. Speaker, I started this motion to adjourn listing all those properties from west to east (in that or-der) who have closed to become residential units. Why? Because the country grew over that period of time. And in the process our hotel beds …
Yes. I do not need two minutes. Mr. Speaker, I started this motion to adjourn listing all those properties from west to east (in that or-der) who have closed to become residential units. Why? Because the country grew over that period of time. And in the process our hotel beds have dwindled down to a quarter of what it was back 30 –40 years ago. Such is the state that we do not have airlines to the ex-tent, and the price is not competitive with other jurisdic-tions. That can change in a real way, Mr. Speaker, if we see [more] beds in this country. I am asking for folks to look for solutions. It is easy to say n o. And it is easy to get people tickled up. But look at what the real difficulties are for this country. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Swan. MP Dunkley, would you like your 20 minutes? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I would like the opportunity to speak tonight.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou go right ahead. MISUSE OF MARIJUANA —IMPACT AND RESULT Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I do not intend to be 20 minutes, but I will take this opportunity to deliver some comments that I think are pertinent for tonight. And let me start as my honourable colleague MP Cannonier, the …
You go right ahead. MISUSE OF MARIJUANA —IMPACT AND RESULT Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I do not intend to be 20 minutes, but I will take this opportunity to deliver some comments that I think are pertinent for tonight. And let me start as my honourable colleague MP Cannonier, the former Premier, started with con-gratulating a colleague from the other side, former Minister Caines, on his passionate speech about the im-pacts of the use of cannabis by young people in our community. I could not say it any better. It is a subject that I have considered and talked about on numerous occasions. And I am pleased to see now that the Honourable Member spoke from his heart as he has done on regular occasions about it and once again tried to galvanise our community because families and individ-ual lives are being put in a very difficult position and are being lost or are being ruined because of it. And we as a community are the only ones who can stand up and make a difference. So, I am pleased to see that we have had a constructive conversation about that tonight, that my sole purpose on touching on that subject is to support that, and I look for the opportunity to have this place used for some meaningful progress in dealing with that scourge that will continue to wreck our community un-less we do something about it, Mr. Speaker. And as I told the Honourable Member when I spoke to him after he sat down from his presentation, I was in a chat earlier today with somebody about that specific subject and the health challenges that it caused to our young man. So, congratulations, sir, on hitting a good line and length tonight. THE POLITICS OF “NO” Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, [there are a] couple other points I would like to speak on tonight. First of all, the Honourable Member who just sat down prior to me speaking talked about . . . I believe it was the purveyors of no, Mr. Speaker. And I find it fascinating and quite interesting and concerning that the Hon-ourable Member even admitted he used to be in that camp and now has changed his tune somewhat. I think that is solely because you have crossed from on e side of the floor to the other. Quite often when you are in the Opposition you want to say no, no, no, no—
Bermuda House of Ass embly Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. Swan: Point of order, Mr. Speaker — Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: No, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint of order. POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanI think the Honourable Member is unintentionally misleading the House and making wrong accusations about myself. When I was aligned with him, I spoke about fast ferries and made a good case as to how we could redeploy the money for fast ferries. I moved forward in years and long …
I think the Honourable Member is unintentionally misleading the House and making wrong accusations about myself. When I was aligned with him, I spoke about fast ferries and made a good case as to how we could redeploy the money for fast ferries. I moved forward in years and long before . . . when I was even an Independent, I started to recognise the importance of fast ferries.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Okay. You made your point. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. He is making my point again for me. But the politics of no. Mr. Speaker, let me shift and put it a different way. We needed a new airport. Even the former Government had it in …
Okay. Okay. You made your point. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. He is making my point again for me. But the politics of no. Mr. Speaker, let me shift and put it a different way. We needed a new airport. Even the former Government had it in the plans for a new airport. We needed a new airport. Well, the politics of no got in the way. And Mr. Speaker, the politics of no got in the way, why? Because those who opposed it did not support it as it was. It doesn’t mean they are against what you are trying to do; it means they do not support it in the cur-rent path that it is intended to go, or the current path that is laid out. And here is the exact same thing we are facing with the Southampton Princess, Mr. Speaker. The Honourable Member went through a list of places that have closed. And it is indeed shocking that we are in this position. But we are in the same exact position with the Southampton Princess. I have not come across one person who I have spoken to, or read or heard anyone’s comments on TV, who is against some development at the hotel. It is just the scope of it and the way it is going to be done, Mr. Speaker. Now, I had no intention of speaking on this matter tonight. But because it is a pressing national issue, I felt I must put that out there, Mr. Speaker. Because I know my honourable colleague would intend to speak to it more, but I think it is important that we lay down the line of where we stand and why we stand in this posi-tion. Mr. Speaker, I do not think any of us need to go into detail about the importance of getting that hote l open. We have been through it. The unions have been through it. The Government has been through it. The Opposition has been through it. The people have been through it. That hotel now potentially is a lifeline for a better Bermuda. Because with the opening of the hotel in the size that it was before, with the convention op-portunities that we will have, with all that was wrapped around before, and if it ever does come across as one of the best hotels in the world it will allow Bermuda to be opened up again into a fantastic gateway. We will be able to capture the airlift that we so badly need. All of these challenges that politicians have talked about, and the people in the street feel and certainly understand, can be diminished to a great extent. So, it is not the politics of no for no reason. It is the politics of your voice being heard to make sure that we can investigate better ways, Mr. Speaker. And I think one of the challenges with many people within the community is that they simply do not like an ex panded SDO. [It is] that simple, Mr. Speaker. The second challenge I think with many in the community is that from the beginning of the hotel closure . . . I remember very clearly. I think at the time the Honourable Zane De Silva was the Minister of Tourism. And late one afternoon here he stood up to announce the purchase of the Fairmont Southampton with great joy and pride, and it was going to be redeveloped. That was probably in 2019, 2020. [ Inaudible interjection] Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: [It was] 2019. Thank you, Honourable former Minister of Finance. Now, almost four years later it is still closed. And I highlight that point because the Government, mainly led by the Honourable Premier (who is away celebrating (rightly so) the coronation of the King tomor-row) was setting timelines and making promises (and I will be gracious here) [of which] very few have been met. Most people will say that none have been met, but, Mr. Speaker, very few have been met. So here we stand today, May 5 (Cinco de Mayo as many people will say because it is), Friday night. Many people will say that little has happened. In fact, we are probably in a more tenuous position over that development than we ever have been before with re-cent events and recent comments by the spokesperson for the hotel. Comments that many people in the community took as threats, Mr. Speaker. So, it is not the politics of no. It is the understanding of the world that we live in. And I reflected on it in the debate earlier today, Mr. Speaker, it is the un-derstanding in the world that we live that communication is key. Transparency and accountability always 1344 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly have to be at the forefront. And we clearly have not seen that in this project. And so, if we move forward . . . and this Opposition, thi s Loyal Opposition, wants to move forward. We want that hotel to be open. We want the development to be successful. We want the invest-ment in Bermuda. And as a follow -up, we want to see airlines increase their routes to Bermuda. Here we are in June next month, Mr. Speaker, and Delta is only fly-ing three times a week from Atlanta. My, what a fall we have taken. A fall we have taken, Mr. Speaker! And it is a ride we must all take together. So, I make my points candidly because I do not want to hear now that you have a different responsibil-ity, and you are in the Government and you don’t want to hear the politics of no. Get used to it! People have voices! People fought for freedom, and the right of free-dom of speech. And we do not try to shut them down; we lis ten to them. We try to find a way forward. And I believe Premier Burt and his colleagues have the ability to do that. We in the Opposition support the development. We have our concerns. We are happy to work through those, Mr. Speaker. It is critical. We need to make sure investors in this country feel that they are heard, feel that their investment can take place. But also, they need to understand the important things that are critical to us because then more investment will flow into this country. So, it is not the politics of no and objecting to anything on the table. It is simply the way it is done, Mr. Speaker. And that is important. GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY ABOUT EMERGENCY SERVICE CHALLENGES—LACK OF Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, one other subjects that I would like to speak about tonight are two subjects that I have spoken about publicly recently in concern to health, safety and security. I am speaking on the caveat that both the Minister of Health and the Minister of National Security are not here tonight, but I am sure they have their ears on. I made it known in April when changes were made to how ambulances were run throughout the Is-land that it had the potential to cause—the potential, Mr. Speaker, to cause —reduced health and safety standards throughout the country. I had it confirmed by the Chief of Staff at the hospital that ambulances would not run from the east and the west stations regularly. They would be scaled back and at night -time the only ambulances to run would be from the hospi tal. Now, Mr. Speaker, I want it on record in this House that after we have made improvements to get quicker emergency service to either ends of the Island and all through the Island, without the Government even mentioning during the Budget Debate that there would be a pull -back, it happens. That is not acceptable. The lack of transparency and the potential for health and safety challenges. I have had calls from people in the community who are aghast because they have seen it for them-selves. One gentleman who lives up close to Somerset Bridge left to go to town a couple of weeks ago when the change first took place. He was not a witness to an accident, but there was a person lying in the road when he went to town. When he came back sometime later the ambul ance still had not arrived. [That is] simply unacceptable, Mr. Speaker. Now, I am not here to continue to raise circumstances where we have had these challenges. I am just here calling for an improvement in the emergency service that is required because we are heading into the busy season. We have got cruise ships that will be full up at Dockyard. And the last thing we need for the East End or the West End is to have emergency service challenges, Mr. Speaker. A couple of other salient points: The Bermuda Fire and Rescue Service has more EMTs than any other organisation, perhaps more EMTs than all the other organisations combined. Their services should be used. The only thing that the Bermuda Fire and Rescue Service personnel cannot do when they go out in a fire vehicle (not an ambulance) is transport that person who would need to go to the hospital. Why are we limiting their ability to provide health and safety? One simple reason I was given was because the resources had to be diverted to the airport. And I am not going to argue that we are behind the eight ball there; but we need to do better because one of the first responsibilities that any community has is toward the health and safety of their people. We need to do better. Secondly, Mr. Speaker — Hon. Jason Hayward: You just can’t make stuff up. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: The Honourable Minister of Labour said you just can’t make stuff up. And that is why I speak from facts. Mr. Speaker, the bitter subject of waiting times in the emergency department for those who might need a bed after they have been admitted to the hospital. I have commented on this, Mr. Speaker, and I want to bring it to the people’s House to talk about it briefly. It is simply unacceptable. There was a story in the paper about somebody who had to wait a significant period of time. I was called, yet again, last weekend by a family whose 75-year-old father was left in the emergency department for over two days waiting for a bed. This individual could not feed himself. At times his food was just placed next to him and there was no one there to help him. Now, I am not blaming the staff at the emergency department. They are under tremendous pressure with the number of calls they have, Mr. Speaker. We have had the challenges of lack of capacity, for whatever reason, at the hospital. They could be short of beds, they could be short of staff; any of these issues, Mr. Speaker. But we must make sure that if we
Bermuda House of Ass embly ar e operating a first -rate quality care hospital, which I believe, by and large, we are, that we get people out of the emergency department and in the beds as soon as possible. Two- plus days’ wait, Mr. Speaker, is not acceptable. So, I call on the Government to work with eve-ryone to make sure that we can improve these two challenges that we have. And lastly, those two challenges within the emergency care and the ability to transport people to that care. And the last point that I will make, Mr. Speaker, is that I thank the Honourable Acting Premier tonight for sending a message of congratul ations to the King. And I appreciate the sincerity with which it was sent by the Government of Bermuda. It was certainly supported by the Opposition, the One Bermuda Alliance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Have a good evening and have a safe weekend.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Does any other Member wish to make a comment this evening? Mr . Dennis Lister III: Good evening, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe Speaker[Microphone off ] ROAD SAF ETY WEEK — CHANGING BEHAVIOUR AND CHANGING MINDS Mr . Dennis Lister III: Mr. Speaker, I will follow in the same line as the previous speaker before me about safety. Road safety —changing behaviours, changing minds. I say that because that, Mr. Speaker, is the …
[Microphone off ] ROAD SAF ETY WEEK — CHANGING BEHAVIOUR AND CHANGING MINDS Mr . Dennis Lister III: Mr. Speaker, I will follow in the same line as the previous speaker before me about safety. Road safety —changing behaviours, changing minds. I say that because that, Mr. Speaker, is the theme of Road Safety Week. May 14 through May 20 is Road Safety Week in Bermuda. And the Road Safety Council is extending an open invite to the public to attend on Monday, May 15, at City Hall, where we will be holding our open event. Throughout that whole week, Mr. Speaker, we have different themes for each day. •Sunday, May 14—Remembering the lives lost on our roads. In the last 25 years, Mr. Speak er, we have lost over 200 lives on our roads. That is a s taggering [number] for a small Island. •Monday, May 15—Your road safety pledge. The Road Safety Council asks that all me mbers of the public go on to the Ber muda Road Safety Council website, bermudaroad safety.bm. (I have to get that correct.) But go on the website and sign up for ourRoad Saf ety Pledge. Pledge for better driving. Pledge to change your be haviour. •Tuesday, May 16—On the road to safety. Safety firs t. •Wednesday, [May 17] —Look out for each other. •Thursday, [May 18] —No need to speed. •Friday, [May 19] —Zero tolerance. You know, Friday, the weekend comes, Hap py Hour. So, we ask that on that Fr iday, May 19, Zero tolerance. If you plan to go out and consume alcohol, to plan how to get home safely.•Saturday, [May 20] —Everyone’s life matters on our roads. And that is so true, Mr. Speaker. Every single life lost on our road is someone’s son, daughter,mother, father, friend or relative. They matter to their surviving family member and friends. So, Mr. Speaker, that is the line- up for the Road Safety Week. And again, I put an open invite to all members of the public to attend our open event on Monday, May 15 at City Hall from 12:00 until 2:00 [pm]. Mr. Speaker, I will quote a text from the Bible. Proverbs 22:6, and it says: Train up a child in the way that they should go so that when they get old t hey will not depart from it. Why do I say that, Mr. Speaker? If we reflect on the last session of this House [when] I spoke, I spoke of how the roads are a reflection of our society. Increase in reckless and dangerous driving [and] in-crease in speeding are all actions that reflect our society with the lack of discipline and lack of respect for rules and regulations on our roads. And also, Mr. Speaker, a bit further is [the reason] why the Road Safety Council chose that theme, Changing behaviours, changing minds, is because in the last 20- plus years we have seen that uptick in lack of [respect] and lack of discipline. And the other thing is that there is an environment of no consequences for person’s actions. We see on our roads people regularly speeding, driving dangerously and doing other traffic offences, and a lot of times they think that there is no consequence for their actions. They can speed as fast as they want. If they get a ticket, people complain as if the police are doing something wrong stopping them. But, Mr. Speaker, why do I harp on the no consequences for actions? Because as I said, in the last 20-plus years we have seen this environment where discipline has been eroded. Young people, young chil-dren can do different acts and there was once a t ime, Mr. Speaker, where they would get corrected, disciplined for those acts. If you did wrong, you got corrected. Nowadays, Mr. Speaker, there is no conse-quence for a lot of these actions. Discipline has bee n t aken out of the homes, out of the schools, and with that we see that there are no consequences that people arelearning, or growing up in an environment that there ar e no c onsequences for their actions. So, as I said, the roads are a reflection of our society. And you grow up learning, or you grow up in an environment where you are not . . . where your actions do not equal a consequence . . . so, as an example, Mr. Speaker, if you do wrong . . . and I would say from my own experience, and I think I mentioned in the last session of the House, is that I grew up that when you did wrong you got corrected. You know, when we were younger we used the word spanked. You know, you got those. I know that is what my generation, and I am one of the youngest in here, and those above (most in here) grew up getting c orrected. 1346 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly And Mr. Speaker, I can look back on my 38 short years of life and I can be grateful for that correction, that discipline that I got because it made me and got me to where I am today. If I wasn’t corrected for the things I did wrong, I would have continued to do wrong or I would do things that would have negative impacts on me. So, I thank, literally, I thank you, Mr. Speaker — [ Laughter] Mr . Dennis Lister III: —for correcting me when I was younger.
Some Hon. Members Some Hon. MembersChild abuse. Mr . Dennis Lister III: I hear some say child abuse, Mr. Speaker, and that is a thin line. [ Inaudible interjections]
Mr. Dennis Lister IIIWell, the question asked is, Is it child abuse? Well, Mr. Speaker, I would say that there is a thin line. Yes, there was a time when parents could correct their children any way they wanted. I have heard stories from older relatives that they got the belt , they …
Well, the question asked is, Is it child abuse? Well, Mr. Speaker, I would say that there is a thin line. Yes, there was a time when parents could correct their children any way they wanted. I have heard stories from older relatives that they got the belt , they got a pot — [ Inaudible interjections] Mr . Dennis Lister III: They got whatever was in arm’s reach sometimes, Mr. Speaker. [ Inaudible interjections] Mr . Dennis Lister III: I got the belt most times. But Mr. Speaker, they got what was whatever in reach to grab. And yes, while the intent was to correct a bad behaviour, yet sometimes a line can get crossed between correction and abuse. But we have to look at finding a medium, a balance between that, because we can’t go from one end of the scale of having correction to the other end of having no correction. And I say that because that is where we are at today. We see a society where correction and discipline and consequence for actions have gone out the window and we see a society where there is no accountability and again a free- for-all. So, we have to find that balance, Mr. Speaker, of correction— not abuse, but somewhere in the middle—where when you do wrong you get corrected or disciplined, but you learn. It is a learning lesson; your consequence for that action. So, Mr. Speaker, and I don’t plan on being long tonight. I know it is a holiday weekend and everyone wants to hurry up and get home. [ Inaudible interjections] Mr . Dennis Lister III: And Sabbath. So, Mr. Speaker, I go back to that text, Proverbs 22:6. It is the Sabbath so I guess I can—
An Hon. Member An Hon. MemberPreach! [ Laughter]
Mr. Dennis Lister IIIProverbs 22:6: Train up a child in the way that they should go so that when they get old they will not depart from it. So, Mr. Speaker, young and old, we can all still learn a lesson. You are never too old to be corrected and never too old …
Proverbs 22:6: Train up a child in the way that they should go so that when they get old they will not depart from it. So, Mr. Speaker, young and old, we can all still learn a lesson. You are never too old to be corrected and never too old to learn something new. So, with that, Mr. Speaker, I go back to the theme for Road Safety Week. Changing behaviour and changing minds. That is what this is about. The chal-lenge of addressing road safety in Bermuda is not black and white. It is grey area because you are dealing with people. You are dealing with person’s individual choices. And so, when you have had an environment for the last 20- plus years, where there is no consequence for actions that behaviour has become one of I do what I want and so be it. And so now we have to change that behaviour, change that mind- set, bring back discipline. Discipline, not only just personal disci-pline, but discipline on our roads. As I said, each person has their own free mind to make choices. The Road Safety Council, we pro-mote, raise awareness [and] speak on our road safety message, but each person has a choice to make when they get in the car, get on their bike of are they going to follow the rules of the roads. So personal responsibility, that is what is required to help change the behaviour on our roads and have better driving practices on our roads. So, Mr. Speaker, I will not hold [us] up any longer. But before I close I would like to, as always . . . it is a holiday weekend, a long weekend. I ask, I im-plore, I encourage all members of the public —and I won’t say if, I will say when—because it is a holiday people will consume alcohol. When you consume, plan on how to get home: Bus . . . not bus, minibus. Well, a bus if you are trying to get home before twelve o’clock. But minibus, taxis, designated driver, and last but not least, everyone has that one person who they can call at any hour of the night to come pick them up [if] there is a need and they can’t drive or [catch a] ride home. So, as we go into this holiday, I ask that everyone drive with care and caution on our roads, follow all the road rules, and to slow down our speeds. With that, Mr. Speaker, I wish everyone a safe weekend, an enjoyable holiday, be safe so that we all can see the holiday on Monday and enjoy it, and enjoy the rest of the week. So, with that, Mr. Speaker, thank you to the listening audience, stay safe and good night.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time? Bermuda House of Assembly Deput y. Thank you. MOTHER’S DAY Ho n. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I will not be long. There have clearly been a number of very important messages given this evening from …
Thank you. Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time?
Bermuda House of Assembly Deput y. Thank you. MOTHER’S DAY Ho n. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I will not be long. There have clearly been a number of very important messages given this evening from many. Many very heart filled. Many messages about things that the Government needs to think about. All of us as legislators must think about. So, there is no need to go back over that. But it is certain that we need to leave here having done a good job of work today, but also having heard much today that is leaving some lasting, heart -wrenching messages about what is going on in our country and the work that we all in Bermuda must focus on. Certainly, as the Honourable Member who just took his seat, an important message for the holiday that we take care and to be safe. But I would also like to express, because we are not going to return before an important day, to wish all the mothers in Bermuda a happy Mother’s Day. We will not be here to say that again as all Members, so I hope I am speaking for the House in wishing all mothers in Bermuda a happy Mother’s Day on the 14 th, which is also my wife’s birthday, so I have to make sure I am on my p’s and q’s. But happy Mother’s Day . . . for all our mothers and also a happy peaceful holiday for all of Bermuda, irrespective of how you wish to celebrate it. And with that, Mr. Speaker, good night. [Desk thumping] Th e Speaker: Deputy, I thank you for that. Members, we rise now to stand adjourned until the 19th of May at 10:00 am. There is a holiday in between. There is Mother’s Day in between. So be mind-ful of both of those and the messages that were pas-sionately expressed tonight. Again, walk out of here to-night in deep thought over those comments that were made. I think the passion that was behind it expressed the need for us to rethink some things and it takes all of us to collectively to think those things through as to how we respond collectively and individually. With that said, Members, be safe and enjoy the holiday. [Gav el] [At 5:56 pm, the House s tood adjourned until 10:00 am, Friday, 19 May 202 3.] 1348 5 May 2023 Official Hansard Report