September 29, 2025

Yes, certainly.

TRUSTS (REGULATION OF TRUST BUSINESS)
EXEMPTION AMENDMENT ORDER 2025
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, I hereby present for the information of Senate, the Trusts (Regulation of Trust
Business ) Exemption Amendment Order 2025, as
made by the Minister of Finance, in exercise of the power conferred by s ection 10( 2) of the Trusts ( Regulation of Trust Business ) Act 2001 and acting on behalf
of . . . I am sorry , and acting on the advice of the Bermuda Monetary Authority. Senators may access copies on their tablets and/ or the Parliament website.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: And thank you, Senator Crystal C aesar.
The next one is in the name of Senator Lauren
Bell, the Junior Minister of Economy and Labour. Senator Bell, you have the floor.

WORK PERMIT POLICY [2025]

Sen. Lauren Bell: Good morning, Madam President,
colleagues and listening audience.
Madam President, I hereby present for the information of Senate, the Work Permit Policy. Senators
may access copies on their tablets and/ or the Parliament website.
The President: Thank you, Senator.

NOTICE S OF MOTION S
The President: The first is in the name of Senator, the
Honourable Crystal C aesar, spokesperson for Finance.
Senator C aesar, you have the floor.

NATIONAL PENSION SCHEME (OCCUPATIONAL
PENSIONS) (ADMINISTRATION FEES)
REGULATIONS 2025
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, I hereby present for the consideration of Senate the National Pension Scheme (Oc-cupational Pensions) (Administration Fees) Regulations 2025, proposed to be made by the Minister of Finance, in exercise of the power conferred by s ection
69(1)(jb) and (q) of the National Pension Scheme ( Occupational Pensions ) Act 1998, and after consultation
with the Pension Commission.
And I give notice that at a later point in the
meeting, I will move that the said draft O rder be approved. Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Minister C aesar.
The next is in the name of Senator Mis cha
Fubler, Junior Minister of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport.
You can present your motion.

TOURISM INVESTMENT (NAVIGATE DRONE
LIGHT SHOWS) ORDER 2025
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I hereby present for the consideration of Senate, the Tourism Investment (Navigate Drone Light Shows) Order 2025, proposed to be made by the Min-ister responsible for Tourism, with written agreement of
the Minister of Finance, in exercise of the power conferred by s ection 5 of the Tourism Investment Act 2017.
And I give notice that at a later point in the
meeting, I will move that said draft O rder be approved.

The President: Thank you, Senator F ubler.
The next motion is in the name of Senator, also
Senator F ubler, Junior Minister for Tourism and
Transport, Culture and Sport.

TOURISM INVESTMENT (ODYSSEY COMMERCIAL
CHARTER YACHT ) ORDER 2025

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Yes, thank you again, Madam
President.
And here I present another tourism investment
order. This one is the Tourism Investment ( Odyssey
Commercial Charter Yacht ) Order 2025, and it's proposed to be made by the Minister responsible for


Bermuda Senate Tourism, with the written agreement of the Minister of
Finance, in exercise of the power conferred by s ection
5 of the Tourism Investment Act 2017.
And I give notice that at a later point in the
meeting, I will move that the said draft O rder be approved.
The President: Thank you, Senator F ubler.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you.

PETITIONS

The President: There are none.

STATEMENTS

The President: We have a number of S tatements this
morning, and the first one is in the name of Senator, the
Honourable Kim Wilk erson, the Attorney General and
Minister of Justice.

STATE OF CORRECTIONS
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, today I rise to lay before this
Honourable Senate the Annual Reports for the years
2022, 2023, and 2024 for both the Parole Board and
the Treatment of Offenders Board, and to update this
Chamber on the state of our correctional system, acknowledging both the challenges we face and the sig-nificant steps this Ministry is taking to advance reform
and restorative justice. These reports were submitted
by the respective Boards to comply with the requirements of the Treatment of Offenders Board Act 1979 and the Parole Board Act 2001.
Madam President, the reports from the Treatment of Offenders Board are forthright in their assessment : detailing significant challenges, particularly concerning the physical infrastructure of our facilities and
the critical lack of rehabilitative programming. I acknowledge these findings without reservation, but I
also wish to assure this Honourable Senate that my
Ministry and the Department of Corrections have been
actively working to address these long- standing issues.
Madam President, when I joined Cabinet, I
specifically requested that the portfolio for Corrections
be moved to the Ministry of Justice. I firmly believe that
the administration of j ustice, especially restorative justice, requires seamless collaboration between all arms of the justice system. I am passionately committed to
ensuring that we do not merely incarcerate, but that we
actively equip individuals with the skills, support, and opportunities needed to lead productive lives upon release, thereby strengthening community safety and reducing the cycle of re- offending.
Madam President, to that end, we have initiated a comprehensive reform agenda. Monthly meetings with the Department of Works and Engineering have now resumed following the summer period,
during when their focus was rightly concentrated on
school readiness for the new academic year. To expedite vital repairs, the Department of Corrections and Works and Engineering have engaged private contractors, including Kaissa, Wilson’s Painting, Air Pro, BAC Group, Virgil’s Plumbing, Thomas Enterprises and Mason & Assoc iates to work alongside the Works and Engineering team as a matter of urgency, with ventilation
and roofing repairs being a top priority.
Continuation of the refurbishments of the medium housing units at Westgate Correctional Facility
and electrical upgrades also remain a priority during this fiscal year. To improve ventilation at Westgate and
at the Co-Ed Facilities, assessments and repairs of exhaust fans and windows at [ Westgate] Correctional Facility will take place as well as assessment and repairs
of windows at the Co- Ed [Facility ].
Planned plumbing refits for this fiscal year include upgrades to age ing infrastructure across the facilities. Westgate sewage pit upgrades will address an-tiquated equipment and infrastructure. Completion is
targeted within the current fiscal year to ensure improved functionality and compliance. There will also be a modernisation of the hot water pipe s ystem at the Co -
Ed Facility as well as improvements to the water tanks.
Madam President, as mentioned in this year’s
budget, we have prioritised the hiring of additional c orrections officers to support our corrections team. I am
pleased to report that the first tranche of recruitment from local applicants will be completed in October, adding at least 18 officers to our ranks. We continue to recruit to fill the remaining 17 posts, based on submis-sions from reg ional applicants. These additional officers will ease the burden on existing staff, underscoring
our recognition that off icer well -being is of paramount.
Madam President, here I might add that the recruitment process has taken longer than I would have liked.

The President: Mm-hmm.
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: But we are where we
are, and I am very pleased that the process will be completed with help coming in October.
Madam President, on the topic of officer wellbeing, we have engaged a consultant psychologist to
assist the Department of Corrections’ leadership in strengthening executive decision- making. This licensed psychologist, formerly with the New York City
Department of Corrections on Rikers Island, brings a
wealt h of experience in correctional psychology and
staff wellness, which will be crucial in improving conditions for our officers and inmates. The consultant psychologist will also guide us in identifying the required credentials for the new Wellness Officer post, ensuring
that we recruit the right professional to strengthen
working conditions and boost morale among our
482 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate officers. For without healthy officers, there can be no
healthy corrections system.
Madam President, it should be [ noted ] that
whilst psychological services are primarily provided for
the incarcerated, the department’s team of psycholo-gists (of which there are two in situ at Westgate, and
they cover both facilities) also support officers. The
support and consultation are offered for staff to enhance their understanding of the needs of incarcerated
persons and how best to work with them. The department has provided training for staff to enhance their
skills and knowledge; and have added reflective practice sessions to support the staff with enhancing their
well-being and their practice.
Madam President, in the Chair’s Report for the
Treatment of Offenders Board, it is stated that the objective of the board is to operate co- operatively and collaboratively with the Department of Corrections to ensure matters relating to a prison or prisoner are dealt
with expeditiously and in the best interest of all parties .
I am grateful for the dedication of the members of the
Treatment of Offenders Board in their advocacy on behalf of inmates.
Madam President, I have further strengthened
the Treatment of Offenders Board by adding new members Robyn Swan, Eron Hill, and Reverend Dr. Emilygail Dill, who began their tenure on 1 July. Robyn
Swan brings a broad and balanced background in public service, compliance, and governance to the Treatment of Offenders Board. She began her career as a
Prison Officer, gaining first -hand insight into Bermuda’s
correctional system, before going on to serve as a Senator. Professionally, Ms. Swan worked as an Assistant Compliance Officer at Appleby, and subsequently founded her own firm, Swan Consulting, which provides both compliance and data privacy advisory ser-vices. Her governance and board experience includes serving as Compliance Officer for the Mirrors Alumni
and Friends Association (MAFA) and supporting the
Bermuda Boxing Federation Board in an ex officio capacity.
Eron Hill is the Founder and Executive Director
of the Bermuda Equal Justice Initiative (BEJI) and
holds an LLB degree in law from the University of Law.
As Executive Director of B ermuda Equal Justice Initiative, Mr. Hill has spearheaded public education campaigns, legal interventions, and community -based advocacy to advance fair treatment for all, particularly the
disfavoured and forgotten.
Reverend Dr. Dill is a passionate advocate for
youth development, community service, spiritual lead-ership, and the Arts. She is an ordained Minister in the
African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church and the
Member of Parliament for constituency 36, Sandys
North. Reverend Dr. Dill also has extensive experience
in public service and education having worked within Bermuda's public school system as a teacher, as an
educational therapist, and as a counsellor, focusing on
at-risk youth. Together, Robyn Swan, [Rever end] Dr. Emilygail Dill and Eron Hill bring fresh set of thinking
and spirited advocacy to the Treatment of Offenders
Board’s vital work.
Madam President, now on to the Parole Board.
The President: Mm-hmm.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: [The Bermuda Parole]
Board plays a critical role in balancing the rehabilitation of offenders with the safety and confidence of the public. As we strengthen our restorative justice framework, I am pleased to announce the appointment of a renewed Board effective 1 October 2025 —one that reflects the need to diversify perspectives and explore
new approaches as we modernise Bermuda’s justice
system. I must express my profound gratitude to the
four outgoing members of the Parole Boar d, Mr . Derrick
Burgess, JP ; Member of Parliament Scott Simmons ;
Mr. Roderick Burchall, JP ; and Ms . Tori Burgess – who
have served with dedication for several years. Their contribution has been invaluable. We have retained
three experienced members from the prior B oard. They
are: legal counsel Mr. Vaughan Caines, psychologist
Dr. Cherita Rayner and therapist Dr. Ernest Peets.
Mr. Caines is a barrister in Bermuda, and the
founder and executive director of Forensica Legal.
Alongside his work on the Parole Board, he serves as
occasional legal aid counsel for the Bermuda Drug
Treatment Court. Mr . Caines is also a forensic scientist
and has completed diverse international scientific in-ternships. As a defence and human rights lawyer, he
has published and presented globally on critically important interactions among st law, science and human
rights.
Dr. Cherita Rayner is a Registered Clinical
Psychologist and is active in the psychological community, currently serving as President to the Bermuda
Psychology Association. Dr. Rayner has previously
held the role of Clinical Psychologist and Professional
Practice Lead with the Bermuda Hospitals Board. She
has also served as a member of the Bermuda Hospitals Board’s Ethics Committee. Dr. Rayner is a co- developer of the Mental Health First Aid Bermuda pro-gramme and currently serves as programme coordinator.
Dr. Ernest Peets is a Certified Family Therapist, and an International Certified Alcohol and Drug
Counsellor. Dr. Peets received his BA in Business from
Howard University, and his doctorate in Marriage and
Family Therapy from Gordon- Conwell Theological
Seminary. Dr. Peets is also the Pastor of New Life Church of the Nazarene. Dr. Peets is an experienced
counsellor who is able to blend biblical and psychological principles that bring insight and healing.
Madam President, I am delighted to welcome
all three back to the Parole Board and thank them for
their continued service.
Madam President, now on to the new members. I am pleased to announce that I have appointed


Bermuda Senate Dr. Emily Ross as the new chair of the Parole Board.
Dr. Ross holds a b achelor of science [degree] in social
policy from the University of Bristol and a PhD in Criminology from the University of Oxford, where she published her paper on “Responses to Gang Violence” in
Bermuda. Dr . Ross previously served as an administrator of the Parole Board and Treatment of Offenders
Board. Dr . Ross has also volunteered with Focus
Counselling Services and various Bermuda theatre groups. Her expertise and experience make her ideal
for leadership at this crucial point in time. The additional new members are Ria Mayes, Tarik Bean- Darrell, and
Shawnette Somner.
Ria Mayes , a married mother of three, is a seasoned public service professional with 39 years of experience in law enforcement, including 13 years with
the Bermuda Police Service and 26 years with the Ber-muda Customs Department. She holds certifications in
Behavioural Analytics and a Certificate in Customs
Management from the University of Canberra, Australia. Ria, an active member of the Paget Lions Club, has served as Secretary on the board of Lefroy House
Care [Community] and is currently a long- serving member of the Warwick Parish Council. And, Madam President, I might add that in our interview with Mrs. Mayes,
I believe her key qualification is being a mother.

The President: Mm-hmm.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Tarik Bean- Darrell is a
Career Development Officer at the Office of Workforce
Development and holds a bachelor of science [degree]
in biology from St Mary’s University. He has previously
worked in the education sector and serves on the Board of Governors for Cedar Bridge Academy. Mr . Bean -Darrell is a proud member of the Pembroke Hamilton Club and is deeply involved in service in the St Paul AME Church. He has also assisted individuals in obtaining
their GED through the C .A.R.E. Learning Centre. Mr .
Bean [-Darrell ] is passionate about helping inmates to
become functioning and contributing members of society by finding work opportunities upon their release.
Shawnette Somner is a seasoned educator
who spent 13 years as the Education Officer for the De-partment of Corrections. She holds a bachelor of science in e ducation and a master’s degree in educational
leadership and supervision from Miami University. Ms.
Somner is a leadership coach who brings a wealth of
experience and immense interest in the well -being of
former and current inmates to the Parole Board.
Madam President, my Ministry has also commenced discussions with members of the UK Parole
Board in an effort to secure training for our new members as we modernise our processes. We are keen to
strengthen the fairness, transparency, and consistency
of our parole process, especially as I have just appointed a new Board. At present, for example, hearings
do not accommodate oral representations from lawyers, external psychologists or impacted victims. As a consequence, deliberations may be conducted without
safeguards that are seen in more developed jurisdictions, Madam President .
Madam President, recognising —

[Pause]

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Bear with me, Madam
President .

The President: Certainly.

[Crosstalk]

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Madam President, recognising that unaddressed trauma is a root cause of of-fending behaviour, we will be engaging The Gina
Spence Program (GSP) to deliver a six -week Grief &
Loss Pilot Support Initiative. This programme will provide critical clinical and educational grief support through group and individual counselling for both inmates and correctional staff, addressing unresolved
trauma and equipping participants with healthier coping
strategies. GSP is a registered charity wit h programmes currently running in schools, churches, and
community centres. They have over 30 years ’ experience serving Bermuda’s most vulnerable through grief
support with a clinical team that includes certified grief recovery specialists and on- call credentialed clinical
staff.
Madam President, starting in October, Bermudian educator and literacy specialist Ajala Omodele will
deliver the Sankofa Education and Empowerment Pro-gramme (SEEP). Many inmates struggle with literacy
and a lack of personal empowerment, which negatively
affects their ability to rebuild their lives once they are
released. It is also a critical factor in how they became
disconnected from society in the first place. SEEP recognises that literacy and empowerment are critical fac-tors in reducing recidivism and pr oviding incarcerated
individuals with the tools they need to successfully re-integrate into society. SEEP will provide comprehensive literacy, reading, math instruction and post -secondary education tutoring support to inmates across all Corrections faciliti es. SEEP aims to inspire and educate participants, fostering a sense of self -worth and
possibility. The objectives of the programme are to increase literacy rates, enhance numeracy skills, empower through history, improve communication skills, enhance the existing GED programme, support rehabilitation and reduce recidivism.
Madam President, Ajala Omodele is an educator, historian, writer, speaker, and literacy specialist who has taught at every educational level. His expertise in Bermuda’s history, coupled with his commitment
to social justice, makes him uniquely qualified to lead
this initiative. Mr. Omodele holds a BA in Philosophy and a master’s [degree] of education in literacy education, both from Mount Saint Vincent University. He is
484 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate the author of several books on Bermudian history and
has experience teaching primary school, middle school
and designed and delivered a graduate- level course at
York University in Canada and has developed and de-livered professional seminars on Bermudian hi story for
Bermuda’s teachers. He is a specialist in teaching
reading and writing to individuals with dyslexia, a condition that many incarcerated individuals experience.
Lack of support or recognition in childhood of this condition has often robbed them of learning experiences
they should have received. So, Madam President, we
look forward to our clients in the correctional facilities
benefitting from Mr. Omodele’s experience.
Madam President, this month, a team from the
Ministry met with Belong UK, a leading justice reform
organisation who provide hope, rehabilitation and recovery to victims and perpetrators of crime. We will soon engage them to assist in modernising our vetting
processes and developing a peer mentoring programme for those with lived experience of incarceration. Belong UK’s priority to help develop a fairer, more humane and more effective criminal justice system
aligns with my Ministry’s desire to put restorativ e justice
at the core. Belong [UK’s] restorative justice initiatives
and creative arts therapy programmes are innovative,
evidence- based programmes which have been independently evaluated by Royal Holloway University and have led to impressive outcomes in inmates’ mental health, recidivism r ates and access to education, employment and training. We are deeply appreciative of Belong [UK’s] willingness to engage with the Ministry of
Justice.
Madam President, very importantly, my Ministry is also in discussions with His Majesty’s Prison and
Probation Service to adopt their evidence- based programming for treating violent [and] sexual offenders, with training planned for early next year.
Madam President, the existing services provided by the psychology department include clinical in-terventions on a one- to-one basis and within a group
setting. During the past year the group intervention Life Minus Violence- Enhanced was delivered for violent offenders. The service has also been involved in con-ducting psychological risk assessments for the pur-poses of pre- sentencing planning for the Courts of Bermuda and the Parole Board.
Madam President, while there have been some
challenges delivering vocational programming, there
have also been some successes. The Animal and Garden programme at the Farm and Co- Ed Facility has
continued successfully.

The President: Mm-hmm.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Madam President, the
Department of Corrections is currently compiling an Inmates Skill Bank, which will identify what skills every
inmate currently possesses and those they wish to obtain. This will help us to identify which courses to provide access to going forward as we seek to equip
inmates with skills for use upon their release.
Madam President, during last year, a new work
release initiative “Step- Up Work Readiness Initiative”
started with the aim of providing inmates with significant opportunities to develop their social skills, work
ethic and gain valuable experience outside of the facility compound. This programme also reinforces in inmates a sense of confidence, purpose, responsibility
and ultimately contributes to reducing their chances of
reoffending upon release from custody. Through this programme they have assisted with t he removal of invasive trees from Coney Island and at various spots
around the I sland have assisted with the clearing of foliage which encroaches on roads and main through-fares.
Madam President, the Work release programme out of the Co- Ed Facility continues and this
past year saw 10 inmates participating with two in-mates who completed their sentence securing gainful
employment upon their release.
Madam President, in the past year, inmates
took advantage of several courses on offer at the Corrections facilities. These include the GED, Bermuda
College online PACE programmes and a variety of
Cisco certified courses ranging from cyber security to
entrepreneurship through a partnership with the Ber-muda Technical Institute. The Cisco computer programme course allows inmates to engage in computer -
based programming, in a variety of disciplines and provides the opportunity to obtain certified courses/diplomas Additional courses include a seven- week short
course in p oetry taught by Letitia Washington, drumming taught by Nick Wadson, music and sound engi-neering taught by Shaquille Durham, and yoga taught
by Latoya Bridgewater. Three inmates are currently
studying for bachelor’s and master’s degrees online
and three inmates recently received qualifications from
the Koinonia (religious studies ) Institute. Ten students
also participated in the FinTech programme which was
co-sponsored by the Economic Development Department, with five students successfully graduating.
Madam President, last week I had the privilege
of attending a graduation [ceremony ] at the Right Living
House. The ceremony took place, Madam President, during Recovery Awareness Month —which we are still
in, with the month of September . The Right Living
House is located at the Co- Educational Facility and it is
a substance abuse rehabilitation programme that is segregated from the remaining prison population.
Since its inception in 2010, the Right Living House has
offered a structured, therapeutic environment to help
participants break free from substance misuse, develop
healthy thinking patterns, and prepare for meaningful
lives beyond recovery .
Madam President, I commend the two graduates, Mr . David Hill and Mr . Ernest Smith, for their commitment to maintaining sobriety and recovering, a significant achievement. This year’s theme for Recovery


Bermuda Senate Awareness Month, “Recovery is REAL— Restoring
Every Aspect of Life,” speaks to the very heart of what
we celebrated last week. Recovery is not a single
event. It is a journey of healing, growth, and renewal
Madam President, while there is much to do,
there are also reasons to be hopeful. The challenges
documented in these reports will not be resolved overnight. However, my Ministry is unwaveringly committed
to the path of improvement and the true, meaningful
pursuit of restorative justice. We are building a system
that prioritises rehabilitation, ensures dignity, and ulti-mately contributes to a safer Bermuda for all.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Minister Wilkerson, for your
most comprehensive Statement.
Senators, we will now move on to the second
Statement, and that is in the name of the Honourable
Crystal Caesar, the Minister of Education.
Minister Caesar, you have the floor.

BERMUDA PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM (BPSS)
STABILI SATION AND TRANSFORMATION
UPDATE 2025

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, my fellow Senators may recall remarks that I made during this year’s Budget Debate regarding Education Reform: “While I will continue
to gain insights into what and how we are doing, I can state with certainty and confidence that we will be doing
things differently.”
I made these comments after dedicating time
to introduce myself to education stakeholders. I was
able to listen to their interests and concerns and reconfirm that transforming our schools and the Bermuda
Public School System (BPSS) remains our top priority.
As the 2025/26 school year has recently begun, it is
fitting to give an update on efforts to simultaneously stabilise and transform our education system. Reform as
an ideal has a certain simplicity about it. But it is more than an ideal; it is a commitment and a promise that is
being delivered. Its execution, however, is not quite as simple; it is multi- faceted, involving all aspects of education, across all schools and all levels . The Department of Education and the Ministry Headquarters are
included as well . Success also depends on planning,
collaboration and co- ordination with partner Ministries
such as Public Works; Finance; Health; and Youth, So-cial D evelopment and Seniors.
To remind my colleagues about the breadth
and complexity of reform, it includes: the introduction and ongoing development of parish primary, senior signature and the exceptionalities and alternative education schools. It also encompasses: the early years; spe-cial/differentiated education; curriculum development
and delivery; assessment; governance; learning environments; professional learning; and school and system leadership, among many other elements.
Madam President, t he mention of education
stakeholders and partners is important because public
education is a shared government and community responsibility, and together, we must continue to transform our schools, the system, and the education provided to our students. While we transform, we must
also stabili se, and we will do this by strengthening our
focus on improving teaching and learning. In fact, we
have already started. We will also defer certain aspects of education transformation programming.
To improve planning, programming, and coordination with partner m inistries, as mentioned, we have
rescinded the timeline for school closures and openings beyond 2025. We will continue working on the
master plan for education transformation and develop
a realistic and deliverable infrastructure strategy. Although, schools under transformation have done an admirable job balancing their teaching and learning responsibilities while undertaking major building and op-erational changes , the Ministry will ensure that future
infrastructure changes are completed before school
openings and closings are announced.
We will intentionally pace and coordinate the
infrastructure design and development work needed to
support teaching and learning. Our goal is to give stu-dents, parents, and staff members adequate information and sufficient time to prepare for future
changes.
Madam President, this announcement does
not mean that e ducation reform will stop, but that we
are adjusting our approach and how we will move forward collectively as a school system. There are a number of transformation projects underway, whose completion will be accelerated with fidelity and to a high
standard. Specifically:
• Development work and transition planning for
the Signature Learning Programmes at The
Berkeley Institute, CedarBridge Academy, and
Sandys Secondary School are ongoing with a
continuing focus on the needs and interests of young people.
• Sandys Secondary School, which recently
opened with its first Signature Learning Programme cohort, will plan for the transition of a
second cohort for September 2026.
• Francis Patton, Purvis, Harrington Sound, and
Elliot Parish Schools will continue to phase in
their parish school features and strengthen
their learning communities.
• The Signature School for Exceptionalities remains a high system priority. A design team will
be onboarded this term to begin the developmental work to shape the vision for this muchneeded signature school.
Madam President, the shift to stabilise our
school system has already started. As a result of reas-signments, resignations and retirements, a number of
486 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate primary and middle schools were previously led by acting principals. After recruitment and other staffing
changes, all primary and middle schools are now led by
principals who hold their posts substantively. This will
provide consistency and stability for each school com-munity.
Critical leadership and curriculum support vacancies are being filled within the Department of Edu-cation. This will increase supervision, support, and accountability for teaching, learning, and service delivery.
Within our schools, we will systematically refocus on improving the teaching and learning of reading,
math, and science; improving the MTSS (multi -tiered
system of support) process; and improving school culture. All of these efforts aim to improve student outcomes across all year levels.
The no- personal -electronic -communicationdevice policy will be more robustly enforced across all
schools to help reduce distractions in class, combat social media addiction and mitigate disciplinary challenges.
A modern Code of Conduct has been rolled
out, that incorporates restorative practices and appropriate disciplinary approaches. A detailed communications plan is part of the implementation efforts for the updated Code of Conduct. This is helping to promote
awareness and compliance by students, staff, and parents.
Madam President, leadership is about many
things, including listening and acting in the best inter-ests of our students, families, and staff. Just before school started for the 2025/26 academic year, I again
met with members of our school communities to announce the shift in focus and the need to balance longterm transformation with immediate stability in schools.
The responses I received expressed understanding, appreciation, and support. I believe that this is because these decisions are sensible, necessary and welcomed
by many.
We are now on a better pathway to build an
education system that serves every child, every family,
and every community in Bermuda.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Minister Caesar, for your
Statement.
The next Statement is in the name of Senator
Lindsay K. Simmons, the Junior Minister of National
Security, and the title is the Royal Bermuda Regiment's
60th Anniversary

ROYAL BERMUDA REGIMENT —
60
TH ANNIVERSARY

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President, I rise today to celebrate,
with [the Senate], the sixtieth anniversary of the Royal
Bermuda Regiment and the proud legacy of service it represents. The Regiment’s story began on 1 Septem-ber 1965, when the Bermuda Militia Artillery and the
Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps were amalgamated to
form one unified force.
Madam President, two units reflected the segregated era in which they were raised: the Bermuda Militia Artillery was predominantly Black, while the Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps was almost entirely White.
In the spirit of progress and with a view of streng thening
Bermuda’s defence capability, they were brought to-gether to create an integrated Regiment, a single force in service to all of Bermuda.
Over the decades, Madam President, more
than 11,000 Bermudians have worn the Regiment’s uniform. These men and women, citizen soldiers from every parish and walk of life, have given their time, talent and courage in the best tradition of service. They
have built skills that last a lifetime: discipline, leadership, teamwork and resilience. The Regiment’s values remain evident not only on parade, but in our businesses, schools, churches and neighbourhoods.
Madam President, the Regiment’s Junior
Leaders programme continues to thrive, shaping tomorrow’s leaders through adventure training, community service and character development for young people aged 12 to 18. Recent intakes and camps have
shown strong interest and impressive growth, underscoring how this pathway builds confidence, civic responsibility, and future leadership for Bermuda.
Madam President, the Royal Bermuda Regiment has answered the call in moments that tested our community’s strength and resolve. In December 1977,
during the disturbances that followed the executions of
two men convicted in the Governor’s assassination, soldiers were embodied to help restore calm at a moment of great tension and turmoil in our Island’s history. A few years later, in May 1981, the Regiment was again placed on alert during the general strike, when thousands of workers across the public and priv ate sectors
walked out over wages and work conditions. On both
occasions, the Regiment stood ready to support the
civil authorities and protect the community, underscoring its vital role in maintaining the stability of our Country.
Madam President, [Senators] will no doubt recall that the Regiment has also provided security support in the aftermath of the 11 September 2001 terrorist
attacks. It has responded to the carnage caused by major hurricanes, among them Hurricane Emily in 1987
and Hurricane Fabian in 2003, both of which inflicted widespread damage across Bermuda. In the aftermath
of these destructive s torms, the Regiment delivered vital assistance [alongside] our emergency services to
return our country to normality. During the COVID -19
pandemic, the Regiment was embodied to support Bermuda’s public health efforts. Two hundred soldiers helped staff community advisory points across the Island, acted as COVID -19 marshals, assisted in managing testing centres, and supported vaccination clinics.


Bermuda Senate Madam President, the Regiment’s service extends beyond our shores. In the spirit of regional solidarity, soldiers deployed to the Cayman Islands in 2004
and to Grenada in 2005 to assist with immediate recovery and long- term rebuilding efforts after Hurricane
Ivan. The Regiment has also supported the Turks and
Caicos Islands during hurricane response operations
following Hurricane Ike in 2008, and Hurricanes Irma
and Maria in 2017. In addition, Bermudian officers and
soldiers have contributed to international assistance,
internal security, and training missions, including in Si-erra Leone and Barbados, the latter involving the ICC
World Cup tournament. These deployments reflect the
competence and professionalism of our soldiers, as
well as Bermuda’s commitment to help our neighbours
in times of need.
Madam President, this diamond jubilee year
brings special celebrations. The Regiment has
launched a year -long programme marking 60 years of
service, culminating in a Presentation of Colours at t he
Keep, National Museum of Bermuda in Dockyard, on
Saturday, 18 October 2025, followed that evening by
an all messes Colours Ball. These events honour the
service of past and present soldiers and renew our shared commitment to the future.
Madam President, we are further honoured by
the forthcoming official visit of Her Royal Highness t he
Duchess of Gloucester, the Regiment’s Colonel -inChief, from October 16 through 20. During her visit, Her
Royal Highness will support the Regiment’s 60th anniversary celebrations, including the Presentation of Colours, and will undertake a programme that includes cultural engagements such as a visit to Masterworks. This
will be the Duchess’s fourth official visit to Bermuda. On behalf of the Government and people of Bermuda, we
extend a warm welcome to Her Royal Highness.
Today, Madam President, we salute the thousands who have served, the families who have supported them, and the employers who continue to make
service possible. We acknowledge the leadership of
the Commanding Officer and the Regiment team, and
the stewardship of the Governor and Commander -inChief. We also recogni se the enduring partnership with
our regional and international counterparts, whose col-laboration strengthens our operational capability and
effectiveness.
Madam President, as we celebrate 60 years of
service to this country, we recommit to supporting the
Regiment’s operational readiness, its role in disaster
relief and aid to the civil authority, and the development of our next generation through the Junior Leaders. The
Royal Bermuda Regiment remains a pillar of unity, service and national pride. May its Colours continue to inspire the very best of Bermuda for the next 60 years
and beyond. Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Senator Linds ay Simmons,
the Junior Minister of National Security. I believe you have another Statement, an update on policing operations and community safety.

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.

The President: You can proceed with your next Statement.

POLICING OPERATIONS AND COMMUNITY
SAFETY UPDATE
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President, recent violent incidents
have caused understandable concern across our community. People are asking what is being done, and they deserve clear answers.
I rise today to provide an update on the actions
being taken by the Bermuda Police Service. The police
have responded swiftly, targeting those responsible for violence, and increasing their presence in affected areas. Progress is being made, but lasting safety will only
be achieved when the community and the police stand
together to combat this [blight ] in our community.
Madam President, the Bermuda Police Service
has acted decisively to address heightened tensions in certain areas of the Island. Officers are deploying every
lawful tool available to disrupt gang activities and bring
offenders to justice. This includes targeted stop- andsearch operations, the execution of drug and firearm
warrants, and focus ed beat patrols in North Hamilton.
The gang targeting team has also been expanded to respond immediately to intelligent leads, while work continues with the Director of Public Prosecutions to review legislation that can strengthen enforcement powers. As part of the review, there will be a
focus on strengthening existing provisions that allow for
increased penalties where offences are committed with
a bladed article or a firearm.
Madam President, technology is also playing
an essential role. The police continue to rely on the
CCTV network as a critical tool in both daily operations and criminal investigations. Approximately 400 camera
reviews are now available to officers. The system has
already provided crucial evidence in recent cases.
Its effectiveness was demonstrated when officers secured evidence from 10 government CCTV sites following the recent Court Street tragedies. To build on
this success, Cabinet will shortly consider the business care for the next phase of CCTV expansion, ensuring
that the police are further supported in their work.
Madam President, recruitment and training remains equally important. At present, 15 recruits are
completing their training and will graduate in October, with another course of 15 recruits beginning in Novem-ber. To maintain our momentum, to bolster the ranks,
another series of advertisements has been placed recently for us t o begin an additional round of recruitment.
488 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate The service acknowledges that attracting officers remains a challenge in Bermuda. Tight labour market, but
efforts are underway to widen the net. Both local and
international recruitment has been launched for approximately 22 additional officers arriving early in 2026. These steps will strengthen frontline capacity and ensure a sustained police presence in our neighbourhoods.
Madam President, I turn now to the most serious investigations before the police. Arrests have been
made in relation to violent incidents in North Hamilton. Though no charges have been filed yet, the police are
working diligently, but they have raised deep concerns
about the limited number of witness statements received, despite these crimes occurring in broad daylight.
No policing strategy could succeed without the
support of the community. Too often, those who hold
the answers remain silent, and offenders are left free to
continue their violence. The police have the tools, the
investigators, and the determination to bri ng perpetrators before the courts, but they cannot do it alone.
Every statement matters, Madam President.
Every detail matters. The safety of our neighbourhoods depends on the willingness of law -abiding citizens to be
brave enough to step forward and to help put an end to
this madness in our community.
Madam President, I therefore appeal directly to
families, the friends, the co- workers, and the neighbours who may have seen or heard something. Please
do your part. Silence protects only the criminals. Speaking up protects the community, protects our children, and restores peace to our streets.
Madam President, to support this effort, government has guaranteed rewards up to $50,000 for information that leads to the arrests and charges of individuals responsible for violent crimes. This represents a significant increase from the previous maximum r eward of $5,000.
Through our partnership with Crime Stoppers,
the public continues to have a safe and anonymous av-enue to share what they know. This guarantee ensures
that everyone with information can come forward anonymously. The police need your information, and Crime Stoppers ensures that it can be provided confidentially
with real impact.
Madam President, the Bermuda Police Service
is also drawing on international expertise to strengthen
its capabilities. Through arrangements secured with the
United Kingdom, overseas specialist officers will be de-ployed for up to six months to provide targeted support
in investigations and capacity building. Funding is also
being provided for advanced surveillance tools, which
can be deployed as needed. These measures are interim, designed to booster our capability while the ser-vice continues to aim recruitment and long- term capacity building. This is about making smart use of global
resources to strengthen policies here at home. Madam President, alongside these measures,
the Bermuda Police Service, in partnership with the
Government House and the Ministry of National Security, will be hosting a community town hall on gun and
gang violence today, Monday, 29 September 2025, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the St. Paul's AME Church
Centennial Hall, 59 Victoria Street, Hamilton. At this
meeting, His Excellency the Governor Andrew Murdoch, CMG, the Hon. Michael A. Weeks, JP, MP, Minister of National Security, and the Commissioner of the
Police, Mr. Darren Simons, will provide further details
on the actions underway and planned, and members of
the public will have the chance to ask questions and
share their views. I encourage all residents to attend
and take part in this important national conversation.
Madam President, I close by reaffirming that
the Bermuda Police Service remains steadfast in its mission of making Bermuda safer. Through proactive
enforcement, strategic use of technology, ongoing recruitment and training, international collaboration, and
most importantly, partnership with the community, the police are working to protect this country.
The Government will continue to support them
with the resources and legislative backing they require.
But success depends on all of us. I therefore call on
every member of this community to play their part, to
support the p olice, and to ensure that those who
choose violence are held accountable so that Bermuda
remains a safe and secure place for all of us. Thank
you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Lindsay Simmons,
Junior Minister for National Security.
The next Statement, Workforce Development
Updates, is in the name of Senator Lauren F. Bell, the
Junior Minister for Economy and Labour.
Senator Bell, you have the floor.

DEPARTMENT OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
UPDATES

Sen. Lauren Bell: Yes, good morning, Madam President, colleagues , and listening audience.
I am pleased to provide this Honourable Senate with an update on the work that the Ministry of
Economy and Labour is undertaking to ensure Bermudians are equipped with the skills, opportunities, and
support they need to thrive in today’s labour market.
The Economic Development Strategy and the Youth
Employment Strategy are the foundations of this government’s workforce development efforts.
Madam President, the Youth Employment
Strategy continues to be one of the government’s most impactful initiatives. Between April and July 2025, more
than 160 young Bermudians participated in employment programmes, training, and career development services.
• There were more than 150 youth engaged in
the Summer Employment Programme (SEP)


Bermuda Senate and Student Internship Programme (SIP),
gaining invaluable work experience in both the
public and private sectors.
• Tailored work readiness workshops such as
Mock Interviews, Résumé Writing, Interview
with Confidence, and Service Excellence supported over 120 participants in building the soft
skills required to succeed in today’s job market.
• Continued delivery of Wisdom Wednesday
sessions provided mentorship, networking,
and ongoing development support for student
cohorts.
Madam President, behind these numbers are
powerful stories. A young man preparing to transition out of the Independent Living Facility is now entering our Bridge to Work programme. Another young person
secured an interview at the Bermuda Hospitals Board
for an Addictions Counsellor Assistant role. A 23- yearold was placed with a construction firm to pursue his
goal of becoming a mason, and a young mother is overcoming childcare barriers while preparing to re- enter
the workforce. These stories illustrate the transformative impact of the Youth Employment Strategy.
Madam President, beyond youth programming, the department continues to strengthen Bermuda’s training and apprenticeship ecosystem.
• [Over] 540 Bermudians have participated in
employability training this year, with 78 per
cent of participants reporting improved skills in
the months following training.
• There are currently 41 active apprentices
across employers including BELCO, BAC,
AIRCARE, Mid Atlantic Steel Supply, Brangman Electrical, and the Bermuda Hospitals Board.
• New apprenticeship opportunities are being
developed in Power Engineering, Information
Technology, and Motor Mechanics, with close
collaboration with and between government
departments and industry partners.
• The Department of Workforce Development
has also advanced its partnership with the
Gang Violence Reduction Team to provide structured training and employment pathways
for vulnerable youth.
Madam President, the Department of Workforce Development continues to make progress under
the National Certification and Apprenticeship Board Act
to ensure Bermuda’s trades meet international stand-ards.
• Fourteen Landscape Gardeners and seven
Automotive Technicians were certified and gazetted this year.
• We are currently restructuring the Industry Advisory Panel and Occupational Advisory Committees to improve efficiency and compliance
with legislation.
• International partnerships are being pursued to
establish Bermuda- based certification in Power Engineering, Welding, and additional
skilled trades.
Madam President, scholarships remain a vital
investment in Bermuda’s future workforce. In July 2025, seven new overseas undergraduate scholar-ships valued at $10,000 were awarded each. In addition, a total of $205,000 in continued funding was distributed to 21 students who are already pursuing studies.
Madam President, the work of the Department
of Workforce Development is producing tangible results. We are:
• equipping our youth with skills and opportunities;
• expanding apprenticeships and certification in
critical sectors;
• supporting vulnerable populations with targeted interventions; and
• modernising our systems to deliver effective,
data- driven services.
These efforts are central to the “people pillar”
of Bermuda’s Economic Development Strategy, ensuring that our workforce is prepared, resilient, and posi-tioned to seize opportunities in both traditional industries and in the emerging economy.
Madam President, I would like to take this opportunity to commend the staff of the Department of Workforce Development, led by Director Malika Cartwright, for their persistent dedication and commitment to the people of Bermuda. With their efforts, and the
support of this Honourable Senate, we will continue to
empower Bermudians to rise, lead, and thrive in the
workforce of tomorrow.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Lauren Bell and
Junior Minister of Economy and Labour.
I believe you have a second Statement on the
Work Permit Policy 2025. You can proceed with that when you're ready.

WORK PERMIT POLICY 2025

Sen. Lauren Bell: Yes, thank you, Madam President.
I am pleased to inform this Honourable Senate
of the Department of Immigration’s Work Permit Policy
2025 which is laid in the Senate today and which will
take effect 1 November 2025.
The Government’s goal is to ensure the proper
balance between employment and immigration in Bermuda. There is a need to have in place realistic conditions that enable Bermudians to find work and pursue career opportunities while at the same time ensuring
that suitably qualified non- Bermudians in specific job
categories are able to work in Bermuda.
Members of the Senate will recall the draft
Work Permit Policy was available for public feedback
for approximately a month, between 5 June 2025 and
4 July 2025. [ Madam President], 137 responses were
490 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate received from members of the public and the business
community. The volume of feedback received from
both business associations and the public was extensive, indicating that the impact of immigration decisions
are keenly felt across the community.
Madam President, the purpose of the Work
Permit Policy is to provide detailed guidance to employers, work permit holders, and agents who submit work
permit applications. It also helps Bermudians understand what is expected of employers, i.e., for job promotions, for job t itle changes, and for advertisements.
The current Work Permit Policy dates back to 2017 and
this update, in 2025, is both necessary and overdue.
Madam President, the review of the Work Permit Policy sought to, in the first instance, clarify areas
where interpretation was too wide and varied. It also
sought to introduce new policies to address emerging needs and ensure transparency and fairness. And finally, it supports Bermuda’s efforts to attract new business and stimulate the economic growth.
The following new policies have been included
in the Work Permit Policy and can be found at the cor-responding policy numbers:
• 1.19—Guidelines for Submitting Photos;
• 1.20—Guidelines for Submitting Police Certificates;
• 3.7—Family Office Permit;
• 4.8—Guidelines for Amending the Dates of a
Work Permit;
• 5.1— Sponsored Dependents Residing and
Working in Bermuda;
• 6.4— Applications to Reside;
• 7.15—Secondments;
• 7.16—Layoffs.
Madam President, the Department of Immigration is prioritising digitalisation to improve service efficiency. In response to public feedback, the department
is investing in a modern IT system to replace the outdated processes, ensuring that the entire application
process moves beyond just fillable forms to true digital
workflow. The implementation of these upgrades will
enable the department to act on valuable suggestions
received during consultation once procurement is com-plete.
Madam President, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some of the policies in the 2025
Work Permit Policy which are now finalised. Madam
President, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some of the policies in the 2025 Work Permit Pol-icy which are now finalised.
1) The processing time for standard, seasonal,
and occasional work permits, as well as job title
changes and promotions will remain at 20
days, instead of increasing to 30 days. Additionally, the printing of documents will be within 10 days of the approval.
2) The requirements for persons to be proficient
in English language will apply generally to persons seeking a new standard work permit. The exceptions will be persons who are nationals of countries where English is the native language, and the policy clearly identifies those countries.
Also, those persons possessing a certificate,
diploma, or degree from an English language
university or college will not be required to provide proof of English language proficiency.
3) For those people required to settle their affairs
and leave Bermuda, the grace period for doing
so will remain at 90 days and will not be reduced to 60 days. Further, if more time beyond 90 days is required to accommodate school
commitments, for example, w ritten justification
can be submitted for further consideration.
4) To ensure the continued security and safety of
our community, police certificates will be required for work permit applicants coming to Bermuda for the first time. The police certificates are required from the applicant's home
country, plus any country of residence for the
two years immediately preceding the work per-mit application.
5) The type of work permit now includes the family office work permit, where family office
means a company, limited liability company,
partnership, or other legal entity incorporated,
registered, or established on behalf of or for the
benefit of a single fami ly for the purposes of
managing the affairs of the family. The family
office work permit is the latest in a suite of options that includes standard, new business,
global entrepreneur, FinTech, and intercompany, formerly known as global work permits.
6) In recognition of the need to progress the digitalisation of the Department of Immigration, the
short -term work permit will continue to be available as a bridge to a standard work permit. This
was a key concern of employers and is being
retained.
7) In response to employers' concerns regarding
employees leaving shortly after they have
made significant investment in recruiting and onboarding an employee, and to prevent work
permit holders from obtaining multiple permits
from different employers simultaneously, work
permit holders will be required to complete two
years of employment with their initial employer. In addition, for new work permits, job changes
will not be approved in the first year after issuance. For renewed work permits, job changes
will not be approved within the first six months
after issuance.
8) I would also like to note that the policy regulat-ing business visitors has been expanded to
policy 2.1(iii)(w) to include utilising someone
for non- profit organisation, a registered charity,
or a religious institution such as a coach or teacher of sports, clergy, or a speaker.


Bermuda Senate Madam President, the 2025 Work Permit Policy provides the balance required to ensure that Bermuda remains an attractive and competitive jurisdiction
for business, investments, and job creation, while at the
same time safeguarding and promoting the legitimate aspirations of Bermudians to participate fully in our labour market.
Madam President, at this time I would like to
thank all those who took the time to read and respond
to the draft permit policy. Your input was very much valued, and it impacted the final version of the 2025 Work Permit Policy. As a reminder, Madam President, the
2025 Work Permit Policy will come into effect November 1, 2025, and can be found online at www.gov.bm.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: And thank you, Senator Lauren Bell,
Junior Minister of Economy and Labour.
Moving on with our Orders of the Day .

INTRODUCTION OF BILLS
The President: There are none.

FIRST READING OF PUBLIC BILLS

PUBLIC SERVICE SUPERANNUATION
(PSSF STABILISATION ) AMENDMENT ACT 2025

NATIONAL PENSION SCHEME ( OCCUPATIONAL
PENSIONS) AMENDMENT ACT 2025

ROAD TRAFFIC AMENDMENT
AND VALIDATION ACT 2025

TOURISM INVESTMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2025

THE LOREN ( PINK BEACH
AND ELBOW BEACH) ACT 2025

BENEFIT ENTITIES ACT 2025

TRUSTEE AMENDMENT ACT 2025

The President: The following public Bills have been received from the Honourable House of Assembly and
are herein re ad for the first time. Their titles are, respectively : The Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act 2025, the National Pension
Scheme (Occupational Pensions ) Amendment Act
2025, the Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act
2025, the Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025,
The Loren ( Pink Beach and Elbow Beach) Act 2025,
the Benefit [Entities] Act 2025, and lastly, the T rustee
Amendment Act 2025.
And, Senators, these items will be taken up on
our Orders of the Day.
Moving on, then, with our agenda . . .
FIRST READING OF PRIVATE BILLS

The President: There are none.

QUESTION PERIOD

The President: Senators, we will entertain the questions that have been submitted by Senator Victoria Cunningham for response today.
And I would like for Senator Cunningham to . . .
these have been submitted to the Honourable Kim
Wilkerson, the Attorney General and Minister of Jus-tice, to provide oral response today.
So, Senator Cunningham, would you like to repeat your question?

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President, and good morning.
My question to the Honourable Kim Wilkerson,
Attorney General and Minister of Justice, reads as follows.

QUESTION 1: JURY POOL ELIGIBILITY

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: In the November 2024
Throne Speech, the Government indicated its intent to
enlarge the jury pool through amendments to the Jurors Act 1971. Will the Honourable Minister please advise
the Senate whether the Government has considered
broadening jury service eligibility beyond Bermudian
status holders to include spouses of Bermudians, per-manent residents, certificate holders, BOTC status
holders, or guest workers who ordinarily reside in Bermuda . And if not, could the Minister please explain why
these categories of residents were excluded .
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President. The answer is yes.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Yes, they were considered. Okay. Thank you.
I have a supplementary.

The President: Yes, please.

SUPPLEMENTARIES
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you for that, and I
guess we will wait and see what happens. But the proposal was also proposed to increase the maximum age to 75. Have you assessed the practicality and fairness
of requiring seniors of this age to sit and represent or
serve on a jury?

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: I think it is an interesting question, given that we are going to be debating the
increase in the age of retirement in a few moments. Certainly, I believe that people who are over 70 or over
75 have a lot to contribute, not just time. But the
492 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate thinking will be that there will be some form of fitness
engagement to vet whether people can appropriately
serve.
At this stage, the proposals are in the consultation phase. So, at the moment a draft version of proposed changes is with the Chief Justice and the Judiciary. It will go through Bar Council, and we will begin
public consultation in October. So, all of these questions . . . nothing is baked. We will come back after public consultation.
Thank you.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I will look forward to that .
And I have one final supplementary. So , the
Government has also proposed measures such as reducing the number of names or individuals required to
form a jury panel and increasing statutory allowances. Can the Minister confirm whether these are actually
meaningfully going to expand the jury pool , given our
emigration of Bermudians, and what additional strategies might be in play to ensure the sustainability and representation on our juries?

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Senator
Cunningham.
I think, given that the proposals are in the consultation stage, I do not think there is much merit in
commenting on what we think it is going to be until that
process happens.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham, and
thank you, Minister Wilkerson.
And I believe, Senator Cunningham, you had a
question to the Honourable Crystal Caesar, the Minister of Education, to provide oral responses today.
Would you like to read your question?

QUESTION 2: PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS ,
MEASURES IN PLACE TO ENSURE SAFETY AND
SECURITY OF STUDENTS AND STAFF

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you to Senator, the
Honourable Crystal Caesar, Minister of Education.
In light of the recent rise in community violence
across the Island, will the Honourable Minister please advise the Senate what measures are currently in place
to ensure the safety and security of students and staff
at our public high schools and what furt her steps are
being planned?

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Okay. Thank you,
Madam President.
Madam President, in response to Senator Cunningham's question, the Ministry of Education remains
deeply concerned about the recent increase in community violence and its impact on our school environments. The safety and security of students and staff
across all public schools, and particularly within our
senior schools, continues to be a foundational priority.
Senior schools have a range of measures in place
aimed at fostering safe and supportive learning s paces.
They include, but are not limited to, staff training, emergency drills, targeted programmes, and other proactive
strategies.
In addition, some of those strategies are
trained and licens ed security officers are present at the
senior schools in particular and are active every day,
which serves as a deterrent to negative behaviour. In
their roles, they get to know the staff, students, and the
school culture, which also supports prevention, early intervention, and de- escalation measures if needed. The
security officers, along with physical barriers such as fencing, provide an impediment to unauthorised access to school grounds.
And senior schools continue to strengthen relationships and the importance of student safety with students and parents. Safety concerns of staff and students are addressed at school -wide assemblies when
incidences in particular occur, but regularly as well . And
student supervision is more visible in schools.
Parents have been encouraged to speak to
their young people, reinforcing school messages,
safety measures, and expectations regarding student safety and behaviour. School leadership continuously
assesses the environment and is responding appropriately to t he emerging needs of students. And there is
an ongoing system- wide assessment of school safety,
which will continue, and it will inform any policy
changes and/ or operational measures that need to
happen.
The Department of Education has also established a partnership with the Bermuda Police Service.
And as you would note earlier today with one of my colleague's statements, the Bermuda Police Service,
along with the Department of National Security,
et cetera, has an event this evening and I would encourage all Members to attend and show their support for what's happening in the community, but also what's
happening within schools to ensure that we are maintaining our finger on the pulse and keeping our student s
safe. But the Bermuda Police Service collaboration has
been invaluable in terms of providing intervention and
guidance.
In addition, senior schools have excellent
working relationships with the Ministry of National Security group and other agencies or bodies who provide
support services. And looking ahead, we are committed to expanding partnerships to include other government
departments, community organisations, and those who
can contribute meaningfully to school safety. We recognise also that parents and guardians are essential
partners in this effort.
Their support, engagement, and reinforcement
of positive student behaviour play a critical role in building safer school communities. We encourage families


Bermuda Senate to remain actively involved and to collaborate with
school leadership and staff in creating environments
where all children and staff can feel safe.

SUPPLEMENTARY

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you for that. I have
one supplemental. You did answer my second supplemental about expanded community organisations, but
more on the security officers as you named them. Do
you know how many are currently deployed across our
public senior schools? And what training they have received for any violence or . . . right.
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: So, I have had the
same question in terms of training, et cetera, because
I was concerned to making sure that people are appro-priately trained to deal with certain situations. And I
have been assured that training is ongoing and updated on a regular basis.
As to a specific number, that is something that
I will have to get back to you on, and I can do that at a later date. Thank you.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham, and
thank you, Honourable Minister C aesar, for responding
to the questions.
Moving on, then, we think that certainly . . .
Senator Cunningham, you had questions put to Senator Mischa Fubler . Would you like to read your question? And this is for oral answers today.

QUESTION 3: FLAT TS RAILWAY TRAIL BRIDGE
CONSTRUCTION HALTED
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Yes, I did. This is coming
from a constituent. Will the Junior Minister please advise what immediate steps will be taken on the Flat ts
Railway Trail Bridge to address concerns raised by lo-cal residents such as lack of maintenance and oversight of the site, construction materials left abandoned,
environmental degradation caused by the stalled works, security risks such as trespassing on a derelict
structure, and people climbing onto the incomplete
bridge and graffiti and other such signs of neglect?

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President. I
also thank my colleague, Senator Cunningham, for presenting.
I guess, a timely or topical question. We are all
familiar with the recent article in The Royal Gazette asking or highlighting similar challenges, and I unfortunately will have to advise her that she should reach out
to the Friends of the Bermuda Railway Trail Organisa-tion, which is currently responsible for the completion
of the project, including access t o the construction site,
which it is still, unfortunately, a thing. The Department of Parks reminds the public
that the area remains off -limits as it is a construction
site and installation of the bridge is incomplete.

SUPPLMENTARY

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I then have a supplemental.
So, well aware of the Statement, and Friends
of Railway obviously have put it on pause, I think my
question is from the responsibility of Parks to ensure
that it is a safe area.
You can say that it is off-limits, but that's not
going to stop people trying to climb a bridge when it's there, or the fact that construction materials are still left
on the site, so offer potentially dangerous and environmental concerns. So, I think my question is for the
Parks Department, when can we expect a safe removal
of the existing materials and any kind of specific off -
limits signage barriers and so on so that people do not
get onto it?
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
And so, I had similar curiosities. I made sure to
check out the Department of Planning's self -service
portal, as it is, Customer Self -Service (CSS), where you
can review various parcels of land. This one in particular is 42419, which does list the Governor as the owner
of the Railway Trail. And while the Parks Department
does have responsibility and maintenance for the Railway Trail itself, they do not maintain the construction
site or its access. And since the project remains an active construction site, t o our knowledge, it is the responsibility of the organisation, namely the Friends of the Bermuda Railway Trail.
And I don't want this to be misconstrued as
casting aspersions on them. We are very thankful for
the initiative. I am sure most of us in the general public
who like to frequent the Railway Trail do enjoy it, but it is important to highlight that kind of segregation of duties wherein the Parks Department would become responsible for such on completion of the bridge construction.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Junior Minister. I will pass those comments on.

The President: Thank you, Senator.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Noted. And now, Madam President, if I may, if you do happen to make contact with the Murphys, either s enior or junior, we of the Government have also been trying to reach out to them. And I guess to the benefit of the listening public, we typically
receive an update from them at Parks quarterly, the
most recent one being December of 2024 where it is
our un derstanding that they are indeed progressing a
viable solution for mitigating the impact of the cave
494 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate system under the support that has currently stalled the
construction.
The President: Thank you, Senator Mis cha Fubler ,
and thank you, Senator Cunningham, for your questions.
The next series of questions that have been
sent to, actually they have been sent to Senator Mis cha
Fubler , the Junior Minister of Public Works and the Environment, for the provision of oral responses today. This series of questions ha ve been presented by Senator Dion Smith.
And Senator Smith, I would like for you to ask
your first question to the Minister. Could you repeat the
question, please?
Sen. Dion Smith: Good day, Madam President.

The President: Written question.

Sen. Dion Smith: Yes, thank you. Good day, Madam
President.

The President: Good day to you.

Sen. Dion Smith: Will the Junior Minister Mis cha
Fubler —
The President: Can you talk into the mic rophone ?

QUESTION 1: WARWICK ROADS, SCHEDULE D
HEDGING AND VEGETATION MANAGEMENT
Sen. Dion Smith: Sorry. Thank you.
Will the Junior Minister Mis cha Fubler please
advise the Senate when the Ministry intends to conduct scheduled hedging and vegetation management along
the roads in Warwick to ensure safety of motorists, cyclists and pedestrians?

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
Yes. And so as a fellow resident of Warwick, I am actually rather acquainted with my colleague across the
aisle. We have worked closely together on a number of initiatives in the neighbourhood.
You may or may not be aware that the Ministry
has hired several “s olo sweepers ” across the Island to
assist with cleaning and maintenance of public roadways. There are three such s olo sweepers assigned to
the Warwick Parish. And further to your question, the
next scheduled area for clearing is the narrow section
of roadway between the former T. N. Tat em School
building and Burnt House Hill. However, it's too dangerous for a single person. Therefore, a larger vegetation
crew has been assigned with work extensively sched-uled for next week, weather permitting. This next week .
We received these questions kind of Thursday evening
or so. And so, I imagine they had intended for this
week, although I think Mother Nature may have different plans depending on the path of the two impending hurricanes. So, watch the space. And as I have
another update, I would be happy to provide it.

The President: Senator Smith.

QUESTION 2: WARWICK ROADS, SCHEDULE D
PAVING/RESURFACING WORKS

Sen. Dion Smith: Thank you, Junior Minister.
Also, supplemental. Could you please provide
a schedule o f proposed paving or resurfacing work on
Warwick roads, particularly the main through fairs and
heavily trafficked side roads ? Which ones are proposed
as a priority? If you can provide that.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Madam President, just to clarify,
this is question number two or is this a supplement?

Sen. Dion Smith: It is question number two.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Okay. And there is no supplement ary on that ?
Okay. Happy to field either.
The President: Question two.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Question two.
Thank you. And so, I will point my colleague in
the direction of the Minister's Statement from July. The paving crew is currently assigned to North Shore Road
in Flatts Village and Middle Road in Smith ’s Parish. And
once those areas are completed, the team will be repositioned to pave the one unpaved lane from Longford
Road to Lighthouse Road in Warwick.

The President: Senator Smith.

QUESTION 3: WARWICK ROADS, INSTAL LATION
OF ADDITIONAL ROAD SAFETY MEASURES
Sen. Dion Smith: Thank you.
In addition, could you please advise whether
the Ministry has plans to instal additional road safety
measures in Warwick, such as speed bumps in [accident] prone and residential areas , street lights in poorly
illuminated zones, reflective road studs, or cat eyes is
what they call them, to improve nighttime driving safety
and upgrades to drainage to reduce flooding on our roads ?
The President: This was your third question.
Sen. Dion Smith: Third question. Thank you.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
And so, I hold similar concerns for the need to
increase safety in accident prone areas, especially the
residential ones. And so, the Ministry continues its


Bermuda Senate efforts to improve the safety of pedestrians and motorists on our roadways Island wide, which does include
Warwick.
And I would also like to take this time to highlight how since my kind of entrance into the political space I have been an advocate for increased usage of
our roadways, specifically around sidewalks and the
like. And so , I welcome this question.
Additionally, to furthering our commitment to
safety, the Ministry has recently announced a public
consultation process for improvements to the Private Roads (Improvement Act ) of 1969 and the Private
Roads (Lighting ) Act of 1984.
The goal of this is to seek the public's feedback
in order to modernise the private roads legislation to
better improve safety, accessibility, and fairness for all
residential areas. Even though I also want to see better in Warwick, I think it's important at the Ministry that our
focus is Island -wide. And I encourage the public to log
on to the Bermuda Citizens Forum at forum.gov. bm to
share their thoughts on how this legislation can be
strengthened to ensure private road improvements can
be delivered more fairly and efficiently.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: So, thank you, Senator Mischa Fubler ,
for responding to the questions that required oral re-sponses today. And thank you, Senator Dion Smith, for
your questions.
Now, Senators, we will move on to questions
related to the Statements that were presented this morning. And the first Statement was in the name of the
Honourable Kim Wilkerson, JP, Attorney General and
Minister of Justice. And her Statement was the State of Corrections.
Would any Senator care to ask questions on
this Statement?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.

QUESTION 1: STATE OF CORRECTIONS
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President. And thank you to the Attorney General for a very comprehensive review. I look forward to reading the an-nual reports of the Parole Board and the Treatment of
Offenders Board, knowing a number of the people on
them. I look forward to their contributions.
But I think we can agree that the well -being of
our correctional officers is fundamental. But yet we continue to hear recruitment issues and retention with a re-liance on overseas officers. So, my first question is,
What strategies are being implemented to attract and
retain local officers rather than relying on overseas recruitment?
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Sorry, can you repeat
the question?
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: What strategies are being
implemented to recruit and retain local officers rather than relying on overseas, I think you called it national,
regional recruitment efforts?
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Yes, thank you. So just
to reframe your understanding, currently there is no reliance on overseas officers.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Okay.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: So overseas officers
will be hired in the second tranche of the recruitment
after local officers. So, there is always the imperative
that Bermudians should be hired first. But where there are not enough Bermudians who have gone through
the process, then we will look to regional.

SUPPLEMENTARY
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: And as a supplementary,
what is the current turnover rate amongst our corrections officers and why are they leaving?
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: There is not a high
turnover rate, interestingly. So many of our officers are
quite long- serving officers. I think the recruitment deficit
is one that has existed for a while.
And I think the kind of challenges I think around
local recruitment relate to kind of that one degree of separation that we have in Bermuda. So very often people may disqualify themselves even if they are interested in the Corrections, you know, service as a career
opportunity. Because, you know, their peers are the
people that they may be having to work with in that setting. And that is a challenge.
But there are ways to get around that with training. And that is one of the things that we are currently
discussing and were discussing over the weekend with
our consultant psychologist from the US around that
paradigm of how we strengthen officers to deal with that
close degree of proximity to people they know and be
able to adequately discharge their responsibilities in
that s etting.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I have a second question.

The President: Yes, you can present it.

QUESTION 2: STATE OF CORRECTIONS

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: So the Statement talked
about the partnerships with a number of, or recruitment I guess, with a number of, no, partnerships with Gina
Spence and Mr. Omodele. And in particular with his
work around dyslexia. Has anything been prescribed, I
guess, for, you know, prisoners, inmates who may have
more neurodivergent issues? So, the ADHDs and
things that I think are more prevalent in our populations,
496 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate inmate populations. So how are those learning challenges being integrated into any education and rehabilitation frameworks?
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you. And that's
a really good question. I have said in this C hamber before that, you know, while we have offerings, GED programmes, the opportunity to engage at PACE, and we
see that there is initially a good take up, my investigation has been into the reasons why people might not
stick with the programme.
And as you rightly mentioned, things like
ADHD in addition to dyslexia and other issues could be
the reason. So, we haven't done a great job of data
gathering in that regard. And that is one of the things that will be happening in the kind of reformed space that
we're entering into. It is very, very important that we do
proper data gathering so that we can find out what the
learning challenges are at the beginning. So that will
happen. Mr. Omodele himself has the capabilities to
deal with people with ADHD as well. But I think that
baseline diagnostic set of data isn't something that has
been part of the protocol . But it will be going forward.

SUPPLEMENTARY

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Okay. So as a quick supplement ary to that. So, there isn't a formal diagnosis
process for neurodivergent conditions at the moment?

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: At the moment, no.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: And I have a third question, if I may.

The President: Certainly.

QUESTION 3: STATE OF CORRECTIONS

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Relating to the inmate
skills bank, which I think is an encouraging step for-ward, obviously to rehabilitation. But I think, you know,
it's one thing asking inmates what their skills are. It is
another being able to push them into a labour market that exists.
And so , my question is, how is that inmate skills
bank being structured and maintained moving forward to make sure it is actually a benefit?
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: So, we are at the very
beginning stages. So, it's not a question of how we are
maintaining it. But this is also part of that data set that
doesn't really exist at the moment.
So, as people are entering the kind of correctional facility or the criminal justice system, period, we
should be gathering data on who they are, what their learning difficulties are, what baseline trauma, as well
as, What is your employment ? What do you do? Are
you unemployed? All those things. And to create some data sets that will follow an inmate not just while they
are in the facility but when they leave as well. And so,
the opportunity to build that is in front of us.
When we talk about , I just [ want to say from]
my practical experiences, you know, when I visit and I
am talking to people and somebody would say, Oh , this
is so-and-so. Or, Do you know that this guy is a drywall
specialist? [I had] n o idea. And, So-and-so is a plumber
with X number of years’ experience. And another person is an expert tiler.
And so , recognising those things, like we
should be putting these gentlemen, and in that case it's
at Westgate, so all gentlemen, we should be putting
these gentlemen to work. And we have been. We have
been . But we should be doing it in a more systematic
way where we are able to capture their experience and
help to build a résumé, so that on release they have
some work that they could point to, and we are able to
assess that work as well so that we can properly give
them references for the work that they have done.
And I just would add here, this is an idea that
occurred to me. But sitting down with an inmate a few
weeks ago it was his proposal that we should do this
and so it is being driven from inside. And so , I am very
excited about that.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you. And I look forward to continued updates. And, yes , I guess I encourage people to get involved if they have any ideas.
The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham and
thank you, Minister Wilkerson, for responding to those questions.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

SENATE VISITORS
The President: Before I move on, I would just like to
acknowledge the presence of the CEO of the Pension
Commission, Mr. Peter T. Sousa, who has been here
quite a while in the Gallery.
Thank you for your presence, sir.
And also, the Accountant General, Di onne
Morrison- Shakir, who is in the C hamber.
Welcome to you.

[Question Period, continuing]

The President: And if there are no more questions on
this Statement, we will move on to the second Statement that has been presented this morning, and that is the Bermuda Public School System, the Stabilisation
and Transformation Update 2025. And that was given
by the Honourable Minister Crystal Caesar, JP , Minister of Education.
Would any S enator care to ask questions on
this Statement?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.


Bermuda Senate QUESTION 1: BERMUDA PUBLIC SCHOOL
SYSTEM, THE STABILISATION AND
TRANSFORMATION UPDATE 2025

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
First off, thank you for the Statement and the
update. I know I asked a few questions in the last ses-sion, which you were unfortunately absent, but I know
a lot of our parents and teachers especially, along with
students, have been waiting for updates . So, I think
thank you very much for providing that.
I think my main question when the topic was
stabilising and transforming the system, I guess, you know, how do you steady a ship while simultaneously
trying to rebuild it? So, I wanted to ask what takes precedence when conflicts will inevitably arise with stability being, you know, predictability and continuity in the system, while transformation is more kind of the disruption
and change? So, which is going to take precedence?

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: If I may, Madam President.
The President: Absolutely, you have the floor.

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you.
Yes. So , my view is that there isn't necessarily
a precedence. I think my Statement did speak to the
fact that this will be happening simultaneously.
And how does that happen? That means that
we have the teachers and the administrators focussing
on teaching and instruction, learning, and the students
focussing on learning. And allowing my team at the
Ministry headquarters to continue to work and revise
the plans that we have at the Ministry, such that the
burden of the transformation from that standpoint is taken away from them, and let the policymakers work
on what needs to . . . what we need to do such that the
plan can be vetted and revised as appropr iate and not
giving it to them to do. We want them to focus on classroom learning, teaching, and instruction.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Second question, if I may.

The President: Yes, certainly, Senator Cunningham.

QUESTION 2: BERMUDA PUBLIC SCHOOL
SYSTEM, THE STABILISATION AND
TRANSFORMATION UPDATE 2025
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Could the M inister explain when a revised master plan and infrastructure
strategy will be finalised and published?
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Yes, that's the ongoing
question.

[Laughter] Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Basically, we have begun revising that plan. And I wouldn't want to paint myself into a corner to say it is going to be completed by a
specific date. It is my plan, however, or my intention
that at different stages, different stakeholders will be brought into the plan so that we can update and devise
different dates along the way where different stages of
the plan can be completed.
So, I do not want to say it is going to be done
by a specific date, because once we start making those
revisions it may change.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: And a supplementary to
that.

The President: Yes.

SUPPLEMENTARY
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I am aware that a lot of
kind of angst came from parents , particularly . But I
think, you know, how will the M inistry ensure that there
is transparency and adequate notice to parents before
any future school closures or transitions or anything of
that nature?

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Yes, it has been my
commitment that any plan or revision thereof is completed and such that parents are given at least a year's
notification before any additional school closures will
happen. So, for the foreseeable future, as I have indicated, any additional closure dates that have been an-nounced have been rescinded until such time as we can revise the plan, ensure that the plan is fulsome ,
et cetera.
So, for the ongoing or foreseeable future, any
closure dates are off the table. But we will give notification ahead of time, and the commitment has been at least a year before any closures happen.

The President: Senator Cunningham.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: And a third and final
question, if I may.

QUESTION 3: BERMUDA PUBLIC SCHOOL
SYSTEM, THE STABILISATION AND
TRANSFORMATION UPDATE 2025
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: So, moving to the ( I'm not
talking about signature schools today, don't worry ) parish primary schools. Can the M inister , or Ministry, I
guess, confirm that there is sufficient classroom space and facility space for all of the specialist areas, proposed instruction, teaching and course offerings within
them?
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: And that is part of the
plan that we are revising. Because we do not want to
498 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate say this school is going to do this and that school is
going to do that if you haven't actually done the appropriate assessment to ensure that it can be accommodated. And so that is why we are saying get on with the
teaching, the learning and the instruction. Let us do this
assessment and revision. And adjustments that need
to be made will be made once we have that information.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I just want one supplemental to that.
The President: Yes, Senator Cunningham.

SUPPLEMENTARY

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: If our young- people population grows or fluctuates significantly, are there, you
know, plans for the expansion of sites and all the rest
of it s hould we suddenly see a birth rate increase?

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: That would be nice,
wouldn't it?

[Laughter]

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: I think everybody
would be happy about that for a variety of reasons.
But obviously that is what will feed into the
plan. We are looking at the future state of the country
in terms of population size, et cetera, et cetera, should
we believe that there is going to be , you know, somebody or people decide they want to have five, ten children like they did back in the day .

[Laughter]
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Then we will obviously
make the decisions that we need to such that if the
buildings need to be expanded or other locations need
to be considered, we will do so at that time.
The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Thank you, Minister.
Would any other S enator care to ask questions
on this S tatement before we move on?
Hearing none, then we will move on to the third
Statement that was given by Senator Lindsay Simmons
as Junior Minister of Home Affairs, Youth and Social
Development and Seniors and National Security. And this one was the Royal Bermuda Regiment, 60th A nniversary. Would any Senator care to ask questions on
this Statement?
Hearing none, we were obviously pleased with
your presentation, Senator.
We will move on to her second Statement then,
which was the update on the Policing Operations and Community Safety. Would any S enator care to ask
questions on this S tatement that was also presented by
Senator Lindsay Simmons? You obviously won everybody over.
Oh, Senator Cunningham does have a question.

QUESTION 1: POLICING OPERATIONS AND
COMMUNITY SAFETY UPDATE

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President, and thank you to the J unior Minister for her S tatement, in fact, on the R egiment as well.
One question on the policing is what steps are
being taken to build long- term community trust, especially in the most affected communities with our Police
Service beyond the increased hotline tip financial rewards?
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: So, thank you for that question.
I believe that the Bermuda Police Service
along with the National Security is building a commu-nity where we have been told numerous times that you
can reach out to any police officer. And we are making it so that you do not have to speak to a specific officer.
So, we are building trust there.
And tonight, they are going to give a wholesome presentation of why we should look to help sup-port the police. So, I think that if you endeavour to come downstairs tonight they will give you a full briefing on it.
Thank you.
The President Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Thank you, Senator Lindsay Simmons.
We will m ove on to the next S tatement. And
that was the S tatement that was given by the Honourable Lauren Bell, the J unior Minister for E conomy and
Labour. And that was on the W ork Permit Policy [2025] .
Would any S enator care to ask questions on
this Statement?
Senator Dion Smith, you have the floor.

QUESTION 1: WORK PERMIT POLICY 2025

Sen. Dion Smith: Thank you, Madam President.
Will the J unior Minister, Lauren Bell, clarify the
position on the current work permit restrictions, partic-ularly the requirement for a minimum of two years with
the initial employer before an overseas employee may
move from a local business?
At present, local Bermudian employers opt for
a three- year work permit , in addition to covering relocation costs, recruitment fees, and other expenses asso-ciated with bringing an employee to Bermuda. Yet after
this significant investment, some employees are able to
move on much sooner, leaving a n employer at a loss.
Would the J unior Minister be able to explain
why this system allows such limited protection for em-ployers and whether consideration has been given to
the following adjustments : Ensuring that new permit
holders will remain with their initial employer for the full


Bermuda Senate three- year term of their permit ; and reviewing whether
the current system is inadvertently harming Bermudian
local businesses who may make good faith investments in overseas staff.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Can I move that we speak
about the Work Permit Policy Statement before the
Workforce Development one, as that was a question on the final Statement , Work Permit Policy , also from Senator Lauren Bell ?
The President: Yes.

Sen. Lauren Bell: Yes, that's fine.
The President: Senator Lauren Bell, then you can proceed to answer the question.
[Pause]

Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, just so I have the
completeness of his question, can we ask for Senator
Smith just to recap that question, please?

The President: Can you make it very specific?

Sen. Tarik Smith : Yes, I can.
The President: Thank you.

Sen. Tarik Smith : So, a three- year work permit being
purchased or opt ed for by an employer of a local business , ensuring that new permit holders will remain with
the initial employer for the full three- year term of their
permit , and reviewing . . . are you also reviewing
whether the current system is inadvertently harming Bermuda local business es who make good faith investments in overseas staff?
Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, just while I wait
for a response from the technical support team, were
there any other questions on the W ork Permit Policy?

The President: Senator Cunningham, you have the
floor.

QUESTION 1: WORK PERMIT POLICY 2025

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
Just are there any additional steps being taken
to ensure that qualified Bermudians are not being overlooked in favour of work permit holders?
Actually, I do have a supplemental that I just
thought of on that.

SUPPLEMENTARY
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: So, with Bermudians right
now, the work permit holder has to prove that they can do the job better than the in -resident Bermudian. I think
my question, my supplementary to what additional steps are being taken, is , How is compliance with job
adverts and training obligations being monitored for
Bermudians?

[Pause]
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Sorry, Madam President.
While she waits for the answer, I would like to say that
as somebody who does work permits, I found myself
with even people with one -year work permits leaving
before. People have the right to leave or seek jobs.
There is a caveat that once a worker comes to
Bermuda in that two- year period, they have to stay before they can find another job. So, although it is an investment, I truly believe if you treat your workers fairly,
pay them at a good rate, people are willing to stay. But
at the same time, people have decisions to make. Even
as Bermudians, we might have a good job, but another opportunity comes up. So, I think that we just have to
be mindful that people are allowed to switch jobs.
So, as employers, we need to make sure that
when we invest in foreign workers, we are making sure
that they are happy , and we are doing everything we
can to keep them.
You know, I have been on the other end of it as
well, like I said, and lost workers. That even if we are
paying the same amount or more, they just wanted a
new opportunity. So, I will wait for the technical answers
that my colleague will give you. But I do think that this
Government is doing everything it can.
Because, like I said, years ago, people were
able to write in and state that, nope, the worker canno t
leave, and we are holding people at ransom. So, I think
that this is an equal opportunity for people to stay for at least two years and then have the opportunity to move
if they are qualified and want to seek employment elsewhere.
So, thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Senator Lindsay Simmons.

Sen. Lauren Bell: And Madam President, while I wait
for the technical response, I do want to highlight that
this was captured in my earlier Statement. There is a
recognition of the employer's concerns regarding em-ployees leaving shortly after they have made a significant investment in recruiting and onboarding employ-ees. And to address that, work permit holders will be
required to complete the two years employment with
their initial employer.
We also, in addition to that, for new work permits, job changes will not be approved in the first year
after issuance. And for renewed work permits, job
changes will not be approved within the first six months
after issuance. So, that was some of the responses that
500 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate we have made to these concerns that were raised by
the employer. But I will continue to wait for some additional information from my technical team.

[Pause]

Sen. Lauren Bell: In response to Senator Cunningham's question regarding additional steps that are being taken to ensure qualified Bermudians are not being
overlooked, I want to give assurances that through the
referral process at the Department of Workforce Devel-opment, th ey are working with Immigration to ensure
Bermudians are not being overlooked. That is part of
the process.

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, again, I
also want to add that we, as Bermudians and workers,
have a responsibility as well. If we see somebody that
is being overlooked, or you are being overlooked, you
can write in to Workforce Development and say that
you are qualified and you are overlooked for a foreign worker. And I can assure you that the Minister of Economy and Labour takes these matters seriously and it
will be looked into. So, I will encourage everybody, if
they are qualified, write in, call , and let it be known that
you are qualified for the job.
If you are silent, nobody knows that you were
overlooked, so we do have to speak up for ourselves
and let the powers that be know that we were overlooked for such jobs. So, I encourage people to speak
up if they are not getting the jobs that they are qualified
for. So that is something that we need to do as well,
because I feel that many times we hear people speak-ing about it, but not everybody puts it forward, and the Minister is not a magician. He does not know who is
qualified and who is not without [you] reaching out and
saying, Hey, I applied for this job and I was overlooked
for a foreign worker. So, I would encourage everybody
to reach out if they are being overlooked.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Senator Linds ay Simmons ,
for clarification. I think that helps the process.
Senator Bell, are you expecting additional response?

Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I think the responses given so far, including the helpful responses
from my colleague, Senator Lindsay Simmons , have
answered some of those questions. I think it is important to highlight that Bermudians are protected in
legislation, including the Human Rights Act that recognises Bermudians having the preference for the access
to employment opportunities, and of course the coverage is also found in the Employment Act.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: And thank you, Senator Lauren Bell.
And Senators, that concludes the questions. Oh, I beg your pardon. There were questions
on the Workforce Development. Did any Senator want
to pose questions on Workforce Development?
[No audible reply]

The President: Yes, there are no questions. All right.
Yes, we just want to make sure that [with] all of the
Statements that [if] Senators had questions on any of
the Statements they were all dealt with.
So, Senators, that —
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, sorry.

The President: I beg your pardon.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: I am sorry to interrupt, but I
just wanted to wish happy birthday to the Director of
Economy and Workforce Development, Malika Cartwright. It's her birthday today, so happy birthday. And
coming and sharing your birthday with us today.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

SENATE VISITOR
The President: Well, certainly, and I want to welcome
you to the Chamber. You have been here for a while
now, so happy birthday to you from all of us here in the Senate.
Thank you.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: I know that was out of order,
but she is going to —
The President: That's fine; I am glad you did, because
I had not acknowledged her.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Yes, thank you.

The President: I am glad you did, and especially on
your birthday.
So, thank you, Senators, for the questions you
have put to the Statements, and your comments have
certainly been accepted.
And, Senators, that moves us on to Item
No. 13, the Orders of the Day.

ORDERS OF THE DAY

The President: And the first Order of the D ay is the
second reading of the Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation) Amendment Act 2025. And that is
in the name of the Senator, the Honourable Kim Wilkerson, the Attorney General, and Minister of Justice.
Minister, you have the floor.

STANDING ORDER 25



Bermuda Senate Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
I move, Madam President, that the provisions
of Standing Order 25 be granted so that the Senate
may now proceed with the second reading of the list of 10 Bills, and I will name them in turn, Madam President.
The Public Service Superannuation ( PSSF Stabilisation) Amendment Act 2025, the National Pension
Scheme (Occupational Pensions ) Amendment Act
2025, the Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025, the Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025, The Loren ( Pink Beach and Elbow Beach) Act 2025,
the Benefit E ntities Act 2025, [and] the Trustee Amendment Act 2025.
I think that is the list, Madam President. And
the following motions for consideration, the National Pension Scheme ( Occupational Pensions ) (Administration Fees ) Regulations 2020, the Tourism Investment (Navigate Drone Light Shows ) Order 2025, and
finally, Madam President, the Tourism Investment ( Odyssey Commercial Charter Yacht ) Order 2025.

The President: Thank you, Minister .
Is there any objection ?
Senator Cunningham.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Not an objection, I would
just like to make a comment.

The President: Yes, please do.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Can we forego, in the future, to make sure that we have the first readings with
ample time before the second and third readings?

The President: Minister .
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Yes, absolutely.
[Motion carried: Leave granted for Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation) Amendment Act 2025, to be read a second time on the same day as its
first reading.]
The President: Thank you. Thank you for that. Therefore, we will be taking under consideration the second
reading then of the Public Service Superannuation
(PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act [2025], and that
is, as has been stated, in the name of Senator, the Hon-ourable Kim Wilk erson, A ttorney General , and Minister
of Justice.
Minister, when you are ready, you can present
your Bill.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, at this point, I am obliged
that our Senate colleagues have agreed to the provisions of Standing Order 25 with the understanding we are in this unusual calendar crunch where this is the
last day of this legislative year. And so, we are grateful
and obliged that our colleagues in the OBA and in the
Independent Senators agree that we can clear the O rder Paper so that we can come back fresh in November.
The President: November, absolutely.
And we thank you all for that.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: So, Madam President,
I move that the Bill entitled the Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act 2025 be
now read a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

BILL

SECOND READING

PUBLIC SERVICE SUPERANNUATION
(PSSF STABILISATION ) AMENDMENT ACT 2025

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President. It should go without saying that this is a serious Bill for a serious moment in Bermuda's history. It
rests on a simple idea with profound meaning.
A pension promise to public officers must be a
pension paid to public officers. That promise honours the teacher in the classroom, the nurse finishing the
night shift, the police officer on patrol, the firefighter on
call, the corrections officer on duty, and the many
women and men whose public service keeps Bermuda
running. A pension promise is only as strong as the
fund that pays it. If the fund is weak, the promise is
weak. If the fund is secure, the promise is secure.
This morning, Madam President, it is my expectation, it is actually now afternoon, it is my expectation that [the Senate] will pass this Bill to secure this
promise by stabilising the Public Service Superannuation Fund for the long term.
Madam President, we did not arrive here overnight. In 2014, the Government froze pension benefit
increases, an early, difficult recognition that the system
could not be sustained and action needed to be taken.
In 2019, a systematic review began in earnest. Since
then, there have been years of actuarial analysis and
scenario testing, repeated Cabinet consideration,
meetings with union and staff associations across the
public service with the goal of ensuring that whatever we bring to [the Senate] must be fai r, phased, and
workable.
The Fiscal Responsibility Panel urged reform.
The Opposition called for action and public officers themselves have asked when Government would act.
Madam President, that time is now, and this is a
502 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate Government that has acted and will continue to act with
fiscal credibility.
Since returning to office, this Progressive Labour Party Government has restored fiscal balance after years of deficits, delivering Bermuda's first budget surplus in 23 years. This Bill is just one more step in
ensuring that the country's fiscal affairs ar e in order by
securing the pension promise in a way that protects
workers and protects the country's finances.
Madam President, I will set out the case for
change and what the numbers actually mean. The most recent valuation tells a stark story. The Public Service
Superannuation Fund is roughly 37 per cent funded
with an unfunded liability a little over $1 billion. On recent course, if nothing changes, the fund's assets are
projected to deplete in 2044.
Let us speak plainly about that. For every dollar
a future pension benefit promised, there are about
37 cents in assets. On the present trajectory, those assets would be exhausted within the working lifetime of
most Bermudians who are now only joining the public service. If we look away from that reality, the liability
does not disappear. It only migrates onto the Consolidated Fund and ultimately onto the taxpayer. That
would be unfair to retirees, reckless for workers, and
irresponsible for the country's f inances. The best
course is therefore to fix the structure now.
So, the choice before this Senate is not change
or no change. It is managed reform today or unmanaged crisis tomorrow. This Bill is necessary and man-aged reform.
Madam President, three principles have
guided this package from the outset : fairness, sustainability, and responsibility.
Fairness : Changes are shared and phased.
We protect take- home pay as contributions step up. We
retain choice by allowing early retirement still, but we make it fair to the fund through actuarial reductions so
that those who draw earlier and therefore longer receive a lower amount. We modernise the benefit formula so that benefits reflect a career's earnings and
contributions, not what is in some cases a single year's
anomaly.
Sustainability : We remove the effective retirement age to reflect longer lives. We measure benefits over a 10- year average. We replace a fixed commutation factor that leaks assets with an actuarial factor reviewed at each valuation. And we embed a requirement
of consultation with the actuaries and the board after
every actuarial report so that future changes ensure
that the fund is sustainable.
Responsibility : We act with care for those who
served, those now serving, and those yet to serve while making changes at a pace public offices can plan
around. And we protect the C onsolidated Fund and
Bermuda's taxpayers from the future shock of a pension plan that has run out of assets to pay benefits.
What the Bill does : Madam President, without
going clause by clause, I will explain what this stabilisation Bill does to the principal Act and, importantly, why. The most consequential element is that
the increase in the earliest age at which a member may
retire with an unreduced pension. For most public officers, the non- special group, that age moves in stages
from 60 to 65. For uniformed officers, the special group,
it moves from 50 to 55. The phasing begins in 2027 and
completes in 2035, increasing by one year every two
years. This is the effective retirement age because it is
the point at which a person can leave without any reduction. It is the single strongest lever for solvency.
Even with this reform, Bermuda's effective retirement age remains below the norms of many developed countries, where 67 or beyond is increasingly
standard. Aligning with longevity while staying fair is
principled and practical.
We keep choice, but we make it equitable. If a
member retires before the unreduced age, their pensions will be actuarily reduced, so the lifetime value of
benefits remains fair between those who elect to receive their benefits earlier and those who work to the
unreduced age. This protects the fund and respects individual circumstances.
This is a change that was added recently following consultation with public officers on July 4. Contributions then rise modestly in stages. For non- special
group members, contributions move from 8.0 [per cent]
to 10.0 per cent. For special group members, from
9.5 [per cent] to 11.5 per cent . These steps are spread
over three years. Crucially, the Government has struc-tured salary offsets so public officers do not see their
take- home pay reduced as these changes phase in.
Madam President, this Bill also modernises the
benefit formula. Today, pensions are calculated on a
final salary basis. In the future, they will be calculated
on the average of the final 10 years of salary, phased
in from 2027 to 2035. Measuring over a decade is fairer
to all and more reflective of the contributions that public
officers make to the fund.
This change also guards against the outsize effect of a late- grade jump on benefits. The Bill also updates maximum ages of service, the mandatory retire-ment ceilings. For most public officers, that cap ultimately rises to 70, and for uniformed officers to 60, both
by 2035.
Madam President, I stress the distinction. The
unreduced age is the effective retirement age and the engine of solvency. The mandatory ceiling is the latest
a person must retire.
Finally, Madam President, we close a longstanding leak in the fund. At present, members may commute up to a quarter of their pension to a lump sum
calculated by a fixed 11.5 [per cent] conversion factor
that has not been revised since the principal Act was
brought into force 44 years ago. In an underfunded plan
like ours, a generous fixed factor overpays lump sums
and has been a significant contributor to draining the
assets of the fund. This Bill ends that practise. Instead,


Bermuda Senate the commutation factor will be set on actuarial advice
after each valuation and published by the Minister.
When the fund strengthens, the factor can reflect that strength. When conditions are tighter, the factor protects the fund. This change will ensure that commutations no longer impact the health of the fund, ensuring fairness.
Taken together, these stabilisation measures,
increasing the unreduced pension retirement age in
stages increases contributions moving to a 10 -year average rather than final salary and replacing the fixed
commutation factor with one that matches the status of
the fund. It will remove the Fund from the path of depletion to a path of sustainability.
Madam President, the actuaries model many
scenarios. On the do- nothing path, assets would deplete in 2044. On the stabilisation path, in this Bill, the
fund moves away from depletion and toward long- run
full funding. The precise funding ratio in a given year
depends on investment returns, inflation, retirement be-haviour and commutation take- up. But the direction is
what matters . And the direction is upward rather than
down.
Madam President, reform of this scale could
not be designed in a vacuum. So, since 2019 the Government has engaged repeatedly with the Bermuda
Public Services Union, the BPSU, the Bermuda Industrial Union, the Bermuda Union of Teachers, the Fire Services Association, the Prison Officers Association,
the Bermuda Police Association and other stakeholders. We shared options, we listened, and we changed the design. From that process came a longer phasing
of the changes, salary offsets that protect take- home
pay as contributions step up and the explicit discipline
of an actuarial commutation factor and post -valuation
reviews by the board.
The robust process of consultation means a
better final package because many voices were heard, and feedback taken on board.
There is another dimension, Madam President,
and that is credibility. Investors and rating agencies
look through to long- term obligations. A credible stabilisation path for the PSSF supports confidence in Bermuda's public finances which in turn supports the very services on which Bermudians depend. Declining ratings lead to higher interest rates.
So, when the Finance Minister meets with
these rating agencies in the future, they will be able to demonstrate that we have removed a large liability from
our balance sheet which makes it more likely that Ber-muda's ratings can be upgraded.
Madam President, as I close out my remarks, I
will remind Members of this Honourable Senate that
this Bill has been years in the making. It reflects the
lessons of the 2014 freeze and work that began in
2019. It reflects consultations with unions and staff as-sociations, the advice of actuaries, the scrutiny of Cabinet and the lived reality of public officers. It is fair, it is phased, it is constitutional, it is responsible, and it is, Madam President, above all , necessary.
To our public servants, I say this is not about
taking something from you. It is about protecting what
is yours.
To our retirees, I say because we are fixing the
structure, we can responsibly consider increases this
fiscal year guided by the numbers and the board and
anchored to a long- run funding path that keeps the path
sound.
To the people of Bermuda, I say this is how we
keep faith by securing the pension promise and safeguarding the public finances.
Madam President, this is a big deal. It is a major step forward and I am honoured on behalf of the
Government to commend the Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act 2025 to
this Honourable Senate and move that it now be read
a second time.

The President: Thank you, Minister Wilk erson.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

SENATE VISITOR
The President: And before I open the floor to Senators
to respond to this Bill, I would just like to acknowledge
the presence of Mr. Michael Scott, the former MP and
Senator, former Attorney General who is in the Gallery.
Welcome to you, sir.
[Second reading of the Public Service Superannuation
(PSSF Stabilisation) Amendment Act 2025, continuing]
The President: Would any Senator care to speak on
this Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President and thank you for that Statement.
I think I can safely say the One Bermuda Alliance recognises the sustainability of the PSSF is es-sential. Ultimately, it is our teachers, our police officers,
our firefighters, prison officers, which we have just been
talking about , and so many others that dedicate their
life to public service and I think they deserve the security of knowing that when they retire that those pensions
will be there for them as needed . And I think the numbers quite shockingly speak for themselves with 37 per
cent funded with an actuarial deficit of a billion [dollars] .
I think without reform , obviously we can say it will be
depleted by 2045.
We need to do something because to do nothing would be irresponsible. And I think in general the
One Bermuda Alliance, or I know the One Bermuda Alliance supports the principle of strengthening the Fund
so that it can meet its future obligations.
504 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate That said, I do have a few questions and firstly
on contributions. So, it lays out that public officers will
be asked to pay more into the Fund moving from I believe 8 .0 per cent to 10.0 per cent and then 9.5 [per
cent] to 11.5 [per cent] for the uniformed services.
While Government has said that the salary uplifts will
offset most of these increases , what assurances do we
have that these uplifts will keep pace with inflation and
cost of living as for so many Bermudians their takehome pay has already stret ched pretty thin.
Secondly, on the retirement age , so non- special groups will see their pension age move from 60 to
65 and uniformed services from 50 to 55 phased in over
a decade. So mandatory retirement ages will also rise.
While this is obviously reflecting longer life expectancy which we have also talked about today , Has there been
an impact analysis on workforce planning and kind of
you know how that is going to be impacted by longer
life expectancies ? And will this ultimately slow progression for younger Bermudians in the public service?
So, I actually just calculated that I my retirement age at 65 will be 2046, and I wouldn't call myself
old, so that . . . but there are two decades of youngsters
behind me who may already be in the public service.
So, you know now we are upping the age of retirement .
Are younger Bermudians in the public service now going to take that much longer to get promotions or uplift
in their salaries ?
And then I think on the pension formula, so we
have moved from the final salary calculation , a final
year salary calculation, to the average of 10 years . That
obviously will reduce expected benefits for most . I
would ask , Has the Government modelled what that impact is in real -dollar terms , as I think Bermudians do
deserve transparency ? And I assume most will have
calculated it themselves , but how this will affect them .
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you Senator
Cunningham.
Can you repeat the third question the final one ?
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: So, we are moving from
a pension formula of it being the final salary , the final
year salary calculation, to a 10-year salary calculation.
Has the Government modelled the impact that this
would have on each individual in real -dollar terms ? Because obviously you can calculate . I have no idea how
much my defined contribution plan would be at the end of the day , but with the defined benefit plan you can
calculate when you can retire based on what those benefit levels are . I can keep g oing. Yes?

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: I think you are entitled
to three questions ; you have asked three questions.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Okay .

The President: Certainly .
[Crosstalk]

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you , Senator
Cunningham.
I will start with the last question, and I think it
is, Have we modelled the impact of the change of calculating the final year salary versus the 10-year average? That has been modelled. Your question really
went to, H ave we modelled it for each individual ?
I think you would recognise that would be impossible because we have no idea of what an individu-al's career trajectory is going to be. In order to model it
to the person, you would have to have an idea that a
person is going to first stay in the public service and then they are going to get certain levels of promotion
and then they are going to end up in a certain salary
band . So, I think the level of analysis per person
through their projected career , I think would be impossible to do.
But the models have been based on what we
have seen already . And certainly, you might appreciate
that we are currently in a situation where as much as
you see government jobs advertised in grade bands a
person might have reached the highest grade band in the year that they are retiring and they have the opportunity in the current system to be retired on that benefit
when really they have not worked their careers at that.
And so, I think recognising the inequity in that is really
what is important about gett ing to the 10- year average.
And it is recognising that you are being pensioned for
your career. So, I think that takes care of the third question.
The second question, the way I understood it,
I think it does not relate to the technical modelling. I
think it is a policy question around whether younger
people (as I paraphrase it) would be blocked from opportunities because older people are going to be con-tinuing to work.
I think from a practical standpoint we just cannot have it both ways. And what we have seen is with
the challenges around the cost of living here, I think
there is a clear desire for people to want to work longer.
And what I have seen myself in the Ministry of Justice
is that people who are experienced and they are at the end of their careers, they are having to leave the service simply because they have reached that age, not
because they do not have more of a contribution to
make.
And what I think is we have the great opportunity to, with more seasoned people staying on, is to partner those more seasoned people with younger people. And what I have noticed kind of anecdotally, I believe was borne out by science somewhere, young people learn, they accumulate experience at a different
rate than older people. They will have different skill sets
kind of growing up in a technological age. So, I do not
think there is a competition for the same job being done
in the same way. I think it is recognition that younger
people bring a different set of skill suites that can be


Bermuda Senate combined with those that older people have. And to
complement, you know, our work spaces in a way that
absolutely must be encouraged.
And the first question related to whether the uplifts are keeping pace with inflation. I am looking to the
technical officers.
Okay. She told me that she sent me an answer,
but I am just here going on and on.

[Laughter]

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Yes. So , the three- year
salary package is taking into consideration the inflation
factor for the period up to 2028.
And clearly, there will be an understanding that
what salary packages are doing is often a function of
the collective bargaining agreements with the unions, and they also will be modelling that as part of their goforward negotiations. That will be the sit uation beyond
2028.
Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Minister.
Would any other Senators care to speak on this
Bill?
Hearing none, then Minister Wilkerson, it's up
to you to pass your Bill.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
I move that the Bill entitled Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act
2025 be read a second time.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
I move that the Bill entitled Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act
2025 be read a third time.
The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: I think I was supposed
to move Standing Order 26 [sic] to enable —
The President: —you would need to.

STANDING ORDER 26[(3)]

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you.
I move that Standing Order 26[(3)] be [suspended] so that the Bill entitled the Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act
2025 may be read a third time. The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.
You may pass the Bill.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you.

BILL

THIRD READING

PUBLIC SERVICE SUPERANNUATION
(PSSF STABILISATION ) AMENDMENT ACT 2025
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Madam President , I
move that the Bill entitled Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act 2025 do now
pass.

The President: Is there any objection to the passage
of the Bill?
No objection.
The Bill is passed.
[Motion carried: The Public Service Superannuation (PSSF Stabilisation ) Amendment Act 2025 was given a
third reading and passed.]

The President: Thank you, Senators.
And now it is time for lunch. I am proposing that
we go to lunch and return at 2: 30.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President. Thank you, colleagues.

The President: Thank you all.
Senate stands adjourned until 2: 30. Thank
you.

Proceedings suspended at 12:44 pm

Proceedings resumed at 12: 32 pm
[Sen. the Hon. Joan E. Dillas -Wright , President, presiding]

The President: Good afternoon, Senator s and the listening audience.
The Senate is resuming after lunch, and I
would like to announce that we are changing the order
of our presentations today, the Orders of the Day. We
are now going to take under consideration the . . . just
to let you know that we are changing the order and that
we will be taking [Items] No. 4 and 5 at this time. So,
Item No. 4 then is the second reading of the
Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025, and that is
in the name of Senator Mischa Fubler, the Junior Minister of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport.
Senator Fubler, you have the floor.
506 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill entitled the Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025 be now read a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

BILL

SECOND READING

TOURISM INVESTMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2025

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you. I will proceed.
The Bill before this Honourable [Senate] is the
Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025 , which proposes to permit the Minister responsible for Tourism,
with the written agreement of the Minister of Finance,
to amend, vary, or revoke a tourism investment order
by the negative resolution procedure.
Madam President, in the 2025 Speech from the
Throne, the G overnment set out the goal which is supported by the amendments before this Honourable
[Senate] today. At that time, Madam President, the
Speech said: “Bermuda's tourism industry continues to
rebound, but the G overnment is determined to do more
to support investment in Bermuda and during this ses-sion the G overnment will advance amendments to the
Tourism Investment Act 2017 to include smaller guest
houses as well as health and medical tourism sites,
making these developments eligible for the suite of
concessions available under the Act. ”
Madam President, before amending the Act in
this specific way, the Government has determined to
lay the foundation for a much- needed flexible approach
to the amendment or variation of orders made under
the principal Act. This need has been identified owing
to the unique prospect of T he Loren hotel operating as
one hotel in two locations following their acquisition of the former Elbow Beach hotel.
There exists no power to vary their current tourism investment order to extend or otherwise account for
the incentives that are needed to enable [ the] development of this unrivalled South Shore property. This development is most certainly in the national economic interest, and the amendments before this Honourable
[Senate] are driven by the need to firstly actively facilitate this critical development.
Madam President, as I indicated in this Honourable [Senate] at our last sitting, the restrictive criteria by which a tourism investment order might be varied
will be a thing of the past. Madam President, the existing power of the Minister to amend an order is set out
in section 6 of the principal Act, and it is a provision
aimed at addressing breaches of an order's condition.
This approach, whilst necessary, does not match the
need for flexibility in tourism investment or the potential
for change in the fortunes of a tourism property , restaurant or attraction. To continue the growth in the tourism economy and to foster the necessary flexibility re-quired, these amendments are necessary.
Madam President, Honourable Senators will
note that an applicant must make their request in writing, and the Minister of Finance must evidence his support also in writing. The consideration of any application
under the proposed new section 6A requires that the
application be in the national economic interest, or that
there are such other circumstances that make amending, varying, or revoking the order necessary.
Madam President, it has taken some time to
generate the level of understanding in various sectors
of the tourism economy that orders under the principal
Act are available to more than large hotel developers.
The Government has engaged in a deliberate information campaign targeting owners of attractions and
restaurants. This has been successful, and Honourable
[Senators] will be aware of those orders which have
been made and of those that form part of today's business in this Honourable [Senate] .
Madam President, as I commend this Bill for
the consideration of Honourable [Senators] , these
amendments represent another move by the Government to respect investment in Bermuda and the sacrifice of entrepreneurs whose risk often represent s employment opportunities, enhanced tourism product offerings, and additions to the locally supported suite of attractions.
Madam President, I am pleased to commend
this Bill to the [Senate] for the consideration and the
support of the Honourable [Senators] .
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: And thank you, Senator Mischa Fubler.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

SENATE VISITORS
The President: And before I open the floor to Senators
to respond, I would just like to acknowledge the presence of the C abinet Secretary, Mr. Mar c Telemaque, in
the Gallery.
Welcome to you, sir.

[Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025 second
reading debate, continuing]

The President: Would any Senator care to speak on
this Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
And I think the One Bermuda Alliance strongly
believes that we need a vibrant tourism sector and that
is central to our long- term economic success. And ultimately, I guess tourism is not just about our visitors, it
is about jobs for Bermudians. So it is both sides of the


Bermuda Senate economic spectrum. So that's opportunities for entrepreneurs and then sustaining these unique experiences that make our I sland the destination of choice.
We welcome any legislative measures that enable us to move things forward in the right direction that encourages investment and provides certainty.
However, I would like some clarity from the
Junior Minister on a number of points. The first being,
how will the Minister or Ministry determine what constitutes national economic interest in practi ce and what
criteria will guide those decisions? And then what safe-guards will be in place to ensure transparency and accountability?

The President: Question two.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Oh, question two, sorry.
What safeguards will be in place to ensure
transparency and accountability in the Minister 's exercise of those powers?
And obviously, we welcome the Government's
efforts to modernise our investment policy. But how will
these amendments ultimately encourage local entrepreneurs, particularly our small and medium- sized enterprises to take advantage of Bermuda's tourism investment incentives?
Thank you.
The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Would any other Senator care to speak on this
Bill?
Hearing none, then we will hear from Senator
Mischa Fubler on the questions that have been asked.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
And so, while I await some more of the specificity around the criteria for determining whether some-thing is in the economic interest of the country, to the
question around transparency, negative resolution
clauses still need to come through the legislative process for notice. And I think we spoke to this before the summer break around the term that the O pposition has,
21 days, maybe, if I am correct. I am looking over at the
Clerk to see . . . he's nodding and said yes.
So, 21 days you have to file some kind of objection, either in the House or here, if you feel that
something that the Government has deemed is in the
economic interest may not be so.
And to smaller businesses, I think you will need
to look at some of the examples we have seen come
through the Senate, right , Aunt Nea’s Inn. I don't know
if that qualifies as a smaller business , or the drone operators or . . . I think we have one today, right, the Odyssey Yacht Charter [Ltd.]. Right? I would argue those
count as smaller businesses. And so hopefully that sat-isfies the question, but I am open to supplementals.

The President: Do you have any supplementals, Senator Cunningham? [Inaudible interjection]

The President: You're good.
[Crosstalk]

The President: Would any other Senator care to ask
questions on this Bill?
No?
So, Senator Fubler . . .

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Sure. I am awaiting some more
specifics around being determined in the economic interest. My understanding . . . [I’m] made to understand
that that determination sits with the Ministry of Finance,
but I think we can look at some of the criteria that the hotels are beholden to, to receive the benefit, to kind of speak to them, and you have touched on it as well,
around jobs and having . . . not just jobs where I think
75 per cent of Bermudians at the six -year mark, but
also the requirement for there to be an enforced management trainee programme. So not just employing us,
preparing us for roles in management. And I will endeavour to give a more fulsome response around the
criteria as I have that information back from the technical offices.

The President: Senator Tannock , you have a question. You have the floor.
Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes. Thank you. Yes, I do.
Actually, I was going to wait for the Pink Beach
Bill, but since you have mentioned it, Senator Fubler , I
am interested to know who enforces the management
trainee programme. As you will probably be aware, in
the original Pink Beach Order in 2015, it was very detailed, and it said that the Minister was supposed to be
sent an audited record of any management trainee pro-gramme and the amount of money spent in the budget
for that management trainee programme. That has
dropped off of subsequent orders, and it is not in the
Act that is about to come up.
So, can you tell us who enforces, who monitors
the management trainee programme and that hotels
are compliant with it? What does that process look like?

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Senator Tannock.
And I will make sure . . . I'm confirming this with the
Tourism Policy and Planning Division, who I happened
to have a meeting with in the lead- up to the first tourism
investment order that I brought to the Senate, and they
walked me through the process in the lead- up to it.
The application is rather extensive, and as far
as the assessment goes of the management trainee programme, as per the legislation, an assessment is
done at a specific year mark. And in that time, they are looking to see that there are people enrolled and that
those who are completing it are actually attaining leadership positions.
508 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate The President: Senator Tannock , do you have a second question?

[Crosstalk]

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, I do have a follow -up. Oh,
sorry.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Sorry. And if I wasn't clear, the
“who” is that Tourism Policy and Planning Department .
Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, thank you. I do have a
follow -up.
Do we have any data on the [number] of Bermudians trained in any of the hotels that have been
granted special development relief?

Sen. Mischa Fubler: And apologies, I am misinformed.
Actually, it is the Department of Workforce Development that does the overseeing of the management
trainee programme. Apologies for that.
And I will endeavour to get you the number of
people enrolled in the management trainee programme. Is that the question?

[Crosstalk]
[Pause]

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Apologies for that. [I was] j ust
conferring with my technical officer who has joined me
here in the C hambers. Thank you for that.
There is indeed considerable data around the
number and effectiveness of the management trainee programmes and that is maintained by both the Department of Workforce Development and the Tourism Pol-icy and Planning Unit, which I think I am saying correctly.
And if you would like a more fulsome response,
we can provide some more detail.
Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, I would like a more fulsome response with more details.
[Laughter]

The President: And while he is obtaining that information, I will . . . Senator Cunningham, you have indicated.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I have a supplemental to
the national economic interest question.
The President: Mm-hmm.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: So, and you just referred
to the Odyssey [Yacht Charter Ltd.] and the drone show
as small, medium- sized enterprises. My question as it relates then to national economic interest is obviously
a hotel is a tourism product . Right?
If I have my 40- foot yacht catamaran and I suddenly decide, Well, this is in the national economic interest because I'm going to do 10 charters a year for
tourists. How does that . . . at what level is something a
tourism enterprise versus a private Bermudian- owned
business?
Sen. Mischa Fubler: I am sorry, Madam President,
maybe I'm misunderstanding, but I think both of those
parties are eligible for the application. And the legislation spells out specifically the criteria for it being eligible.
So, in your use case, you are saying there is a
yacht that exists already that I want to now make a business. In order for that to apply, I would need to be
spending, I think it's at least 50 per cent of the value of
the thing in renovation for it to be eligible to request the
tax relief. Because, again, these tourism investment orders focus around the relaxation of import duties and
payroll tax and the like.
And I would argue that for a tourism product in
general, and we all travel here, I am sure, and when I
go to a place, I want to ensure there are things to do.
And large and small both count for as, you know, part
of the overall tourism product.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you.

[Crosstalk]
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Right. And so, in regard to details
around criteria, I do encourage my colleagues to submit
parliamentary questions in writing so that we can provide the level of detail so that it is not being requested
over the air li ve.

The President: Thank you, Senator Fubler.
You can proceed with the second reading then.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
And so, I again move that the Bill entitled the
Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025 be read a
second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 26

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that [Standing Order] 26 be suspended
in respect to this Bill.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

[Motion carried: Standing Order 26 suspended.]


Bermuda Senate Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill entitled the Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025 be now read a third time.

The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.

BILL

THIRD READING

TOURISM INVESTMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2025
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill do now pass.

The President: It has been moved that the Bill entitled
Tourism Investment Amendment Act 2025 do now pass.
Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
The Bill is passed.

[Motion carried: The Tourism Investment Amendment
Act 2025 was read a third time and passed.]

The President: Thank you, Senator Mischa Fubler.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President .

The President: You can move on to your second Bill,
The Loren [( Pink Beach and Elbow Beach) Act 2025].

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Yes, Madam President.
I move that the Bill entitled The Loren ( Pink
Beach and Elbow Beach) Act 2025 be read a second
time.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you. And so here we go.

BILL

SECOND READING

THE LOREN ( PINK BEACH AND ELBOW BEACH)
ACT 2025
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Madam President, the Bill before
this Honourable [Senate] is now The Loren (Pink Beach
and Elbow Beach) Act 2025.
As the Bill's preamble suggests, this Bill is necessary to facilitate the development of The Loren hotel
at Elbow Beach by providing, subject to conditions, certain tax and customs duty relief in respect of the de-velopment.
Madam President, the iconic Elbow Beach
opened in 1908 as just a few cottages and was the first hotel built on the beach in Bermuda. Since that time,
the hotel has played an integral role in the development
of tourism. From college weeks to honeymoons and family vacations, the Elbow Beach has seen it all. With
the advent of the pandemic, the hotel closed and was not reopened. It had been on the market for some time,
and it was only in April of this year that The Loren
Group acquired th e site and announced i ts exciting
plans.
Madam President, hospitality and lodging development the world over is a challenging proposition.
In Bermuda, we struggle with cost of materials, labour,
and construction. To compete, jurisdictions have at-tempted to mitigate the cost of hotel development by
providing deve lopers with incentives that achieve a balance between the national economic interest and the
revenues that might otherwise accrue to the public
purse.
The amendments to the p rincipal Act, which
extended to 15 years the period for which this relief
would be available, marked a clear signal of Bermuda's determination to attract that investment into our economy and to compete in the marketplace for renewed
inventory that will support local employment, increased
airlift, and all aspects of the tourism economy.
Madam President, Honourable [Senators] will
by now be familiar with the concept to which I have referred to in S tatements in this Honourable [Senate] and
in the previous debate. That concept is the proposal of
the developers to run one hotel in two locations. Honourable [Senators] will be familiar with competitor jurisdictions where this is done with great success. The
Loren hotel at Pink Beach is elegant in its appointments
and has become a niche success story in Bermuda.
The developers' intention to replicate that success at
the Elbow Beach speaks volumes about the confidence
investors have in Bermuda's tourism.
Madam President, The Loren hotel and [The]
Residence is subject of a tourism investment order
made in January of 2022. That order grants five years
of relief to the owners and developers of the hotel and
would, in the ordinary course, expire in January of
2027. With the owner's purchase of Elbow Beach and
the proposal to expand the existing Loren footprint to
now include this newly purchased site, operating one hotel product in two locations, this unique formulation
is not contemplated by the existing Touri sm Investment
Act 2017 and, as such, to facilitate the redevelopment
of the Elbow Beach property, these specific legislative
provisions are required.
Madam President, using the provisions considered by this Honourable House in the previous debate,
it is proposed to repeal the existing tourism investment
order for Pink Beach and, by this Act, grant similar relief
to the full resort property which includes both the Pink
510 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate Beach location and the Elbow Beach location on terms
similar to those set out in the Tourism Investment Act.
Madam President, I would invite Honourable
[Senators] to take note that the current plan for the proposed redevelopment is set out to comprise of the following. As far as inventory, a new hotel block of approximately 80 new dedicated Loren hotel keys ; cottage inventory of approximately 10 cottage keys ; villa inventory of approximately 30 villa keys, structured like the
villas at The Loren at Pink Beach; estate home inventory of approximately 15 keys. And so, in total, it is 135
new keys.
By way of amenities , a new hotel /restaurant/gastropub. The reopening of Mickey's. A food truck
established to help service in the eastern side of Elbow
Beach. A 10,000 square foot five- star spa facility. A
member’ s lounge and event space, as well as tennis
and pickleball courts.
Madam President, it is important to note that
the protections in the principal Act are mirrored in this
Bill.
[Clause] 5 confirms the terms and conditions
on which the relief is granted, requiring Bermudian employment, a management trainee programme for Bermudians, and the cessation of any relief under the A ct
where the construction of the new Elbow Beach hotel
is not completed by the fifth anniversary of this A ct's
commencement .
Madam President, the Bill before this Honourable [Senate] represents a transformational opportunity
in Bermuda's tourism. The history of the Elbow Beach hotel evokes images of a golden era when the likes of
the late Shirley Hunt and Mickey Caines dominated the
front of the h ouse. Quiet men like William Stowe
worked for over 60 years in engineering, keeping the
back of house running seamlessly. And the indomitable
Ms. Delores Thomas masterfully led the Elbow Beach cycle livery, becoming known to generations of hotel
guests. Tourism was built on their shoulders , and it is
exciting to know that the site to which they devoted decades of their labour stands on the cusp of renewal.
Madam President, I am pleased to commend
this Bill to the [Senate] for consideration and for the
support of the H onourable [Senators] .
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Senator Fubler .
Would any Senator care to speak on this Bill?
Senator Tannock , you have the floor.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, thank you, Madam President.
Senator Fubler, as I alluded to in my previous
question, the first investment order that granted relief to
the Pink Beach Hotel was in 2015. It is now 2025. That
is 10 years. In your proposed Bill , it is proposing to
grant further relief for a further 15 years. The amendment to the Tourism Investment Act states that no relief
shall be granted that exceeds 15 years for a new hotel. Now, Pink Beach, the original Pink Beach site,
actually shouldn't even get the 15[years] because it is
not a new hotel, and more than 50 per cent of it isn't
being redeveloped. So, my question is, H ow can we
now, after they have had 10 years of tax relief, and we
have stated that nobody gets max 15 [years] , propose
on top of the 10 that they have just had, another 15?
When the Tourism Investment Act itself says that new
builds . . . and remember, the original Pink Beach
space is not a new build, but let's just say it is. Let's just
say I don't know what the development plans are, and it is a new build. It still exceeds the 15 [years] that is
allowed under law. That's my first point.
And then my second point is, W hat was the
cost-benefit analysis? So how much money in taxes
has the Pink Beach saved thus far, so from 2015 to date, and how much money, when it was assessed that it would be in the economic interest to introduce this
Act, was it assessed that the Pink Beach hotel and the
new build in The Loren would save in taxes for the 15
years that, quite frankly, I don't think is allowed to extend to the Pink Beach Club based on our own law in
tax money.
And I repeat my question. So now we are 10
years on. The Act itself states that within 7 to 10 years,
70 per cent of the employees should be Bermudian.
We are at the 10- year mark for Pink Beach getting the
first order. Do they have 70 per cent of employees that
are Bermudian? Those are my three questions.
The President: Thank you, Senator Tannock.
Would any other Senator care to speak on this
Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: I would like to thank Senator Tannock for putting so eloquently one of my major
issues with this . But I will say that the One Bermuda
Alliance is delighted to see the reinvestment by T he
Loren Group. You know, it shows confidence in our
tourism product from an investor that I believe we
brought into this, onto the I sland.
And again, to reiterate Senator Tannock, our
main concern is as it relates to the previous concessions that the concession order, and I believe, and I just
did some research, that the original order was a 2015
granted from the opening date of 2017. So, they've
therefore had eight years. And so, as has been said,
you know, that is payroll tax, customs duty, occupancy
tax that takes it over the allowable 15- year allowance.
And we do believe in incentives. Obviously, the
One Bermuda Alliance came up with the 10- year concession plan, but I think balance is definitely what's needed. And 23 years to me is over the original intent
of these tax reliefs.
The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.



Bermuda Senate Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President
and Senate colleagues.
Okay. Yes. And so, I appreciate the impassioned question that is levied, but I would like to point
out that we just passed the amendment to the Tourism
Investment Act that covers specifically for the situation
that you have highlighted. I think we can all agree in the
economic interest of the country, having the Elbow
Beach hotel reopened is of economic interest to everyone. And . . .
The President: Senator Tannock. Mm- hmm.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: So, I am sorry. Did I err and
approve an amendment that raised the limit from 15 years to any amount of time? Because that's not
. . .That was not the intention, I thought, of the Bill that
we just passed.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: The Bill we just passed included
the revocation of the original tourism investment order
for The Loren.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, but notwithstanding that,
they still exceed their 15 years. That's a red herring.

The President: Senator Cunningham.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Yes, I would like to say
that I do not believe it is in the national economic inter-est of Bermuda to award 23 years of concessions to a hotel that is now not paying occupancy tax, payroll tax,
and custom duty for over the legislated amount of time.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I take note of the comment made by my colleague, but I would put forward the request for addi-tional questions if there are any.
The President: Senator Cunningham.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Will there be legislation
forthcoming increasing the concessions number of years to 23 years?

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I cannot recall the specific number of the standing order, but anticipating debate is something that I am made to understand is not allowed in the C hamber.

The President: Senator . . .

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Madam President, I would just
like clarification on the point of law.
Can we extend concessions for more than 15
years?

The President: Minister.
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
The President: Sorry, Minister Wilkerson.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
I will endeavour to answer. I understand our
colleague, Senator Tannock , is taking issue with the
cumulative length of benefit that The Loren Hotel Group
would be getting. And that point is taken.
I think she is further suggesting that there is a
breach of law when the very point of us being here today is, in fact, to change the law to permit for this. We
have taken the decision to permit for this for a number
of reasons, one of them being in the economic interest .
I think people, and most Bermudians , the listening public , have been wondering . . . if [they] have
taken a drive by the Elbow Beach hotel and have seen
it crumbling to decay [they] would be saying, What is
this Government doing to incentivise an investor to
come and take this property on and create more hotel
beds, which we need in order to have more jobs for
Bermudians ?
We cannot have it both ways. And it seems to
me that people on the other side of this aisle (right?)
want to be hung up on, but the law says . . . That's why
we are in the L egislature, to change the law so that we
can do things that are in the economic benefit of the country.
And that is what the Progressive Labour Party
is doing with this piece of legislation, both pieces of legislation, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Minister Wilkerson.
Senator Tannock .
Sen. Tawana Tannock: Thank you, Minister Wilson —

The President: Wilkerson.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Wilkerson, sorry, my apologies.
I am not one to stand in the way of progress.
But my humble suggestion is that we put the cart before
the horse, because unless the law allows us to extend
the period of time beyond 15 years, are we doing something that we actually cannot do if we pass this Bill?
So it came. And I don't have the Tourism Investment Act in front of me, I confess. So it may be that the Tourism Investment Act does allow for the Minister
to use his judgment and extend a period of benefit past
15 years. And if so, I have no argument to stand on but
for the fact that . . . have we evaluated the economic
512 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate costs? 1Which the S enator is going to get back to me
on.
So, if the Tourism Investment Act allows for,
under circumstances, the period of time to be extended
beyond 15 years, then really, okay, I might not like it,
but it is what it is. But if it says 15 years, and we extend
it beyond that with this current Act, they are not in concert with each other.
Like I said, I don't have the Tourism Investment
Act in front of me. So , if it does say that we can extend
it beyond 15 years based on extenuating circumstances, X-Y-Z, fine.

The President: Madam Attorney General.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.

The President: You have a response, Senator Fubler?

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
And so, I think if we are reviewing the letter of
the law, the Act we just passed revoked the existing
Tourism Investment Order. And so, the clock would
then be starting from the opening of the new property,
which encompasses the two locations, which is what
we are debating now in The Loren ( Pink Beach and Elbow Beach) Act [2025 ].

The President: Senator Tannock .

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Oh, sorry.

POINT OF ORDER

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Madam President, a
point of order. I believe Senator Tannock has exhausted her questions, if it might be framed as questions, on this particular piece of legislation.
The President: Senator Tannock , unless you have another question, then I suggest that we move on.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, I do.
Is it possible to remove section 1 which refers
to the Pink Beach, [The] Loren property, because that's
a property in question that would be getting more tax
relief than is allowed under law?

[Crosstalk]

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: We are not in C ommittee, Madam President.
The President: Absolutely not. Thank you.
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: So, Madam President,
I would encourage that my colleague move the Bill.

1 See further information at page 530 The President: Yes, I was just going to call him to continue with his Bill.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Okay, thank you, everyone.
Yes, and so, Madam President, I move that the
Bill entitled The Loren ( Pink Beach and Elbow Beach)
Act 2025 be read a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 26

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I now move that [Standing Order] 26 be suspended in respect of this Bill.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
[Motion carried: Standing Order 26 suspended.]

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill entitled The Loren ( Pink
Beach and Elbow Beach ) Act 2025 to be read a third
time.

The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.

BILL

THIRD READING

THE LOREN ( PINK BEACH AND ELBOW BEACH)
ACT 2025
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill do now pass.
The President: It has been moved that the Bill entitled
The Loren ( Pink Beach and Elbow Beach) Act 2025 do
now pass.
Is there any objection to it?
[Crosstalk]

The President: Yes.
We will take a vote. I notice there are three objections, so we will take a vote on it.

[Crosstalk]

The Clerk: Okay, Senator s, we are taking a vote.
This is on the pass of The Loren ( Pink Beach
and Elbow Beach ) [Act 2025].


Bermuda Senate Okay, those in favour of the motion will say
Aye. Those opposed will say N ay. Okay ?

DIVISION
[Third reading and passage of The Loren (Pink Beach
and Elbow Beach) Act 2025]

Ayes: 6 Nays: 4
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson Sen. Victoria Cunningham
Sen. the Hon. C. Caesar Sen. Dion Smith
Sen. Lindsay Simmons Sen. Tarik Smith
Sen. Mischa Fubler Sen. Tawana Tannock
Sen. Lauren Bell
Sen. the Hon. Joan Dillas -Wright

Absent:
Sen. John Wight
The Clerk: The motion is carried six votes to four .
The President: Senator s, the motion is carried six to
four. Therefore, the vote is affirmative.
The Clerk: The Bill is passed.

The President: The Bill is passed.
Thank you, Senator s, for your input. And thank
you, Senator Mischa Fubler , for presenting it.
The Bill is passed.

[Motion passed by majority on division: The Loren (Pink
Beach and Elbow Beach) Act 2025 was given a third
reading and passed.]

The President: We will move on with our agenda,
which is Item No. 4, the second reading of the National
Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) Amendment Act [2025], and that is in the name of Senator
Crystal Caesar , spokesperson for Finance.

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, I move that the Bill entitled
National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) Amendment Act 2025 be now read a second time.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?

[Crosstalk]

BILL

SECOND READING

NATIONAL PENSION SCHEME (OCCUPATIONAL
PENSIONS) AMENDMENT ACT 2025

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President. Madam President, the security of retirement
savings is one of the most important commitments that any government can make to its people.
Our National Pension Scheme represents not
only a safeguard for the future of Bermudians, but also a pillar of confidence in our financial system. Today, I
rise to present for the consideration of the Senate, the
National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions)
Amendment Act 2025, a Bill designed to strengthen
oversight, protect plan members, and ensure fairness in the administration of pension funds.
Madam President, the National Pension
Scheme (Occupational Pensions) Act 1998 established the foundational framework for private sector occupa-tional pension plans in Bermuda. Since then, it has been amended to address the changing requirements of both employees and retirees.
The National Pension Scheme (Occupational
Pensions) Act authorises the Minister of Finance to en-act regulation concerning, amongst other provisions, the maximum fees that may be charged for services re-lating to pension plans, life annuities, or pension funds. The Act became operational on 1 January 2000, and
over the years, a number of amendments to the Act and
Regulations have been introduced to provide for vari-ous matters.
Madam President, I am pleased to provide the
following statistics received from the Pension Commis-sion as of 31 December 2024, based on estimates and
actual data received from plan administrators. The National Pension Scheme contained 53,741 plan mem-bers, or former members. There was a total of 3,267
employer plans, 3,253 defined contributions, and 14 defined benefits.
Madam President, for the benefit of the Senate, a “defined benefit plan” is a pension plan that pro-vides a benefit determined in advance based upon var-ious factors such as level of earnings and length of em-ployment. A “defined contribution plan” is a pensi on
plan that provides a benefit determined solely with reference to the value of invested, accumulated contributions. The total value of assets under the National Pen-sion Scheme was USD$4.29 billion, consisting of USD$2.8 billion in employer plans and USD$1.48 bil-lion in approved local retirement products. There were 486 self -employed plans.
Madam President, the National Pension
Scheme permits a number of refunds to be approved for plan members during their employment years as well as upon reaching retirement age. In particular, the following refunds are granted. Financial hardship re-funds for eligible mortgage arrears, rental arrears, uncovered medical expenses, educational expenses, and funeral expenses. Small pension funds for those reach-ing retirement age of 65 with $50,000 and under pen-sion fund account balances. Lump- sum refunds for
those reaching normal retirement age up to 25 per cent
of an applicant’s pension fund account balance, and
the first -time homeowner refunds.
514 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate Madam President, these additional funds have
provided timely and substantial financial support for
Bermudians . And I am pleased to provide the following
summary of currently available refund payments since their inception up to 15 August 2025.
• financial hardship refunds: $43.8 million
• small pension refunds: $18.5 million
• 25 per cent lump- sum refunds: $97.05 million
• first-time homeowner refunds: $250,000
Madam President, the Senate would recall that
last year the Minister of Finance advised that govern-ment would, after consultation with domestic pension
plan administrators, introduce specific regulations to
prescribe limitations on the amount of administrative
fees that can be charged to pension plan members.
These regulations will be laid shortly. But as part of the
introduction, it is necessary to ensure that the commission has the power to impose civil penalties should the
Regulations not be complied wit h. This is the purpose
of the Bill before us.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: And thank you, Minister Caesar.
Would any Senator care to speak on this Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
The One Bermuda Alliance welcomes this
amendment, I think reinforcing enforcement —reinforcing enforcement?

[Laughter]

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Yes. Under the National
Pension Scheme framework, [I am] just wondering if
there are any additional . . . sorry, question one, i f this
change introduces any new categories of breaches that might be subject to civil penalties, or whether it is strictly
on existing provisions. But ultimately, I think we support any measures that protects these scheme members
and look forward to seeing it in action.

The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Would any other Senator care to speak on this
Bill?
Hearing none, then it's over to you, Minister,
spokesperson for Finance.
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Yes. Yes, I am just
waiting for—

The President: You are waiting for a for response?

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Yes.

The President: No problem.
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: So, to answer Senator
Cunningham's question, Madam President, the amendment extends civil penalties to offences under the proposed regs across the board. So, there are no additional categories, but it extends it as simple penalties.

The President: Mm-hmm.

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Okay.
The President: Thank you. So, with no other questions , you can pass your Bill.

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Madam President, I
move that the Bill entitled (sorry, let me get the proper
title) the National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) Amendment Act 2025 be now read a second time.
The President: Is there any objection to the second
reading?
No objection.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 26

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
I move that [Standing Order] 26 be suspended
in respect of this Bill.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

[Motion carried: Standing Order 26 suspended.]
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, I move that the Bill entitled
the National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions)
Amendment Act 2025 be now read a third time.
The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.

BILL

THIRD READING

NATIONAL PENSION SCHEME (OCCUPATIONAL
PENSIONS) AMENDMENT ACT 2025
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Madam President, I
move that the Bill do now pass.



Bermuda Senate The President: It has been moved that the Bill entitled
National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions)
Amendment Act 2025 do now pass.
Is there any objection to that?
No objection to the pass ing of the Bill.
Thank you, Minister , spokesperson, Minister
Caesar , and all Senator s.
The Bill is passed.

[Motion carried: The National Pension Scheme (Occu-pational Pensions) Amendment Act 2025 was read a third time and passed.]

The President: We will now move on to Item No. 5, the
second reading of the Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025, and that's in the name of Senator
Lindsay K. Simmons, the Junior Minister of National
Security.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President, I move that the Bill entitled
Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025 be
now read a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

BILL

SECOND READING

ROAD TRAFFIC AMENDMENT
AND VALIDATION ACT 2025
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President, I rise today to present for
the consideration of this Senate the Road Traffic
Amendment and Validation [Act] 2025. This Bill seeks
to clarify Bermuda's legislative framework for the use of speed detection devices in road traffic enforcement.
Madam President, under the current provisions of the
Road Traffic Act 1947, enforcement of speed limits relies on the admissibility of evidence collected by speed
detection devices. However, the existing legislation
does not have a provision that authorises the use of
speed detection devices which have been used and are
currently in use by the Bermuda Police Service.
Madam President, the Bill before the Senate
introduces amendments that will resolve legal uncertainties. The Bill provides the definition for an “ approved speed detection device” and expands the definition of a “ qualified technician” to include officers designated by the C ommission er of Police as authorised to
operate speed detection devices.
It also inserts new section 7 A which authorises
the use of approved speed detection devices by qualified police officers and confirms the admissibility of evidence from such devices in court proceedings. Additionally, the Bill includes a validation clause to retroactively confirm that all speed detection devices previ-ously used by the Bermuda Police Service are deemed
to have been lawfully approved and that all tickets and prosecutions relying on such devices are valid.
Madam President, this legislation is critical to
ensuring legal clarity and continuity in road traffic enforcement. By eliminating an existing ambiguity, it
strengthens the enforceability of speeding offences,
supports the integrity of past and ongoing prosecutions, and allows our legal framework to keep pace with the
evolution of traffic enforcement technologies.
Madam President, the amendments also empower the Minister of Transport to approve new speed
detection devices by order, providing the flexibility
needed to respond to future advances in technology without requiring further amendments to the Road Traffic Act. Importantly, the Bill preserves the necessary
checks and balances by requiring that only designated officers may operate these devices.
Madam President, t hese changes also reinforce the Government's broader commitment to improving road safety, reducing instances of dangerous driving, and ensuring that the enforcement of speed limits is carried out in a fair, transparent, and legally sound
manner. By validat ing the prior use of these devices
and authorising their continued use, the Bill ensures
that our traffic enforcement efforts remain effective and
credible.
Madam President, I therefore commend the
Road Traffic Amendment Act 2025 to this Senate and
invite Senators to support this important and timely update to Bermuda's traffic laws.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Lindsay Simmons.
Would any Senator care to speak on this Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Senator Simmons, Junior Minister of National Security, for bringing
this Bill, which the One Bermuda Alliance supports, obviously providing a legal framework to ensure that our
devices used by the BPS [Bermuda Police Service] are
recognised.
We obviously all know the dangers on our
roads, reckless driving, speeding, and I think we need legislation that strengthens the ability of our police to
enforce the law. I do have a few questions, one being,
How many past speeding summons es or convictions
may be impacted by this retroactive validation and are
any currently under legal challenge?
Secondly, what would the formal process be
for the qualified . . . what will qualified technicians undergo before they are designated as able to operate
these devices by the Commissioner of Police?
516 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate And thirdly, how often will these approved devices be tested and calibrated to ensure accuracy and
reliability for evidence presented in court?
And yes, we are ready to support anything that
helps reduce accidents and protect our road users.
Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Would any other Senator care to speak on this
Bill?
No? We will wait for response.

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, while I
wait for my technical officers, I do want to say that the
original definition of “ qualified technician” no longer reflects modern operational practi ces. Rather than relying
on a statutory definition, the Bill now allows the Commissioner of Police to designate which officer s are
qualified to operate speed detection equipment. This
provides flexibility while maintaining accountability.
This is meant to capture police officers and traffic officers should the need be required.
I'll wait [on the] technical officers for the rest of
these [questions] , but I just want to clear up the “ qualified technician. ”

The President: Senator Cunningham . . . sorry. Senator Tannock, you have the floor. (I beg your pardon.)

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Thank you, Madam President.
Just one question based on the explanation
given by Senator Simmons in response to Senator
Cunningham's question. The language “ qualified technician ” still exists in the Act. We are not removing that
entirely. So , if it is outdated, why are we keeping it in
the Act?
In this amendment Act that is before us, it says,
“Insert section 7A ” . . . “‘Speed detection, 7A (1), A police officer who is a qualified technician . . .”
So, we are retaining it for one area but not the
other. But because you said it was outdated, I thought
that we were getting—
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Just to clarify, it says section
7A which authorises the use of approv ed speed detection devices by qualified police officers and confirms
the admissibility of evidence from such devices and
court proceedings.
Sen. Tawana Tannock: No, see where Road Traffic
Amendment and Validation Act 2025 that's before us ?
It says, “I nsert section 7A ” . . . “‘S peed detection,
7A[(1)], A police officer who is a qualified technician
may . . .”.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, while the
speed detection devices have been in operation for
many years, legal advice recently confirmed that the
legislation lacked the explicit provision for authorising their use. The Bill seeks to rectify that and ensures that
past enforcement actions are validated , protecting the
integrity of our justice system and providing clarity going forward.
And for Senator Cunningham, the validation
clause in the Bill ensures that all tickets or prosecutions
relying on speed detection devices prior to the Bill's
commencement are deemed valid. This avoids disruption in our courts and protects the rights of both the state and the accused.

The President: Senator Cunningham.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President .
Are there any currently under legal challenge?
That was the second part of that question.

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, none are
being challenged.
But again, I just want to restate this [answer]
for Senator Tannock . The original definition of “ qualified
technician” no longer reflects modern operational practices. Rather than relying on a rigid statutory definition,
the Bill now allows the Commissioner of Police to designate which officer s are qualified to operate speed detection equipment. This provides flexibility while maintaining accountability. This is meant to capture police
officers and traffic officers should the need require.
I hope that clears it up.
The President: Are there any other questions from any
Senator s?
If not . . . Senator Simmons, you can pass your
Bill when you're ready.

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: And just one other clarity.
The devices will be regularly tested by the Bermuda Police Service.
And I think that was all the questions, Madam
President.
The President: Yes, so you can pass your Bill.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President, I move that the Bill entitled
Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025 be
now read a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 26

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, I move
that [Standing Order] 26 be suspended in respect of
this Bill.



Bermuda Senate The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

[Motion carried: Standing Order 26 suspended.]

Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, I move
that the Bill entitled Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025 be now read a third time.

The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.

BILL

THIRD READING

ROAD TRAFFIC AMENDMENT AND VALIDATION
ACT 2025
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Madam President, I move
that the Bill do now pass.

The President: It has been moved that the Bill entitled
the Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025
do now pass.
Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
The Bill is passed. Thank you, Senator s.
[Motion carried: The Road Traffic Amendment and Validation Act 2025 was read a third time and passed.]
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.

The President: We will now move on to the next item,
which is Item No. 6 on our Order Paper, and that is the
second reading of the Benefit Entities Act 2025, and
that's in the name of Senator Lauren F. Bell, the Junior
Minister for Economy and Labour.
Senator Bell, you can present your Bill.

Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President, I move that the Bill entitled
Benefit Entities Act 2025 be now read a second time.
The President: Is there any objection to the second
reading?
No objection.

BILL

SECOND READING

BENEFIT ENTITIES ACT 2025
Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President. I'm pleased to present the Benefit Entities Act
2025 to this Honourable Senate. This Bill will make
amendments to the Companies Act 1981, the Limited
Liability Company Act 2016, and the Limited Partnership Act of 1883. These amendments will establish a
legal framework for companies, limited liability companies (LLCs ) and limited partnerships to operate as public benefit entities.
Madam President , public benefit entities are
for-profit businesses that are legally structured to pursue one or more public benefits, in addition to their ordinary business activities. This new corporate product
will help ensure that Bermuda remains a forward- thinking jurisdiction that adapts and responds to changes in the global business environment.
Madam President , we are seeing more individuals and businesses seeking out ways to preserve natural resources, reduce effects of climate change, and
make other positive impacts through their business activities. This product aims to attract investors who wish to pursue positive social and environmental impacts, along with financial returns. The Bermuda Benefit Entity will position Bermuda as a market leader and jurisdiction of choice for those persons looking to conduct
their business activities in a manner that prioritises
profit, people, and the planet.
Madam President , while traditional for -profit
entities are expected to make decisions based primarily
on maximising profit s, benefit entities will be required to
consider all stakeholders and the environment in the
management of th at business. This approach provides
greater opportunities to create long- term value, both for
the business and its stakeholders.
Madam President , this structure will be available for those companies, LLCs, and limited partnerships that choose to operate as a benefit entity. This
choice can be made either at the time of initial registra-tion or at any time after the entity begins operating.
In either case, a benefit entity will be subject to
the following:
1) To opt into the framework, a statement that the business is a benefit entity subject to applicable requirements for such businesses must be
included in the Memorandum of Association, Certificate of Formation, or Partnership Certificate as appropriate.
2) A benefit entity may identify one or more specific public benefits the entity will pursue. For
this purpose, a public benefit is defined as a positive effect on society or the environment and may relate to such things such as art, charity, culture, education, public health, religion,
science, or sports.
3) The persons responsible for management of
the business will be required to conduct the entity's business activities in a manner that is re-sponsible and sustainable. This means that a
benefit entity must consider the interests of its
stakeholders and pursue an overall positive
518 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate effect on society or the environment when conducting its business.
4) The persons responsible for the management
of the business must act honestly and in good
faith with a view to the best interests of the en-tity and must exercise the care, diligence and
skill that a reasonably prudent person would
exercise in a comparable circumstance.
5) A benefit entity must, unless otherwise approved, provide its shareholders, LLC members or partners with an annual benefits state-ment describing the ways the entity sought to
operate in a reasonable and sustainable manner and to comply with any applicable public benefit provisions.
6) The shareholders, LLC members, or partners of a benefit entity will be empowered to enforce the requirements of the framework by bringing
an action in the court for that purpose. This authority will also apply to such other persons or
classes of persons as may be approved by the benefit entity in accordance with the framework.
7) A benefit entity may cease operating as such
and transition to a traditional for -profit entity by
altering its Memorandum of Association, Certificate of Formation, or Partnership Certificate
to remove the statement that it is a benefit entity.
Madam President , the requirements for benefit
entities will apply in addition to all other requirements
and obligations that apply to companies, LLCs, and limited partnerships. These entities will be subject to the
[Bermuda] standard process for registration of a business in Bermuda and the typical requirements for customer due diligence, regulatory consent, beneficial ownership, and record- keeping will continue to apply.
Madam President , by introducing a framework
for benefit entities into our corporate legislation, we are creating an ecosystem in which these businesses can
optimise short -term profits for investors while also
seeking long- term value creation for all stakeholders,
includi ng communities and society at large. This is not
just a change in the way these businesses operate, it is
also an opportunity for the government to achieve longterm value with our stakeholders.
Madam President , the proposal to introduce
benefit entities was developed by members of the pri-vate sector and is supported across legal and trust sectors. Statutory frameworks that promote sustainable business practi ces and investment strategies are likely
to be well received by the younger generation of business owners as well as those persons looking to align their business activities with their values. This product
is anticipated to be attractive to retail investors, high net
worth individuals , family o ffices, and socially conscious
investors.
Benefit entities can be used by new and existing Bermuda businesses to create positive impacts in our community while also enhancing Bermuda's repu-tation as a jurisdiction of choice.
Madam President , this is the first of two Bills
we will be debating here today that will differentiate Bermuda from competitor jurisdictions. We will continue
working in partnership with the private sector to update
Bermuda's policies and legislation to attract new businesses and sustainable investment to Bermuda. We
look forward to bringing forth more legislation to im-prove our laws in the coming months.
Madam President , at this time I wish to extend
a sincere thanks to the private sector representatives
who have worked on this project. I would also like to
thank the technical officers at the Ministry of Economy
and Labour, Ministry of Finance, and the Attorney Gen-eral's Chamber s who worked on this legislation.
Thank you, Madam President .

The President: Thank you, Senator Lauren Bell, Junior
Minister of Economy and Labour.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

SENATE VISITORS

The President: And may I take this opportunity to welcome members who are here to assist with this Bill
should any questions arise.

[Benefit Entities Act 2025 second reading debate, continuing]
The President: Would any Senator care to speak on
this Bill?
Senator Tannock , you have the floor.
Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, thank you, Madam President.
Senator Bell, in your comments you indicated
that public benefit companies will be required to adhere
to the same requirements or regulations as other companies under the Companies Act. But there is a provision in this Bill that allows public benefit companies not
to have annual audited statements.
If we are basically saying that we want people
to be held accountable, we do want to move forward
progress, but for this one type of company we are saying that there is no requirement to have annual financial
statements. Can you explain why the decision was made to put that in this Bill ?

Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, while I wait for
some response from my technical team, I welcome any
additional questions on this proposed Bill.

The President: Would any other Senator care to speak
on this Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.



Bermuda Senate Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
I think it is always positive for Bermuda to remain at the forefront. Obviously, these frameworks do
exist in other jurisdictions. I know in the UK we are allowing for -profit to pursue a broader set of aims.
Again, thank you to the private sector for their
inputs, which continues to show Bermuda as a jurisdic-tion of choice to them. I think rather than this being an
aspirational headline, I think some practical questions
around greenwashing. Third -party reporting and verification is optional. What mechanisms are there going to
be in place to maintain our reputation for integrity?
The Act speaks to (I think) minority enforcement thresholds of 2 per cent, or $2 million, which may
disenfranchise some of the smaller investors or community stakeholders. Will there be room to strengthen
minority rights?
Finally, how will Government ensure that these
frameworks will actually deliver real measurable bene-fits to society and the environment?
Thank you.

Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you.
In response to both Senator Tannock and Senator Cunningham's questions regarding ensuring that
we have the proper controls in place, I just want to highlight that the entities will be required to report on activi-ties to their owners and their investors. The company
can determine whether a report will be made public or
not.
The company can also utilise a third- party certifier. There are standards listed for what might constitute an appropriate third- party standard. I think the emphasis here for my Senate colleagues to be aware of,
and I am sure they can appreciate this, that Bermuda's
framework is intended to be flexible, to encourage com-panies to engage in activities that are beneficial to the
public.
And just for further clarification, this does not
relate specifically to financial statements. The requirement in the framework only relates to statements re-garding the company's pursuit of public benefits. The
requirement for any audited financial statements will still apply, as that requirement applies to all companies.

The President: Senator Tannock .

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, thank you Senator Bell.
That was my concern.
[Pause]

Sen. Lauren Bell: And Madam President, while I wait
for some additional responses from my technical team, the question from Senator Cunningham was how can
Government . . . what will Government be using to assure that companies are delivering on these proper
benefits. I just want to emphasise again the focus of this Bill is to grow the type of businesses that can be
here in Bermuda, and it is part of our overall aim to grow
our economy.
And we just want to reemphasi se, and accordingly it is just a follow -up to the Statement that I have
already delivered here in the Senate, the framework is
intended to offer flexibility to companies. It is intended
that the company owners will be enforcing the framework and not the Government.
Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Senator Bell. It's for you
now to move your Bill.
Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill entitled Benefit Entities Act
2025 be now read for a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to the second
reading
No objection.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 26

Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I move that
[Standing Order] 26 be suspended in respect to this Bill.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
[Motion carried: Standing Order 26 suspended.]
Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I move that the
Bill entitled Benefit Entities Act 2025 be now read a
third time.
The President: Is there any objection to the third reading?
No objection.

BILL

THIRD READING

BENEFIT ENTITIES ACT 2025
Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I move that the
Bill do now pass.
The President: It has been moved that the Bill entitled
the Benefit Entities Act 2025 do now pass.
Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection. The Bill is passed.

[Motion carried: The Benefit Entities Act 2025 was read a third time and passed.]

The President: Thank you, Senator Lauren Bell, Junior
Minister of Economy and Labour, and to all Senator s.
520 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate We wil l now move on to the next item on the
agenda, on our O rders of the D ay, and that is Item
No. 7, the second reading of the Trustee Amendment
Act 2025, and that is also in the name of Senator Lauren F. Bell, the Junior Minister for Economy and Labour.
Senator Bell, you can present your Bill.

Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President, colleagues, and listening audience.
Madam President, I move that the Bill entitled
Trustee Amendment Act 2025 be now read a second
time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

BILL

SECOND READING

TRUSTEE AMENDMENT ACT 2025
Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President.
The second Bill that we will be debating today
under the Ministry of Economy and Labour is the Trustee Amendment Act 2025. This Bill is a companion to the Benefit Entities [Act] and is another product of this
Government's commitment to promoting sustainable economic growth and improving our legislative frame-work. The Trustee Amendment Act 2025 will make
amendments to section 55A of the Trustee Act 1975 to
clarify that the decision -making powers of trustees as
related to investment decisions.
Madam President , responsible investment
practi ces have become increasingly important in recent
years as more investors are seeking opportunities to
make positive impacts through their business activities.
Trustees, as stewards of trust assets, play a critical
function in shaping the investment landscape. However, many trustees are uncertain about their ability to
address growing concerns and evolving views of settlors and beneficiaries around environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and corporate governance.
This is currently the case in Bermuda and many other
jurisdictions.
Madam President , it would not be a stretch to
say that the most important stakeholders of any trust
are the settlors and beneficiaries. While the Trustee Act
provides broad authority for trustees to manage and in-vest trust assets, the Act does not address a trustee's
ability to t ake the wishes and views of these important
stakeholders into account when making investment decisions.
In cases where a trustee is aware of a settl or’s
or a beneficiary's desire to have the trust assets invested in a way that aligns with their values. Bermuda
trustees currently have no clear authority to take such non-financial factors into account in the absence of express authority in the trust instruction . This is simply
not addressed in law.
Madam President, industry experts also note
that decisions made by English courts [ have] reinforced
the perception of uncertainty in cases involving invest-ment -related requirements set out in English law that
are quite similar to those included in Bermuda's law. In
fact, trust experts have determined that Bermuda's Trustee Act arguably restricts the purposes for which
an investment may be made to only those which are
currently set out in the law.
Madam President , to address this issue and to
better serve the ir client's , industry representatives assert that Bermuda should enact legislation flexibility that permits trustees to pursue investment strategies
that consider broader social and environmental implications as well as financial returns. The Trustee Amendment Act 2025 seeks to provide legal certainty
for trustees to align investment decisions with the values and wishes of settl ors and beneficiaries regarding
the impact of investment on society and the environment and the governance of entities in which the trustee might invest.
Madam President , this Bill will amend section
55A of the Trustee Act 1975 to clarify that in exercising
the statutory power of investment, a trustee may consider such views of settl ors and beneficiaries if they are
known to him. There is substantial industry support
among Bermuda's trust sector representatives for updating the law to align with evolving views regarding
corporate governance and the impact of investments,
particularly [as it relates ] to the younger generations.
The proposed amendments are the result of a
collaboration between the members of the Bermuda branch of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners,
the Bermuda Association of Licenced Trustees, the
Bermuda Business Development Agency, Trust Law
Reform Committee, and other industry professionals.
The Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners has re-cently launched a wider campaign to encourage other
jurisdictions to make similar changes to their trust legislation.
Madam President , by ensuring flexibility and
certainty in the law governing the investment of trust
assets, Bermuda will enhance its competitiveness while also taking a leadership position in the growing
movement towards sustainable investing. The proposed amendments aim (1) improve and clarify the law
governing trustee practi ces, (2) provide local trustees
with greater confidence and protection in making in-vestment decisions that are aligned with the sustainable investment priorities of both settlors and beneficiaries, (3) make Bermuda more attractive to wealth earners, that support the integration of sustainable finance
practi ces in their investment strategies ; and (4) position
Bermuda as a leading jurisdiction for sustainable finance and responsible stewardship of private wealth.
Madam President , Bermuda has a well -deserved reputation for being innovative and progressive


Bermuda Senate in its legislative framework for international businesses.
Bermuda trust experts have successfully collaborated
with the government on many occasions to update our
laws to ensure that they are responsive to industry needs and appropriately positioned to compete with other leading trust jurisdictions. This is another instance where such collaboration will result in improvement s to our legislation for the benefit of industry representatives and their clients, including family offices and other private wealth earners.
Madam President , in closing, I would like to
thank the private sector representatives who worked on
this project, as well as those industry groups that have
supported this initiative. Finally, I wish to thank the technical officers who worked on this Bill in the Ministry of
Economy and Labour, the Ministry of Finance, and the Attorney General's Chambers.
Thank you, Madam President .

The President: Thank you, Senator Lauren Bell, Junior
Minister of Economy and Labour.
Would any Senator care to speak on this Bill?
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
As with the benefit entities, I think the One Bermuda Alliance fully supports and endorses this Bill. I think it is important for people to realise that when we
talk about international business, it is not just reinsurance. We are probably the top, if not the leading jurisdiction in the world for trust business, and our trust industry is enormous. So, I think both Bills are a good
way forward, promoting this one, obviously, on the ESG
side with social responsibility.
I have a few questions surrounding the scope
of known wishes. So, the Act references beneficiaries'
and settl ors' wishes insofar as known to the trustee.
How will trustees determine and verify these wishes, particularly when multiple beneficiaries may have differing views?
And secondly, are there plans to support trustees, especially some of the smaller ones, with, say,
guidance notes in understanding and implementing these considerations? And that's it.

The President: That’s it? Thank you.
Would any other Senator care to ask questions
on this Bill?
Hearing none, then it's over to you, Senator
Bell.
Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President.
Thank you, Senator Cunningham, for your question.
The proposed changes will not give a beneficiary or settlor any additional power or control over the
investment decision. The intention here is to ensure
that the trustee has clear legal authority to consider cer-tain views or wishes of the settlor s and beneficiaries that are known to him, and to make investments that
align with the same as he may determine.
A trustee would not be obligated to seek out or
take direction from a settlor or beneficiary under the
amended provisions, nor would he be obligated to prioritise beneficiary and/ or settlor views or other non- financial factors above the financial factors when making
investment decisions.
Madam President, given that, I believe I have
answered the questions at hand.

The President: Minister Wilkerson, you have a comment.
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: I do. I have a comment.
Thank you, Madam President.
And it is just in relation to Senator Cunningham's comment. I will advise that when this Bill came
to me in legislative committee meeting, I, in fact, had
the same question around wishes. And at that point, I
was suggesting that perhaps wishes should be, if they
are written . . . And the response that I got back was in
the consultation primarily with STEP, that they were
very clear that it was not about written wishes. It was to
give that flexibility to take into consideration, particularly when it comes t o kind of wishes in the way that it
is a philosophical direction about how we care for the
environment or whatever the case may be, that was the
response, yes. It was a very clear steer from stakeholders that it was not meant to be written wishes.
Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Minister Wilkerson, for that
explanation.
It's over to you, Senator Bell.
Sen. Lauren Bell: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Bill entitled Trustee Amendment Act 2025 be now read a second time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 26

Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I move that
[Standing Order] 26 be suspended in respect to this Bill.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
[Motion carried: Standing Order 26 suspended.]
Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I move that the
Bill entitled Trustee Amendment Act 2025 be now read
a third time.

The President: Is there any objection to that motion,
third reading?
522 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate No objection.

BILL

THIRD READING

TRUSTEE AMENDMENT ACT 2025

Sen. Lauren Bell: Madam President, I move that the
Bill do now pass.

The President: It has been moved that the Bill entitled
the Trustee Amendment Act 2025 do now pass.
Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
The Bill is passed.

[Motion carried: The Trustee Amendment Act 2025 was
read a third time and passed.]

The President: Thank you, Senator Lauren Bell and all
Senator s who have responded.
We will now move on to Item No. 8, consideration of the National Pension Scheme (Occupational
Pensions) (Administration Fees) Regulations 2025 ,
and that's in the name of Senator the Honourable Crystal Caesar , spokesperson for Finance.
Minister [Caesar]. Spokesperson, you have the
floor on this Bill.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 71(2)
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
Madam President, I move that the provisions of
Standing Order 71( 2) be suspended.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
[Motion carried: Standing Order 71(2) suspended.)

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Madam President, I
move that the Senate do now take under consideration
the National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions)
(Administration Fees) Regulations 2025 proposed to be
made by t he Minister of Finance, in exercise of the
power conferred by section 69(1)(jb) and (q) of the National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) Act
1998 and after consultation with the Pension Commis-sion.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.

DRAFT REGULATIONS
NATIONAL PENSIONS SCHEME (OCCUPATIONAL
PENSIONS) (ADMINISTRATION FEES)
REGULATIONS 2025
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Madam President, I
rise today with great pride and responsibility to lay the
National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions )
(Administration Fees ) Regulations 2025. These Regulations represent an important reform, one that will protect workers, ensure fairness in the pension system
and safeguard the retirement security of Bermudians for generations to come.
Madam President, occupational pensions are
the foundations of retirement income for most Bermu-dians. For this reason, every dollar saved must be preserved for the benefit of the worker, not lost to excessive fees. High charges weaken confidence in the sys-tem, erode savings and reduce the quality of life in retirement. It was in this context that the Pension Commission commissioned a detailed review of pension
plan administration fees supported by an independent Canadian consultant.
On 23 February 2022, the Commission received the consultant's report and a summary of its analysis and findings which are provided as follows:
(1) the deleterious impact of costs on pension savings;
(2) the trend costs worldwide over the past 20 years;
(3) an overview of legal caps in OECD countries; (4) a
small increase in member -borne fees had the effect of
transferring material savings from savers to the industry service providers; (5) a high majority of jurisdictions
reported legal caps on member -borne pension cost;
(6) the combined investment and administration fees
by third- party plan administrators in Bermuda was on
average of 2 per cent of assets held; (7) there was extreme variability around the average fees charged by
third-party plan administrators in Bermuda with average high cost of administrators examined at 3.3 per
cent and an average low cost was 0.69 per cent;
(8) costs were split roughly equally between administration and investment management.
In other words, approximately one half of the
member -borne fees were paid to administrators and
one half was paid to investment funds and their man-agers. And finally, a comparable average cost in Canada, the US, the UK and the EU was 0.99 per cent of
asset s held, roughly one- half of the average cost
charged to plan members in Bermuda.
Madam President, after the Commission's review and discussions of the consultant's report, it was
agreed that consultation with industry stakeholders
should be undertaken and the Commission utilised its
standing advisory committee which is made up of representatives of employer and union groups, plan administrators, other plan service providers and the inter-national company sector. The advisory committee was provided with an executive summary of the report and
invited to discuss its content and findings. The committee subsequently met on a number of occasions to


Bermuda Senate discuss the findings and the committee members were
invited to make recommendations to the Commission
on the proposal to introduce limitations on plan administration fees and any related matters.
Not all committee members made submissions
to the Commission. However, the majority of those who
did respond were, unsurprisingly, not in support of inducing limitations on administration fees.
Recognising that the Government was likely to
proceed with some form of limitation, a few members
suggested the phasing in of any fee limitations, a slid-ing scale of fees based on assets under management,
lower fees for individual plans versus group plans,
amongst a number of other recommendations.
Madam President, Senators would recall that
in July 2024, the Minister of Finance provided a Ministerial Statement advising that after consultation with the Pension Commission and industry representatives it
had been decided to introduce fee caps on pensio n
plans administration fees with the Regulations introduced in 2025.
It should be noted that from the years 2000 to
2023 it is estimated that plan administrators collectively
have earned gross administration fees from their group
and individual retirement plans of over $500 million, based upon the typical plan administration fee of
1.5 per cent of a plan member's pension fund balance.
Madam President, the proposed Regulations
are primarily aimed at assisting those with smaller pension balances by requiring lower administration fees to
be charged. However, those with larger balances will also benefit from the fee caps. Madam President, using
the proposed fee limitations in the Regulations and the
average assets held by plan members in defined con-tribution pension plans and local retirement products at
the end of 2023, it was calculated that this would equate to an estimated annual savings on average for
each plan member with balances over $50,000 of $649,
representing $73,000 in total savings over a 37- year
employment cycle at an average annual return of 5 per
cent.
For those plan members with small pension
balances of up to $50,000, annual savings were estimated between $153 to $183 per annum, representing over $17,000 to $20,000 in total savings over a 37- year
employment cycle, at an average annual return of 5 per
cent. The reason for using 37 years to retirement age
65 is that from age 23, when employees are normally
enrolled in a plan, it takes approximately five years to
accumulate more than $50,000 using an average an-nual return of 5 per cent.
Madam President, after taking into consideration the findings of the report, industry discussions and advice from the Commission and recognising the longterm detrimental impact on retirement pension fund account balances from high fees charged to pension plan members, the Government has decided that some limitations of the amount of fees that administrators charge for plan administration should be introduced as specified in the Regulations.
Madam President, during the review, it was
also identified that some administrators were receiving
investment advisory fees for which they were not providing such services directly. It has been decided to
prohibit such fees from being received as it fell o utside
of the scope of plan administration services.
Madam President, the Government is not insensitive to the financial implications that the proposed
limitations will have on the plan administrators and will provide a transition period before such Regulations become operative. This will provide the Commiss ion and
the industry with further time to effectively implement
the requirements under the Regulations. It is expected
that the Regulations will commence in early 2026.
Accordingly, Madam President, the Regulations will introduce clear and enforceable caps on administration fees, prohibit the receipt of investment advisory fees where no service is being provided and establish penalties for violations. Importantly, there will be a transition period to allow administrators and industry
to adjust. This ensures fairness to all parties while prioritising the need of pension members. Madam President, thi s initiative reflects this Government's wider
commitment to financial fairness, transparency and the
protection of workers. It is also another promise ful-filled, outlined in our Throne Speech, and now delivered through these Regulations.
I would like to acknowledge the tireless efforts
of the staff of the Ministry of Finance, the Attorney Gen-eral's Chambers, the Pension Commission and all
those who contributed to this process. Their work has produced Regulations that are fair, balanced and in the
best interest of the people of Bermuda.
Madam President, with these Regulations Bermudians will be able to keep more of what they save,
and our pension system will be stronger, fairer and
more secure. I therefore commend the National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) (Administration
Fees) R egulations 2025 to the [Senate].
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Minister Caesar, spokesperson for Finance.
Would any Senator care to speak on this Bill—
on these R egulations? Sorry.
Senator Cunningham, you have the floor.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
I know that the One Bermuda Alliance fully supports the principle behind this motion, and ultimately, Bermudians need to have sufficient funds in place for
retirement, and obviously the fees are a slight hindrance of that, because obviously that's the comp any
taking out their share.
I also want to reiterate to the listening public
that the earlier someone starts putting into their
524 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate pension, the more benefit they get from compounding
interest, so we need to be encouraging everyone to
take advantage of that.
I think one of the issues is obviously seeing the
impact on pension pots. I mean, when you say $75,000 lost over a working lifetime, that kind of puts it into perspective about the impact of capping fees, but I think
ultimately the issue here is that our c ontributions are
too low, so currently I believe it's 5 per cent employer,
5 per cent employee. I think if we're truly serious about
this, we should be looking at increasing the contributions that Bermudians are making towards their retirement, rather than the fees.
One of the other issues that I see is in the case
of the fees themselves, which seem a little backwards
to me and do not seem to be that progressive. The
higher balances, so if you've got over $50,000, you are
paying 1.25 per cent versus below $25,000, it's 0.5 [per
cent] . To me, as your balance goes higher, you are paying higher percentage charges, which to me suggests
that a fairer set would be to have a maximum fee.
I will ask it in a question then. Can the fee structure be clarified? At the moment, I see 1.25 per cent a
year for balances over $50,000 and 0.5 [per cent] for
balances under [ $]25,000. I will wait for that question to
be answered.
Another point that I want to raise based on that
statement, where I believe $500 million was raised as how much has been taken in gross fees, that is from a
period from 2000 to 2023, which is 23 years. If I divide
$500 million by 23 years, that gives me $21.7 million. Understanding that there were five pension providers
in Bermuda, that is $4.34 million a year that these pension providers are taking in income from their admin-istration fees, which is going to cover staff salaries,
buildings, software. Gener ally speaking, these are not
not-for-profit companies. Bermuda is very costly to do
business here. So, I think i n the Bermudian context,
$500 million over 23 years is not an astonishingly out-standing number.
Ultimately, overall, we are looking to increase
retirement security for our Bermudians , cutting red tape
and making sure that the administration is less expen-sive and more efficient. We are fine with this m otion.
It's just a few highlights on how the actual fee
structure will work for clarification. Thank you.
The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Would any other Senator care to speak on
these Regulations?
Hearing none, then it's back to you, Minister
Caesar, spokesperson for Finance.
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
I will just confirm with the technical team and
respond.

The President: Mm-hmm. Thank you. [Pause]

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: I thank Senator Cunningham for her comments and support of these R egulations and recognising that we want to ensure that those who are putting money away for their pension for
a later time, they have more to draw from because people are living longer these days. We do want to ensure
that they have enough to live on. In terms of clarification
requested with regard to the fee schedule, the structure
is to benefit those who make less.
Those over $50,000 will also benefit because
there will be a reduction in their percentages. It is to
benefit those who have smaller balances so that less is
actually coming out at the end of the day. I know we
typically . . . oftentimes when you think about people
who have premier services in the bank, they typically
have less fees, et cetera.
This is a slightly different way of thinking about
it. It's that those who earn less should not have to have
more coming out of their pay cheque, particularly during their retirement years. I understand what you are
thinking, but if you are thinking about giving savings to
those who earn less, we certainly would not want them
to have higher fees simply because they have less in their accounts, in their pension balances.
But again, I'm grateful for the other side's
agreement and understanding of what these R egulations will do for people and their pension balances ultimately. So, w ith that, Madam President, I move that the
said draft R egulations be approved and that the following message be sent to His Excellency the Governor.
May it please Your Excellency :
The Senate, having had under consideration
the draft Regulations entitled the National Pension
Scheme (Occupational Pensions) (Administration
Fees) Regulations 2025, proposed to be made by the
Minister of Finance in exercise of the power conferred
by section 69( 1)(jb) and (q) of the National Pension
Scheme (Occupational Pensions ) Act 1998 and after
consultation with the Pension Commission, has the honour to inform Your Excellency that the Senate has
approved the said d raft Regulations.

The President: Is there any objection to the M otion being sent in the letter?
You have full support, Minister Caesar , and
thank you very much for the presentation as the spokesperson for Finance.

[Motion carried: The National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pensions) (Administration Fees) Regulations
2025 were approved.]

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Yes, thank you,
Madam President, and thank you to the team.

The President: Absolutely.


Bermuda Senate Senator s, we will now move on to the next item
on the agenda, and that is consideration of the Tourism
Investment (Navigate Drone Light Show s) Order 2025,
and that is in the name of Senator Mischa Fubler, the
Junior Minister for Tourism and Transport, Culture and
Sport.
Senator Fubler, you can present your—
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I move that the Senate do now take under consideration the Tourism Investment (Navigate Drone
Light Show s) Order 2025 proposed to be made by the
Minister responsible for T ourism with the written agreement of the Minister of Finance in exercise of the power
conferred by section 5 of the Tourism Investment Act
2017.
The President: Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I trust this will be less contentious than the last
Bill.

[Laughter]

DRAFT ORDER

TOURISM INVESTMENT (NAVIGATE DRONE
LIGHT SHOW S) ORDER 2025
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Madam President, the purpose of
bringing this Tourism Investment (Navigate Drone Light
Shows) Order 2025 before this Honourable [Senate] is
to enable the grant of customs duty relief to the opera-tors of the Navigate Drone Light Show s attraction. The
Minister of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport ,
in consultation with the Minister of Finance, deems this
tourism project to be an attraction which is in the national economic interest of Bermuda. Madam President, I am pleased to invite the [Senate] to take this Order under consideration.
Madam President , the application for a tourism
investment order was submitted for the Navigate Drone
Light Shows Attraction by Navigate Limited, which was
incorporated in Bermuda on the 20th of September
2024. Madam President , Navigate Limited is a threemember Bermudian company led by Tre Maxwell as
the Chief Executive Officer, Michael Wollmann as the
Financial Advisor, and N ekeasha Thompson as the Administrative Advisor.
Madam President , Navigate Drone Light
Shows is Bermuda's first in- house drone light show
company and was founded with the mission to revolu-tionise the Island's entertainment landscape through in-novative, captivating, and eco- friendly aerial displays.
Navigate Limited's a im is to deliver unforgettable visual
experiences which celebrate Bermuda's culture and
tourism offerings. Navigate Limited's goal is to position Bermuda as a premier destination for unique entertainment attracting both locals and visitors a like.
Madam President , in addition to the aforementioned CEO, Financial Advisor, and Administrati ve Advisor, Navigate Limited will employ five ground crew
and a social media specialist during the first year of operation. Madam President , the Navigate Drone Shows
will operate using 215 drones, 430 batteries, 215 pro-pellers, and supporting equipment including GPS, antennas, and IT networking equipment.
Madam President , Honourable Senators will
note that Navigate Limited is seeking full relief from
customs duty for a period not exceeding five years from
the operative date of the t ourism investment order in
respect of any equipment, goods, and supplies which are necessary for the operation of this attraction, Navigate Drone Light Shows.
Madam President , I eagerly anticipate watching the Navigate Drone Light Shows from our skies. In
addition, I hereby congratulate Mr. Maxwell and his
team for their vision, a vision now realised, a vision
which will undoubtedly enhance the tourism offerings
here in Bermuda.
Madam President , I am pleased to recommend
this Order for the support of the [Senate] .
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Fubler.
Would any Senator care to speak on this Order?
Senator Cunningham first ; I saw her hand first.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President, and thank you, Junior Minister Fubler.
I think the OBA congratulates Navigate—, yes,
Navigate? Yes. —

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Correct.
Sen. Victoria Cunningham: —on their entrepreneurial
spirit for bringing in these Drone Light Shows. They are
obviously environmentally friendly. I would think any
dog lovers or pet keepers out there are going to be
happy.
We will not see the . . . who's putting fireworks
off? They are obviously a lot quieter , and I would expect
an awful lot safer and obviously while enhancing our tourism product. So, we also look forward to experiencing them sometime soon.
Hopefully not this week when the winds are going to pick up.

[Laughter]

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: My only question would
be I assume they are lithium batteries and would won-der how they are going to dispose of them. But that was just something as you were making your comments.

526 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate Sen. Mischa Fubler: That is an interesting question,
one that I think I'll need to pose to the technical officers
of the Ministry of Public Works and Environment. Although I do recall recently us putting out an RFP specif-ically around battery processing although that might be more specifically for vehicles. Under the current operating programme there is facilities at Tynes Bay for d isposal of batteries of all kinds.

The President: Senator Tannock, you have the floor.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, thank you Madam President.
I just wanted to note that I wholeheartedly support this proportionate use of a tourism investment order and I too look forward to seeing the drone show.

The President: Thank you, Senator Tannock.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President,
we welcome the support.
The President: Mm-hmm.
Now you pass your O rder.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: All right, Madam President, seeing as there are no further questions to the O rder, I
move that the said draft O rder be approved and that the
following message be sent to His Excellency the Governor :
May it please Your Excellency :
The Senate having had under consideration
the draft Order entitled the Tourism Investment (Navigate Drone Light Show s) Order 2025, proposed to be
made by the Minister responsible for Tourism with the
written agreement of the Minister of Finance in exercise
of the p ower conferred by section 5 of the Tourism Investment Act 2017, has the honour to inform Your Excellency that the Senate has approved the said draft
Order.
The President: Is there any objection to the message
being sent?
No objection.

[Motion carried: The Tourism Investment (Navigate
Drone Light Shows) Order 2025 was approved.]
The President: Thank you very much, Senator Mischa
Fubler, and all Senator s who support t his Order.
We move on to the last item, Item No. 10, the
consideration of the Tourism Investment ( Odyssey
Commercial Charter Yacht ) Order 2025 and that's in
the name also of Senator Mischa G. Fubler, the Junior
Minister of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport.
Minister Fubler, you can present your O rder
when you're ready.
SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 71(2)

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you Madam President.
Apologies, I think I omitted a motion in my previous O rder. I move that the provisions of Standing Order 71(2) to be suspended. We did bring this; we tabled it this
morning.
The President: Yes, there is no objection to that.
[Motion carried: Standing Order 71(2) was suspended.]

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you Madam President.
I move that the Senate do now take under consideration the Tourism Investment ( Odyssey Commercial Charter Yacht ) Order 2025, proposed to be made
by the Minister responsible for Tourism with the written
agreement of the Minister of Finance in exercise of the
power conferred by s ection 5 of the Tourism Investment Act 2017.

The President: Is there any objection to the O rder being presented?
No.

DRAFT ORDER

TOURISM INVESTMENT (ODYSSEY COMMERCIAL
CHARTER YACHT ) ORDER 2025

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
Madam President , the purpose of bringing this
Tourism Investment (Odyssey Commercial Charter
Yacht) Order 2025 before the [Senate] is to enable the
grant of customs duty relief for the operators of the Od-yssey Commercial Charter Yacht attraction. The Minister of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport, in consultation with the Minister of Finance, deems this tour-ism project to be an attraction which is in the national
economic interest of Bermuda. Madam President , I am
pleased to invite the [Senate] to take this Order under
consideration.
Madam President , the application for a tourism
investment order was submitted for the Odyssey, a commercial charter yacht , by Odyssey Charters Limited, a local company founded by Neil de Ste Croix on
the 5th of November 2024. Madam President, Odyssey
Charters Limited is a family -owned business directed
by Neil de Ste Croix, a Bermudian. Mr. de Ste Croix —
Apologies Mr. de Ste Croix, I’m probably saying your
name incorrectly. . . . My French is not that great. —has
worked in the customer service industry for more than 45 years in Jersey and the Chan nel Islands and in Bermuda. Madam President , this tourism product named
Odyssey is a luxury 36- foot power catamaran luxury
yacht. It will be operated solely as a commercial tour
boat on a daily basis.
The capacity of the Odyssey is between 26 and
35 passengers. It is capable of a cruising speed higher


Bermuda Senate than that of a sailing vessel offering more adventurous
experiences within Bermuda's coastal waters. Areas,
including the Eastern Blue Cut, Pompano Beach, and
Castle Roads will be new and accessible excursions as
options for guests. Sunset cruises and onboard dinners, which will include locally themed and flavoured
cocktails, will be designed to entice business travellers
to return to Bermuda with their families for relaxing vacations.
Madam President , Odyssey will operate initially with two full- time employees, Max de Ste Croix ,
son of Neil de Ste Croix, a licen sed pilot and his wife,
Grace Powell . It is projected that as the business expands, casual and student labour opportunities will also
arise.
Madam President , Senators will note that Odyssey Charters Limited is seeking full relief from cus-toms duty for a period not exceeding five years from the
operative date of the tourism investment order in respect of any equipment, goods, supplies which are necessary for the operation of this attraction, the Odyssey.
Madam President , I have every confidence that
the Odyssey will indeed enhance the tourism offerings
here in Bermuda, capitalising on our unique cuisine and
our beautiful crystal -like waters. Madam President , I
am pleased to recommend this O rder for the support of
the Senate.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Fubler.
Would any Senator care to speak on this Order?
Senator Cunningham.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you and thank you
for this.
I think the One Bermuda Alliance congratulates
Neil de Ste Croix and his family for their entrepreneurial
vision in bringing this commercial charter yacht model to Bermuda. I guess it not only grows our tourism product but directly creates jobs, demonstrating how our
Bermudian entrepreneurship can drive economic opportunity.
So, congratulations, and maybe I'll get a trip
out on it soon with some visitors, I guess.

The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Would any other Senator care to speak on this
order?
Hearing none, Senator Fubler , it seems you
have full support.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: That is a relief, Madam President.

[Laughter]

Sen. Mischa Fubler: I move that the said draft Order
be approved and that the following message be sent to
His Excellency the Governor : May it please Your Excellency , the Senate,
having had under consideration the draft O rder entitled
the Tourism Investment (Odyssey Commercial Charter
Yacht ) Order 2025 , proposed to be made by the Minister responsible for T ourism with the written agreement
of the Minister of Finance in exercise of the power conferred by s ection 5 of the Tourism Investment Act 2017,
has the honour to inform Your Excellency that the Senate has approved the said draft O rder.
The President: Would any Senator . . . have any objection to the message being sent?
No objection.
It's full support from Senator s.

[Motion carried: The Tourism Investment (Odyssey
Commercial Charter Yacht) Order 2025 was approved.]

The President: And Senator s, that completes our Orders of the D ay.
We will now move on to Item No. 14.
Oh, I didn't thank you, Senator Fubler for presenting your O rder.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: No problem. Thank you, Madam
President.
The President: Thank you very much

MOTIONS
The President: There are none.

CONGRATULATORY AND/OR
OBITUARY SPEECHES
The President: Would any Senator care to speak?
Senator Tannock , you have the floor.

Sen. Tawana Tannock: Yes, thank you, Madam President. Just one . . . I'm sorry.
Madam President, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my heartfelt condolences to the
Hassell family on the passing of their son, Vernon Hassell. I would like to extend my condolences to Vernon's
wife, Michelle, and their children and grandchildren
[and] to his father and mother, the Reverend Fred Hassell, and Mrs. June Hassell , to his brother Jeremy, and
his wife, Cynthia, and their children, and to his brother Aaron, and his wife, Kaniko. If I might just take a few
minutes to talk a little bit about Vernon and his character. Vernon was very well known in the Market Place
chain of stores and in the M arket Place family.
Many people knew Vernon from his work as
general manager at the Market Place Hamilton store.
However, what is not as well known is that Vernon
worked for Market Place for a total of 24 years. He
started as a grocery packer at the age of 14, and before
528 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate his untimely passing two weeks ago, he had risen to
the role of vice president of procurement.
And it is often said by his father Reverend Fred
Hassell , who is quite a God- fearing man, that Vernon
served the role of Jacob, ensuring that Bermuda's
warehouse and storehouses were always supplied by
working for the Market Place store. But Vernon in his
time at Market Place was a shining example of what
someone who is dedicated to life and a career path can
achieve. He represented to a lot of young Bermudians
in the Market Place chain of families exactly what was
possible and had a work ethic that one rarely sees today.
So, at this time, I would just once again like to
extend my condolences to the Hassell family. My father
was the assistant pastor at Vernon's father's church, so
when we were children, we would . . . I said yesterday
at the funeral, play together, but I was fair. I said Vernon
didn't play. I played around the church. He listened
carefully.

[Laughter]
Sen. Tawana Tannock: But, yes, so just extending my
condolences to the Hassell family and to the MarketPlace family as well, as I know that this has really
rocked them, because he was a mentor to so many in
that chain of companies.

The President: Thank you.
Would any other Senator care . . . Senator
Cunningham, you have the floor.

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: Thank you, Madam President.
As my colleague, Senator Dion Smith, just had
to leave us, I would like to associate him with the com-ments on the late Vernon Hassell , and he also sends
condolences to Renee Marie Lawrence's family and the family of the late Larry Spence. He's also asked me to
give congratulations to Somerset Cricket Club, but
given I'm a St. George's Cricket Club, I will make it
brief—
[Laughter]

Sen. Victoria Cunningham: —but they just had their
Cup Match prize presentation last week, and Dion was
proud to have been invited.
I would also like to take a moment to recognise
and celebrate the excellence of Bermuda's workforce. The Royal Gazette, I think in collaboration with PwC,
recently announced the top 10 employers. Sun Life [International] , for the second year running, came top, followed by various other international companies, Convex, Lancashire [Insurance Company], [Financial Services] , Frontier [Financial Services] , Coral isle, and local, I guess, Marsh & McLennan , Fidelis, Carey Olsen,
and Artex, and most notably, The Berkeley Institute was included . And I think they should get special congratulations with the critical role our educators play in shaping our future workforce, and so I think overall congratulations to everyone, but just highlighting that The
Berkely Institute was included on that.
And while we are on education, I would like to
congratulate the Bermuda College. I know Madam Attorney General was there the other day for the rollout
of the Compliance Academy, but they are rolling out a variety of new courses to Bermudians, including that
Compliance Academy, AI, risk management qualifica-tions, and a few new articulation agreements . So, I
think that's offering Bermudians further access overseas, so must be congratulated.
And then to the listening public and colleagues,
we are, you know, obviously continuing through hurricane season. There are two storms out there. This is
going to be a busy week . I urge Bermudians, all residents, to take heed of government EMO and Bermuda
Weather Service advisories. Stay home. You know, we
all like to go sightseeing, but it does hinder the vital work of our emergency services . And I just want to wish
everyone the very best as they prepare and safely see
out these storms. Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Senator Cunningham.
Senator Lindsay Simmons, you have the floor.
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam President.
I also want to send condolences as well to the
Hassell family. I went to school with Vernon's youngest
brother, Jeremy . We were in the same class . And I
used to work with Vernon, so deepest condolences to the family.
Madam President, I would like to take the opportunity to congratulate . . . I know it's probably not the
right word, but I want to thank everybody who came out
this weekend with the family to look for Ja’Dore Wilson.
I encourage everybody to be mindful, look out, her family's looking for her. She's a part of our CedarBridge
family. We're praying for her safe return home. So, I
encourage everybody to be mindful and please keep
her family in [your] prayers. This has been, I think, 10
days now, and, you know, her family really would like
for her to come home, so if you see something, say
something.
On a brighter note, Madam President, I want to
congratulate the BPSU on their third annual Women's
Conversation and Brunch. The title for this brunch was
“Empowered Voices Last ing Impact ” Unfortunately, I
missed the first two speakers as I had work commit-ments, but my cousin, Sherri Lynn Lilly, was the opening batsman, and from what I heard she gave an inspiring speech. And then everybody knows our Woman of
the Year, Lisa Reed. She came in the middle and hit it out of the park as well . But I was fortunate enough to
hear Ashley Smith speak, and Ashley's usually one in
the background that is always leading from the back.


Bermuda Senate She's actually raising, in my opinion, one of the most
powerful young women I've ever met , Kalar Simons .
But Ms. Smith is somebody that's always encouraging, and her speech was about women in leadership roles, and sometimes you have to come from the back and step in the front to lead. So I just want to thank
Ashley for coming out of her shell and empowering the
women yesterday. Her speech hit it right on the head.
It was an amazing, amazing speech. And she asked
me at the end, Lindz, how did I do? And I said, Well,
Ashley, at first I was a little worried. Then you leaned on that podium . She couldn't see. But she stood up,
and she was able to articulate what people needed to
hear yesterday . And I encourage anybody that gets a
glimpse of her speech just to listen to her powerful words. I was sitting there crying. I didn't even know
what came over me, but I was crying, and somebody
sitting beside me was crying. Honestly, it was a great
speech.
Ashley, come out of these shadows and lead.
Thank y ou. Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Lindsay Simmons.
Would any other Senator care to speak?
Yes, Senator Fubler . You have the floor.
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
I do not have any condolences this afternoon,
but I do have a couple congratulations. First, going out
to the Mirrors Programme. I had the pleasure of attending their award ceremony on Wednesday the 17th. And
for those who are unfamiliar, Mirrors operates a programme that encourages the cultivation of our young
artists. The award ceremony was for their annual art competition, and so I want to give congrats to both the
organisers of the Mirrors Programme, as well as the Masterworks Foundation, who provided t he gallery
space for showing the pieces during the competition,
as well as hosting the award ceremony. There were
some really great ones. The theme was around what it
means to be Bermudian. Sorry, the specific tagline es-capes me right now, but it was an enjoyable experience, and the young artists had some great pieces.
My second congratulations go out to the organisation the PadsPass. They recently launched. I was
actually on Thursday, so the next day I was invited to
attend the celebration of their product launch. It is a digital pet passport providing accommodations for tracking
your pet's medical history, as well as assisting you with
travel planning. They capture the requirements of
bringing your pet with you to various jurisdictions to
avoid painful situations where you're faced with, at the
airport, having to consider leaving your pet behind, or
in some cases, as in the princip al for the company, I
think she said, her pet was taken from her while on
travel.
And so, it was an interesting proposition there,
and I enjoyed myself there as well, so congratulations
to them. Also, they are a graduate of the Ignite programme, another government initiative to help support our entrepreneurs. And with that, I yield my time.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Fubler .
Would any other Senator care to speak?
Yes. Minister Crystal Caeser.
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you, Madam
President.
I likewise would like to extend my congratulations to The Berkeley Institute with regard to their recently being named as employer number 5 out of 10,
moving up from place 7 to place 5 this year. And that award is sponsored by The Royal Gazette and the accounting firm of P wC.
It speaks to the excellence that the school and
their leadership have and the very dedicated team that
The Berkeley has curated there. And it speaks to their
level of excellence and hoping that this will help to re-store a level of confidence in public education. So, I
wanted to just give congratulations to the school, the leadership, and the Board of Governors for being
named as number 5 out of 10 of Employers of the Year.
Thank you.

The President: Thank you, Minister Crystal Caesar ,
Minister of Education.
Would any other Senator care to speak?
Yes. Senator Tarik Smith.

Sen. Tarik Smith: Thank you, Madam President, and
good afternoon to my Senate colleagues and the listening audience.
I have a quick condolence, just one, for Wayne
Burrows , known as “ Huckles. ” I am a coach at the North
Village Community Club, and his recent passing has
really impacted the North Village community. He was
known as the go- to guy over the years, and I just want
to send my condolences . Whenever anything needed
to be done at Bernard's Park, he was the gentleman to
do it, no matter even if it was taking out the trash. He
was a loyal North Village man, and again, my condolences to his family.
I also want to send out a congrats to all the
young athletes, as a football coach, who participated in
the Athene Tournament this past weekend at the National Sports Centre. A special congrats to the Warwick
Football Academy girls' teams, who actually swept and won all the girls' categories up at the National Stadium
this past weekend. A special shout -out to Inara Todd
and her Under -11 Manchester girls, who won the Under-11 Tournament. Her mother, Tiffanie , her father,
Richard, and her brother, Isaac, are very proud of her
for her achievements.
Thank you very much.

The President: Thank you, Senator [Tarik] Smith.
Would any other Senator care to speak?
530 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate [Crosstalk]

The President: Madam Attorney General , Minister of
Justice, Government Leader in the Senate, you have the floor.

Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President.
I certainly want to join the comments made by
Senator Cunningham in relation to, I believe they were
yours in relation to the Bermuda College Articulation
Agreements. As an alum of the Bermuda College, I say
well done, and it's really beautiful to see the college going from strength to strength.
I had the distinct pleasure last . . . was it Friday? Of attending the event put on by the Alpha Kappa
Alpha Sorority, bringing in the writer and scuba diver Tara Roberts. In this event, she talked about her book
and about her expeditions, where she's writing about
diving. She is with an outfit called Diving with a Purpose. This group of Black divers, mainly African Americans, who dive wrecks believed to have been involved
in the slave trade. So, they are actually doing archaeological work on the ocean floor in relation to these shipwrecks and really finding information that I think con-nects the slave trade back to Africa, and it's giving people more information about that point in time.
Madam President, very exciting, but more than
the presentation that I saw, she also gave a presentation to Bermuda schoolchildren during the day, and we
were made to understand that the Bermuda schoolchil-dren were completely engaging with thought -provoking
questions, and I think what I love most about this, Madam President, is that I think . . . I think about how
do we resolve the challenge around antisocial behaviour and our young people?
And I think, Madam President, that sometimes
they just need to be able to see themselves in a different way. And I think what I took away from this presentation was there was a woman who never [went] scuba
div[ing] before, never thought about it, and to see herself having a career doing something that is completely
beyond what you could, you know, dream or imagine.
And I believe more of our children need to have an op-portunity to see that, Madam President, and I thi nk we
could have different outcomes.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Minister .
Would any other Senator care to speak?
Well, with that said, I will move on . . . to Adjournment. And it's over to you, Madam Attorney General, Minister of Justice.

ADJOURNMENT
Sen. the Hon. Kim Wilkerson: Thank you, Madam
President. I move that the Senate adjourn until November 12.
The President: Would any Senator care to speak on
the motion to adjourn?
Yes. Senator Fubler , you have the floor.

THE LOREN (PINK BEACH AND ELBOW BEACH)
ACT 2025

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you, Madam President.
And I think I would like to have had some remarks prepared, but I am going to shift tack and use
this time to provide an update o n some of the details
that were requested earlier in the day, and also to kind
of highlight the importance of all of us being more diligent in our research and preparation for these ses-sions. I would like to start by offering an apology myself.
The typical schedule [is that] we meet on a
Wednesday, and as such I have time to go and meet with the relevant government bodies to adequately pre-pare myself to field questions. And I did receive some,
and we saw it go . . . without revisiting debate ( which is
not allowed by the Standing Orders ), it did get a bit contentious around the nature of the amendment to T he
Loren Act that we did debate earlier, and so a couple
of the questions requested there . . . The total amount
of hotel concession, the 2015 Order for Pink Beach is
$3,133,203. The tourism investment order from 2022 is
$1,126,529.
So, in total $4,259,732 in concessions have
been applied across those two orders, which kind of
brings me to my next point that I wanted to highlight
given the kind of contention around the revoking of one
tourism investment order and the application of another. Doing some brief research while I was listening
to my colleagues, I wanted to note that we had in 2013
the Hotel's Concession (Pink Beach Club) Order which
is kind of the predecessor to these tourism investment order Acts, which I believe is the first, as it doesn't mention the revocation of a previous Bill, but this was made on the 6 August 2013. And then subsequent to that we
had the Hotels Concession (Pink Beach Hotel ) Order
2015, and that one mentions how it is revoking the 2013 Act and putting into force the 2015 A ct. Of note, both of
which provide timelines of a maximum of five years of
concessions of various categories .
And so, moving further through time we then
have the T ourism Investment Order (The Loren at Pink
Beach) Order 2021 . And this one came into effect 1
January 2022, and again kind of speaks to the revocation of the previous . . . or in addition to the previous
Act.
So I am just trying to kind of paint how this is
not some kind of unusual application of the law . This
has in fact been carried out multiple times, indeed by
the party of my colleagues across the aisle who all
voted in opposition to us getting the Elbow Beach Hotel
reopened, a place that has been closed now since the


Bermuda Senate pandemic . I think we can all agree, I think they did indeed agree with the assertion that it is in the economic
interest to reopen Elbow Beach Hotel .
And so, on that, you know as I kind of alluded
to in some of the other questions I reviewed, I do con-sult with the technical officers of the government, but
then I also ensure to kind of do my own research, for
lack of a better word. You know we have many of these
resources available. I encourage the public as well, if
you're looking to kind of apprise yourself of the detail all
of these Bills are available online . And I mentioned the
customer self -service portal on the Planning website.
And it is important that when we come here to
debate the business of the people we are well informed on the nature of the details . And given that we all are
relatively new in this role, you know , I am trying to extend some grace here and avoid kind of venturing into territory that may attract a point of order around engaging in personalities, which I very much am opposed to.
But I think it is pretty clear to see that the principals of
The Loren have been doing great work .
And that . . . I think I had another question
around the number of employees, or the Enforced Man-agement Training Programme. And I was also able to
confirm those with the relevant technical officers, and I
think on that . . . I will continue . I had some other things
I prepared for before the summer .
I am looking at the clock . I think I still have
some time
The President: Mm-hmm.

POINT OF CLARIFICATION
Sen. Tawana Tannock: Point of clarification, Madam
President, just a point of clarification.
Senator Fubler , I don't think understood the issue. And the issue was that the law allows you to extend a concession for a maximum 15 years . It was not
whether or not those orders had been made previously.

POINT OF ORDER
Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Point of order , Madam
President .
I believe we may be getting back into debate.
These have already been debated through the O rders
of the Day, so I think we need to come back to motion
to adjourn.
The President: Absolutely .

Sen. the Hon. Crystal Caesar: Thank you.

Sen. Mischa Fubler: Thank you.

The President: Senator Fubler , are you continu ing?
SUMMER EXPERIENCES
Sen. Mischa Fubler: Apologies , Madam President, I
will proceed.
And so, as I mentioned, I had prepared for the
kind of reconvening after the summer break a brief motion to adjourn statement . But given the kind of heartfelt
and passionate speech given by my colleague, I think
we all kind of declined to engage in the motion to adjourn debate at the last sitting. So I would like , before
we run too far through the summer, to cover kind of my
summer experiences .
And so, my family , we generally do engage in
a summer break where we travel abroad, and as the
Junior Minister for Tourism and Transport , Culture and
Sport, it is often interesting being able to engage with people who have very little understanding of the role that I hold, in fact, I guess even in Bermuda, it's often
people are unaware of my role within the Government,
but especially so whe n travelling.
I like to golf . So I find myself at a variety of random golf courses, both large and small, and it's been
reassuring to find at most of these engagements as I
continue to chat with the groups that I get paired with,
their kind of not only awareness of Bermuda but often
their great enjoyment and their experiences having visited. In fact, one place I played was maybe 10 minutes
from a family member's house, just a small municipal course, you know, nine holes and it's definitely nothing
to write home about . But a father and his daughter had
actually just visited Bermuda two weeks prior to us
meeting on the golf course there, and that was unsolicited. And I kind of touched on how as I travel people
don't know that I'm a Minister in the Government and
so they're sharing these kinds of opinions and experiences unprompted . It’s kind of just based off of the, O h
well I'm from Bermuda; where are you from? And so, I
think it kind of speaks to some of the tourism product we already have, and it is great to hear that there are
people across the East Coast who are not only familiar
but have visited several times .
And I also wanted to talk to I guess also important to note there's a wide range of folks . I think
some people kind of have in their mind maybe a stereotypical Bermudian visitor who's coming, travelling by air. And it was interesting that these kinds of folks were
varied in both, in many demographic points, both age
and race and economic status.
And so, I think on that note, I would like to yield
my time. Thank you, Madam President.

The President: And thank you, Senator Fubler .
Would any other Senator care to speak on the
motion to adjourn?
Yes. Senator Lindsay Simmons.

YOUTH OF BERMUDA TODAY'S PRIORITY

532 29 September 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda Senate Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Sorry, Madam President, I
know it's late, but I have a quick motion to adjourn. Because I think . . . I was always taught that if you want to
get to people you have to continue to speak about cer-tain relevant things. And so, Madam President, I'm go-ing to be faster than I was the last time we sat here, but
I really , really want to make sure that I drive this home ,
that people hear my voice, and that we act upon our people.
So, Madam President, Honourable Senator s,
and the people of Bermuda, this afternoon as we bring today's sitting to a close, I rise to speak directly to the
heart of our Island's future , our young people. When
this Chamber adjourns later today there will still be a
young man on Court Street wondering if tomorrow will
bring opportunity or danger. There will still be a young
woman sitting in the classroom asking whether Ber-muda has a place for her brilliance. And there will still
be families across this countr y hoping their children will
inherit not just a country to live in, but a country to thrive in.
That, Madam President, is why I rise today.
Bermuda's young people are among the most gifted,
creative, and resilient in the world. We see it every time
they excel on the football field, dominate in athletics, sing with their voices that carry across this Island, or
step into leadership roles with innovation and courage.
But, Madam President, alongside that promise
lies a sobering reality. Too many of our young people
feel locked out, left behind, and let down. They face an economy that does not always seem designed for them. They battle mental health challenges in silence
because the stigma is still too strong. They watch friends lured into gangs and crime, not because they lack potential, but because someone offered them belonging when society turn ed its back.
Madam President, this is not just a youth issue.
This is a Bermuda issue. Because the future of this I sland rests not in the hands of those of us who sit here today, but in the hands of the generations that follow. If
they cannot thrive, Bermuda cannot survive. Allow me
to paint the picture as it truly is, Madam President.
Education. We have many brilliant students,
but too many leave school feeling unprepared for real life. They are taught formulas but not always taught financial literacy. They study history, but do not see
themselves in it. Some graduate ready for university
abroad, while others graduate unsure if they are ready
for the workforce at home.
Employment, Madam President. I speak to the
young Bermudians who have gone overseas, earned degrees, and returned home with hope, only to find
doors closed. Others never get that far. They want to
work. They want to contribute, but they cannot get their
first chance. We need to give them chances, Madam
President. Too many of them are discouraged, and
when they cannot see a future here, they leave. Bermuda loses not just talent, but its lifeblood. You know, Madam President, mental health is
a serious thing. I cannot stress it enough. Our young
people are struggling with anxiety, depression, and
trauma. The weight of expectation is heavy. The cost of
living is crushing. And the pandemic has left scars we
cannot always see.
Yet, the stigma around mental health means
they do not always get the help they seek. Madam President, we have some serious issues with crime and
violence. Gangs and guns are not abstract concepts to
our young people. They are real. They are recruiting.
They are destroying lives. And behind every shooting,
every stabbing, is a young man who once sat in a classroom. They did, Madam President. They once played
on the playground. And you know what, Madam Presi-dent? They too once had a dream. Somewhere along
the line, he was failed.
And Madam President, we must be courageous enough to admit this. The young people who turn
to crime are not just born violent. They are born into a
system that too often fails them. If we want different
outcomes, we must build different systems. But I will
not stand here today with any problems because I believe in Bermuda's youth. I have met young Bermudians who are entrepreneurs, creating businesses from
scratch. I have spoken with students who are inventing
technology, producing art, and competing at the highest level of sports. I have seen young leaders who are
not waiting for a seat at the table. They are building
their own tables, Madam President.
To them I say, you are not a statistic. You are
Bermuda's dream in human form. They do not need our
pity. They need pathways. They do not need us to talk down to them. They need us to lift them up. They do
not need government . . . I mean, sorry. They need
Government, Opposition, business leaders, educators,
parents, churches, and every single one of us to work together and say, all young people matter . And we
prove it with action.
Madam President, this Government has not
just spoken about our youth, we have acted. Through education reform, we have a Minister who is dedicated
to our young people. We are building a system that prepares students for the skills of tomorrow. Introducing
signature schools, strengthening technology and voca-tional training, and modernising curricula so every child
leaves school prepared for both university and the
workforce. Through the Youth Employment Strategy,
we are providing real opportunities for Bermudians age 18 to 26— helping them to connect with jobs, internships, and apprenticeships that set them on pathways to success.
Through Workforce Development, we have expanded training in high demand industries from health
care to hospitality to digital economy. Ensuring our
young people are not only job seekers, but they are job
creators, Madam President. Through affordable housing initiatives, we are working to ensure young Bermudians can see a future of independence, home


Bermuda Senate ownership, and family life here in Bermuda rather than
abroad.
Through future leaders and similar government
programmes, we are mentoring young men and women
giving them tools to lead with confidence, courage, and compassion. And through investments in sports, art
and culture, we are nurturing not just careers, but identities. Helping our youth find pride and belonging in who
they are and where they come from. These initiatives
are not charity; they are investments. Investments in
Bermuda's survival and in Bermuda's future. But Madam President, Government cannot do th is alone. If
our young people are to succeed, then every sector of
this community must lean in. Businesses must open
their doors wider, communities must wrap their arms
around our children, families must continue to push,
guide, and encourage. And leaders, yes, every one of
us in here, must not only speak about youth empowerment, but demonstrate it in our policies, our priorities,
and our presence.
To all the negative comments I see posted, or
I hear, I say this. Let us change the negativity into pos-itivity. Because again, our young people are watching.
They are watching us. We may not agree on policies,
and we may not agree on party affiliations, but we should never disagree when encouraging our young
people. They deserve to see leaders unite in uplifting,
not dividing and tearing each other down.
We must show up for them, Madam President.
Because if we don't, there are others who will. And those others —gangs, violence, despair —will not show
them love. They will not show them hope. They will not
show them the Bermuda we want them to inherit. Madam President, we must dare to dream bigger for Bermuda's youth. We must dare to dream of a Bermuda where every student graduates not only with a certificate, but with confidence. A Bermuda where young people can choose a career in trades, in law, in
medicine, in arts, and in entrepreneurship. And know
they can succeed here at home— Bermuda. A Bermuda
where mental health is treated with the same seriousness as physical health. A Bermuda where housing is
not a privilege, but a possibility. A Bermuda where violence is replaced by opportunity, and gangs are replaced by guidance. That is not an impossible dream,
Madam President. It is a Bermuda we can build if we
have the courage, the unity, and the vision to put our
youth at the centre of our decisions.
So, in closing, Madam President, as we conclude this afternoon's sitting, let us conclude our responsibilities. The youth of Bermuda are not tomorrow's problems. They are today's priority. They are
watching us, and they are waiting for us, and they are
ready to lead. But Madam President, the real question
is, are we ready to create a Bermuda they deserve?
Madam President, as a Senator for the Progressive Labour Party, I proudly recommit this after-noon to a mission that has always guided our movement. To lift people up, to create opportunity, and to make Bermuda a place where every young person can
believe in their future. Let us not leave this Chamber
today with only words, but with resolve. Because when
Bermudas youth rise, Bermuda rises with them.
Thank you, Madam President.

The President: Thank you, Senator Lindsay Simmons.
Would any other Senator care to speak on the
motion to adjourn?
Hearing none, then I would just like to thank all
Senators for their hard work during this past session
and for welcoming the new Senators, Senator Dion
Smith and Senator Tarik Smith. We look forward to our
meeting on November 12, and I wish each and ever y
one of you an enjoyable holiday from here—for the next month at least.

[Laughter]

The President: With that, the Senate stands adjourned
until November 12.
Thank you.

Some Hon. Senators : Thank you, Madam President.

[At 4:32 pm, the Senate stood adjourned until
10:00 am, Wednesday , 12 November 2025.]


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