The Senate approved tax concessions for The Loren at Pink Beach luxury hotel, including customs duty relief and land tax exemptions worth $7.59 million total. The Labour Ministry reported helping 747 unemployed Bermudians find jobs and providing over $6 million in financial assistance during the pandemic. A new History and Legacy Committee was announced to preserve and document the history of Bermuda's schools and educational system, led by retired cultural affairs director Heather Whalen.
Tourism Investment Order for The Loren at Pink Beach hotel - granting tax relief worth $7.59 millionMinistry of Labour year-end review covering unemployment benefits, job training, and work permit policiesRoad safety campaign for holiday season designated driver programEstablishment of History and Legacy Committee to document Bermuda's educational history
Bills & Motions
Tourism Investment (The Loren at Pink Beach) Order 2021 - approved by Senate
Public Health (COVID-19) Emergency Extension (No. 7) Order 2021 - introduced for consideration
Four bills received first reading: Insurance Amendment Act 2021, Companies Amendment and Validation Act 2021, Bermuda Monetary Authority Amendment (No. 2) Act 2021, and Customs Tariff Amendment (No. 2) Act 2021
Notable Moments
Senators questioned whether the 747 people who found jobs through government programs were still employed, but the Ministry admitted they don't track this information
The Labour Ministry couldn't provide detailed breakdowns of employment statistics when pressed by senators for specific data
Road Safety Council highlighted that 16 people have died in traffic accidents in 2021, emphasizing holiday safety
Sen. the Hon. Dr. Ernest PeetsI also would like to be associated with the condolences for Mike Sharpe. His passing has been a real shock to us all. So I certainly send my prayers at this moment to his entire family. Thank you very much. The President: Thank you, Minister Peets. Sen. Robin Tucker: Thank …
I also would like to be associated with the condolences for Mike Sharpe. His passing has been a real shock to us all. So I certainly send my prayers at this moment to his entire family. Thank you very much. The President: Thank you, Minister Peets. Sen. Robin Tucker: Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Senator Robin Tucker, you have the floor. Sorry.
Sen. Robin Tucker: Thank you, Madam President. I too would like to be associated with the co ndolences extended to the family of Mike Sharpe. I have had the opportunity as well to be interviewed by him. And certainly I can join and attest as my fellow Senators have as to how gently Mike Sharpe would conduct the interviews. And certainly as a new person to the political arena I very, very much appreciated [that]. So again, condolences to his entire family — particularly , for me, his daughter Mikheah, who is a personal friend and a family friend as well. So again, condolences to the entire family. Thank you, Madam President.
The President: Thank you, Senator Robin Tucker. Would any other Senator care to speak? Hearing none, then I would just like to assoc iate myself with the condolences that have been expressed by Senator Michelle Simmons to the family of Ms. Gail Graham, as well as Marva Phillips; and all Senators’ condolences for Mike Sharpe’s family. Thank you all. The President: Minister Peets.
Bermuda Senate ADJOURNMENT
Sen. the Hon. Dr. Ernest PeetsYes. Thank you, Madam President. I make a motion that the Senate Chamber adjourn until February 9, 2022. The President: Thank you, Minister Peets. Would any Senator care to speak on the m otion to adjourn? Senator Ben Smith, you have the floor. SEASON’S GREETINGS Sen. Ben Smith: Thank you, …
Yes. Thank you, Madam President. I make a motion that the Senate Chamber adjourn until February 9, 2022.
The President: Thank you, Minister Peets. Would any Senator care to speak on the m otion to adjourn? Senator Ben Smith, you have the floor.
SEASON’S GREETINGS
Sen. Ben Smith: Thank you, Madam President. I would just like to take this opportunity to wish everybody a merry Chris tmas, happy holidays. Let us hope that we can come through the end of this year and into the next year in a positive light. This has been a tough year of loss [for] our country. And let us take this opportunity to spend time with family and friends, and hold people close who are important to us. Because this year should have taught everybody that life is precious and you do not know whether the next day is going to be there for you and for your loved ones. So take this opportunity to spend that time with e ach other. Look out for each other. If you have the ability to give to the people who are not as fortunate as you, take this opportunity to do so. Let us be positive to one another in this coming season and in this upcoming year. Merry Christmas to my S enate colleagues and to you, Madam President. Let us look forward to a prosperous New Year. Thank you.
The President: Thank you, Senator Ben Smith. Would any other Senator care to speak? Yes, Senator Lindsay Simmons. You have the floor.
NEED FOR FOSTER PARENTS
Sen. Lindsay Simmons: Thank you, Madam Pres ident. Madam President, I just want to say thank you to everybody who has continued to help with the A ngel Tree drive that we do every year. This is our sixth year. We do it for the children of Big Brot hers and Big Sisters, and also the children in foster care and res idential treatment. This year I did not even know if we were going to be able to get all of the gifts, but we have got all the gifts. I just have to go and collect some more. But I just want to thank everybody. B ecause this year, like my Senate colleague said, has been a very tough year. It is very difficult to see so many families suffering and in pain and a lot of loss that we have seen. I also want to highlight that there is a need for foster parents in Bermuda. Selena Simons is the c o-ordinator. And if anybody is interested in becoming a foster parent or just getting some information, I would encourage you to reach out to Selena. Her number is 294-5871. And she has been there since I start ed, and was 24 when I started. She is very helpful. Giving back and taking the time to open up your house to a foster child is rewarding. It is not a lways going to be easy, but to know that you can make a difference in somebody ’s life . . . I would encourage anybody to reach out if they have space in their house. I spoke to somebody yesterday, and they said, I would love to be a foster parent, but I’m single. You can be a single foster parent! You do not have to come from a house that has a mother and a fat her. If you are single person and you have room, you know, you get vetted and you get checked. But open up your house. These children need love and they deserve it. And these are children of our community, our fabric. And I just think that we need to take the time and put ourselves forward if we can to open up our house and homes to our children because they do not deserve to be taken from their families. And if they are, to safeguard them, I would encourage them to be placed in a home where they are safe. So again I want to thank RenRe, especially Denise Lynette, who from the first time I did the Angel Tree, she stepped forward and said, We’ll do it, Lin dsay. And she has been instrumental in getting these children gifts. Walkers (Bermuda) Limited, Diane Steede; Melonie Dill; Danc eSations, H olly Pacheco; Thyme Bermuda [ Restaurant ], Shannon Simons ; and Sonya Martins. I just want to salute Bermuda because we only do angels for a specific number of people because every angel represents a child. We do not just ta ke gifts just to take gifts. So the children do request what they like. Not necessarily do they always get it. But it is nice to see that the community rallies around to help these children during Christmas because I could not imagine being away from my family. So thank you, Bermuda. Thank you. The children thoroughly enjoy opening up these gifts, just to see them some years [INAUDIBLE ] come and collect them is heart -warming. It brings tears to my eyes every year. So thank you, Bermuda.
The President: Thank you, Senator Lindsay Si mmons. Would any other Senator care to speak on the motion to adjourn?
Sen. the Hon. Dr. Ernest PeetsYes, Madam Pres ident. The President: Sorry. Yes. Senator Michelle Simmons, you have the floor. 110 15 December 2021 Official Hansard Report Bermuda Senate SEASON’S GREETINGS Sen. Mic helle Simmons: Thank you, Madam Pres ident. Very briefly, I would like to associate myself with a comment that Senator Ben Smith …
Yes, Madam Pres ident.
The President: Sorry. Yes. Senator Michelle Simmons, you have the floor.
110 15 December 2021 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda Senate SEASON’S GREETINGS
Sen. Mic helle Simmons: Thank you, Madam Pres ident. Very briefly, I would like to associate myself with a comment that Senator Ben Smith made earlier. It has been a tough year. But we have come this far. And we will be all right. Let us be sensible about how we g o about spending our time with family and friends, if that is our choice, during this Christmas season. COVID -19 is still with us. But we have to learn to live with it. And we have to adopt sensible public health guidance which will take us to the next stage in fighting this pandemic. I firmly believe that we can do this, but we have to be sensible. Also, this tough year has seen a lot of families here in Bermuda and throughout the world struggling for survival. Let us remember to lend a hand, lend our hands to help those who we recognise are still stru ggling, are still in need of a hand- up and a helping hand, a helping hand or two. Encourage your friends to do the same thing. I want to wish you, Madam President, all of my Senate colleagues and all of Berm uda all of the blessings that this wonderful Christmas season will bring. Remember what Christmas is all about. It is not about gifts and presents. It is about recognising an event that happened over 2,000 years ago. And there is no dispute that it happened. So with that, I would like to also say all the best for the New Year of 2022. I can hardly believe we are there almost. But blessings to all. Thank you.
The President: Thank you, Senator Michelle Si mmons. Would any other Senator care to speak on the motion to adjourn?
Sen. the Hon. Dr. Ernest PeetsYes, please, Madam President. The President: Minister Peets, you have the floor. GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNITY WORKING TOGETHER
Sen. the Hon. Dr. Ernest PeetsThank you so much, Madam President. And cert ainly thank you to the e ntire Senate here today. I have been told that it has been said that being ungrateful is like a man enjoying what he has without really considering where it came from. And as I have sat …
Thank you so much, Madam President. And cert ainly thank you to the e ntire Senate here today. I have been told that it has been said that being ungrateful is like a man enjoying what he has without really considering where it came from. And as I have sat here today and have had a chance to listen to all of the things that we have been sharing, I certainly want to encourage the entire Senate team on both sides of the aisle, as well as our Independent Senators, to of course take some time during this Christmas period to reflect. Certainly, as has been said, this has been a very difficult year. And the entire country has been under an extreme amount of stress— including all of us. But having said that, I have been told by those who have gone before me that if we count our bles sings and name them one by one, we certainly will be able to see what our good Lord has done. So having said that, I think that this is the antidote for some of the issues that we are facing, particularly those that are stressful: take every opportun ity to reflect on the good things that have happened and find a way to express our gratitude. So I certainly want to say thank you to you, Madam President. You have a relatively young Sen-ate team here in the Senate. So your patience with us has been noted, and we are certainly grateful f or that. I certainly want to thank the Opposition Senators. Your due diligence each and every time we come back to these Chambers has not gone unnoticed. And we certainly thank you for your contribution. We have not always agreed. But even in that disagreement, I am certainly grateful for your contribution to make this country and what we do here in the Senate Chamber so much better. As well to the Independent Senators, thank you so much. For the team that is behind me, they are loyal and dedicated. I am really, really glad to have them to be a part of this particular Senate. And I certainly want to send my thanks personally to our Premier for trus ting us to carry the Government’s business here, and to the Deputy, who each and every week checks on us to make sure that we have everything that we need. I do not call names all the time because I feel like I am always going to forget someone. But I certainly want to thank the Minister of Education, as well as the Attorney General for her support as well. In closi ng, Madam President, just for the public who are listening, the Junior Minister for Transport did have an announcement this morning regarding the Road Safety Council designated driver campaign. Of course, I do not necessarily endorse the drinking of alcohol, per se, but I do certainly endorse safety. And I certainly want everyone to be safe this holiday. And I will certainly echo the sentiments from Senator Ben [Smith] and Senator Michelle Simmons. This COVID -19 situation is something that we have been managing for quite some time, but we are certainly doing a lot better than some other [places] around the world. And we certainly can get through this, but we have to get through this together. So please be sensible as it relates to this new variant that has arrived on our shores. But I am confident that we have the right pe ople and the right community to really, really stay t ogether so that we can be successful. Thank you very much, Madam President.
Bermuda Senate EXPRESSION OF THANKS TO SENATE TEAM
The President: Thank you, Minister Peets. And before we all leave and depart, I would just like to say how proud I am of this Senate team. I also am very proud of the staff, who have supported us through thick and thin, because we have had meetings in the Chamber and we have had to have virtual meetings. And they have risen to the task. And I really want to, on our behalf, thank them for their support and their diligence in helping us do our work. I also want to reiterate some of the things and to compliment each one of you who has spoken on the motion to adjourn with respect to what we have accomplished as a team, a Senate team. And also to encourage the public that when we are here doing the work . . . and some of the things, the Bills that we pass, are important. But more than that, we want peo-ple to be safe and to know that we are here for them to do the work that we have been appointed to do. So I want to wish each and every one of you a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. I know you will have time because you have a break now in this recess to spend time with your family. I just want everybody to remain safe, and I reiterate what has been said about the reason for the season. So whatever you do, enjoy time with your family and friends. And we will follow the regulati ons, and we encourage everyone who has heard us this morning to do the same. Thank you all for the work that you do. And I look forward to continuing the work in the new year. So with that, Senate stands adjourned. Thank you.
[At 12:29 pm, the Senate st ood adjourned until 10:00 am Wednesday, 9 February 2022.]