March 5, 2021

Thank you.
Minister.

Hon. Renee Ming: Mr. Speaker, the Parole Board is a
[INAU DIBLE ], meaning for each potential parolee the
board receives or requests certain information from
various g overnment entities to assist and guide the
final board decision, which is reached collectively and collaboratively.
Some of the reports used are Parole Application Report, form EB -4; parole conduct reports; 166
report; pre- release report required by the provisions of
Prison Rules 1980, which is completed by the case manager; psychological and psychiatric reports with the parolee consent; document confirming employment for a minimum of three months; document confirming address where the potential parolee wi ll be
residing, which is vetted for suitability by the Department of Court Services; correspondence from the parolee; record of conviction; orders f rom the court regarding sentencing; any report the Parole Board calls for, whether oral or in writing, that can assist the board
in making a reasoned decision.
The aforementioned list is not an exhaustive
list. Each parole application is reviewed comprehensively as well as holistically.

Thank you, MP. That brings a close to
your series of questions.
The next written question this morning is from
MP Dunkley to the Minister of Health.
MP Dunkley, would you like to put your question? And all three of those questions require oral re-sponse.

QUESTION 1: COVID -19 VACCINE BOOKINGS
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The first question to the Honourable Minister
of Health: On February 19
th, the Ministry of Health
acknow ledged that 34 people received their second
COVID -19 vaccination too early when vaccine recipients made their own appointments. Will the Honoura-ble Minis ter please inform this Honourable House
what day or days did the incorrect booking of vaccine
appointme nts by these 34 people occur?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker.

Minister, yes.

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: One person had their first appointment on the 11
th of January, and their second
appointment was the 27th of January.
Nine persons had their first appointment on
the 14th of January, with their second appointment
being the 1st of February.
Seven persons had their first appointment on
the 15th of January, with their second appointment
being the 1st of February.
Sixteen persons had their first appointment on
the 15th of January, with their second appointment
being the 2nd of February.
And one person had their first appointment on
the 23rd of Ja nuary, with their second appointment
being the 6th of February.

Minister.
Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, I do not have that
information at my disposal right now with respect to the date. However, that is a matter of public record
because I did give a statement on it concer ning that
particular incident. And the date I do recall was listed
in that public statement. But I do not have that in front
of me right now, but it is a matter of public record.

Yes.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Who facilit ated these appointments?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, the persons who
facilitated those appointments were those 34 persons.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Sorry, Mr. Speaker. For
clarity then, how were those appointments made?
Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, those persons
would have been given their . . . they would have
called the vaccine hotline and requested an appoint-ment at such- and-such a date. So for example, they
would have requested that they receive an appointment on the 27
th of January. And the hotline would
have facilitated that particular request.

Supplementary?

SUPPLEMENTARY

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker, supplementary.
To the Honourable Minister, how were the
vaccines set aside for these 1,454 used?

528 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Minister.

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
We facilitate two avenues. We have a
(quote/unquote) “ standby list ,” so persons who are in
Phase 1 or 2 who are able to get to the respective
vaccination centres in record ti me, so to speak, who
are in close proximity to either, are contacted. And we
also facilitate anticipating persons with no- shows. We
book extra so that we have effectively overbooked in anticipation that there will be circums tances that will
arise where per sons cannot show.

Yes.

SUPPLEMENTARIES

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: How many was the total
number of vaccines that have been discarded due to
not being used?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, I do not have that
specific number. But what I can say, I think [ INAUDIBLE] assist the Honourable Member. Bermuda has
less than 5 per cent that have been discarded either
because of the broken vials, [which] is the common reason. Reconstitution is sues also have come. However, internationally when it comes to immunisation
and vaccines internationally, the standard for wastage
is 4.8 per cent; Bermuda is at 4.6 per cent. The Speaker: Thank you. Supplementary?

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, at the end of the day, have there
been any vaccines that have not been used for that day and then discarded?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, I do not have the
specifics. But what I do have is , overall, since we have
commenced the vaccine (where we were at on the
11
th of January) there has been 4.6 per cent wastage
with respect to vaccines. Some of that would have
been because of, as I said the most common issue is
there are reconstitution issues or a broken vial or observations of some ty pe of fragments or so forth in the
vial. I nternationally the standard for waste is 4.8 per
cent, and Bermuda is under that.

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Minister, for
that answer. I would appreciate it if she could get back
to me for the exact answ er for the question.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Minister, good morning. I was just wondering,
given the urgency of getting as many people vaccinated as possible, whether there is any consideration to sending out, sort of last -minute digital social
media messages to attract people to come to the vari-ous vaccine locations toward the end of the day, unscheduled?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: I thank the Honourable Member
for that question.
She would probably appr eciate that it is critically important that we utilise the appointm ent schedule because once a vial has been opened, there is a
finite period of time in which it must be used.
And we are attempting not to have any wastage, which is why we do two things: ( 1) We operate a
standby list for persons, again who are in Phases 1
and 2 who can get to vaccination centres as quickly
as possible. (2) We generally overbook in anticipation
because things happen. People cannot make it for a
variety of reasons. And then w e overbook so that
those persons can be filled in.



Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Supplementary, anyone?
None?
That brings us to an end of the replies to written questions. We now go on to questions on the
Statements which were given this morning. We have roughly 41 minutes left. Of the Statements given this
morning, we have six questions from Members.
The first is from the Opposition Leader to the
Premier in reference to his Statement this morning on
the Economic Recovery Plan.
Mr. Opposition Leader, would you like to put
your question?
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you.
Supplementary, Opposition Leader?
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Well, he did not really answer my question, Mr. Speaker. I asked for what his top five priorities were in regard to the key initiatives.

[Pause]

Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Speaker, I will have to repeat
the answer which I gave to the Honourable Member,
Honourable Opposition Leader.
The Minister of Finance shall be, as detailed
in my Statement, shall be making a Statement and the tabling for the Honourable Members of the House and
members of the public the information which will detail
all 30 initiatives.

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Okay. Obviously, I am not
getting an answer.
I will move on to my next question.

Next question.
QUESTION 2: THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY
PLAN —IMPLEMENTATION

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: And that question is in regard to the Economic Recovery Project Management
Office. Has there been a budget allotment for this office, given that it has a prominent role in our develop-ment going forward?
Hon. E. David Burt: Yes.

SUPPLEMENTARIES
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: And how much has been
allotted for this office?

Supplementary? Yes.

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: And when does he expect
to have the office opened?

Hon. E. David Burt: The allotment will be contained
in this year’s budget, which was laid. I thi nk the Honourable Member will find out from the Cabinet Office line items. I am certain that it is for $1 million as the
provisional sum and which has been allocated, as the
intention is to have it up and running for the com-mencement of the fiscal year.

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: And how many employees
do you envision working in that office?

Hon. E. David Burt: The terms of which have been
laid out, which I had stated inside of my Statement,
cover the core competencies, Mr. Speaker. And so
the number of pers ons will be determined by the persons who can be found to ensure that they meet the
core competencies. But it would be anticipated to be, I
would say, between three and five.

Thank you.
Minister, go ahead.

Hon. Walter H. Roban: I believe I outlined t he phases
clearly, Mr. Speaker, as to what we are doing, on
pages 4 throughout. The first phase— and I will go
right to the Statement if the Member can refer. The
first phase would involve beginning public information.
And then we then will move to eliminat e certain types
of plastics after appropriate consultation. So it will be
a process of education, then have the elimination with
all phases, and also consultation. Education, consulta-tion and then elimination. That is the process we are
following.

These are just shor t questions.
Good morning, Minister. I just have a question
regarding the positions, the actual jobs within Human
Resources. Will there be any elimination of roles in
this consolidation?

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Unfortunatel y, MP Jackson, I
do not have the chart in front of me. But I can get that
information to you. I do not see any elimination of jobs
right now. But we can take a look at that.

And again I am not sure. I
would suspect some of these human resource departments are located right within existing departments for government. But if they are in any of these
sort of separat e satellite locations, will t here be a consolidation? Are there buildings that will be vacated in
order to rehouse in one central location?

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: The Government is always
looking [to improve] efficiency. And over time we will
take a look at those things.

Okay.
Minister, that is the end of the questions for
you.
The next Statement this morning which has
questions is for the Minister of Health.
Minister of Health, MP Dunkley would like to
put questions to you.
MP.

QUESTION 1: COVID -19 VACCINE —A PROGRESS
REPORT FOR BERMUDA

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
To the Mi nister of Health: Mini ster, in your
Statement on page 8, you gave an outline of the num-ber of vaccines that have arrived in Bermuda. And in
short, through the UK there are 39,250 through the
COVAX Facility. The first purchase was for 26,400. So
that leaves 65,600 in vaccines which will vaccinate
about 50 per cent of our population. Are there any
plans in place to access the remaining 20 per cent
that is required for herd immunity?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, just let me clarify
something for the Honourable Member. With res pect
to the COVAX Facility, yes, we have purchased 26,400. But we have not secured them yet. They have
not arrived. We are anticipating 25 [per cent] to 35 per
cent of those to arrive at the first quarter. And then at second quarter, the balance. But at this point a date
has not been provided. So all we do know for certain
is what has arrived on Island, which is the 39,250.
We are looking to see whether or not there
are other avenues. You will recall that the United Kingdom did indica te to us that they would be supplying that to us, to all the OTCs the same proportion as
to what they received of Pfizer for their population. So
we will continue our discussions with the United Kingdom through Public Health England to see if we can
secure further resources. We are hoping through this
process that we will be able to get COVAX very soon
as well. And we will continue to explore other procurement measures to ensure as best as we can to
reach herd immunity and have sufficient supply.
We are absolutely confident, and we have
previously indicated, Mr. Speaker, that for the number of persons of Bermuda who want a vaccine, they will
be able to acquire it.

Minister.

Hon. Kim N. Wil son: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
That matter is on public record. In fact, I think
it was the Honourable Member who asked me that
question previously when I spoke about it. I want to
say around 260. I do not know exactly off the top of
my head. But that question has been previously
asked. I can get that. I believe it is like 260, Mr.
Speaker, $260,000, excuse me.

Further supplementary or new question?

532 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, further supplementary, Mr. Speaker.
I do not recall that answer, but I will research
it as well.
Has there been any purchase cost for the
39,215 vaccines from the UK?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Likewise, Mr. Speaker, I have
responded to that question. But I thank the Honoura-ble Member for the edification of the public. There has
been no cost to Bermuda with respect to the provision of the Pfizer [vaccines] from the United Kingdom.
Bermuda has received those free of charge, no cost
associated.

Yes.

QUESTION 2: COVID -19 VACCINE —A PROGRESS
REPORT FOR BERMUDA

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: On page 10 of the Statement, the Honourable Minister in a paragraph says,
“Nowhere was this more evident than this past
Wednesday, when an excess of vaccine doses needed to be used immediately.” Mr. Speaker, my question to the Honourabl e Minister is, What caused the excess of vaccinations to be used immediately? And how much was the excess?

Minister.
Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, the issue concerning the excess, I believe th ere were 35 vials. And as I
have said previous ly, Mr. Speaker, once a vial has
been taken from the sub- zero temperatures, it has to
be used within five days. And there was a miscalculation with respect to how many vials were required for
this week. And whe n it was determined on Wednesday morning that certain vials had already been removed from the freezer and were already on refrigeration and had to be used [within] five days, we recognised that the end of those 35 vials or those five days
was going to be o n Wednesday.
So, what did we do? We had lemons , and we
made lemonade. We just sent out a mass —we contacted people. Persons came and showed up, and it
just showed the fact that both the Bermuda Hospitals
Board, as well as the Bermuda College and the vaccinators at both of those stations stepped up to t he
plate and worked enormously hard so that we could
ensure that those 35 vials did not go to waste.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary, Mr.
Speaker.

Yes. Put your supplementary.

SUPPLEMENT ARY
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, when are the vials removed from
cold storage? At the beginning of the week or at the
beginning of the day for usage?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Mr. Speaker, I do not have
those particulars. I believe it is at the beginning of the
week, but I will have to get that information. I do not
have that in front of me.

Thank you.
Honourable Minister, given that you are running a waitlist, if I understood you correctly, why would one go through a sort of email blast rather than go to
people who are already on the existing waitlist?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: That is a very good question
that the Honourable Member asked. We had 35 vials.
Each vial has between five and six doses. We did not want to have any wastage at the end of the day. So
there were quite a number of persons whom the 35
vials could have inocu lated.

Thank you.
Supplementary? No.
New question, MP Dunkley?

QUESTION 3: COVID -19 VACCINE —A PROGRESS
REPORT FOR BERMUDA

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker , a new
question.
Wednesday was the first day a plea was issued. Is it safe to assume that it was becaus e of the
large number that might not have been used at the end of the day? This is the first day we had a large
number such as this?

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: That is correct.

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
On page 1, the Minister mentions, I will just
quote it: “As a result, the Ministry of Public Works
compiled a list of shovel -ready projects that are executable within three months.” And then on page 3 at the end he mentions, “Although there are 43 individual
projects under the stimulus programme, we are sepa-rating them into multiple scopes . . . .” My question
then is, Is the intent to award a ll 43 of these different
projects within the three months that he specified on the first page?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Honourable Minister, thank you for your
presentation today tabling the Annual Report of the
Human Rights Commiss ion. My question is on the
third page of your Statement where you mention the
number of complaints, 128 complaints received in the
relevant period. And you identified the various
grounds of complaints by percentage, disability being 34 per cent. Given that the In ternational Women’s Day
is on Monday, could the Honourable Minister clarify
the percentage of complaints based on gender? Because it was not covered in your Statement.

Yes. I am just trying to get to—I
mean we know the percentage from your Statement.
Disability is 34 per cent, race 11 per cent. And gender
was not covered. And it does seem from this box here
that gender is 8 per cent?
Hon. Tinee Furbert: So, yes. Gender is 8 per cent.
But it does not specify male or female. It just speaks to sex.

Do your supplementary.
534 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report
B ermuda House of Assembly SUPPLEMENTARIES
Mr
. Scott Pearman: So, Honourable Minister, after
disability, if one includes gender and indeed pregnancy at 6 per cent, gender seems to be the number -two
for complaints after disability. So disability would be
34 per cent. And if one adds gender, sex and pregnancy together, that would appear to be 14 per cent of
complaints. So, 14 per cent of all complaints have
something to do with gender or pregnancy, and 34 per
cent have to do with disability. Is that your under-standing?
Hon. Tinee Furbert: Yes. That is correct.

Yes.
Hon. Tinee Furbert: And it speaks to . . . like you
said, [that] race and sex were identified as a ground of discrimination in six matters, those based on pregnancy and also place of origin and disability repre-sented in three of the cases, which I believe had
something to do with employment. So it was discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities and ser-vices, as well as an allegation of a failure to accommodate a disability.
Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Speaker, may I raise a point
of order?

I know what you are going to raise, I
am pretty sure. I am just trying to get a clarification myself. Before you go there, let me just address what
I think you are going to. The questions should have been related to
the Statement itself and not to the actual report. And when your line of questioning is basically referring to stuff that necessarily is not in the Statement when you
refer to pages 18 and 20, things of that nature, you are speaking specifically to the report itself. The repor t
was tabled today, and the fact that it was tabled means it can be taken up at a later date for a discus-sion if a Member so desires.
So, I would ask that you direct your questions
to the Statement itself. But if your concern is actually the report, then at some point you can make a motion
if you wish to actually debate the report.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I a m
grateful for the clarification.
However, the Statement at page 3 identifies
that 34 per cent of the claims were on the ground of
disability, by far and away the largest, triple that of
race, more than four times that of gender. So the sup-plementary question to the Honourable Minister is, What plans if any are in place to combat this —

Okay. If you refer to page 3, you are
fine, any from pages 1 to 7, you are fine. When you
start referring to pages 18 and 20, you are going beyond.
Mr
. Scott Pearman: I got it. I got, Mr. Speaker. I am
grateful for the direction. And I will stay in the lane of
the Statement.
But the question is still valid. Given that disability is 34 per cent, which is above and beyond, more
than triple race, more than four times gender, what plan if any does the Honourable Minister have in place in tandem with the HRC [Human Rights Commission] to combat that? That is the question.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
My second question is at page 5 of the
Statement, the penultimate paragraph. The Honourable Minister identifies that she has been “informed of
the Commission undertaking a full independent review of the Act . . . .” May I just clarify with the Honourable
Minister? So, it is the Commission that is going to be
undertaking the review of the Act rather than the Gov-ernment? Is that correct?
Hon. Tinee Furbert: Yes, Mr. Speaker. That is correct.

Yes. Premier.

Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am
having trouble starting my video , my sincere apologies.
Mr. Speaker, I would like today to extend my
sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family of the
late Dr. Faith Burgess Clarke, who passed away yes-terday. Dr. Faith Burgess Clarke was in her 93
rd year,
born of course in the Hamilton Parish, as some Mem-bers would refer to as God’s countr y. She was the
daughter of the late Charles and Sarah Agatha R ichardson Burgess , the wife of the late Bradford Clarke of
the Clarke Seto Shop family. Ms. Clarke was the
mother of six —Kyle Clarke, well known for annuals,
seniors, Christmas events; Charles Clarke, who is a
manager at the Transport Control Department, a lso a
former candidate for the Bermuda Progressive Labour
Party —

[Inaudible interjection]
Hon. E. David Burt: Ms. Cherie Whitter, the Deputy
Head of the Public Service, and someone who I know
has served many Members in this Chamber in one capacity or an other, Philip Clarke; and Craig Clarke,
who is a former Chairman of the Prison Officers Association.
Without question—
536 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Ms. Lovitta F. Foggo: Mr. Premier, will you associate
me, please?
Hon. E. David Burt: I will associate the entire House,
MP Foggo.

Mr. Premier!

Hon. E. David Burt: I will associate the entire House.
Dr. Faith Burgess Clarke was certainly a pioneer practitioner, chiropractor. And she was B ermuda’s first Black chiropractor in the work. And I want
ask the House to send a letter of condolences to her family.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to send condolences to the family of Ms. Cecily Louise Seaman, who passed away after 100 good years on this earth. She was a constituent of mine and affectionately referred to as Neighbourhood Watch, as her house was
right at the entrance to West Park Lane, and nothing
could come or go without Ms. Seaman taking notes of
what was taking place. My thoughts and prayers are
certainly with her daughters, Dawn and Shirlene, and
her grandchildren, Stacey, Kyla, Micha and Justin. And I would certainly like to associate MP Simmons -
Wade with condolences that are sent, as I know MP Simmons -Wade was at her service.

[Inaudible interjection]

Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Speaker, I would also like to
associate myself —

You have about a half a minute left. Go
ahead.

Hon. E. David Burt: I would like to as sociate myself
with condolences that were given by the Honourable
Member Kim Swan on February 19
th to the family of
Vernal Burns, to certainly his wife, Peggy, and children David, Zeena, Joanne and Dawn, and to their
entire family, who are also my family. I just want to
ensure that we were laying in this House the thoughts
and prayers toward the family during this time of
mourning.
And, Mr. Speaker, if I do have time, I would
like to ask the House to send a letter of congratula-tions to Mr . Allan Trew on hi s well- deserved retirement from 42 years of dedicated service to the Fairmont Hotels and the Hamilton Princess at Beachfront.
There is no question that he has been an ambassador
for Bermuda, an ever -present force within the tourism
and hospitality industry . And I want to thank him for his immense contributions to hospitality in Bermuda as he ends his career.

Good morning, all.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to have congratulations to
sent out from this House to two young outstanding
persons I am very familiar with. The first one is Mr.
Dequan Trott, who attends the CedarBridge Academy. He is the s on of Dion and Thelma Trott. Dequan was
recently appointed the school’s Head Boy. Some may already know Dequan as Bermuda’s Village Town
Crier. He is a young man of many talents; I see greater things in his future.
Mr. Speaker, the second outstanding youn g
person I wish to ask that congratulations be sent to—
but first let me declare my interest —is Cimeon Tyrrell,
who attends the Berkeley Institute. She is the daughter of Craig and Simmonnette Tyrrell. Cimeo n has
consistently gained principal honours and ag ain also
in the first and second quarter of this school year.
Cimeon is also a talented dancer with United Dance
Productions.
Mr. Speaker, I mention these two outstanding
young persons to assure Bermuda that our future is in
good hands. Thank you very muc h, Mr. Speaker.

Deputy Speaker, you have your thr ee
minutes.
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank y ou, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated
with the remarks concerning Ms. Faith Burgess Clarke
on her passing.
Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to send condolences to the family of Ms. Jeannie Greaves Caisey,
who passed away last week. Ms. Caisey, a staunch
member of the St. John AME Church, was a very jovial and loving person. She certainly will be sorely
missed by her husband Gilbert Caisey —and the entire
family, her sister Janet, Janet and Winters Burgess,
and the rest of the family.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to send condolences to the family of Ms. Sylvia Davis. She passed last week also, a constituent of Winton Hill in Hamilton Parish. She will be sorely missed by her children an d
the entire family. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Sounds like Minister Ming. Minister,
you have your three minute s.
Hon. Renee Ming: Thank you.
Good morning, Mr. Speaker. I would like to
extend condolences right now to the family of Mr. Yusaff Pitt from St. George’s, a well -known football
player, a Corporation of St. George’s worker and [he
was] generally just well known in our community. He
has been overseas for the last two years, but he will
be buried in Bermuda tomorrow.
And also to the family of Beatrice Hayward,
also from St. George’s, just letting her daughter Sandra and her son Stevie, as we call him, know that they are in our thoughts and prayers at this time. Please
associate MP Foggo with those comments as well.
And next one is a congratulatory, Mr. Speaker. I am congratulating Philip Anderson, Jr . Yes, he is
a relative of mine. He became a certified Rolex
watchmaker last week, finally passed all his [exams], stuck to the wicket and the runs have come. And we
are proud of the achievement that he has found.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

The Spea ker: You are using the cricket term there,
Member.
Would any other Member like to make a contribution at t his time?

Thank you.
Mr. S peaker, I would like to send condolences
to the Wilkie family on the passing of their mother, Joan Wilkie. So there are children, Annabella and
Bruce Wilkie. And I remember Joan, and she was in her mid- 90s the last time that we spoke. And she was
adamant t hat one of our major hurricanes that we had,
there were quite a few roof shingles, Bermuda stone
roof shing les had been blown off of many houses. And
so we were all trying to find supplies.
And there had been a thought out there in the
community that we w ould import [something] like
Bermuda slate. And I can remember Mrs. Wilkie calling me up, saying that she r eally wanted to have Bermuda slate. She would do anything, pay more for
some local stone. And so I have always remembered
that conversation and that time. And she did get the
local stone, which was a good- news story. But we did
share some happy conversatio ns. And I certainly send
my heartfelt condolences to her children Annabella and Bruce Wilkie and Bruce’s wife, Diane.
Thank you.

The Opposition Leader, I hear your
voice. You have your three minutes.

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
First of all, I would like to congratulate the new
Acting Financial Secretary, Ms. Cheryl -Ann Lister. I
think she is well qualified for the post. I found out about it last night. And I have to admit that I was very
pleased that she has the role because I know that she
is well qualified and will do a sterling job in that position. And I feel proud for her and her achievements.
And I have no doubt that she will serve us well.
I would like to also associate my comments to
Allan Trew. He and I went to school together in Canada, and he started his tourism [career] in Canada. And
he has been a true tourism ambass ador and has
served this country well and deserves a happy retirement.
I would like to associate myself with the sad
remarks in regard to Jean Greav es Caisey. I have
known Jean all of my life. I remember as a young boy
she was in and out of my grandparent s’ home. And
she was always loving and jovial. And one could never, ever forget her broad smile.
538 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly I would like to also associate myself with [the
remarks regarding] Mrs. Clarke. I am sure that the
family are going through a challenging time, and I just
want them to know that they are not going through it
alone. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

MP Furbert, yes. Minister Furbert, you
have your three minutes.

Hon. Tinee Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will
not take all three minutes. But I do want to get the
House to send condolences to the family of Mr. Glen
Outerbridge, who is actually being funeralised today.
And his mother just recently was funeralised. She was deceased in December. But just wanting to send con-dolences out to the family of the Outerbridges. It has
been a tough time for them here lately. And we want
them to know that our tho ughts and prayers are with
them. I went to school with his son, Tajmal.
They have a pretty big family, with [siblings]
Gerald, Hubert, Shane, Donna and Quinn. So we are just sending our condolences out to the Outerbridge
family, because Glen is surely goi ng to be a miss, particularly in the Hamilton Parish and Bailey’s Bay area.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Yes. I am going to need it.
Mr. Speaker, today I want to give tribute to a
great woman, a lady who lived to be 101 years old. She was a staunch PLP supporter. And at age 100
years old, she was able to wal k to the polling station
. . . well, she [was driven ther e] and then walked in to
the polling station –to vote for her candidate who is
now MP Vance Campbell. She was a lady who was not only a staunch PLP supporter, but a staunch St.
George’s supporter. A lady who if you crossed her the
wrong way, you would get cut down in many ways verbally, but in a jovial way. A lady who up to last year
always stopped me and made sure my shoes were polished before I came to . . . well, while we were at
virtual Parliament —before we had virtual and worked
in Parliament —

The Spe aker: I was going to ask you about that one,
yes. Before we had virtual.

She was a staunch listener
of your weekly show called the House of Assembly,
Mr. Speaker. And the lady I am speaking of is someone cal led Ms. Phyllis Wade. Anyone who knew her
knew she was the life of the party right up to the last
moment. And on behalf of the people of Devonshire
where she spent the last 25 years of her life, we just
want to give tribute to her, and we will miss her and her ways.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

I would just like to associate
myself with the comments of MP Famous. Ms. Wade,
when I canvassed her prior to the elec tion, she gave
me great motivation. She asked me, You’re a PLP
candidate, Mr. Campbell? She held up my picture,
and she kissed it. And that gave me great m otivation
to press on for the remainder of that day and the time leading up to the election. So I def initely want to associate myself with the comments of MP Famous.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.



Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Thank you, MP Campbell.
Does any other Member wish to make a contribution at this time?
Any other Member?
No other Member. We will bring this portion of
the Orders to a close and move on to the next item.

MATTERS OF PRIVILEGE

There is one Bill to be introduced this
morning, and that is in the name of the Minister of Education.
Minister.

FIRST READING

EDUCATION AMENDMENT ACT 2021

Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I am introducing the following Bill for its first reading so that it may
be placed on the Order Paper for the next day of
meeting : Education Amendment Act 2021.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The first Order is the Reply to the
Budget, and I am going to ask with the indulgence of
the House, in that it is now 12:15, we would have broken for lunch at 12:30. I am going to ask that we add
on an extra 15 minutes and break at 12:15, return at
2:00 so that the Reply to the Budget can be given and then we will go straight into the debate.
Mr. Premier, would you like to move us to
lunch?
Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Speaker, I move that the
Honourable House do now adjourn until 2:00 pm.

The Spea ker: Members, the House now stands adjourned until 2:00 pm.

[Gavel]

Proceedings suspended at 12:15 pm

Proceedings resumed at 2:00 pm

[Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair]

Good afternoon, Members. It is now
2:00 pm. We can r esume the afternoon session.
We have now been through sort of the preliminary business of the day and we are going to start the Orders of the Day with the consideration of the motion
for the approval of the Estimates of Revenues and
Expenditures for the year 2021/22, together with the Budget Statement in support thereof.
The Minister presented the budget last week,
and we will start today with the Reply from the Shad-ow Minister, the Opposition Leader, th e Honourable
Cole Simons. And then, once he has compl eted, we
will start the open economic debate on the budget.
Members, let me just do a little housekeeping.
Because the Ministers’ presentation of the budget was
carried live on CITV and on Facebook, the same will
be done again this time for the Shadow Mi nister.
We ask all Members to ensure that their microphones are off and that there is an open micro-phone only for the Shadow Minister when he does his
presentation because any little sound will be picke d
up on the CITV, Facebook, and we need to make sure
that we can control all unnecessary background noises.
As soon as the Minister opens up that will
take us into debate, and the Shadow Minister’s presentation.

MOTION

APPROVAL OF THE ESTIMATES OF REV ENUE
AND EXPENDITURE FOR THE YEAR 2019/20

540 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Curti s L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I move that
the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the
year 2021/22 be approved.

Thank you.
Shadow Minister, Opposition Leader, are you
ready to deliver your Reply to the Budget today?
You have the floor, sir. All of our microphones
will be muted during your presentation.

THE OPPOSITION’S REPLY TO THE
BUDGET STATEMENT 2021/22

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, without a
doubt, 2020 will forever be remembered as the year
that the COVID -19 pandemic struck the world, and
without warning, caused it to go into a free fall. It also
helped to reset the dial for new global protocols.
We began the year with the presumption of
living our lives in the normal manner; when suddenly, the world was abruptly plunged i nto a global pandemic. We were mandated to shelter in place, work remotely in teams, zoom into meetings, study and worship online, purchase groceries online or on designated shopping days, and spend more time with our families. Throughout riots and demonst rations of civil unrest around the globe, our new reality now includes social distancing, washing our hands with increasing
regularity and compulsory wearing of masks in public
places.
Mr. Speaker, on the economic front, the societal disruption in Bermuda has been grave. Let’s face
it. We were just not prepared for this type of catastrophic event. It was a shock to our economy. It was
a stress test that revealed that Bermuda’s fiscal management under the Progressive Labour Party Government, was seriously lacking.
While Bermuda has a great history of managing our way through disasters like hurricanes, the
pandemic proved to be more than overwhelming. We
do not have to look far to find that many of our sisters,
brothers, mothers, fathers, aunts, and uncles hav e
lost, or are losing, their jobs. And we cannot stand idly by. We must do whatever we can, to support these families, both economically and socially. On this 21
square mile island, we are literally our brother’s keep-er.
Mr. Speaker, 100- year-old business institutions have closed. Restaurants and popular retail stores have shut their doors. And major sporting events were cancelled. Our tourism and trave l industries are decimated, resulting in the closure of some hotels, guest houses, and the very dramatic r ise in
unemployment across all sectors. This bleak economic picture will continue until we have COVID -19 under
control. The One Bermuda Alliance believes that a
healthy population is needed to support the development of a healthy economy. In addition, a ro bust na-tional recovery plan must be crafted to guide Bermuda into an economic renaissance.
Mr. Speaker, we also believe that this economic shock will provide opportunities for bold new
initiatives, requiring us to revisit tried and proven pro-grammes, which deserve our immediate attention
without political bias. We must examine new ways to
work together towards a common end as, collectively,
we chart our way through the path of economic recovery and rehabilitation. Bermuda is small and agile enough to do it.
Mr. Speaker, Bermuda needs an economic
recovery plan which is more than aspirational. The
current budget presents details on the principles and
aspir ation of a plan, but unfortunately, it has not presented measurable milestones to define Bermuda’s road map to economic recovery.
Mr. Speaker, we must rebuild a vibrant economy, an economy where jobs are created with a focus
on equity, diversity, fair trade, and real opportunities
for Bermudians. We must find investors to support small businesses and our local economy, and we all
must buy Bermuda.
This rebuilding process should be supported
by a realistic blueprint, or an economic recovery plan,
a recovery plan that is workable and addresses Bermuda’s fiscal framework, and infrastructure invest-ment strategies. We must develop a bold prospectus
for the country which will be attractive to potential investors. One that will build trust and a real bond with
our business community, through the deployment of
taxes and business support; through the prioritisation and delivery of green investments; through strategic investments in tourism and hospitality, the arts and
creative sectors; seniors’ care; the philanthropi c sector, and let’s not forget, the critical support of our students.
As a result of COVID -19, changes have taken
place in the workplace. We must identify new skills training for the labour market, apprenticeships and job
guarantee programmes, all of whic h will promote an
economic framework that will value and support all of
Bermuda’s assets.
Mr. Speaker, for 2021 and beyond, there is a
view that there will be a better sense of normalcy by
the end of the year. It is thought that this will be realised through the fields of medicine and health sciences. As we are nearing the one- year anniversary since
of the pandemic began, we can now see that globally, there have been improvements in the management of the risks associated with the virus and its effects. As
global citizens, we learned to better manage and live
with COVID -19, much like the flu and the AIDS virus,
which unfortunately, have not been eliminated.
There is now a sense of optimism, that people
should be able to go about their daily lives with the
post COVID -19 constraints, and that our economies
should be poised to experience a reboot, to more self -
sustaining levels.


Bermuda House of Assembly This view was recently endorsed by The
[Right] Hon. Matt Hancock, the U.K. [Secretary of
State for] Health [and Social Care]. According to the
BBC, Mr. Hancock commented that, with the adoption of vaccines and treatments, by the end of the y ear, it
could mean that COVID -19 will be an illness that we
live with “like we do the flu.”
He went on to say that he hoped that
new drugs would be i ntroduced by the end of
2021, which could make COVID -19 a “treatable disease” and that the drugs, and vacc ines
represent "our way out to freedom” and, further, that new treatments and new antibody
treatments are needed for a small number
who may not be protected by vaccines.
Mr. Speaker, living with COVID -19 safely
would also depend on the vaccines to:
• reduce the numbers admitted to hospital;
• reduce the number of deaths; and
• reduce the transmission of the Virus.
According to the International Monetary Fund
(“IMF”) [World Economic Outlook], dated October
2020: ‘A Long and Difficult Ascent’, “The global economy i s climbing out from the depths to which it had
plummeted during the . . . Lockdown in April.” However, with the pandemic continuing to spread, many countries have slowed their reopening, and some are
reinstating partial lockdowns to protect their vulnerable populations.

GLOBAL GROWTH OUTLOOK AND RISKS

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: According to the IMF,
“Global growth was projected to be 4.4 percent in
2020, ” which is a less severe contraction than was
forecast in June 2020. This revision reflects a better -
than expected second quarter GDP result, “mostly in
advanced economies, where activity began to improve
sooner than expected, after lockdowns were scaled
back in May and June, as well as indicators of a
stronger recovery in the third quarter.
Global growth is projected at [5.2] per cent in
2021, a little lower than in the June 2020 WEO [ World
Economic Outlook ] Update , rejecting the more moderate projected downturn for 2020 and consistent with
expectations of persistent social distancing. Following
the contracti on in 2020 and recovery in 2021, the level
of global GDP in 2021 is expected to be a modest 0.6 per cent above that of 2019.
The growth pr ojections imply [that there are]
wide negative output gaps and elevated unemployment rates this year [and well into] 202[2], across both
advanced and emerging market economies.”

IMPACT OF THE U.S. ECONOMY

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, a leading
economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics stated that,
like many advanced G20 countries, there have been measurable advances in the management, containment, and acceptance of COVID -19 as a way of life,
as evidenced by the US economy, which is now showing the gree n shoots of recovery.
There is also real evidence to indicate that
cases of COVID -19 are declining, and hospitalisati ons
are slowing down at a steady rate. These reductions are reportedly due to either prior infections, increased
vaccinations, and the incr eased efforts to achieve
herd immunity. As a result, there is a real sense amongst many economists that when it comes to
COVID -19, the US is in the beginning stages of a sustained and permanent retreat, and that its economy is
beginning to slowly reopen.
It is further thought that the US Congress may
pass a relief bill worth approximately $1.7 trillion dollars by the end of March 2021. This economic safety
net will result in an extension of the country’s enhanced unemployment benefits and provide a moratorium for evictions and foreclosures until September
2021. The US media has also indicated that there will be payments of $1,400 to most households.
Mr. Speaker, with this type of economic support and fiscal stimulus, economists agree that normal
life in the US will resume for the most part by the middle of this year. It is expected that as COVID -19 infections subside, and restrictions are lifted, consumer
confidence will increase along with the corresponding increase in consumer spending, especially within th e
various service sectors.
They went on to indicate, that by March 2021,
US households will have accumulated savings balances of some $2 trillion dollars, which is almost 10 per cent of the GDP since February 2020. This is
due largely to the savings generated by the enforced
cutbacks on spending on discretionary services, and
stimulus payments to households. Pent -up dema nd
for leisure, recreation, entertainment, and travel -
related services are also forecast to reach unprecedented levels.
Economists further believe that the US dollar
is at one of its lowest levels from a trading perspective, and that a US economic rebound is inevitable,
and capital will head back to the US as COVID -19
fades. We believe that this positive outlook will pro-vide invaluable benefit s to Bermuda as the US is our
largest trading partner.

THE EU CHALLENGES

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, in t he 2013
report by the European Parliament’s Directorate General for Internal Policies, entitled “European initiatives
on eliminating tax hav ens and offshore financial
transactions and the impact of these constructions on the Union's own resources and budget,” they reviewed
the impact of tax havens, secrecy jurisdictions, and
similar structures on the EU. The report concludes
that the availabil ity of these structures constrains the
542 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly EU budget and undermines the fiscal recovery of EU
member States. They distor t markets by conferring
advantages on large companies that engage in trans-fer pricing.
The report notes that “the shadow economy in
the [EU] is estimated to amount to some [€]2 trillion,
and that tax evasion is estimated to be around €1 tril-lion annually.” It further notes that “recent reports suggest that tens of billions of euros are held offshore, are unreported, and untaxed.”
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe recently commented that “Council of Europe
member States lose billions every year due to tax
avoidance, tax evasion and tax fraud that are facilitated by the offshore financial systems, including tax havens and secrec y jurisdictions. This massive tax
cheating by wealthy individuals and enterprises not
only penalises ordinary tax -payers, public finances
and social spending, but also threatens good governance, macroeconomic stability and social cohesion.”
The report takes the view that “Offshore financial centres are widely perceived to have contributed to the financial crisis that emerged in 2007. The
holding of vast funds in secretive offshore centres enables financial institutions to hide vital information
from governments, regulators, ratings agencies, and
the public. This means that they escape proper regulation and public scrutiny. This enables them to take greater risks than would be possible with full transparency, and governments, regulators, ratings agencies,
and investors lack the level of information required to
make informed decisions. In turn, this leads to financial insta bility, with taxpayers having to cover the cost
of rectifying the resulting problems.”
They also believe that the use of tax havens
for transfer pricing and tax evasion has a negative
impact on EU revenues by reducing the gross national income (“GNI”) of m ember States. Moreover, lower tax
revenues are likely to have a negative impact on the willingness of member States to increase or maintain
their contributions to the EU. “Tax havens facilitate the
activities of tax evaders and criminal organisations.
Comb ating these activities consumes resources that
could otherwise be used for productive investments.
The ability to engage in transfer pricing gives large
corporations a significant advantage over smaller
companies, which undermines the EU efforts to develop the small and medium enterprise sectors and
may constrain employment creation.”
Mr. Speaker, in light of the above, Bermuda is
unfairly deemed to be on the EU’s blacklist. Consequently, despite our continued engagement with the
Commission and the Code of Conduct Group and its
constructive and cordial relationships with its relevant
officials, in principle, nothing really has changed for
Bermu da since 2013.
We continue to have an uphill battle when
conducting business in the EU especially after Brexit .
The fact, Mr. Speaker, is that Bermuda has no heav-yweight friends or influencers who can successfully
lobby on our behalf at the national and in ternational
level.
If the EU takes the view that tax havens have
a negative impact on EU revenues by reducing gross
national income of its member States, Bermuda will
be looked upon with suspicion, and will be challenged
to conduct real business in the EU. They will continue
to place hurdles in our economic lanes, given their perception of tax havens and their impact on the EU
States. In fact, as recently as last month, European
Union politicians were calling for any jurisdiction with a
zero per cent tax rate on corporate profits, including
Bermuda, to be included on the EU list of noncooperative jurisdictions. What mak es this even more
challenging, as our Finance Minister has indicated, is that the body that makes the list has given no indica-tion of changes in the listing criteria.
Mr. Speaker, Bermuda should form a strategic
alliance with members listed on the EU’s blacklist, they should form an alliance with influential lobbyists,
NGO’s and other influencers that work within the European Parliament and it s States. In so doing, this
alliance could leverage its collective economic power, global influence and contributions to the international
financial markets.

BERMUDA’S 2021/22 ECONOMY AND BUDGET

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, many Bermuda residents see this budget as very aspirational, and
one that lacks detail. It provides very little hope and is
likely the mos t nonspecific budget statement ever presented. It is as though the onset of the COVID -19
pandemic was vi ewed as a get -out-of-jail-free card to
dismiss the economic challenges facing Bermuda that
were in existence, prior to the pandemic.
Mr. Speaker, the purpose of the budget
statement is to give the public two specific things: 1) A
report and analysis of the Government’s finances for
the past fiscal year within the context of the overarching external conditions and Government objectives
and 2) to provide th e Government’s plans for the
country for the next fiscal year, and how those plans will affect Government’s revenues, expenditures and balance sheet.
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance has
failed to deliver either one of these objectives in any kind of r obust or detailed fashion. Instead, he has
merely listed off a number of issues facing the country
witho ut any specific plan as to how to meet those
challenges. There is virtually no analysis or context,
other than COVID -19, of Government’s financial performance.
What has been produced is a list of principles,
but even this was poorly executed because the li st is
only mixture of principles and objectives, for example:
• combating COVID -19 is an objective
• reducing the cost of living is an objective


Bermuda House of Assembly • fairness and equity are principles
• fiscal prudence is a principle
Mr. Speaker, The COVID -19 pandemic transcends nat ional borders through aviation, ground
transportation and shipping. Its social and economic
impact is the same. As we have all seen, as the
COVID -19 num bers spike, the health of our population
becomes more challenged. As populations isolate,
and quarantines increase, economic confidence de-clines. Business sales decline, unemployment increases , furloughs increase, homes are lost, loans
become unserviceable, and the contraction of various businesses and economies continues. This is the story around the world.
From a health perspective, Bermuda’s recovery is admirable, and the Bermuda Government
should be commended for the work they have done,
and the work they continue to do. In fact, the PanAmerican Health Organization and the US Centers for
Disease Control, at one point, raised the Island’s
country status from clusters of COVID -19 cases to
“sporadic cases ,” in recognition of the success that
our country has achieved in containing the pandemic.
In light of this, all Bermudians must continue
to make their pers onal contribution if we are to minimise the health devastation left in the wake of COVID -
19. These mitigation measures include social distancing, self -isolation, quarantining when warranted, using
personal protective equipment, and adhering to the
standards prescribed by the World Health Organization, POCA, the US Centers for Disease Control and
other agencies. As a well -known Fiscal Responsibility
Panel economist said, if you have a healthy and productive population, you will also have a more produc-tive ec onomy.
Mr. Speaker, despite the above, the fact still
remains, that Bermuda’s economy continues to con-tract, given that our 2020 Gross Domestic Product is
projected to fall [between] 7 per cent to 9 per cent.
Mr. Speaker, what the reduction in GDP
means for Bermuda is more job [losses] for Bermudians, especially small businesses, which play a vital
role in Bermuda’s economic engine;
In the Retail Sector, businesses such as
beauty salons, fitness related facilities and businesses
within the hospitality secto r will continue to bear the
brunt of job losses. Apparel stores, and service stations will also continue to decline. These businesses
face the threat of closure due to the added COVID -19
restrictions placed on them. They will likely not be able to pay thei r overhead costs, rents, and other expenses due to the dramatic decline in revenues.
Low wage earners who clean, prepare, and
serve food within the priv ate and public sectors are
also significantly impacted. They will experience the most job redundancies and will be hit with increasing
unemployment. For those who keep their jobs, they
likely will not have a wage increase for years or are faced with reduce d working hours. Tourism was catastrophically affected by
COVID -19. Our cruise ship industry has all but vanished with the related revenues down approximately
90 per cent for 2020.
The Construction Industry will continue to suffer, as Bermuda’s construction projects fell by
41.3 per cent for the first six months of the fiscal year
2020/21, and there is no re lief on the horizon.
Despite this status, economically Bermuda
must place its economy on a path of higher productivity and growth, while ensuring that b enefits are shared
evenly, and that our debt is manageable. This is not
an easy task, as other countries find it difficult to have
trade- offs between implementing measures to support
economic expansion, and avoiding a further build- up
of debt.
There are th ose who believe that investments
in health, education, and high- return infrastructure
projects, will als o help move the economy forward to a
green economy. Research spending can facilitate innovation and technology production, which are the
primary drivers of long- term productivity growth. Others believe that we cannot spend or grow our economy without exten ding our workforce or population.
Mr. Speaker, we should also cooperate with
other countries and regulators on the design of international corporate tax ation to respond to the challenges of the digital economy.
With the continued uncharted path of the pandemic, Bermuda must ensure that our healthcare [systems] can continue to cope with its demands. This
means that we should continue to secure adequate
resources, prioritise healthcare spending as needed,
including testing; contact tracing; personal protectiv e
equipment; life- saving equipment, such as ventilators;
and facilities, such as emergency rooms, intensive care units, and isolation wards.
Considering the above, Bermuda must continue the fight to contain the pandemic and [this] can
be implemented by adopting measures to lower its
transmission and set the stage for an eventual economic recovery due to mobility constraints. We should
also limit the damage by supporting earnings losses
for affected people and firms. Retraining and reskilling
of Bermudians s hould continue to the extent that it is
feasible, so that workers can look for jobs in other
sectors.
As this transition may take some time, displaced w orkers will need extended income support as
they retrain and search for jobs.
Mr. Speaker, we believe that as we reopen,
our Government must support the recovery by gradu-ally removing targeted support, facilitating the reallocation of workers and resources to sectors less affected by social distancing, and providing stimulus where needed, and to the extent p ossible. Some fiscal
resources freed from targeted support should be redeployed to public investment, including in renewable
energy, improving the effic iency of power transmis544 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly sion, and retrofitting buildings to reduce their carbon
footprint. Moreover, as l ifelines are unwound, social
spending should be expanded to protect the most vul-nerable, and where gaps exist in the safety net, authorities could enhance paid family and sick leave, expand eligibility for unemployment benefits, and
strengthen healthcare benefit coverage as needed.

CREATING A NIMBLE GOVERNMENT

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, as stated in
the SAGE Commission Report, when comparing t he
size of Bermuda’s Government with other jurisdictions, and when tracking its growth during the last 20
years, the SAGE Commission believed that Bermuda’s Government is disproportionately larger than it
needs to be to conduct its business and to deliver necessary services to taxpayers.
Currently, there are 36 Members of the House
of Assembly, 11 Senators, 12 Ministries, 72 Depart-ments, 13 Quasi Non- Governmental Organisations
(quangos), 16 related entities and approximately
5,070 employees. Additionally, a multi- layered management structure and excessive decentralisation has led to unnecessary red tape, poor communication, and delayed decision- making.
Bermuda also has a disproportionate number
of paid legislators when compared to many other countries.
As ou r elected and appointed representatives
address the Island’s economic challenges, the SAGE Commission believed that Bermuda had an opportunity to demonstrate their belief that the sacri fice needed
to regain Bermuda’s financial footing must be shared
by all .
Mr. Speaker, it is important to note that while
the SAGE Report was written seven years ago, its recommendations are as workable today as they were
when the report was first written. For example, the
Commission recommended that the cost of running
the Bermuda Legislature should be reduced by 15 per
cent.
In the first instance, the Commission recommended that the House of Assembly should be reduced from 36 to 30 seats. Secondly, they recommended that the size of the Cabinet should be reduced to a maximum o f 8 Ministers, including the
Premier. These reductions represent savings in salary
and benefits. The Premier can carry out the reduction
in the size of the Cabinet now.
Until both recommendations are implemented,
the SAGE Commission recommended that the Mi nisters and Members of the Legislature take an immedi-ate reduction in salary, equal to the reduction in salary
and wages of the Civil and Public Service.
As these cost savings do not e qual the targeted 15 per cent, the Commission recommended that
the rema ining areas of the Legislature’s budget should
be reduced to make up the difference, and/or make further reductions in the salary of the Ministers and Members of the Legislature.
Mr. Sp eaker, let us be clear, while some of
these recommendations have been actioned, we believe that these recommendations can serve to demonstrate to the Bermuda community, that our Parliamentarians are serious about addressing the chronic debt crisis and more over, and that leadership
should lead by example, starting at the top.
The Commission further recommended the
following reductions (and one increase) to the organisational structure of the Bermuda Government:
• Ministries: from 12 to a maximum of 8;
• Departments: from 72 to 52;
• Quangos: from 13 to 12; and
• Organisations where gov ernment has administrative responsibility: from 9 to 8.

RELIANCE ON THE ONE BERMUDA ALLIANCE
CAPITAL PROJECTS HELPS TO BOOST THE
CURRENT ECONOMY
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, over the past
three years, there has been a reliance on several
OBA proj ects to materially boost Bermuda’s GDP and
create jobs. Unfortunately, we have not seen any
meaningful action to manifest the promises made by
the PLP. The reality is that the promises made by the
PLP have been broken.
In its 2020 election platform, the PLP pledged
to “Target a return to a balanced budget within three
(3) fiscal years when tourism has fully recovered following the Pandemic.” They made repeated promises
to balance the pre- pandemic budget and have failed.
In fact, as recently as February 3 of this year in a television broadcast, the Minister of Finance indicated
that he hoped to have a balanced budget by 2023.
How exactly will this happen? Where is the detailed
Plan? Why sh ould we believe them this time?
Indeed, with the ongoing effects of COV ID-19,
and with no detailed plan to resurrect our economy, it
appears that Bermuda is destined to further increase the size of our national debt, which is well on its way
to almost $4 billion dollars. A debt of that size will undoubtedly cripple our abilit y to put money where it is
most needed, which is into social support networks,
into stopping violence, and into improving the
healthcare and the well -being of all Bermudians. Especially as debt servicing is costing us $127.8 million
per year.
Mr. Speaker, the One Bermuda Alliance
stands by its economic policies. We know that it suits
the naysayers to play down our achievements, but our
efforts were nothing short of an economic miracle! O n
our watch:
• world-class events came to the I sland, new
hotels and a new airport created wealth and
new jobs for Bermudians; and


Bermuda House of Assembly • the OBA attracted one billion dollars of inward
investment to Bermuda.
While those were some of the OBA’s accomplishments to make it to the headlines, the OBA did so much more.
Mr. Speaker, we creat ed the independent
Bermuda Tourism Authority (“BTA”), and under its
leadership, Bermuda had seen record tourism arrivals.
Now that it has been politicised, will we see t he same
level of success?
Recognising the need to bring more tourists to
Bermuda during the shoulder season, we worked with
the BTA to bring events such as the World Triathlon
Series to the Island.
We negotiated a deal to bring 12 cruise ships
to the Olde Towne of St. George’s, from 2017 to 2022.
Under the agreement with Norwegian Cruise Lines
(“NCL”), NCL agreed to bring two new catamaran fer-ries to the Island for a run from Dockyard to the East
End, along with a yearly investment of $150,000 by
NCL to sponsor tourism enhancement projects.
Mr. Speaker, on the OBA’s watch, we created
the Bermuda Business Development Agency (‘BDA”),
to help bring new businesses to Bermuda, and long
before the PLP, we were exploring the opportunities of outer space when we beg an discussions with NASA
over a more permanent facility on Cooper’s Island.
Further, we granted a 15 -year exclusive contract to
develop Bermuda’s satellite slot.
Aware of the need for sustainability and to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, it was the OB A who
started the process of getting a Solar Photovoltaic
Project on the “Finger” at the LF Wade International
Airport.
The small electric rental cars that we now see
on Bermuda’s roads today were a result of legislation that the OBA passed, allowing renta l minicars in Bermuda for the first time in our history. As a result, there
are now at least four car rental businesses, providing
safer transportation for visitors and jobs for Bermudians.

[CAROLINE ] BAY

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, Morgan’s
Point has taken a prominent place in this Budget
Statement and, consequently, I will share some history with the people of Bermuda on this matter.
Morgan’s Point was a poisoned chalice almost
from the start. How so? The ground was poisoned by the US Navy and the contract that was signed by the
previous PLP Government with Morgan’s Point Ltd.
was poisoned by the obligation to clean up the entire
site to a “Residential 1” standard, at Government’s and the Bermuda taxpayers’ cost.
As the project progressed, the developers
threatened to sue the then Government for $100 million dollars if they did not comply with the development agreement. Mr. Speaker, after long and difficult negotiations, Government agreed to clean up the sections of
the site where clean- up was possible and retain for
itself the areas where it was impossible. We did that at a cost of about $33 million dollars. Notwithstanding all of this, it was still a “Brownfield [Site]”, and as such,
investment funding would not be forthcoming without
Government ’s guarantee.
To lay the infrastructure for the long- term future of our tourism industr y, create opportunities for
local businesses and jobs for Bermudians, the decision was made to guarantee certain loans for the project. Unfortunately, the project failed . Nevertheless,
despite the negative result of this case, Government
guarantees are gen erally required from overseas financiers to finance major projects in Bermuda.
Mr. Speaker, the question is, What now?
The Government has had plenty of time to
formulate a plan for the future for Morgan’s Point.
What is the plan? We were hoping this would be articulated in this Budget Statement. I have to say that it is
disappointing not to see the plan in this statement.
While I am on the topic of Carolina [sic] Bay,
what happened with the Morgan’s Point liquidation?
What did the Government actually receiv e for the
$165 million dollars expended for the adoption of the
loans? Again, the Minister of Finance has been very thrifty with these details.

2019/20 BUSINESS CONFIDENCE

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, to contrast the
OBA’s accomplishments, under the PLP leadership
Bermuda has seen the lowest business confidence
levels ever. New and increased taxes have significantly impacted small Bermudian businesses, who can
least afford it, and we have seen the implosion of retail businesses as well as the loss of hundreds of jobs
in a sector, which was described by one Minister as ‘insignificant.’ It is important to note that none of these
casualties were as a result of COVID -19.
Agonisingly, we have seen Bermuda’s debt
rise by one billion dollars in 12 months, which is absolutely incredible.
Mr. Speaker, there has [also] been very little
progress on gaming, and an untendered deal for an
arbitration cent re, for which no financial details have
been provided.

GAMING

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, there has
been no mention of gaming in the 2021/22 Budget
Statement. In the past two or three years, the topic of
gaming has been very popular, as it is an amenity which can support our ever -evolving tourism industry.
We note in the budget, that there is a 125 per
cent increase in the Cabinet Office where the Governments gami ng infrastructure is managed. Is this
546 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly extra $21.69 million dollar allocation for the gaming
industry?
Mr. Speaker, the Gaming Commission has issued two provisional licen ces to two world- class resorts, and these resorts are unable to move forward
with their gaming offering because the proper legislative and operational framework is not in place. Moreover, the banking component of the structure has not
been resolved, even though we are making progr ess
in this space. Mr. Speaker, I have been advised that
the delay in gaming lies at the feet of the Premier, and that the banking matter can be resolved if the Premier
does what he is supposed to do.
Mr. Speaker, there are those who have vast
experience i n the gaming industry who believe that
gaming should be removed from the Premier and
Cabinet Office portfolio and transferred to the Ministry of Finance. Senior international bankers also have
indicated that they are not aware of any advanced
nation where gaming is under the control of, or under
the purview of a country’s head of state, i.e.; Premier,
Prime Minister or President.
In addition, there are stakeholders who believe that the overarching Gaming Commission legis-lation must be amended so that the Commission is independent of Government influence and interference. These should include the removal of the requirement that a Government representative sits on the Board of the Commission. In fact, it was noted that
the Gaming Commission should have the same type
of independence and autonomy as the Bermuda Monetary Au thority.
As most in our country are aware, the current
Government has indicated that operationally, Bermu-da will be progressing with a cashless gaming solution. What does a cashless gaming solut ion mean?
Are we talking about credit cards only? Are we talki ng
about crypt ocurrencies, like Bitcoin, Ethereum, or
Tether through blockchain solutions? Transparency is required as potential operators who are prepared to
invest in this industry are not clear on Government’s
cashless gaming direction. This matter must be resolved soon, especially as a new hotel will be launched before this summer. Considering the above,
we must get it right, as Government has a responsibility to fulfil its obligations as prescribed under the various hotel development agreements which are in place
in our tourism industry.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Bermuda’s International
Business sector has continued to tick over well despite COVID -19, and the debacle in travel. It has been
said that from chaos comes opportunities, and all this
chaos is having a major turn in the right direction for the global property and casualty insurance underwriting market. For the first time in 15 years, underwriting
rates are harde ning and rising. There is a significant
tailwind for our ABIR members. There was a similar
market which incentivised many international insurance and reinsurance company giants to flock to Bermuda years ago. As mentioned at the recent
Budget Breakfast by t he director of policy of ABIR,
their members contributed some $830,000,000 to renew Bermuda’s economy by way of contributions to
such areas as construction, travel, entertainment, and
housing, and other contributions. In addition, they
showcase the thought that of the 1, 756 total number
of employees, 72 per cent are B ermudian.
Mr. Speaker, new capital is coming into our
market. Many of Bermuda’s major carriers have already raised $12 billion dollars in new capital according to the Chairman and CEO of Arch Worldwide Re-insurance group. Most of this capital went to existi ng
companies, and approximately $2 billion dollars went
into new companies. With this infusion in existing and
new companies, Bermuda will see the multiplier effect.
However, while much needed c apital is coming to the
Island, the new landscape will not be similar to previous landscapes.
Companies are now outsourcing many of their
back office functions to jurisdictions outside of Bermu-da. IT servers have been relocated overseas. Em-ployees are work ing remotely from Canada, the UK,
the USA, and Europe. More and more administrative
work is being outsourced to more competitive jurisdictions, and business analytic models are being purchased off the shelves, thereby robbing our people of
job opportunities and employment.
Considering the above Mr. Speaker, our job
as Parliamentarians is to encourage such companies
to fill those positions locally. This can be accomplished by making the immigration process more accommodating, and by removing some of the bureaucratic red tape which stymies a productive and welcoming bus iness environment. We cannot afford to
lose this momentum, as it is the only tailwind that we currently have.
Mr. Speaker, we must encourage Government
to get out of the way and allow Bermuda to grow. In
2018, Bermuda hosted an event that has been referred to as the “ Davos of Ocean Science.” It is time
now that we consider hosting a similar Ocean Risk
Summit an event for climate change risk. In so doing,
Mr. Speaker, Bermuda can reposition hersel f to also
be the cent re of excellence for an international cli mate
change risk market.

DIGITAL COMMERCE

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, quite a lot is
also being said about tangible opportunities in the digital commerce arena in Bermuda, and the One
Bermuda Alliance supports this discussion.


Bermuda House of Assembly With Bermuda’s leg islative, regulatory and
telecommunications frameworks and digital communications infrastructure, we stand ready to capitalise on
this emerging and growing industry. We expect the
provision of r obust training and internship programmes, and the creation of new jobs for Bermudians.
In addition, from a taxation perspective, the
digital sector will benefit from the traditional tax
schemes currently in place in Bermuda, such as company taxes, payroll taxes and land taxes. The Gov-ernment should consider further examination of a negotiated value added tax for the privilege of booking
their local and global Internet business earnings from
Bermuda. This approach is not new, and the industry
is familiar wit h it.
According to the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development, in the absence of a
new international rule book, several member govern-ments are planning their own digital service taxes.
They are taking this action because of growing public pressure on multinationals, like Google, Facebook,
and Amazon, to pay their share under international tax
rules after the COVID -19 strained national budgets.

BASE RATES

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, t he Government’s recent Throne Speech indicated t hat the Legislature will be invited to consider Bills to reform banking laws and regulations, and to establish a Bermuda base interest rate.
It goes on to say, that the reform of banking
laws will increase competition in this sector, introduce new classes of banks to boost the economy, and
harmonise the bank bas e rate, while at the same time
working with the banks to reduce the interest rates charged on mortgages.
Mr. Speaker, here I will declare my interest. I
am a banker. Mr. Speaker, before the Governmen t
embarks on this journey, may I suggest this Govern-ment build consensus with the Bermuda Banking Association, and that it also secures the blessings and support of all its members. I am saying this because of the unintended consequences.
The reality is th at there are two large international banks on this Island , which likely provides approximately 65 per cent to 70 per cent of Bermuda’s
loans and mortgages. If they are not on board with Government’s proposals, and if the prescribed base rate impacts their earnings and return on assets, then
these same banks will stealthily exercise their option,
and will quietly and drastically reduce their mortgage and loan portfolio footprint in Bermuda. They can redeploy their assets, and the availability of loans and
mortgages to their branches, or subsidiaries in other jurisdictions.
In simple terms, if we do not get this right, the
availability of mortgages and loans to Bermudians will decrease exponentially, and the banks’ assets will be
used to support the rapid grow th of their mortgage
and loan footprints in other jurisdi ctions such as Cayman, the Bahamas, BVI, Jersey and Guernsey, the
US, and the UK. Mr. Speaker, I reiterate, we must be aware of the unintended consequences, as this move
may come back to bite us.

IMMIGRATION

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Immigration reform has
been a thorny and very emotional issue for successive
governments of Bermuda and her people. It has been
a political football and, with the aid of successive PLP
Governments, this issue has also stoked civil unrest.
But despite the above, the Progressive Labour Party has begun to make progress in this space. Their Government is just beginning to recognise that
Bermuda’s workforce and population must expand.
Mr. Speaker, the PLP Government is finally accepting
the fact that a good Immigration policy is a good eco-nomic policy.
Two weeks ago, the Minister of Immigration
introduced the Economic Investment Certificate and
the Residential Certificate Policy which enables investors to apply for the right to live in Bermuda indefinitely
on the condition that they invest a minimum of $2.5
million dollars into the economic well -being of Bermuda which will add value to our economy. Mr. Speaker,
Bermuda also has approved applications for 400 digital nomads, who are all welcome, but how many have
actually moved to Bermuda under this residential program?
For years, the One Bermuda Alliance tried to
revise the current Immigration Act, but we could not
do so because of the civil unrest in our community,
and today the Progressive Labour Party is finally seeing the light. A good immigration policy is a good economic policy.
We are seeing the promotion of several reforms that the One Bermuda Alliance recommended,
especially with mixed status families, as well as the
idea of commercial immigration, which was initially
presented by the former OBA Immigration Minister, the Honourable Michael Fahy, JP, MP.
Quite frankly Mr. Speaker, we also know that
a full review of the Immigration Act of 1956 is a must.
It is draconian, date d, and well over sixty years old. Its
original purposes and features are no longer relevant
to the Bermuda we enjoy today. It just does not sup-port our 21
st century economy with all its nuances and
challenges.
Considering the above, our current Government must grab the proverbial nettle, stop the polit ical
sophistry, and embark upon an immigration review
which will help to expand Bermuda’s workforce, and in turn will form the foundation for Bermuda’s economic
growth. It will also create a pathway to residency and
548 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly citizenship, while at the same time prot ect the interests of Bermudians and Bermudian jobs.
Based on Ruchir Sharma’s The Ten Rules of
Successful Nations , increasing the population has
accounted for roughly half of economic growth and
that if the pop ulation is shrinking, it is close to impossible to generate strong economic growth. As the European Commission stated in 2005, “Never in history has there been economic growth without population
growth.”
Mr. Speaker, for the edification [of] our community, let me explain why the expansion of our workforce is so crucial.
• Debt, debt service and deficit: More working people in Bermuda means greater payroll tax
collection and more local consumption which
increases customs duty. A greater residential
population creates a multiplier effect on our
two biggest buckets of tax.
• Healthcare costs: Guest workers are generally
younger and healthier than our average resident. Increasing the number of guest workers
massively improves the sustainability of our
healthcare sys tem.
• Ageing population: Increasing working age
population with all else staying the same, directly reduces our maintenance ratio. Total
healthcare costs and ageing population are
closely intertwined.
• Global compliance requirements: Many companies are going to have to do more to justify
their presence in Bermuda under the new tax
regimes. We are competing with other juris-dictions on this front and must present a wel-coming attitude.
• Narrow economy: More working age people
on Island decreases the tax load per person.
Mr. Speaker, keeping it real, our economy,
social wellness and security are inextricably linked
with immigration, more so than nearly any other juris-diction. We are a service economy with no physical
exports and only two pillar industries, one of w hich
produces much of our foreign exc hange, employment,
and tax revenues , i.e., international business. It is
time. This immigration review must start. And it must
start now! Immigration reform just makes good business sense.

PENSION FUNDS FOR INVESTMENT
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, once again
the Minister of Finance is silent when it comes to the
unfunded liability for our Public Service Superannuation Fund, the Government Health Insurance Fund and the Members of the Legislature and the Ministerial Fund. For the record, it stands at approximately
$1.47 billion dollars, based on the latest Auditor General’s Report. Will our Government employees have a pension that they can draw on when they retire in the years to come?
Mr. Speaker, this question is not unreasonable given that the total liability due to our pension plan participants, and government’s note holders, now
stands at $4.7 billion dollars.
Mr. Speaker, if we are going to be truly transparent, we should note that our government funded
some of their stimulus programmes on the back of
pension funds, the pension holiday, which only kicked the can further down the road. Here it should also be
noted that Superannuation F und shortfalls are of
course, funded through the Consolidated Fund and
will ne ed to be addressed at some point.

ADDITIONAL CAPITAL
DEVELOPMENT SPENDING

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: The Throne Speech indicates that, under normal circumstances, governments the world over, increase their capital expenditure to
stimulate the economy and c reate work projects to
help to get it s citizens back to work, after natural disasters or dramatic economic downturns. But these are
not normal times with the Government’s debt ceiling at
$3.5 billion and no surplus budget possibilities in the near future.
Mr. Speaker, the One Bermuda Allianc e created an environment that incentivised foreign invest-ment such as the St. Regis and the Azura Bermuda
hotels. We engineered innovative public/private
schemes such as the airport and promoted interna-tional events, such as America’s Cup which alone
broug ht $350 million dollars to our economy and stimulated jobs and commerce, representing a sizeable
return on the public purse spending.
This present Government has not demonstrated that type of ingenuity and prowess. Is c apital
development spending needed now to upgrade our
infrastructure and stimulate a stagnant economy? The
answer is Yes.
Does this Government have the ability to
make this happen while adequately addressing its
debt and, at the same time, not going into f urther debt
and maintaining its prese nt service levels while trimming the fat of government spending? Past performance by this administration and the contents of its
most recent Throne Speech does not convince us that it can.
Mr. Speaker, while on the topi c of Capital Developments, it should be noted that the One Bermuda
Alliance recognises the need for infrastructure devel-opment. When we were the Government, we implemented a number of large infrastructure projects,
some successful, and some were not. One t hat was
not successful was the Fortress Bermuda Infrastruc-ture Fund. This was the brainchild of Brian Duperreault, and the Hon. E. T. Bob Richards. The idea was


Bermuda House of Assembly to create a “for profit” investment fund to improve the
infrastructure in Bermuda, funded by th e reinsurance
industry that has asset s of two- thirds of a trillion dollars (yes a trillion dollars) invested outside Bermuda.
A number of ABIR companies bought into the idea and Fortress Investments of New York were to be
hired to manage it. It was suppose d to be about $250
million in size. I n the final analysis, in March 2017, the
proposal realised firm commitments for only $66 million, and Fortress wanted $1 million per year in fees.
We consequently declined the offer.
However, after the 2017 election, on e of the
first things Premier Burt an d the PLP Government did
was to sign that same deal. As far as we know, Gov-ernment has paid Fortress $5 million dollars for this
infrastructure fund. Where do we stand today? What
value has the country received for the $5 million dollar payment to Fortress ?

UPDATE TAXATION SYSTEM
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, the Throne
Speech proposed that the Tax Reform Commission of
2018 should update its recommendations “in light of
the new economic realities created by the Pandemic.”
Mr. Speaker, our question to this Government is,
Have they read the 2019 report? And if they have
read the report, what have they done thus far to im-plement those recommendations?
We submit that there are recommendations
found in that report that are fair and equitable and do not p lace an undue burden on the lower paid workers
of this country, and which do a lot to effectively broad-en the tax base without stifling the economy. But like the SAGE report, the Fiscal Responsibility Panel’s
(“FRP”) re port, and other similar reports, this Government apparently has no appetite for them, nor have they put into practice recommendations made by
these commissioners.

REVISED TAX STRUCTURE
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: The Financial Responsibility Panel recommends that the country should brace
itself for a revised tax structure. The Panel feels that the current structure is unsustainable in addressing
Bermuda’s current economy. In real terms, this may
mean more taxes for the people of Bermuda, given
that they believe that a reasonable tax revenue, as a
percentage of GDP, should be around 19 per cent to
20 per cent. That would be an increase of approximately $190 million dollars over three years.
In addition, it should be noted that with the
imminent embodiment of the Tax Reform Committee,
a more fair and equitable tax structure is being examined, which could result in an increase in all of our
current personal tax liabilities. Mr. Speaker, the bottom line is that we need enough taxes to run govern-ment and no more. Wi thout taxes we cannot effectively run government.

GOVERNMENT’S ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLES

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, it should also
be noted that this current budget has not addressed
the government’s $100,000,000 accounts receivable
portfolio realis ed from across all government ministries. Neither did they present any management strat-egies, write- off strategies, or recovery strategies. In
today’s environment, this Government should not and
cannot entertain any suggestion of implementing
overdue tax a mnesties, or tax forgiveness for delinquent taxpayers who meet certain eligibility require-ments. This is a slap in the face to those taxpayers
who have been diligent, made sacrifices and found the wherewithal to pay their bills when they became
due. Some w ho may not have had the money t o pay
their bills, entered arranged payment plans to ensure
that they met their commitments. In some instances, if
a company needed work permits, such permits were
withheld until delinquent accounts were made current.
To forg ive those who just did not bother to pay
or to enter payment plans will establish a precedent
whereby responsible companies will hold on to their
money with the view to waiting out their time to get a
write -off.

BERMUDA’S NATIONAL DEBT

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Bermuda’s national debt
continues to rise unabated. As I mentioned earlier this
year, Bermuda can expect that our national debt will hover around $4 billion dollars during the next fiscal
year. The Minister of Finance is rightfully concerned.
Indeed, we all should be very concerned. He indicated
that the government’s budget deficit is expected to be
an “unsustainable” $245 million for the year 2021 after
the COVID -19 pandemic, with slashed revenues and
soaring expenditures.
If we continue this glide path, we will see another increase in Bermuda’s debt ceiling. The Fiscal Responsibility Panel (“FRP”) said in their 2020 report
that “an adverse, but . . . far from inconceivable scenario” would see Government debt on an unsustainable trajectory, leading t o a credit rating downgrade
and higher interest rates on new debt, the risk of
“large emergency tax increase and spending cuts”,
and the possibility of capital flight and a foreign exchange crisis.
The FRP also indicated that, given the fiscal
position, and the limited progress of the Government
acting on either of their earlier recommendations, they are concerned that Bermuda will have little fiscal or
macroeconomic policy bandwidth to address any crystallisation of these risks. Over the longer term, their
key concern is still domestic, i .e., the Island’s shrinking workforce and ageing population. This challenge
550 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly will put ever -increasing pressure on both taxes and
spending.
Mr. Speaker, according to the Fiscal Responsibility Panel, the issue is not whether act ion is needed, or even what act ions are needed. There is already
a high degree of consensus in both their reports and
those of other independent bodies, and, indeed, within
government, that action is needed. This action includes immigration reform, tax ref orms, and changes
to the struct ure of healthcare and pensions, which are
all necessary.

DEBT SERVICE
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker: Bermuda’s
annual debt service is completely out of control. This money is paid to our local and international bondho lders.
For the year ending Mar ch 31, 2021, this annual expense will total approximately $127 million or approximately 11.4 per cent of the estimated expenditures. This expense is the third largest government
expense after the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry of Health. It is alm ost larger than the Ministries of
Youth, Sports and Community Affairs, Social Development and Seniors, Home Affairs and Transport
combined. And Mr. Speaker, most of this money
leaves Bermuda. It does not circulate in our econ omy
for further use by our peop le.

THE SINKING FUND

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, the current
budget statement indicates that the Minister of Finance plans to finance his deficit from the Sinking
Fund. The Royal Gazette stated, “the Sinking Fund,
devised by the late David Saul [is] for a rainy day, just
like this one.”
Mr. Speaker, for clarity, Bermuda should note
that the Sinking Fund was set up specifically to provide for the retirement of debt. In fact, the annual contribution was earmarked annually at 2.5 per cent of
the o utstanding debt for the expiring fiscal year.
What will be the Progressive Labour Party
Government’s policy going forward? Will the Sinking
Fund contributions be made in times of plenty when
we have current account surpluses ? Will the suspension of our contributions to the Sinking Fund be permanently on the table, or will the suspension be temporary? How are we going to establish a reserve to retire the growing debt which Bermuda faces as a result of Progressive Labour Party Government?
Mr. Speaker, it should also be noted that the
One Bermuda Alliance amended this policy slightly, so that when we could raise large cheap borrowings, we
would place the excess in the Sinking Fund, and take it out as needed. It was not intended t o mix the money
set aside for debt repayment with excess borrowed money for operations. But that, Mr. Speaker is exactly
what is taking place.

INCOME TAX

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, income tax
recently became a topical issue in Bermuda, especially when it comes to addressing economic inequality.
As my friend and former political colleague,
and former Minister of Finance the Hon. E. T. Bob
Richards indicated, and I quote, “The United States
and Britain have had a system of income tax for more
than 100 years, yet income inequality is still a significant issue there. In a recent study by the Organisation
for Economic Co- operation and Development, which
has 37 member countries, the US was the fourth highest in terms of income inequality. Britain was f ifth
highest.
“In the US, the top 1 per cent earns 38 per
cent of the entire country’s income. The income gap has widened over the past 50 years. A Pew Research
study showed that in 1968, the top 20 per cent earned
43 per cent of the nation’s income, while in 2018 the
top 20 per cent earned 52 per cent of the nation’s income. Across the Atlantic, it is said that there are more billionaires in Britain per capita than any other
developed country in the world. Billionaire Warren Buffett once said that his secr etary paid a higher percentage of taxes on her income than he did. So much
for income taxes promoting income equality. That
premise, in the real world, is patently false.”
Mr. Speaker, legislating income tax is easy;
collecting income taxes is another matt er. The structure of Bermuda’s private sector creates peculiar challenges in collecting income taxes. Take dividends for
example. If I own 100 shares of Butterfield Bank, the
dividend will be paid to me and there would be a clear
audit trail if I failed to declare it as income. But most
local businesses are privately held, family -owned enterprises. In such cases it would be easy, in a myriad
of ways, to extract a return on your capital without
paying a dividend.
The cost of collecting such passive income
will be enormous. In a large country, that cost can be
spread over millions of taxpayers, but not in Bermuda.
We would have to swell the civil service just to attempt
to collect such taxes. But wealthy people have the
resources to hire tax professionals to m itigate their tax
burden, while average and poor people do not. In
Bermuda, a balance must be struck between levying
taxes and the cost of collecting taxes, and the cost of
doing business in Bermuda and the cost of living in
Bermuda.
Mr. Richards’ enlightening remarks speak volumes on the implementation of income taxes to correct inequities. To summarise, Bermuda should
measure twice and cut once, as income tax is not the
panacea for addressing economic inequality in Bermuda.


Bermuda House of Assembly YEARLY DEFICIT IN MILLIONS

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, I can recall
back in 2012 when the OBA became Government and had to borrow money to pay for the ongoing expenses to run the government. Money had to be borrowed as
there was a massive inherited debt, while the stimulus
programme took effect. Government spending was
reduced gradually in an effort to avoid mass redundancies of civil servants. The OBA determined that
the debt ceiling was required to clean up the mess and set a $2.5 billion cap.
The OBA inherited a machine runn ing an operational deficit of $101 million and an overall deficit of
$299 million in 2012/13. The OBA handed over a
Government running an operational surplus of $166
million and an overall deficit of only $8 million (exclud-ing the Sinking Fund contribution) in 2017/18. The
debt was being significantly addressed.
Mr. Speaker, for those Honourable M embers
wishing to make political points with the debt, it is worth noting that during the last fiscal years of PLP
Government (2008/09 to 2012/13), the debt grew by
320 per cen t, from $335 million to $1.408 billion. From
the start of the times of plenty in 2001/02 until the year
of the election in 2012/13, the debt had grown by
1,045 per cent , or eleven times over!
Mr. Speaker, it would be remiss of me, if I did
not acknowledge the comments recently made by
Bermuda’s Auditor General about Bermuda’s national
debt. She underscored her concern by stating that, as in her previous reports, the Government continues to
make decisions without knowing the combined financial p osition of al l the organisations that make up the
government’s reporting entity.
She further added that there are no effective,
comprehensive long- term plans for reducing the annual and accumulated deficits or the associated debt,
the unfunded liabilities of its major pension plans, or
the size of taxpayer indebtedness, all of which continue to grow unsustainably.
Mr. Speaker, this continued behaviour must
stop, and fiscal prudence should and must be addressed if we are going to bring our national debt in check. It is time to introduce fiscal responsibility legislation which places a ceiling on the annual expenditure growth. Do we also have in place an added feature which places a ceiling on our debt to GDP ratio?
This should not be dismissed, as our debt is
close to 60 per cent of our GDP and each Bermudian
worker is carrying $133,000 of the government’s debt.

HEALTHCARE

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, the One Bermuda Alliance believes that all Bermudians should
have access to affordable, high quality healthcare.
Through true and transparent consultation, the OBA
recommends that Government work with all sectors involved in the delivery and financing of healthcare in
Bermuda to reduce the cost of healthcare, tackle
chronic illness, and ensure equal access to care.
Every Bermudian has the right to health insurance coverage that is evidence- based and managed by independent professionals and not by the
Government. The legislation surrounding healthcare is
fragmented and we recommend that the laws are
brought up to date and unified to reduce the confusion
surrounding our healthcare regulations.
The supplemental benefit for mental health
needs to be regulated and protected to ensure that
insureds are being covered at the same level as medical benefits.
All of our people need more access to information about their healthcare policies, to have clear
transparency regarding the specifics of their coverage. We also recommend that the PLP Government implement a “Unique Patient Identifier” (“UPI”) for everyone in Berm uda. This will ensure that everyone has
coverage, reduce duplication of services, and drive down the cost of healthcare for all. It will assist in services being streamlined and produce a true number of
those who are uninsured or underinsured to assist in
developing solutions to reduce this sub- set of the
population.
But, Mr. Speaker, we must do more to tackle
the root causes of poor health. So the One Bermuda
Alliance recommends a National Physical Fitness
Programme to encourage well -being, sound health,
exercise, and healthy diets, from primary school
throughout life. We would also recommend the introduction of a programme that specifically targets non-communicable diseases, underpinned with food cost
reductions for healthy living.

AGEING POPULATION
AND I TS IMPACT ON BERMUDA
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, according to
Bermuda’s Department of Statistics, Bermuda Population Projections 2016- 2026, as baby boomers age
over the coming years, more persons will be reaching retirement age than in the past. Due to declining fertility rates, it may be difficult for employers to secure
enough qualified young Bermudians to fill these vacant positions. Also, as indicated by the increasing
old-age dependency ratio, there will be a greater proportion of elderly depende nts who may need to be
supported by the working population.
One possible option to address this, would be
to increase the mandatory retirement age of 65 in
some industries or to eliminate it altogether as an earlier retirement age diminishes the labour po ol. Aside
from substantial immigration, another way to increase the labour supply immediately will be to bring more of
the elderly into the workforce.
In the future, the needs of the elderly will likely
shift public policy and the provision of services . Find552 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly ing affordable care providers for seniors could become more challenging than finding childcare providers. More or larger retirement facilities, senior citizen
day care programmes and in- home care services will
also be required. As a result, Bermuda’s “greying”
population will mean added challenges in upcoming
years.
Again , Mr. Speaker, to remedy this challenge,
we need to expand our workforce. We need more local jobs so that we are able to collect the revenue to
fund our pensions and care for our seni ors.


RESOURCES NEEDED
FOR CHRONIC HEALTH CONDITIONS

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, the Population
Projection Report also states that of all residents,
7.2 per cent were 75 years and older in 2016. By
2026, this proportion is anticipated to increas e to
10.8 per cent.
The increase in the proportion of older seniors
will likely increase the demand for purpose built resi-dential facilities with trained staff. This is inevitable as
with increasing age seniors are more likely to have chronic health chall enges that may require the assistance of another person, or permanent care in an institution.
Mr. Speaker, according to the 2010 Census,
77 per cent of seniors had a long- term health condition compared with 35 per cent of persons under the
age of 65. Also, 14 per cent of seniors had a disabling
long-term health condition in comparison to 4 per cent
of the population under 65 years of age. The 2014 Health Survey of Adults in Bermuda indicated that
seniors were more likely to have hypertension, diabe-tes, and cardiovascular disease.

RISING HEALTHCARE COSTS
OUTPACES INFLATION
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: In 2004, each Bermuda
household spent [on average] $7,000 a year on healthcare, a 156 per cent increase from the amount
spent in 1993. This represents a greater i ncrease in
healthcare expenditure than the 32 per cent rate of
inflation during this period. The amount each house-hold spent on healthcare was roughly $10,300 on average in 2013, a 47 per cent increase from 2004. This
was also a greater increase than the 30 per cent rate
of inflation during this period. In 2013, households headed by seniors spent $10,919 per year on
healthcare, up from $6,000 in 2004. Seventy -six per
cent of that expenditure was comprised of health insurance.
The Report indicates that Bermuda ’s health
system share of Gross Domestic Product is the third highest out of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (“OECD”) countries. This is of concern as “although this may reflect prioritization of health in an economy, it can al so highlight the
need for improvement in health system efficiency.”

EMPLOYMENT

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, as we review
government finances and the state of our economy, it
is shameful that this Government does not have the
latest employment stati stics for 2020. Mr. Speaker,
you may recall that the latest report was issued in
September 2020 by the Cabinet Office, under the
leadership of the Hon. Wayne Furbert, JP, MP, and
that the report referenced the week of August 25 to
August 31, 2019.
The an nual Employment Survey is a census
of all businesses on the Island and serves the pur-pose of providing a broad count of all filled jobs in the
Bermuda labour market. That said, our economic review indicated that 1,935 jobs were lost in 2020, which
is a 5.6 per cent reduction.
Mr. Speaker, Bermuda’s young people have
been hit particularly hard by the labour market fallout
from the Coronavirus, with workers aged under 24
accounting for nearly half of the total fall in employment during the economic crisis. A t the same time,
there is strong evidence that more people are chasing
fewer jobs, so our young people are struggling to enter the employment market.
Significantly, young people account for 46 per
cent of the overall fall in employment during the pandemic, even though they only account for just one in
nine of the workforce. What strategies and programmes will this Government establish to address
this job loss glide path? Is it time to provide more resources to foster and support entrepreneurial opp ortunities? A senior economist at Bermuda College said,
we need to support more young people who are working in the g ig economy, which would be a significant
part of the engine to drive our economy.

LOCAL RETAIL SALES
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, when looking
at the sales index figure, it became very clear that
consumer demand was stronger than ever. The demand straddled across all business sectors. When
looking at the latest sales index figures, it became
very clear, that consumer demand was stronger than
ever as was evidenced in all sectors. This, we believe,
was directly attributed to the Coronavirus lockdown,
and the dramatic decline in nonessential overseas
travel by our residents.
People had more discretionary income and
shopped locally. They spent m uch less on travel and
vacations overseas, and more was spent in Bermuda.
We shopped locally; we made minor renovations to
our homes; we purchased new furniture and vehicles,


Bermuda House of Assembly and stocked up on essential like groceries, toiletries,
and beverages.
Mr. Speaker, according to the Government
Statistics Department, sales volume increased 7.9 per
cent, after adjusting for the retail sales rate of inflation
which was measured at 0.8 per cent in October. The
overall volume of retail sales increased 7.9 per c ent
when compared to October 2019. This confirmed that
the growth was attributed mostly to increased spending on Island by residents. In value terms, retail sales
rose 8.8 per cent to an estimated $99.5 million.
Six of the seven retail sectors recorded hig her
sales volumes with motor vehicle [sales] recording the
largest volume increase of 21.2 per cent. Building materials were up by 5.15 [per cent] . Service stations
were up by [0.1] per cent. Apparel stores were down
by 11.9 per cent. Food was up by 7.2 per cent, a nd
liquor sales were up by 17.7 per cent.
Mr. Speaker, according to Minister Wayne
Furbert, while the restrictions on travel had a significantly limiting impact on local retail activity, they actu-ally substantially boosted selected overseas declar ations, w hich are defined as declarations via courier, by
residents via the airport, by households via sea, and via the Bermuda Post Office. The value of the total of those categories is seen as continuously increasing
for the fifth consecutive month since May 2020. Compared to August 2020, [selected] overseas declarations in September had reported an increase of
6.6 per cent.

TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, according to a
tourism economist and specialist, Adam Sacks, Bermuda’ s tourism industry will recover nearly fully from
the impact of the COVID -19 pandemic by 2023. He
stated that tourism in Bermuda will operate at 20 per
cent of 2019 levels in 2020, it will improve to 67 per
cent this year, and reach 79 per cent in 2022, an d
94 per cent three years from now.
He said: “Part of the strategy is survival in the
three- year period to get to that point.” Mr Sacks said
he expects the first half of 2021 to be “very difficult ,”
but said the second half of the year will see an improvement. He s aid that tourism accounted for 19 per
cent of the Island’s gross domestic product, or nearly
one-fifth of Bermuda’s economic output, adding that
23 per cent of all jobs are directly or indirectly supported by the visitor economy.
He further stated that Ber muda has reinvented itself, and approached the market in innovative
ways, and has done it while staying true to who we
are. He added that the loss of 80 per cent of the tourism economy this year was “a massive call to action to
do all that you can from a policy and strategic standpoint to restore a central pillar of the Bermuda economy.” Considering the above, Bermuda has shown
steady improvement since the airport reopened on
July 1, hitting 16.1 per cent of 2019 visitor volume earlier this month. We still have a way to go, but this will
be challenging because of the recent spike in the Coronavirus in the East Coast of the US, which is our
core market. We should also support the industry by
increasing the number of seats and flights available to
visitors, and we also should continue to position ourselves as one of the international COVID -19 safe havens.
Mr. Sacks went on to indicate that the time is
right, as a survey in the US showed that only 50 per
cent of American householders felt safe travellin g outside their community. This was reflected in figures that
showed that air travel by Americans was at one- third
of previous levels, and it is likely to increase in the coming months as studies show that air travel is relatively safe compared to other ac tivities. While 11 million Americans remain out of work, he said high -
income earners were least affected by job losses.
“Those people [and those high earners] are our customers.”
Mr. Speaker, despite this outlook, this Government expects a paltry passenger tax of $4.5 million. The same principle applies to the transport infrastructure tax, which was allocated a negligible $2 mil-lion. This speaks to Government’s dismal outlook for
2021/22. Are they not listening to the professionals in
the industry?
Mr. Speaker, anot her feature which jumped
out in the Budget Statement was the $10 million guarantee to the Bermudiana Beach Hotel to support the second phase of its development. This is a philosophical turnaround for the Minister of Finance who
thrashed the One Bermuda All iance for its hotel guarantee programme.

EDUCATION AND BERMUDA COLLEGE

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, the One Bermuda Alliance has long stated that the way forward for
education is to have it overseen by an independent
education authority, so we ar e delighted that the PLP
finally sees the value that an education authority can
bring to the delivery of education in Bermuda and student performance and outcomes.
An education authority is not the cure, Mr.
Speaker, but it is the first and necessary step towards
establishing a system that provides the foundation for
our young people to succeed.
We also recommend the establishment of a
Continuing Professional Development Centre for our
teachers, to enhance teaching skills and maintain high
standards with co ntinuous training and support. It is
also crucial that both teachers and students receive the support they need, Mr. Speaker, so the One Bermuda Alliance urges the Government to supplement
schools with teams of Foundational Counsellors, to
554 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly support our chil dren and instil the skills needed for life,
from early developmental learning to guidance in later
years, when our children transition from education to
working life.
Government should protect Bermuda College
from the financial impact of the crisis so that it can
maintain and enhance its critical role within our com-munity and take decisive steps to align their teaching
and learning provision to meet business and employer
needs.
Mr. Speaker, in 2017 the Progressive Labour
Party released its General Election platform. In it, it
pledged to “reform public education by phasing out middle schools and introducing signature schools at
the secondary level, with a focus on the learning
styles and interests of our children, including academic, technical and the trades, business, sports, arts,
and special needs education. ”
Instead, now the focus is on primary schools.
The Government is expected to close nine of the present 18 primary schools and replace them with parish
primary schools; one in each parish except Pembroke,
which will have two. Under the plan, a new primary
school would be built in Devonshire, with two existing
primary schools to be converted into an alternative signature school and a replacement for the Dame
Marjorie Bean Hope Academy.
This proposal to close half of Bermuda’s primary schools was not mentioned in the 2017 election
campaign. That is understandable; as it might not
have been even thought of, but surely it should have been mentioned in the October 2020 PLP election
platform when the Government sent Bermuda’s voters
back to the polls.
Mr. Speaker, it is sad to state, but this Budget
Statement, ironically, has said very little about this educational structuring and the reconfiguration and
redevelopment of our school campuses. In fact, there
was an $8 million allocation reduction for the Department of Education. We look forward to an explanation
for this.

SPORTS

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Again, Mr. Speaker, there
was no mention of sports in this budget report and the
further development of our young people. In fact, it
was noted that the Ministry of Youth, Cultural Affairs
and Sports Headquarters had a 38 per cent reduction
in allocation. Is this department not valued?
We all know that education and sports provide
discipline, self -respect , responsibi lity and growth to
our young people. They are our future, and nothing
was addressed in the budget to concentrate on the development of our young people. Yet, this Government spent resources on the development of the can-nabis industry, with very little said by the Minister in
support of our youth.
THE ARTS AND CREATIVE SECTOR
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Given the significant contribution of the arts, culture, and creative industr ies to
Bermuda’s economy, and to our social fabric, the Government should take s teps to protect this sector
and look for ways to increase public and private investment in the arts in Bermuda.

THE PHILANTHROPIC SECTOR

Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Mr. Speaker, the One Bermuda Alliance believes that the Government should
take action to prot ect the capacity and financial sustainability of the Third Sector, in recognition of its im-portant role in building and support of Bermuda’s social fabric. We should examine the scope for longer -
term funding arrangements for social services which
support our families, seniors, and the development of
young people. There should be new initiatives to incentivise private investments in this sector.
In closing, Mr. Speaker, I would a lso like to
take a moment to once again acknowledge the sterling contributions of the late Anthony Manders, former
Financial Secretary at the Government of Bermuda.
He was a force to be reckoned with, and would have
been an integral part of this budget process. His un-timely death earlier this year is still having an impact
on all who knew and respected him.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, the One Bermuda Alliance asserts that there is a way forward, but there is much work to be accomplished. From a health perspective , it starts with each one of us who call Bermuda, home. We must continue to adhere to the COVID -
19 protocols to ensure that not only are we safe as
individuals, but the knock -on effect will also be a safer
community which bolsters our economy as tourists
return, businesses reopen, jobs are filled, and investors will return to our shor es.
Mr. Speaker, Bermuda has proven time and
time again, that we can weather the storm if we work together. The One Bermuda Alliance fervently believes that if Bermuda is to move forward from the
darkness of the pandemic into the rays of hope which
are jus t ahead of us, the issues outlined in this submission must be addressed.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[Desk thumping]

Thank you, Honourable Opposition
Leader.
Does any other Member wish to speak?
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The Spe aker: Honourable Deputy Premier, we recognise you, and you have the floor.


B ermuda House of Assembly DEBATE ON THE BUDGET STATEMENT
AND REPLY TO THE BUDGET
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. S peaker.
Once again, I am happy to have an opportunity to participate in this Budget Debate for the 2021/22
Budget Year. Without a doubt, this is a budget that
comes on the edge of a historic, monumental period for Bermuda, a far different period than we have every faced as a country.
Certainly, it is on everyone’s mind as to how
the future will be shaped by the Government and its own priorities and the wider community , families, and
residents and those who consider Bermuda home. So this budget means much to many. It is not just about the Government’s expenditure; it is about the direction
of the country.
So, we entered into this economic debate today with all of that as part of what we are here to dis-cuss. But I must say, Mr. Speaker, and I will not spend too much time reflecting on the close to two- hour
presentation we just had in great detail. But clearly,
having had exposure to this presentation, I understand the meaning of contrasts, and what that word means in definition. I understand the difference be-tween a Model T Ford and a Tesla. I understand the difference between the Wright brothers’ plane that took off in Kitty Hawk and a Triple Seven Boeing.
I understand the difference between a sailing
boat and an ocean liner, or a modern cruise ship. I know the difference between building a grass hut and a modern skyscraper. There is great contrast that we see between the Reply that was given today and the Statement that was given last week.
I will kind of stop right there on those contrasts, Mr. Speaker, because I expect that my colleagues who will follow, members of the Government team, will give their own take on not only what has
been presented to us, but also what our Government
plans to do for the future.
But I think it is important in the period that I
have . . . and how much time do I have, Mr. Speaker,
to do my presentation?

No problem. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I will just try to paint a picture
for our listening public in particular, because I do not
believe I am . . . it is very clear what our opponents
feel, Mr. Speaker. We have been belaboured for two hours with their Reply and their position. But I would
like to talk a little bit about the wider context in which
we are existing, and the world that we all have had to
experience and what the impact has been over the
past year, and nearly a year [since] the World Health
Organization declared that we had an emergency.
That was March 11, 2020, and that emergency was
related to the COVID -19 pandemic.
The COVID -19 pandemic triggered the deepest global recession since the Great Depression in the
1930s. Global GDP, according to IMF projections con-tracted somewhere in the area of 4 per cent, or
4.4 per cent. It was forecast that it had been the
broadest collapse of per capita income since 1870,
Mr. Speaker —I do not know if that is appreciated. According to World Bank and global statis tics, i t is expected by the end of even this year that real GDP per capita, particularly in the south, sub- Saharan Africa,
will likely regress to the same level it was in 2007.
Those are the projections.
But let me just articulate more on the world
that we have had to deal with, and what is happening
as a result of the pandemic. Extreme poverty is now
on the rise. This had been going in the positive direction since 1998. Tens of millions of people are falling
back into poverty due to the pandemic. And this is the
global picture I am painting, Mr. Speaker. And it is expected that the nearly 100- plus million people that
will go back into poverty will also increase by nearly 50 mill ion by the end of 2021. And the last increase of
that is expected in Southeast Asia and sub- Saharan
Africa.
So, th ese are the types of impacts that have
happened over the last year that are now impacting the world around us, Mr. Speaker.
Unemployment is increasing drastically globally. And, certainly, we are challenged with that here in Bermuda. And the continued contractions will par-ticularly hurt people who work in other countries in the informal sector, Mr. Speaker. Nearly 80 per cent of the
estimated 2 billion workers in the informal economy
have been significantly impacted and at risk with re-duced opportunities to work, [fewer] work hours. Particularly women, Mr. Speaker, who make up a significant amount of the global workforce as part of that informal economy supporting their families, are per-haps the group that is going to have the most severe
impact as a result of what happened through 2020
and this pandemic.
That is [part] of the global picture, Mr. Speaker, that is faced around us. And we know the story
here and we have seen it in other countries, even in
the so- called industrialised and developed world,
where many of our frontline workers in the health care
556 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report
B ermuda House of Assembly sector, in the retail sector and in all those sectors that
were out there [working] (as the rest of us were in
lockdown) still providing services to the communities that they are a part of —nurses, doctors, other health
care professionals, people in grocery stores and providing other public services. Many of them were
and are women and have had to face the brunt of the
pandemic and have been, unfortunately, the casual-ties of it as well.
So, the world through 2020 and even into this
year is challenged. And that was a world that even pre-COVID -19 was experiencing issues with the economic growth being very sluggish. And many coun-tries already challenged are now facing additional challenges, Mr. Speaker.
Internati onal financial institutions have been
required to lend and commit tens of billions of dollars to support many low - and middle- income countries
because of the COVID -19 response. And what we
have seen, certainly, here in Bermuda and in other places, Mr. Speaker, is a need for our governments to essentially take some of the taxpayer resources that they accumulate through the collection of taxes an d
fees and other avenues . . . they literally have had to
put that back into the economy as they took it out to, obviously, fund certain other wider services. It had to be put back into the economy or even committed to supporting health care to protect the citizens from the
ravages of COVID -19, but also support other social
services because people were out of work because of the economic shutdowns which, globally, had to be faced, and certainly here, we ourselves, with the tour-ism economy and essential employment of many of our own residents, Mr. Speaker.
I have seen one statistic that suggests that
much of the job growth that was experienced in recent years . . . a high percentage of that was hospitality
workers. That, obviously, has been literally wiped out. And it is unfortunate that those persons who were tak-ing advantage of great opportunities here, now may
be struggling to have employment. But that is everywhere because most of the economies globally, Mr. Speaker, that were dependent on providing servic es
and attracting services or were involved with hospitali-ty and tourism have all experienced the same ravag-es.
Approximately 9 per cent of the financing that
has been supplied— nearly $100 billion or so— in our
financing globally (in US dollar terms) has gone to low-income countries. So, many of the poorest countries have needed the greatest amount of support be-cause, unless they can get access to vaccines which,
certainly, themselves (in many cases) have a price to
properly support and protect their citizens, they are going to potentially have to deal with the ravages of COVID -19 longer than some of the countries not, y ou
know, just like Bermuda, who have been able to ac-cess these resources much sooner. And we must give credit to our own Government for its efforts in mitigat-ing the impacts of COVID -19 on our citizenry.
We all heard, in the very early days, Mr.
Speaker, the model projections that had hundreds of people here dying if we did nothing. But the Govern-ment stood up, prepared and executed an effort to
protect our citizens.
Having painted some of the global picture, Mr.
Speaker, around us . . . that continues to be what we
face, because until the globe gets a handle on the health crisis, the economic one will be more sluggish in its recovery. Even as we see some optimism on the
horizon, that optimism should not be taken for grant-ed. Vigilance is still crucial for all of us with this global situation.
But let me just talk about Bermuda a little bit
now, Mr. Speaker, with the time that I have left. After March of last year, the Government had to act. And I
can remember, certainly, as a Member of the Gov-ernment sitting around the table with colleagues (whether they be in Cabinet or not), watching what was happening around the globe, we all knew that action had to be taken. We certainly did not know
what would be the gravity of the situation that we
would face. We did not know that we would be months
and months and months fighting this pandemic. I thought, perhaps [like] we all thought, that perhaps a few mont hs, three or four months, would be enough
and we would be out of it and we would move on back
to what we normally do. But that is not what happened.
But the Government had to act. And as has
been eloquently recorded in the Budget Statement presented by the Minister of Finance last week, Mr.
Speaker, we acted. What did Bermuda face, Mr.
Speaker? Ten months ago, as was stated in the first
page of the Introduction, our Island was, for the first time in modern history, shut down. I do not believe historically t here has been any time similar to that in
the history. World War I, World War II, any previous
conflicts that have faced this place, that is the settlement known as Bermuda, we never saw the country literally have to shut everything down.
Quarantines . . . no shops, no restaurants,
everybody staying at home, no sports; quarantines . . .
we all had to go to the grocery shop via our names or
numbers at —well, names and limited numbers —that
is what we faced. Many people had to transition from working in offices to working in their homes. And that, in itself, became a monumental transition and the task for companies and businesses that could to convert essentially to virtual employment. Aspects of the
economy were still running, but other aspects just totally sh ut down. And once that decision was made,
Mr. Speaker, within a very short period of time the Government had to do certain things.
I can remember even the discussions with the
business community at the time, Mr. Speaker. It may
be argued that new relationships have been formed


Bermuda House of Assembly as a result of the experience of the last year. I can
certainly say myself, as a Minister, as a result of the
requirements that were put on me by the Premier and
my colleagues during the pandemic, I had to engage
with the business community in ways that I had never done before. But that fostered a certain level of understanding, trust and transparency in our engagement that helped the Island. And we all were willing to
take those chances.
But at the same time, Mr. Speaker, I can tell
you this, they looked to the Government for the lead-ership that was required. When they spoke to the
Government at the time, they were looking for us to
provide the clarity and the direction for the country to
take—this Progressive Labour Party Government led
by the Honourable David Burt, supported by now 30 others, plus another 5, capable Members in both Houses of the Legislature. They came to us to ensure
that the country could get through it. We did not know
what we would face; but that was a requirement .
So, one of the things that was done was, within days a programme to keep people fed and surviving with benefit for those businesses . . . because when it
was clear that the country had to be shutdown, what
did the Government do? And I state this because I am not so sure that if others were in this position, Mr.
Speaker, they would have done what we had to do,
particu larly when you hear, sort of, suggestions that
the spending [seemed] to have been irresponsible, or
the borrowing had been irresponsible. Wel l, what do
you think that money was for? It was to keep people
alive. It did not go into anybody’s pocket. It went to
keep people from starving. It went to keep people sur-viving, to pay their bills, to exist, until such time as the conditions would change. And there are people still
benefitting from those choices. So, yes, certain as-pects of the priorities of Government had to be shifted. But they were shifted to benefit and keep the country
alive.
Two thousand people, Mr. Speaker, received
$1.8 million wor th of benefit in the first week after it
was established. Ultimately, $56 million went to over 10,000 workers. Thos e are workers who literally were
forced to not work. So, the $127 million that was put
aside by the Government through engaging with the
financial markets and its own resources was to do
that, not to put the country in an irresponsible fiscal
position. The country had to be under lockdown, so
this is what had to be done.
And all indications are, Mr. Speaker, that
many people were satisfied with the response. There
is a very appropriate quote by the Finance Minister in
this Statement as to . . . and it can be associated with
Voltaire, that t he perfect must not be the enemy of the
good , because perfection was not necessarily the objective. [The objective] was to be effective, to be swift,
and to bring about a result of saving lives.
So, those are some of the t hings that had to
be done. That has resulted in the position of where we are now. And we should be satisfied and proud that
the Finance Minis ter, with the support of the Government and all the Members of the Progressive Labour Party Government behind him h as—yes, in a challenged circumstance, not ideal —shaped a budget that
has sought to position us in a disciplined way to manage the way forward so that once beyond this period,
Mr. Speaker, we will be better positioned to develop
opportunity to take advantage of the world around us
that we hope will be relieved of the challenge of
COVID -19, where people will be travelling here, where
international business and commerce will be much
more easily flowing, where airlines will continue and
increase their lift to B ermuda, and cruise ships will
return as well to take advantage of the offerings of our beautiful Island. That will all return at some point.
But in the meantime, as a Government we
have to shape the community in a way that will ensure
that the future has m ore opportunity than the past.
And we can look to the past for reference, but not try
and duplicate it. Because we need to build a different
Bermuda going forward that . . . and frankly, in my
humble view, Mr. Speaker, that erases some of the
errors of the past. And some of that is encapsulated
and the direction is encapsulated with the references
to the Economic Recovery Plan that was spoken
about and referenced by the Honourable Finance Minister as a way forward, but also by the Premier earlier today.
Mr. Speaker, it is very important that everybody in Bermuda realise that this is one of those times where we all have to get into the boat and u nderstand
that we have got to row it together. We have to each
take an oar and be in sync, irrespective of our posi tion
in society. And that is where the whole thing about
equity and eliminating inequality is very important in
Bermuda. Because, unfortunate ly, Mr. Speaker, as we
have seen in recent years, and certainly the pandemic revealed this, inequalities that have stifled the proper
development of our people in this country still pervade
us. And those inequities and those inequalities in opportunity and access and even capital still pervade the
experience of many Bermudians.
And there are some people who still believe
that people can come to Bermuda and take advantage
of opportunities much more quickly and much more
efficiently than those who are here an d have Bermuda
as the only home that they have. So, how do we address that? We have to develop a new direction eco-nomically, Mr. Speaker. And that direction is not only
a part of the Economic Recovery Plan that has been referenced in the Statement from the Finance Minister, but also in so many of the other initiatives that the Government has endeavoured to enter into. Yes, education reform will take time, but it is a part of achieving
that goal, creating a system that is nimble, that is responsive to the world around us, and prepares our
young people to embrace not only the Bermuda op558 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly portunity, but the global opportunit y. That is what we
have to develop there.
We have to look about diversifying our economy. Yes, tourism and aspects of international business have served us well in our development over the
past 50, 60 years. But the world is different now and
some of the reasons and rationales of those particular
industries and their presence in Bermuda have to be
changed. And we have to develop ourselves into a
different brand, particularly around the hospitality sec-tor, but we also have to attract new business in the international sector. So, our diversification of international business here will be important. Embracing
technology even more will be important and making
that a mainstay of our education and our development and our skill sets as a country will be important.
Showing Bermuda to be not just an orthodox
member of the, sort of, I guess, Western democratic
business sort of group that is between London and
New York and Ottawa or Toronto and Brussels, but
actually showing that we are open to the world, that we are attracting innovations in energy, we are attracting innovations in technology, we are attracting people
with interesting skills, and also unique skills, who can
come here and work with our own resident population to help them to develop skills that can be global in
their opportunity. That is the sort of realm that we have to develop here.
And even as we talk about immigration reform, Mr. Speaker , you know, I often get very tired of
hearing that there is this emphasis on just bringing more bodies to the Island because that is not enough.
That is not actually . . . that is a very simplistic view of
immigration. And yes, we have a 1956 Act which there
seems to be at least a consensus with our opponents
on this one that it has to be changed. [On] what we actually do and how we change it, perhaps, there is
some dispute. But, as I recall, the Opposition sat
around the same table in support of developing comprehensive immigration reform with the Government.
So, certainly, on many of the items that are the chief
prescriptions for immigration change should be embraced openly and we should be able to hold hands
on. But as we continuously hear, there seem to be . . .
the Opposition does not want to, kind of, walk in step
with the same proposals that they spent the last three
years around the table with us working on. But, hey, I
understand, maybe it is just politics. But comprehensive immigration reform has ac tually been the chief
commitment around that issue of the current —

Yes.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: With that, I think I can say as
I said from the very beginning, we are faced with a
very historic, monumental opportunity in our hi story to
reshape this economy, to reshape Bermuda, to em-brace the opportunity to be a leader in climate, to be a leader in technology, to be a lea der in innovation, to
be a leader in addressing inequality by diversifying our
economy, and to making solid st eps that are going to
reshape Bermuda in a way that 10, 20 years from now the decisions that were made . . . there will be a consensus that they w ere the right ones, irrespective of
where you sit in the political divide.
So, I look forward to working with every Bermudian on that journey, Mr. Speaker, because it is
important. It is about the survival of our community as
we face the pandemic, but it is also shaping a bright
and optimistic future that we all can be a part of, irre-spective of where we sit from income, where we live,
or what we see are our dreams for the future.
Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Good afternoon. That sounds like MP
Dunkley.
MP Dunkley, you have your 30 minutes.

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, good af ternoon.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, as I get into my presentation
today let me start off where the Deputy Premier ended
where he said we have a monumental opportunity to
reshape our economy. He is correct. He is 100 per
cent correct. But we hav e no choice, Mr. Speaker, and
we must not waste that opportunity or squander that
opportunity in anything we do. We have no choice, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the Opposition Leader early this
afternoon as we came back from lunch, I thought, delivered a ver y comprehensive and a very balanced
Reply to the Budget. He offered a detailed analysis all
the way through hi s presentation. He offered critique
where it was necessary, and he provided many suggestions that will help the Government carry on in their journ ey to bring Bermuda back to a better position. And the Member who just spoke before me said, Mr. Speaker, that he found the two statements contrasting. Well, yes, indeed, Mr. Speaker, because the Opposition Leader’s Reply was detailed, it was thorough, and it was plain talk that everyone could understand and it covered all the important items. It was an address that gave us a good direction of where we
needed to go and how we need to get there.


Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Speaker, the Government’s Budget which
was delivered last week, I believe lacked focus on
some of the key areas facing Bermuda— international
business, tourism. These ar e our biggest job creators
and they are proven industries that can be successful. There was very little mention of gaming as the Opposition Leader talked about. The budget sadly lacked a
direction of where we are going to go with much -
needed health care reform.
In addition, Mr. Speaker, I believe it provided
very little hope for those Bermudians who are without
a job at the present time.
Now, Mr. Speaker, economies all throughout
the world are propped up by borrowing. For larger countries that is an easi er task to work through.
Smaller countries, like Bermuda, have to be very care-ful around where we go as far as the borrowing takes place. We have said all along, and I recall saying during the Budget Debate last year when there was talk
about the coronavir us, which had not impacted us to
its full extent yet, but it became very clear as we went
through the number of days of the Committees of
Supply t hat the COVID -19 pandemic was going to hit
us very strongly. I recall talking about the need to borrow respons ibly to help our people, and we are in that
position right now.
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to see that the
Finance Minister, in regard to gov ernment fiscal policy, has been restrained in the appropriate way that
there have been no new taxes. And for me, knowing
the Finance Minister and watching him perform his job over the past couple of years, it was expected, based
on the very fragile state of our economic cond ition at
this time. Every area, except international business,
has struggled greatly over the last year. It would not
have been responsible to raise taxes, it would not have been responsible to spend freely, other than spending to help us get rid of COVID -19 and deal with
those challenges.
As we move forward, Government must continue to operate its sails in a very tight fashion while we help those who are struggling in our community.
We must continue to support those people who struggle in our community because, as Members have
said, we are nowhere near out of the woods.
Mr. Speaker, that brings me to the Economic
Recovery Plan which Government has laid out, and which the Premier took an opportunity to speak to today in a Ministerial St atement. If you would allow me
to refer to the Budget Book where it talks about that, I
think this Economic Recovery Plan is weak —simply
weak, Mr. Speaker. While the guiding principles are
good, and those are listed on page 12 and page 13:
COVID -19 as a pr iority is the first one; reduce the cost
of living is the second; there must be fairness and eq-uity is the third; financial viability is the fourth; fiscal prudence the fifth; and sixth, time limits. While those
guiding principles are sound, if you look at the plan itself, M r. Speaker, it is very difficult to gain a great
deal of hope from the p lan.
The seven sections that are listed in the
Budget Book, Mr. Speaker: First, Economic diversification. Well, obviously, diversification always makes sense when there is an opportunity to deal with it. And
so, that, while it is part of the plan, we need to see
more meat on the bone of what that economic diversification really means because FinTech has not proven
to provide the jobs for that many Bermudians at the
present time. And economic diversification, quite often, Mr. Speaker, takes some time to build, to ferment,
to actually grow. What we need now, Mr. Speaker, is
action to put those unemployed people back to work.
The second part [is regarding] initiatives of the
financ ial markets. The Government said they will focus on affordable access to capital for businesses and
consumers. Well, Mr. Speaker, because of what is
taking place in the world rates are probably the lowest
they have been in anyone’s memory. So, we have a
perfect example right here to deal with getting capital at good rates and putting it to work, Mr. Speaker. But
there must be a plan to make that work.
Infrastructure investment, Mr. Speaker. We
support that 100 per cent. But what is listed in the
Budget Book certainly does not put enough meat on
the bones. Because the construction of a shoreside fishing facility, Mr. Speaker, while it sounds good,
what do the dozens of local fishermen think about this
and have they been consulted in this? And what i s
that shoreside fishing facility actually going to do?
What jobs is it going to create? It reminds me, Mr.
Speaker, of the vertical farming that Minister Furbert has talked about and it seems to have slipped past
the radar.
Number four is expanding the resident population. Mr. Speaker, the Honourable Minister of Immi-gration at the current time, Minister Hayward, and the
former Minister (from another place) Fahy . . . in their
immigration policy, Mr. Speaker, you could almost call
them twins. Because the policy that we have seen
from the PLP, although it is going to be very slow in
being implemented, seems like a carbon copy of what
the OBA was trying to put forward, Mr. Speaker. But
one glaring change is that Minister Hayward says, Well, I hold the keys to the door . Mr. Speaker, we
need to get rid of that red tape and we need to get rid
of somebody holding the keys to the door to use as
they decide to use them. We have talked about immi-gration long enough. We talked about boosting our
resident population to contribute to our community.
We have talked about the jobs that they can help
bring for Bermudians long enough. Now, we need to
see the rubber meet the road.
Five, six and seven, Mr. Speaker, are also
weak in my view.
Mr. Speaker, and then the paragraph about
the Government knows a good plan poorly executed
can be worse than no plan at all, and they [are] dedi560 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly cated to creating a Project Management Team. This
jumped right off the pages at me, Mr. Speaker, because while all the wording is good and it sounds l ike
a noble idea, I think anyone will have a concern until
they know how it is going to be set up, who is going to run it, and what their actual guiding principles are going to be. We need to cut the red tape. We need to
make sure that there is no bureaucr acy. Because
those people who have been struggling for the last year cannot afford to struggle for much longer.
Now, Mr. Speaker, as I have given an overview of the weak economic plan by the Government,
let me just focus for a moment on the economy. We
know if we turn to page 22 and page 23 in the Budget
Book, you will see that on page 23 that 2,924 jobs
were lost last year, a reduction of 8.5 per cent. Those
jobs take into consideration the 989 jobs that were lost
because of lay -offs. We know from the Opposition
Leader’s Reply that GDP is estimated to shrink between 7 per cent and 9 per cent. We know that the IB
sector held out very well during the sharp global economic downturn. We know that their employees managed to work from home here in Bermuda and all
throughout the world, Mr. Speaker. And no one would
dare argue that Bermuda is not the best place to work
from home.
Mr. Speaker, we know that in 2020 insurance
start-ups bolstered our employment slightly because
of pandemic -related capital that had sprung into the
market. These are opportunities that we need to take
advantage of, Mr. Speaker. And I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to international business.
It is not often that we thank our people, or not often
enough we thank the people who help us in many
ways, but we should thank international business because, Mr. Speaker, the pandemic proved they can be anywhere in the world. And now is an opportunity for us to bring more of them back to our Island.
Mr. Speaker, from the job numbers you can
see that tourism and hospitality crashed. The numbers
are actually quite scary (and I will get to those in a minute). As the Opposition Leader said, retail has rebounded, due in large part because people could not
travel or could only travel minimally, and they wer e
shopping at home. New building permit applications
declined 14 per cent in 2020; planning applications
also declined 11 per cent in 2020; and the value of
new projects in the first two quarters, as the Opposi-tion Leader said, plummeted by 45 per cent. No ne of
this is good news considering the fact that the airport
is open and that construction is finished and that St.
Regis is due to open in a few short months.
Now, Mr. Speaker, Bermuda is no different
than almost every other country in the w orld, except
China. The epicentre of the start of COVID -19, China
is predicted to be the only major economy to post positive growth in 2020, Mr. Speaker. All other countries
were shaken greatly. Small countries like Bermuda
were shaken more. So, the Bermudian economy, Mr. Speaker, was on life support in 2020 and Government
acted prudently to triage us through that life support.
But let us look at those job numbers, Mr.
Speaker, because I think those job numbers highlight
exactly some of the challenges we faced and where we have turned in a short period of time. I have already said that in 2,924 jobs were lost in the last year.
International business remained flat . Surprisingly, Mr.
Speaker, public administration was up 82 jobs. There
were a couple of other c ategories that saw a slight
increase, such as, electrical, water supply and waste
management; professional, scientific and technical
activities; and administration and social services were
relatively flat.
But if you look at the rest of the market, Mr.
Speaker, it tel ls you a very different story. Manufacturing was down 78 jobs, or 20 per cent. Agriculture and
fishing were down 9 jobs, or 5 per cent. Construction
and quarrying were down 82 jobs, or 4 per cent.
Wholesale and retail were down 264 jobs, or 7 per
cent, tra nsportation and storage down 104 jobs, or
7 per cent. Hospitality (which consists of accommodation and food service activities) was down a whopping
1,784 jobs, or 38 per cent, Mr. Speaker. Information
and communications were down 11 per cent, 77 jobs.
Financial insurance activities were down 69 jobs, or
4 per cent. Real estate was also down, as was health
and social work care down 17 per cent.
Mr. Speaker, these are indeed startling numbers. And we should not forget that while a number of
jobs were lost in our economy, on the back of the PLP
Government’s saying 441 jobs were created in the prior year (and there was some contention about that number), we must not forget, Mr. Speaker, that there
were many people who were forced to work reduced
hours through th e year. So, the struggle, Mr. Speaker,
is very real, but this budget does very little to address
it.
Those 2,924 people that were unemployed in
this last year alone, what are they going to do for the
next year? Because, while we are more optimistic
about w here we are going to go and how we are going
to get there, COVID -19 has shown that it is very unpredictable and it always rears its ugly head when we
least want it to, Mr. Speaker. How are those 2,924 people going to get a job to pay bills, to buy groceries,
to live some sort of comforting life, Mr. Speaker? Job
losses will certainly continue throughout this year as
people continue to struggle and businesses continue to struggle. So, the benefits that Government rightly
gave in the past year ne ed to be cons idered as we
move forward, because the uptick in employment
growth is certainly not going to be there, Mr. Speaker.
Certainly not in the first half of this year.
And Mr. Speaker, just before I get off this job
table, an interesting analysis of it is if you look at the
top five employment categories on the Island. The number five employment category this year and last
year as well is in human health and social work, with


Bermuda House of Assembly 2,405 jobs, which is down considerably from the year
before [by] 484 jobs.
Mr. Speaker, the number four job category in
2020 was hospitality. It slipped from number one, Mr.
Speaker. With the fall of 1,784 jobs hospitality went from the major employer in Bermuda to the fourth
highest employment category.
Mr. Speaker, the number t hree employme nt
category was wholesale and resale trade, which
slipped from number two the year before.
The second highest employment category
was international business, which grew from number
three, Mr. Speaker. That is good news in a bad scenario.
The l argest employ ment occupation in Bermuda, Mr. Speaker, rising from fourth to number one,
is public administration. The biggest employer in Ber-muda is public administration. And this must send us
a clear message, as the Opposition Leader has talked
about in his brief tod ay. While it is probably needed in
the short term for some of these people to jump in and
help with COVID -19, public administration, as the
largest employer in Bermuda, does not bode well for a
healthy economy, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the bi ggest issue t hat we had in
the last year was obviously COVID -19. And the Opposition Leader addressed it as did the Member who
spoke before me. Interestingly enough, in this debate last year, we knew COVID -19 was coming because
many people talked about it. In fact, on t he day of the
economic debate, the Minister of Health, Minister Wil-son, gave a statement on COVID -19. So, I congratulate the Government for being on the ball in relation to preparing us for COVID -19.
It has been a long year. COVID has dominated. The Oppos ition, Mr. Speaker, has been generally
supportive of all the measures. Yes, we have been critical along the way about some of the challenges
we had with rest homes, some of the challenges we
had with the claim by the Government that the testin g
was aggress ive when, in fact, it was not in the beginning, Mr. Speaker. It has been our job as the Opposition to be critical when it was appropriate. But during
the pandemic we have been very cautious to make sure that we have supported the Government because people need to rally together.
We all needed to grip those oars in the boat,
because we knew, Mr. Speaker, that there were no easy decisions to make. There were no easy decisions about closing down the airport. There were no easy decisions about a l ockdown or [t o] shelter in
place. There have been no easy decisions, Mr.
Speaker. But thanks to all of us working together,
thanks to the support of people wanting to be involved
in giving advice, we have made it through.
And thanks, Mr. Speaker, to the UK for helping us, for putting us in this position where right now,
here today, on March 5, 2021. We are probably in a
better position than every other small economy around the world in dealing with COVID -19. And why
do I say that, Mr. Speaker? I say that for the simple
fact that we managed to get up and running with testing. And the UK provided us with thousands of test
kits and whatever else was required to make it hap-pen where we have been very aggressive with testing.
In November when we had a peak that got out of control in December, we could test and we could contact
trace and we could follow up where people work.
The UK has also been very helpful to us as
we geared up with the vaccines. You know, the free vaccines that have [come to] our shores and people
are now s tarting to overcome some of the hesitancy, I
hope, that allows us to be in a better position to deal
with it. But it has been a long year. It has been a tiring
year. And the pandemic continues to move on. People
are tired of the restrictions. Many people are out of work. But we must soldier on, Mr. Speaker, and that
means we must follow regulations and restrictions.
And I specifically put this in my comments today, Mr. Speaker, because there are a few amongst
us who will break those well -intentioned rules, the
very few who have spoiled the difficult path of a better
tomorrow that we tried to take through COVID -19.
First, we had the incident at Bl û [Bar and Grill] , then
we had the uptick through November and December,
and now we have had an upti ck because of some private parties over the past few days, Mr. Speaker.
This is totally unacceptable. These types of
actions are totally unacceptable, and people are frustrated. People have called me, contacted me, and expressed their frustration about it . We have laws in
place. We have restrictions. And those people must
be held accountable for their actions. They must appear in court because they have endangered our
community and they have set back progress.
This has made it all the more difficult, Mr.
Speaker, for us to get through the pandemic and we
do not need it to happen again. This curfew implementation just two nights ago, after only being lifted a
short period of time ago, is as a result of pure negligence or wanton disregard by a few, which goes
against t he grain of the many, Mr. Speaker. And as
this pandemic is not going to disappear quickly, we
need to make sure all of us are accountable for our actions.
So, Mr. Speaker, as we go through the pandemic ––and the future does look a bit brighter than it
looke d at this time last year ––certainly, no one knows
how in the coming months it will play out with COVID -
19. We have our theories. We have science to help us out. But what we do know is that certain measures
work. As the Opposition Leader put in hi s brief, m asking, distancing, and sanitising.
Mr. Speaker, we do know that vaccines work.
The evidence is there. And I urge all people to sign up
and to get a vaccine because only together will we get
out of this through some type of herd immunity.
562 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Speaker, our way forward is simple, but it
is hard at the same time. It is simple because we
know what we have to do. It is hard because it is taking a long time and our life is restricted because of it.
And I want to take the opportunity at this time, Mr. Speaker, to thank all of those who have been on the
front line over the past year in helping to deal with
COVID -19. Our first reflection goes to all the health
care workers who have been doing it for a year. But there are many people who are behind the scenes
that we do not see, so we might not know. There are
service personnel. There are all those people who
have worked hard in our grocery stores, for example,
during the shelter -in-place period. All of those people
have done a tremendous job under tremendous strain. In the beginning, I am sure, a lot of it was managed
because of the adrenaline rush they got because we knew we had a real challenge. So every day you woke
up, you went to work, you did the best you could, you
took your safety in concern, because the fear of the
unknown was great and you had that adrenaline rush,
in a bad way.
But now, Mr. Speaker, the daily grind has
kicked in where we are doing the same thing over and over and over again and those workers have to be getting fatigued. And so, we say thank you to them for
everything they have done to help us get to this point.
But we are not out of the woods yet.
Mr. Speaker, it is clear to all of us [that] the
quickest way out is by staying the course of what we know that works, what we know that works with
COVID -19, because if we do not, our collective pain
will stay there, will continue longer than necessary. We will not know the impact of COVID -19 for decades, Mr. Speaker —the impact on our community, the
impact on us as people, the impact on our mental
health, and certainly the economic impact. But what we do know is that we can work through this together
because there are many Bermudians who are struggling.
Now, Mr. Speaker, the PLP has talked repeatedly in the past about Two Bermudas. Well, Mr.
Speaker, it is very clear to me that the Two Bermudas
the PLP alluded to now are more of a reality than ever before. And I am not saying that to be derogatory or to
be overly critical. But what COVID -19 has done is
created a real divide in Bermuda between those who
have money they can fall back on and live and those who have nothing to live from and are at the mercy of
others to help them, Mr. Speaker.
And so, while there has been talk about Two
Bermudas, we need to make sure that we foster an
environment where we l ift people back up on their
feet. I referred to international business earlier in my
conversation, Mr. Speaker, and we need to make sure
that with international business not only do we talk about diversification, but we need to go to them and
make sure that they understand that there is opportunity to grow in Bermuda. We need to ask them what those opportunities are for them, how we get more people on the Island to do the jobs, bring more expertise onto the Island, stop sending jobs off the Island,
bring th em back here and create more jobs on the
Island, more jobs for Bermudians, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, we need to make sure that not
only does Government see fit to attract people who can invest $2.5 million, but there is more in the game
than just that. It is not good just to attract somebody
with a lot of money if they are not going to contribute to our economy with the creation of opportunities for Bermuda, opportunities for Bermudians to get jobs,
Mr. Speaker.
One of the greatest disappointments of this
budget, Mr. Speaker, is the lack of talk about tourism.
We have seen tourism jobs —the biggest downfall in
one year —1,784 jobs lost in one year, Mr. Speaker.
Those jobs will not come back if we wait for them to come back. We have a perfect opportunity to gro w
tourism because we are in a better position than most
other small countries and we should plan for that
growth, not just talk about it. Most of those people
who work in hospitality can get back to work in hospitality quicker than they can be retrained to get in any
new industry and that is what we need to do, Mr.
Speaker.
This budget is short on prospects of opportunity for jobs for those people out of work. And I am most surprised that the PLP is not addressing that
because that is the base that they say they like to talk
to, Mr. Speaker. So, rather than seeing growth in public administration, we need to see growth in the private
sector where people have an opportunity to get in-volved, and that growth helps all of us in our community.
And Mr. Sp eaker, the last thing I would like to
speak to (I believe I have just got about two minutes left in my time) —

That is correct.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: —is the real shortage of
any information about where we are going in health care in the b udget. And I am sure when we get to the
debate in Committee of Supply there will be more discussion about it.
But Mr. Speaker, before COVID -19, the
changes that were mooted by the Government in regard to health care were the talk of the Island. Now, obvio usly, COVI D-19 has changed the focus and a lot
of that conversation has gone away. But there are small lines in there about the changes that are coming, Mr. Speaker. We live in a country where our
health care is very expensive. It is simply unsustainable for all of us, Mr. Speaker. If we do not get these
changes right, if we do not make these changes work for all of us, it will be a disaster and we will see more
people leaving the country. That is the simple reality
of it all, Mr. Speaker.


Bermuda House of Assembly So, while Government says they have consulted, they need to do a better job, because I am not
sure of what the Government definition of a consultation means, Mr. Speaker, as we have seen with a Bill
in another place and some concerns about that. We need to get all people involved i n the consultation so
we get the changes in health care right because
COVID -19 has proven many people can work anywhere in the world they want —they can work on their
phone anywhere in the world as long as they have got
a phone and Internet servic e. We do n ot want to see
people leaving this country because we get health
care changes wrong. We cannot afford it. People cannot afford to pay the premium, so we need to have
real sincere consultation moving forward.
Mr. Speaker, with that I would like t o thank
you for your time and, once again, I would like to
commend the Opposition Leader for a very well -
thought -out, detailed, presentation.
Thank you, sir.

Good afternoon.

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, it is interesting.
I have been li stening to the Opposition, and it is important that I point out a few things that came to my
attention.
First of all, the Opposition Leader spoke about
reducing the number of MPs. And I wondered, the PLP will be quite aware of this, there was a Progressive Labour Party Government that we had in t he early 2000s . . . sorry, 1997/98, talking about allotting 30
MPs in Bermuda. It was the United Bermuda Party, at the time, which did not want 30 MPs. The reason why
was very clear, Mr. Speaker. They felt that they would lose most of the seats to the Progressive Labour Party. So, once you started dividing up the country into
30, an even number, then the power base that the United Bermuda Party relied on would kind of disappear.
Mr. Speaker, also, the creation of . . . Mr.
Speaker, I am going to have to l eave a minute; I just
feel faint right now. Did you hear me, Mr. Speaker?

Woul d you like . . . Members, we are
going to ask, if you do not mind yielding, and letting another Member take the floor and Minister, when
your health restores later, after that Member’s speech, you can come back.
Is there any other Member who would like to
speak at this time?

Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker?

Well, you do not have to take the whole
30 minutes. You certainly do not have to take it all.
Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: I do wish for his speedy
recovery.
But I would say that I probably was not surprised at the presentation that we had today. It is in-dicative of the type of presentations t hat we have had
from the One Bermuda Alliance ever since they be-came the Opposition. To say that we just listened to
an hour and forty -five minutes of what I would consider just “gotcha” moments littered through, you know,
some occasional good suggestions, is probably the
summary of what I would say of this Budget Reply.
But I am thinking, you know, the budget, when
it started, it talked about our Budget [Statement] from
our Minister not having any real concrete plans and
then we just listened to the former Premier Dunkley
speak, essentially, the same thing. And I am left wondering where, exactly, the suggestions coming fr om
the One Bermuda Alliance were.
We found ourselves now in a situation we
could have never imagined that we would ever, ever be in, coming off from a year where the entire world
has seen an economic downturn and basically shud564 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly dering because of the COVID -19 issues that we have
seen. And, you know, you have people say that this is
an economic downturn not seen since the last Great
Depressio n. And so, it is going to take all of us working together to pull us out of where we are.
I commend the Finance Minister for the budget that he has put together for this time, and it is a budget for the time that we find ourselves in and it is
going to wor k. But it cannot work unless we have all
hands on deck rowing in the same direction.
As I said, I just want to commend our Minister
of Finance, Minister Dickinson, for putting out a document. I mean it clearly states where we are, how we
got to where we ar e, and what we need to get to a
better place. And so, when I listen to the Opposition Leader speak, and he talks about it is devoid of ideas
and it does not take into account the doldrums we
were in, I would have to remind that Member that, prior to COVID -19, we were headed for budget surpluses. It was clearly articulated in the broad path that had
been put forward several years ago that that is where
we were headed. And so, to talk about this as if the
economy was in a tailspin prior to COVID -19, and
COVID -19 has just made it even worse, it is rubbish. It
is absolute rubbish to anyone who is actually paying
attention.
Now, there is no doubt that the COVID -19
crisis had a tremendous effect on our finances. But there are things that had to be don e to ensure that our
people survived what, as I just stated, was a global calamity and things were done and money was bor-rowed, and the debt ceiling was increased. And all of
those things were done, and we should not be upset about that because these are the things that had to be done and these are the things worldwide that had to
be done.
And so, to try and pooh- pooh that and try to
make light of that is truly disingenuous and it truly
does show us the . . . I am trying to be parliamentary
here, but you kno w, the head- in-the-sand, airy -fairy
things that consistently come from the other side, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, this was a diffi cult budget to put
together. I was there. I was in the room. We fought each other. We argued. We challenged our ministries
to do better, to look at where we are, find those necessary reductions so we could have a budget that
does something that has not been done in a long time,
and that is not increase taxes to everyday Mr. and
Mrs. Bermuda. We have done that. We have accom-plishe d that. The deficit from last year has been cut in
half this year. We have done that.
And so, you know, instead of finding ways t o
poke holes with gotcha moments, as I said, I would
like to see the Opposition actually come and either
provide some useful c ommentary, some suggestions
on how we can do things differently, some credible
suggestions, instead of continuously trying to catc h us
out and, say, So, Bermuda, look what they’ve done, instead of saying, Hey, we understand what you did, let’s see how we c an move it forward.
And so, Mr. Speaker, when I look at the Reply
given by the Opposition Leader and, you know, I
started going t hrough it. I am sure other Members will
follow me and they will find other particular points because everyone finds their things that they kind of
latch on to when we have these things.
The one thing, Mr. Speaker, that really stood
out initially as I was listening to him reading this, was
when the Opposition Leader started talking about
base rates. And he was opining about Government
better talk to the banking association if you are going
to talk about adjusting rates and gave a pseudo threat
of what coul d happen if we figured out a way to give
lower borrowing rates for our hardworking Bermudi-ans. So there are ones out there thi nking, you know,
There is no future for me in Bermuda because it is just
too expensive, I would like to buy a house, but I cannot afford it. I would like to buy a car, but I cannot afford it.
And so, I was interested to hear the Opposition Leader, Mr. Speaker, go on about that and
threaten that the banks will leave here. But Mr.
Speaker, what I did not hear from the Opposition
Lead er was his declaration of interest. He works for
one of these major banks that he talks about. So, is
he speaking because he w ants to protect his livelihood —
Hon. N. H. Cole Simons: Point of order, Mr. Speaker.

Minister, just to correct you. He did declare his interest when he made reference to the
banks.

Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Ah! Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I do apologise for that because I did not hear
that when he did.
But Mr. Speaker, when he does speak of that,
is he speaking about protecting his livelihood? Or is
he speaking about what is truly good for the electorate of Bermuda? That is the question that we have to answer. And I know that there is a fine balance to walk because you will often hear people say if you are not
conflic ted, then you’re not involved here in Bermuda
because of the fact that it is that small of an Island
and everybody, you know, it is even said that there is
one degree of separation between just about every-thing that we do around here.
But, Mr. Speaker, th at did stand out to me.
And I think in the coming weeks that Member will
probably have to cl arify, you know, is he looking out
for himself or is he looking out for the electorate when
he talks about that.
Now Mr. Speaker, the next thing that stood
out to me . . . and this was interesting. And it is when
the Member was talking about immigration. I want to
quote from the Reply at page 20. And he says, “It has


Bermuda House of Assembly been a political football, and with the aid of successive
PLP Governments, this issue has also stoked civil
unrest.”
I found that an interesting statement that the
Member would state, because what he is implying is
that immigration, whenever there has been civil unrest
or whenever there has been a push- back, it has to be
the PLP Government stoking the f ires behind the
scenes for these people. But, no, Mr. Speaker, this is
exactly what we find wrong with the One Bermuda
Alliance —the refusal to admit and acknowledge that
they screwed up. That is absolute refusal. People
were not . . . there was not civil u nrest because the
PLP stoked it. There was civil unrest because of positions made by the One Bermuda Alliance around immigration were horrible . They evoked emotions within
people that they only brought about themselves. No one had to . . .
You know, Mr. S peaker, I was in the Senate
. . . I sat in another place when the Senate was overwhelmed bec ause the then, as they put it, the great,
Senator Michael Fahey introduced legislation to allow
PRCs to purchase any property they want in Bermuda. They removed the threshold so they could purchase any property in Bermuda. And why were people
upset? Becaus e the One Bermuda Alliance was blind
to the fact that we were going through an economic crisis and Bermudian families who had owned proper-ties for generations withi n their families were finding
themselves in financial trouble.
When you take an opportunity to unleash the
spending the power of the PRC who were not allowed
to purchase properties under a certain threshold, of
course, they are going to swoop down and pur chase
these properties from these hard- working Bermudian
families. And yes, Bermudians are g oing to be upset.
You do not need a political party to stoke those emo-tions, Mr. Speaker. They did it to themselves. As
Bermudians were struggling to hold onto thei r properties, they unleashed a group of people in Bermuda
that had tons of cash . . . becaus e if you go back to
then, remember the real estate agents were excited
and saying yes, property prices are inching up. And
what is the biggest surprise is most of t hese property
purchases were by cash. How many people . . . and Member Dunkley who spoke ear lier, talked about the
two Bermudas. What side of Bermuda is walking
around here with a million dollars in cash, Mr. Speaker? It certainly is not the hard- working B ermudian,
Black Bermudian that has been struggling and trying
to figure out how to navigate around these interest
rates for mortgages, et cetera.
So, when they talk about civil unrest, own it!
Simply just own it. Stop trying to deflect that you screwed up and you did things to anger people. Understand that. But we can go back to the immigration
law in which a loophole was found. Legislation was
introduced by the great late Walton Brown to close the
loophole, and the One Bermuda Alliance refused to close it . They refused to close it. How can you blame
the Progressive Labour Party for that? You said, No,
we will allow the loophole to be open, we will allow
persons to sneak and buy Bermudian status under the
darkness of night because they found a loophole. You
could have closed it, but you did not.
What about the suggestion to allow nonBermudian children to compete against Bermudian children for summer jobs? You did not need the PLP
to stoke any emotions around that. You did it yourself.
Own it.
And see, we w ill not get to a place where we
are able to move together hand- in-hand until we stop
playing politics as normal. And that is own when you
make a mistake and then admit you made a mistake
so we can move on.
Now, Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to highlight
that because I thought it was interesting when we
looked at the immigration policies and we were talking
about immigration. And I thought it was pretty good as well, this morning, when the Premier gave the Ministerial Statement about the Economic Recovery Plan and
one of the questions —and it was asked repeatedly —
can you name five of those [items] of t he Economic
Recovery Plan out of the 30? And, Mr. Speaker, and
rightly so, I really do thank the Honourable Member
Dunkley who went back to the Budget Statement and
turned to pages 13 and 14 where seven of those are named.
And so, I just wonder, well, what was going on
. . . name, name, name . . . and here we are seven of them. Their Opposition Leader speaks about increasing the population of Bermuda as a way of eco nomic
recovery, and that is listed. That is listed here as
number four of the seven listed i n our Budget Statement —“expanding the resident population.” And so,
we are working in step . . . we can work together if you just want to, if you stop trying to fig ure out . . . Let me
see how I can catch these lies out . . . How can I point
out where they said one thing and did something
else?
Stop it! That is not helping us. That is not
helping our people and it is not helping our country. All it looks like is that we are just here bickering back and
forth, bickering back and forth, because we have noth-ing else better to do. We do have better things to do,
and that is moving our country forward together, Mr.
Speaker.
Now, Mr. Speaker, the next thing that stood
out to me was . . . and this is when you start talking
about pure politics. Pure politics.
Mr. S peaker, the Opposition Leader . . . and I
quote from page 39 where he says, “. . . it was noted
that the Ministry of Youth, Cultural Affairs and Sports
Head Quarter s had a 38% reduction in allocation. Is
this department not valued?”
You know, I read that, and I thought 38 per
cent? Let me actually go take a look. You know, Mr.
Speaker, 38 per cent works out to be $822,000. Eight
566 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly hundred thousand of that is a reductio n in professional
services and a reduction in salaries, meaning there
are posts that may have been funded and unfilled that
will not be filled and there is a reduction in consultants—the very things that we go back to the page
where that Member was talking about the SAGE Report and how we should be following the SAGE Report and figuring out how to run our departments better and reduce the [amount] of the money we spend on (and if we go back to the actual SAGE Report)
consultants and the number of employees in every department.
We now have [an example of following the
SAGE Report] that is there, but because it is just politicking, it is mentioned in his Budget Reply as an issue. You cannot have it both ways, Opposition Lead-er. You cannot demand that we look at the SAGE Re-port and we come up with ways to run government
more efficiently, and then take a pot shot because we
are doing it because it makes for good political theatre. Stop it! That is not how we are going to get Ber-muda moving forward.
And you know, we talk about the SAGE Report, and I was interested to read that in this docu-ment and, as the speaker before me had started off by
saying, you know, talk about reducing the number of
MPs, reducing the number of departments, reducing
the number of Minister s. The SAGE Report was done
in 2013. [The year] 2013 went by, 2014 went by, 2015
went by, and most of 2017 went by and the One Bermuda Alliance instituted very little of the SAGE Re-port. Here we are now, three and a half years later
after . . . here we are just under four years later after
the last election and, all of a sudden, it is the why haven’t you guys implemented the Report that you
commissioned? The Report that you spent $1.2 million to commission?
Stop it!
Stop with the political theatre. It is not helping
any of us. It really is not. And the Two Bermudas out
there, as Member Dunk ley referred to, they see it too.
They see exactly what it is you are saying.
Now, Mr. Speaker, I do want to move on to
my last part that I want to talk about which is education. And I am always interested, obviously, as Education Minister, to see what the One Bermuda Alliance
has to say. And, of course, we started off with reference to the Independent Education Authority. And
they will note that you will never hear this Minister say
“independent education authority” we say “Education Authority,” Mr. Speaker.
And it goes on to say that the Education Authority cannot bring about . . . it is not the cure, and it talks about some other things that could happen, that
should happen —“Continuing Professional Development Centre,” Mr. Speaker. It talks about “Foundational Counsellors to support our children,” Mr.
Speaker. It also talks about the “Government should protect Bermuda College from the financial impact of the crisis.”
And Mr. Speaker, when I read this stuff, it truly
does sink my heart. And do you know why , Mr.
Speaker? It is because I have reached out to the
Shadow Minister of Education, the current one. I
reached out to the former Shadow Minister of Education, MP Jackso n, when she was Shadow Minister. I
have reached out to the current one. I have asked them to come and sit with me so we could talk about
education reform, so they could be informed, because
I recognise that education requires all of us to be on
the same page.
Mr. Speaker, not one of them has taken me
up on that opportunity.

Thank you.

Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Spe aker, and I was
going to get to that. The last meeting that I had with the Opposition was March 2020. I have contacted both of them since the last election and neither of
them have found time to meet with me.
As a matter of fact, Mr. Speaker, I can read
verbatim: I will check my calendar and get back to you
when I am able to meet. That was their response.

Thank you.



Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I will restate
it. I have reached out directly to the Shadow Minister
of Education. I have asked him to come and sit with
me one on one so we can talk about educati on reform. The response has been I will chec k my calendar
and will let you know when I can meet. We have followed up on several occasions and the response is always the same. And I will leave it at that, okay? If
you really want to know what is going on wi th education, you would come and meet with t he Minister, not
sneak into—

Minister, you have been on a good
ground all this time. Keep doing well.

Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
And so, Mr. Speaker, when I read things in
here, when it talks about the public educatio n reform
and the consultation that is going on now about the parish primary school concept in March 2020— in
March 2020—I held a zoom session with the One
Bermuda Alliance. And guess what we talked about in
that zoom session? Parish primary schools and that
the consultation was going to start that summer. However, COVID -19 did not [allow] us to do what we
wanted to do that summer, so it was pushed further
down into the year, Mr. Speaker.
So, again, for the Opposition Leader to put in
his document —as if it is this ah-ha! I-got-you moment
. . . if this was so important, you would have mentioned it in your election platform, Mr. Speaker. This is
the same Government that held a Throne Speech and
then signed an airport deal a week later, without even mentioning a n airport deal in their Throne Speech. So,
again, disingenuous, Mr. Speaker.
But, again, Mr. Speaker, I really wanted to
cover that because if there had been meetings as I wanted to have they would have heard things about
continuing professional development centres for our
teachers because they would already know that the
Bermuda Educators Institute, which actually had its
genesis just before I became Minister, which means
the now Opposition Leader MP Cole Simons would
have been the Minister of Education d uring the genesis of the Bermuda Educators Institute . . . he would
have known that that is already well in train to do exactly what he keeps saying we should introduce.
When he talks about “Foundational Counsellors,” Mr. Speaker, he should know, as a former Minister of Education, about the multi -tiered system of support that does exist within our schools. They already
exist. If they would come and sit down with me they
would know about the curriculum that incorporates
restorative education practices with in our school system that we plan to introduce. They would know all of this, Mr. Speaker. But it is often said by the Opposition Leader that we need to take politics out of education.
Well, I wish he would take the politics out of education. Come and sit a nd talk so we can all be moving toward the goals we want to move to hand- in-hand
instead of having to listen to soundbites like this, in-stead of listening to absolute r ubbish op- eds being
written that really reflect nothing and do nothing to help us move e ducation along. That is where we
would be, Mr. Speaker.
So, Mr. Speaker, when we look at this response and its gotcha moments that are littered throughout, we have to ask ourselves, Do we really
want to work together? Does the Opposition really
want the c ountry to succeed? Or has everything got to
be political? Has everything got to be from the position
of, What can I do to make those guys look bad? I
cannot wait until Wednesday when we do the Education budget and see what they do bring with their
questions, because we will be ready with the answers
they need. We will be ready to show you where we found the savings within our budget, and we will still
deliver everything that needs to be delivered for our
education system.
As the Member who did interject said, they
have been sitting in on the zoom consultations. They
would know, Mr. Speaker, and they would not have
put in here, Why isn’t there any funding in here for the
restructuring of our school system? because the restructuring of our school system and t he parish primary schools is not slated to start for two more fiscal cycles—two more fiscal cycles. They would know that.
All they have to do is ask before they speak.
And the last thing on education, Mr. Speaker,
and obviously my colleagues on the other side completely missed, an absolutely wonderful press conference that we did two weeks ago about the Bermuda College, about the half a million dollars in additional
support that we have been pumping into the Bermuda
College since 2017. The additional support that provides tuition help for students that has seen 800 students benefit from tuition grants, that has seen a system put in place that allows any student that grad uates from our high schools with a 3.0 GPA or more to
attend the Bermuda College tuition- free. This started
in 2018. There were 27 students in the first year and
now we are up to over 80 students taking advantage
of that.
They would have heard about all of the articulation agreements that the Bermuda College now has
that allow you to do two y ears at the Bermuda College
and enter directly into the third year of prestigious organisations, institutions in Canada, the US, the UK and the Caribbean.
They would have heard that during their last
year—the last year of the OBA administration—
enrolment h ad fallen to just over 900 students and
now we have increased dramatically because of the
support that this Government has given to the Bermuda College.
If they had come and sat down with me, they
would know of the companies that have now commit568 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly ted to buil d the new $3.5 million student centre that is
now under construction at the Bermuda College.
They would know about the $1 million that has
been put into IT upgrades and increasing the bandwidth and installing new servers and such and rewiring all of the Bermuda College. They would know
these things, Mr. Speaker, all they have to do is come
and sit and talk. And that is all I ask of them.
Mr. Speaker, thank you for the ti me that I was
given to discuss the Reply. It has been a very difficult
year for our country, and I applaud the Minister for being steadfast sometimes. He is not the most popular guy when you sit around with some of the fiscal
decisions he tortures us to make. But I understand
that he cares for all of Bermuda. He does not care
about the politi cal platitudes. He cares about making
sure that Bermuda comes out on top, Mr. Speaker,
and that is the Government that this country needs
and this country deserves at t his time of crisis.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Okay, you can have your 30 minutes
now.

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Again, Mr. Speaker, let me just say that today
is our economic debate, and it is my intention to stick
with facts and the economic impact on our Island
home. We all understand the role of the Opposition,
so we are not surprised at what we hear from them or
what the public will be hearing. That is their role. They
complain, they say what we said or did not say. It is not surprising. So, we will let those things slide.
Now, Mr. Speaker, there are two things that I
want to mention, point out, that I believe —not believe,
I know —that the Opposition Leader was factually
wrong.
First of all, the BDA was not created by the
One Bermuda Alliance. The BDA was created by the
Progressive Labour Party in 2012. And the reason why I know that is that I was there to make those things happe n.
Mr. Speaker, now, when did it actually start? It
did start in March, I think, 2013 under the One Bermuda Alliance, but the actual founding was [done under] the Progressive Labour Party.
Mr. Speaker, another thing that I want to point
out . . . and I, from time to time you hear the Opposition speak about . . . and they mention on page 28,
they say that: “The Sinking Fund, was devised by the
late David Saul for a rainy day, just like this one. For
clarity, Bermuda should note that The Sinking Fund
was se t up specifically to provide for the RETIREMENT OF DEBT.”
And that is absolutely true, Mr. Speaker. I just
happened to be in the room at the time when this
thing was all done. And the purpose was . . . David
Saul, the former Member of Parliament and Financ e
Minister, took money out of any surpluses. No money was taken out of . . . it was not . . . when there was a
deficit, why woul d . . . and just think about Bermudians. When you say you are going to set some money aside. I am making $10,000 a month, there is surplus
there, I am going to set aside $3,000 for the future ,
whether it is expenditures or buying a car or something or for retirement. No one says when they are
going to set some money aside that they are going to
go and borrow money when they do not have any money, Mr. Speaker.
And that was the whole concept that the Minister of Finance last year grabbed hold of. Why would
somebody go and borrow money —borrow money —to
set aside? So, the money that you were borrowing was higher than what you were payin g back, Mr.
Speaker.
And so, the idea was to take money out of any
surpluses to put towards a sinking fund. And I challenge any one . . . as I said, Mr. Speaker, I happened
to be in the room at the time when this particular fund was set up. A good idea. And as time goes on when
we start getting surpluses and the Minister of Finance
is projecting some [surpluses], hopefully in 2023/ 24 or
whenever it takes place, then rightly so, we should take some money aside and set it aside for any future capital expendit ure. That is what it is based on, Mr.
Speaker, putting money aside for any future capital
expenditure.
Mr. Speaker, someone once said that resilience is fundamentally underpinned by the concept
that it is not so much the hard times we face that de-termine our success or failure as the way in which we
respond to those hard times.
Mr. Speaker, I guess the key word is “resilience.” No one within the sound of my voice, Mr.
Speaker, can deny that we have been going through a
tough period in 2020. I do not think a nyone, Mr.
Speaker . . . maybe some people who have been
through World War II, I do not know, I was not there,
or for World War I, I do not know. But Mr. Speaker, in


Bermuda House of Assembly my lifetime as a Member of Parliament, in my time on
this earth, the few years I have spent here, I have
never gone through tougher times than we did in
2020.
So, when the Opposition and the Honourable
Member Michael Dunkley talks about job loss and
GDP . . . what do you expect, Mr. Speaker? We all know that there were job losses in 2020. We a ll know
that. We knew that GDP would fall in 2020. It is not a surprise that those things took place.
Mr. Speaker, I can tell you right now, my hat
goes off to the Minister of Finance and his team for
what they have come through and where they want to
take the country.
Mr. Speaker, I can tell you right now it was not
easy. Recognising that we had to raise revenue, recognise that we wanted to keep jobs, recognising that
we did not want to go after the union again, [knowing
how] the unions regard austerity, w hat do we do?
Mr. Speaker, my hat goes off to the Minister of
Finance and, particularly, Mr. Speaker, my hat goes
off to the di fferent controllers in the different ministries,
and Tina Tucker, who is the Budget Officer.
Mr. Speaker, it was not easy. And as much as
those Honourable Members can talk and say what
they want to do, and that is what I expected out of the
Opposition, it would be very interesting to see what
they would have done at this time.
Mr. Speaker, I can probably say that they
would not have raised taxes. And, Mr. Speaker, they
would have had to do some of the same things we have done. The question is: Where have we come
from, Mr. Speaker? And where are we going?
Mr. Speaker, I honestly believe that there is
always a particular time in hi story when certain individuals or certain groups should be in place. In 2017
when the electorate voted for the Progressive Labour Party, it was the right time. Everything has a right
time, there is a time to sing, there is a time to dance, a
time to cry. T he year 2017 was the right time. The
OBA had lost the Government.
Mr. Speaker, in 2020 they lost significant
numbers —significan t numbers. No one would have
guessed that amount. Even with my political back-ground, I would have never thought we would have
those numbers. But the people of Bermuda have confidence in a Government going through rough times,
Mr. Speaker, recognising where it has come from,
particularly with COVID -19. And my hat goes off to the
Honourable Minister Kim Wilson and the Honourable Prem ier, who have, every week, stood in front of this
country and told us where we are, chastised us when
we were wrong, patted us on our back when we were
right. And at the end of the day, Mr. Speaker, the
people spoke and said we want you to take us
through this rough time . . . we want you to take us
through the battle . . . we want you to take us through.
And Mr. Speaker, I believe that the timing was right. Mr. Speaker, you may recall that when the
Progressive Labour Party Government took over, they
put c ertain things in place. And let me just say a few
things that they put in place: a reduction in payroll taxes for those making under $96,000; eliminated payroll tax for the employer who hired disabled Bermudians (first time in history); provided tax relief for
first-time entrepreneurs; reduced taxi drivers’ payroll
taxes from, I believe it was, an average of $2,500
down to $1,000 ( not heard of, Mr. Speaker); reduced
custom duties from 5 per cent to zero per cent (and I
can name some of the things like, I th ink it was on
healthy foods, such as eggs, potatoes, cauliflower,
broccoli, carrots, turnips, oranges and apples. They
lost cust oms duty revenue on this, but the Government believed that we do things to make things hap-pen). There was duty relief on textiles, Mr. Speaker (this is [from] the 2018 Budget); duty relief for sporting
clubs, particularly on uniforms for our young people;
incentives for international business that encouraged
them to hire other individuals without paying the payroll tax as long as t he numbers were fixed, I think it
was, at March 31, 2018. And, Mr. Speaker, we saw
some of the benefit of that.
Mr. Speaker, the stage was set. So, let us
take a look at what happened. And Mr. Speaker, normally we are able to lay things on the Table so Me mbers can see. But, Mr. Speaker, if you do not mind,
with this technology will you allow me to share some
of the graphs I want t o at least show the public? If you
do not mind.

We see the graph, yes.
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: So, Mr. Speaker, let me just
look at total revenue . . . this is the Government’s revenues, just under a billion dollars . . . $999 million.
Can you see that, Mr. Speaker?
Mr. Speaker?
The Sp eaker: Yes, go ahead.

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Okay. The revenue went
from $999 million to over $1.022 billion. And then in
2019 the revenue went up to $1.060 billion. So, revenue started great.
Mr. Speaker, if you look at Government expenditure. It was $1.176 billion in 2017 and reduced in
2018 $1.082 billion and in 2019 it went down to
$1.075 billion. So, Mr. Speaker, you saw that things
were taking place within the economy. We saw construction go from 147 in 2017, to 172 in 2018, to 201
in 2019.
If you look at table 10, Mr. Speaker, we talk
about policy that the G overnment put in place to allow
570 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly creation of dwelling units, we went from 62 dwellings
completed in 2017, to 80 in 2018, to 81 in 2019. This
is a policy that the Progressive Labour Party put in
place and, in fact, it reflects on some of the retail
sales, wh ich I will show the Members later on.
So, Mr. Speaker, you saw that we were . . .
and the Honourable Member was talking about em-ployment earlier on, let me just see if I can pull that
table up.
Mr. Speaker, 2017 33.6 thousand, 33.8, 34.3
. . . my point is that things were happening. Things
were happening and, as a matter of fact, the projection the Minister of Finance had for last year and this
year would have been either break even regarding our
financial situation, or even an additional surplus be-fore interest on the debt.
Mr. Speaker, COVID -19 struck us. Something
that none of us could have controlled. Unfortunately,
the GDP contracted by 8.5 per cent, as reported by
the Minister of Finance . There were job declines —
surprise, surprise, Mr. Speaker. Bus iness decreased.
Who is surprised at that, Mr. Speaker, that when planes are not coming in that businesses are going to
decrease. Cruise ships fell off. None of the cruise
ships are coming here, Mr. Speaker, because of
COVID -19. Our public revenue is impac ted, we have
$161 million, and the budget deficit, which is depicted,
and you see it in the Estimates of Revenue where it is $247 million.
Mr. Speaker, there were some bright spots in
2020. Let me just see if I can find those numbers. As
you can see, the c urrent GDP went from . . . Mr.
Speaker, do you see this one? I just want to make sure you can see those.

Yes.
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: The GDP went from $7.1
million, $7.2 million up to $7.4 million—that was 2019 year—and, of course, it droppe d off in 2020. Retail
sales index, Mr. Speaker, look at this . . . look at this, Mr. Speaker. In January was down 2.3 per cent, February was up 2.2 per cent., March up 4.3 per cent.
What happened in March, Mr. Speaker? And we see a drop in retail sales —no one was shopping— it went
down 30.1 per cent, then climbed to 13.8 per cent retail sales in May.
Then we climbed to . . . this was when the
Government started putting things in place—Come
out an d start shopping, start buying. We knew people
were not flying out and taking their trips, but, Mr.
Speaker, thank God that we had some Bermudians
who have said We’re going to invest in some small
mom- and-pop stores and larger stores. Particularly in
places like Gorhams, the government had policy in place to improve the idea of . . . to speed up building projects and stuff like that. And there was 1.3 per cent
. . . Mr. Speaker, we saw on a positive note in July.
Look what happened after that in August . . . went about 10.1 per cent. September 6.8 per cent. October
8.7 per cent, November 8 per cent. And Mr. Speaker,
the first time the year it goes as 14.2 per cent in December.
Mr. Speaker, there were some bright spots.
And yes, they are because Bermudians were home
and they were shopping, we know that. But as you
know, Mr. Speaker, they also the ability to shop
online, which many of them did. We saw some increases in courier packages, people buying from
FedEx and the rest of the stores. (Now I do not know how to come out of this, Mr. Speak er, you might see a
graph for a while.)
So, Mr. Speaker, the statistical data proves
that we were heading in the right direction. But with
the bump in the road, where do we go from here?
Where do we go from here?
When I hear d the Opposition say that the
Government basically had no plan, Mr. Speaker, there
is no doubt that what I heard them say was what I knew they were going to say. Recognising, Mr.
Speaker, I can tell you right now that this Government
has a plan, and in due time you will hear about it. T he
Premier’s statement today laid out some key points in regard to economic diversification.
And I heard Honourable Members talk about
vertical farming. Mr. Speaker, you can bet your bottom dollar that that will take place. As I told the Honourable Member s, particularly MP Jackson, the Government is doing some more due diligence— full stop. But
you can bet your bottom dollar, Mr. Speaker, that this
is going to take place.
And there are other things that we are working
on, Mr. Speaker, but we want to make s ure that our
due diligence is done and make sure that we get all
the information out there. But I can guarantee, Mr.
Speaker, this Government will move ahead to get the
vertical farming done. And not owned by the Government —despite all the criticisms that I hear over there
that the Government is going to own this vertical farm.
No, Mr. Speaker, the Government made a commitment that we will make sure that we have Bermudians
who have investment in things that we do. We want
Berm udians, predominantly, to own t hat vertical farming. We want Bermudians to own it. And so that is why
we are looking at the numbers to make sure [there is
a] return on investment there, how would you set up
the structures, those things are being worked on, Mr.
Speaker.
I am confident, Mr. Speaker, in due time the
public will hear where we are and how we will move
ahead in regard to that.
And there is other great stuff, Mr. Speaker.
There are great things that this party is doing in regard
to moving, as far as growth is concerned. Financ ial
markets, infrastructure investment, expanding the res-ident population —these things the Premier spoke
about today —our health care regulatory reform, and
the list goes on and on.


Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Speaker, just because we do not put everything in the Budget Statement does not mean that it
is not happening. It does not mean that the public will
not know. The public will know. The Premier has
made a commitment that the Minister of Finance will come sometime in due season and lay out the poi nts
that we plan to move ahead with, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I mentioned earlier that Bermudians are resilient. I believe we can recover quickly
from difficulties. We have the brainpower on this Island home of ours to come up with the right solution. This Government was elec ted to lead, Mr. Speaker,
and to make decisions in the best interests of our
people and residents alike.
Mr. Speaker, this Government’s Summary of
Consolidated Fund speaks to . . . we will incur a deficit
in this year of $124 million. We will incur a defic it of
$24 million . . . this is a projection, Mr. Speaker. For
change in 2021/22, we will incur a surplus in 2023.
Mr. Speaker, these numbers are not just put
there to be put there, because the Government has a plan. And, as I said, Mr . Speaker, everyone w ill hear
of those plans as we go on.
Mr. Speaker, the future is in good hands under this Government, and the buds of the tree will blossom very soon.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to end with this
quote: “The past is a place of reference, not a place of
residence; the past is a place of learning, not a place
of living.” Let us put our minds together and see what
we can do to make Bermuda a better place for every one of us, especially our children.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I raise a point of order as it relates to guidance from you. The Honourable Minister alluded to tabling those spreadsheets, and under
Standing Order 16, I believe that we are entitled to get a copy of those. And I would like to know when we
would get a copy of those. The Quarterly Bulletin of
Statistics, tables 5, 6, 9, 10 and 18, and the document
as well labelled [“RSI By Month For 2020”] with worksheets GDP and RSI.

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I have no problem passing that information on —

I am sorry, my microphone was muted,
I am sorry.
If we were in the House, Whip, yes, the Minister would have had to table it. Being we are not in the House, he asked permission to share it on the sc reen.
So we all saw i t, but the expectation is that, yes, as
soon as possible, he will have it circulated so that all
Members can have a hard copy.
The fact that he showed it to us . . . I allowed
it to take place because, had we been in the House
we woul d have seen it anyway . So, if you go and
speak to something that we did not see . . . the fact is
that he shared it on the screen. We all saw it.
But, yes, the follow up to that would be that a
copy will be made available, whether he sends it out
electron ically —which I do suggest that he just send it
out electronically so that all Members can get it.
If you send it to this office, we can have it put
on the SharePoint site, but you do need to follow up, Minister, to make sure we all get a copy.
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: No problem, Mr. Speaker. I
will have the Department of Statistics send that information to you.

We would like to have it as soon as
possible. So, Minister, as soon as possible if you can
get it sent over, because the Budget Debate will start
on Monday, and if someone wants to make reference
to it, at least we have it.
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I have no problem with sharing this information so the Opposition
can be educated.

Thank you very much, Mr.
Speaker, and good afternoon to colleagues and to Bermuda as a whole.
I would like to start out by saying thank you to
the Opposition Leader for his methodical Reply and
his consideration of where we are, how we should be
potentially moving forward in his contribution. I certainly want to thank MP Dunkley, as well, as he articulated well our issues.
In addition to that, I would also like to thank
the Finance Minister for this opportunity to sit down
and to consider, not only his t houghts on where we
need to go forward as far as Bermuda is concerned,
but the Cabinet as a whole. The Budget certainly was
presented by the Minister, but it is a reflection, clearly, on not just what the Finance Minister believes, but,
additionally, on wh at the Cabinet believes on where
we should be going forward.
You know, as years have gone by I have
come to understand that this whole budgetary period
and the presentations really are two- fold to say: Number one, to report on what has been happening, what
has been done, not just in numbers when we look at dollar values and the likes in debt and revenue, but to
put some flesh and some meat around that to explain
exactly how our people are being affected by the economy within which we live. And then secondl y the
other objective is to show how the Government ex-pects to go forward with the objectives for the future and how it plans on meeting those objectives.
I believe that this is where some of the contention lies. We are hearing objectives and we are heari ng principles that this Government continues and
will continue to put in place that it believes will benefit Bermuda. But there has not been enough said about exactly how some of these things are going to play
out. There have been some that have been talked about, and we will talk about those as far as infrastructure projects and the likes.
I think it is important that, as I begin here, you
know, I have been listening very inte ntly to everyone.
And I do not believe that there has been anyone . . .
and I am sure that the colleagues will correct me
when they have the opportunity, if there is need to be,
but I do not believe that anyone has berated the Government, especially amongs t my colleagues, for how
COVID -19 has been handled. I believe that we were
involved , maybe, could have been involved even
more. But in our involvement, we understood the concerns, the challenges that were being faced. I do not
believe that anyone challenged this Government, as I
have heard already about the borrowing that was
necessary and needed to ensure that we looked out
for our people.
So, you know, I have already heard about this
picking grounds and picking a fight, and I do not see
where that has tak en place during COVID -19 where there has been criticism applied to this Government
over its handling of COVID -19. I believe a very valiant
effort has taken place by this Government when it came to COVID -19, and we have acquitted ourselves
well.
You know, some may argue, well, you know,
all we had to do was shut down the border and the likes. Well, that is an argument for another day. Right
now, the conclusion is that we have fared extremely well over the last year, almost. Yes, a year actually. It
is March now—a year since COVID -19 took its grip on
not just Bermuda, but the world in and of itself.
So, the question really has never been about
the money that was borrowed. The question really has not been about the policies that needed to be put in
place to ensure that people are safe. Not at all. The
question is that now that we have very l ittle money,
how is this Government going to find ways to ignite
and to charge and to stimulate financial growth going
forward for Bermuda? And I believe that is where we
are hoping to see . . . as we flesh out in more detail
through this budgetary period that is where we are hoping to get more answers. They certainly were not
in its entirety throughout the Budget, and I do believe
that as we move forward solutions will be forthcoming.
I certainly have a few that I will put as we go
forward, but Bermuda ne eds to hear exactly what we
are doing and how we are going to go about ensuring
that we have a brighter future going into the rest of
2021 and into 2022, and its projections have gone out
to 2023. Exactly what can we expect? And where is
this Government positioning itself when it comes to
the opportunities . . . expanding the economy is vital. It is important that we concentrate our efforts on exactly what this Government pla ns on doing.
Now, I will go to the very front. I appreciate
the comment by the Fina nce Minister on page 2, in
the second to last paragraph. He says in the last sentence: “We must harness the intellectual capital, the
spirit of collaboration, the backbone and grit of our
resilient island community which knows how to work
together, and mos t importantly, wants to get back to
work.” I do not think that the statement could be said any clearer. Some might argue, maybe better, but it
could not be made any clearer and I appreciate the fact that he has put this in here.
I think one of the concerns as we go forward
really is the very first part: “We must harness the intel-lectual capital.” And you know, Bermuda has become a powerhouse economically in the past primarily because it has taken advantage of that intellectual capi-tal which resides within B ermuda. That is Bermudian
expertise, and expert expertise, coming into the room and finding a way forward with the resilience and the
stability of a Bermudian economy. And w e have done
that so well by working together and finding ways to create a very unique economy here in Bermuda,
probably second to none, quite frankly. In fact, other
islands —you name it —are seeking out some of the


Bermuda House of Assembly opportunities that we have benefitted from. And that
really lies with some of the contention and some of the
challenges that we have.
You know, COVID -19 has highlighted the fact
that we were all vulnerable. And the models that we have used in the past make it clear that, whether it be
the OECD, European Nations, whether it be other
Caribbean Islands and the likes, whether it be London
or Britain itself, you know, we have been a powerhouse. And quite frankly, we are part of the deep
ocean that is out there, and we are under attack. And
if we do not c ome up with creative ways of being able
to hold on to the business model that we have and to
continue to diversify where we can . . . but [with] the
base of what it is that we do, we still have opportunity.
And I have not yet heard from the Government . . . and I am hoping that as we flesh this thing
out we will hear more about how our t ourism department plans on moving forward. How do we plan on treating our international businesses as if their intellectual capital, actually is treasured? And, in addition to that, how are we now merging the Bermuda expertise that we do have to some of the opportunities that
we think might actually improve our plight in Bermuda?
The one thing that is very clear to me and that
was highlighted within this Budget, if I flip over to the Economic Recovery Plan . . . you know, the question
really is not about the Plan itself, the question is
whether or not this Plan is actually going to bring
about the results that Bermuda needs. And it was highlighted earlier that one of those sol utions is expanding the resident population (on page 14). And I think really, at th e end of the day, if you look at the
sentence or two that was provided by the Finance
Minister on expanding the resident population, this really should be the number one goa l. He clearly
states that: “More people means more economic activity, more know -how, more diverse businesses, more
for everyone.” And that means more revenue and
more opportunity to pay our bills.
And so, the great ideas that came to Bermuda
were because w e had more people here. No one can
argue the fact that we have less people working here,
from 2008 losing 6,000. We are now recognising that
even today we are losing jobs in the thousands and
so, we have got to come up with a way.
But the one thing that we all agree on is the
fact that we need more people here to spread out the
cost of l iving here in Bermuda. Which takes me back
to page 13, where the second item or principle that
this Government has highlighted is, reducing the cost
of living. And quite frankly, I have not seen anything in
these options that points to how this Government is
actually going to reduce the cost of living. The cost of living, the cost of doing business, is extremely high in Bermuda. We have a challenge here in Bermuda, and
that c hallenge is emigration and people continue to
leave the Island. Not just expats, but Bermudians themselves. And as this number continues to grow ––
and I believe that maybe we are tracking it now, but I
do know that at one time we were not tracking emigration at all ––we have a challenge on our hands.
We are under threat. And one of those threats
is we have an inverted demographic. What do I mean
by that? Well, this inverted demographic really states
that the largest population within Bermuda is now becoming seniors, and the smallest population of Bermuda are our new -borns and those who wil l help regenerate, help pay back into taxpayers’ funds, help keep Bermuda resilient. And so, this inverted pyramid,
quite frankly, the point is sitting on a very, very, very
thin line. And all of the weight is above it. And those of
us who are working are having to now ensure that we
can provide for our seniors, who are becoming the fastest growing and is the fastest growing populace within Bermuda. And with the birth rate as low as we
have today, I think some numbers are showing in the
negative figures, quite frankly, we are in trouble as a
nation and as a people. And the only fix to this here is
by ensuring that we get more people here.
Now, there have been some assumptions and
there has been some talk about the fact of we are just
saying just let any old person come to Bermuda. No.
What we are talking about is not only high net worth
people, but people within the trades, if we do not have
the expertise, coming to Bermuda and ensuring that
we have this intellectual capital so that we can thrive.
The cost of living will be spread out if we have
more people sharing that cost. We have been experiencing this phenomenon for years now. Ten years
ago, when I got involved in politics this phenomenon was still there. Now, some of the rest of the world, like
Japan and other places are beginning to experience
this here. In fact, as I was looking at some of the stats
around the world, astonishingly enough, it was evident
that in Japan itse lf they sell more adult diapers than
they do baby diapers. And so, they are facing the very
same phenomenon that we are actually experiencing,
that as our population becomes more and more aged
and it is growing, we have to find ways to support that.
And so , I did not hear enough on how it is that we are
going to reduce this cost of living.
The other opportunity that I believe exists
within this reducing of costs is more and more as
technology becomes a major, major part of our lives,
we are going to need more and more electricity. And I
recognise that the sale of BELCO has invigorated some new activity. I am hoping that we will be able to
produce more power, because with the building of St.
Regis and, hopefully, the rebuilding or renovations
that are going t o take place at Southampton Princess,
more power is going to be needed. And with th e
households requiring and technology moving as fast
as it is, we are going to need other sources of power.
And so, therein lies some opportunities, I believe, that
we shoul d be looking at which will bring about a lower
cost of living.
574 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Reducing of the cost of living and the cost of
doing business here . . . quite frankly, if we do not address it, and in my estimation, it has not been addressed in any formidable way since 2017 . . . and
that is a real challenge.
I also just wanted to tie into this, when I spoke
of intellectual capital, that there was talk about immigration and how there were some of us who were
speaking out or speaking against what was taking
place with the Government and its immigration reform.
Well, quite frankly, I do not know where that is coming
from. What I am hearing from colleagues and others is
that finally, finally we seem to be getting somewhere. I
mean this whole idea of expanding the resident population is not new. It is good to see that it is actually in
this Budget Statement. I m ean we have been talking
about this for so long now and getting to a point whereby we need to ensure that we have more people
here, it has not happened. And so, the question is
whether or not, after writing it down, putting it in a
Budget and giving it lip service, our Government is
going to move forward with this.
Now, why do I ask that question? I ask that
question because in the Budget Book it talks about things like Caroline Bay and I know that has become an opportunity for the Government to take a few
swipes at the OBA, when it was Government. But let us just be very, very, very clear. This whole idea of expanding the resident population here in Bermuda
was at the heart of helping stimulate Caroline Bay.
Discussions were had with Brian Duperreault
and his team about what was necessary and the opportunities that they saw. And they very quickly stated
that they had billionaires who were interested in Ber-muda and they had plans of donating, they were willing to commit finances to all kinds of things. And then
I see in the paper just today where the Finance Minis-ter is talking about setting up family offices for the super-rich, the super -wealthy, here in Bermuda. Well,
that i s exactly what Brian Duperreault was putting on
the table when he was speaking about how we could
get some relief and how to Caroline Bay.
Now, no one is disputing the guarantee that
has been put in place. And I am happy to hear that there are potential pe ople who are lined up looking at
Caroline Bay. But let us not be fooled by the fact that
opportunity did exist to save Caroline Bay. And Brian Duperreault made it very clear on what these people,
these billionaires, these super rich people who were
willing to bring their family offices to Bermuda . . . a
couple of years ago they were wil ling to bring their
family businesses to Bermuda. And in his estimation,
it was turned down by our now Government. Now, I do
not know what those reasons were. Maybe, it did not
fit within the matrix of what they thought should be offered, maybe they thought more should have been offered, I do not know.
There was opportunity to communicate and
there was opportunity, as this Budget speech talks about. And that is working toget her. There was opportunity to work together with these guys to bring about a solution, but it did not happen. So, it will be very interesting to see and to hear from someone within Government as to exactly why they did not take up those offers. Now, I know what they were offering.
And it was quite substantial when it came to contri buting to Bermuda.
And so, I say, again, to this whole idea of expanding the residential population, finally, it is good to hear that this Government is acknowledging this and, finally, it is good to hear from the Immigration Minister
that he is willing to move forward, albeit he has to key
the door, and that key to the door [will] cost $2.5 mil-lion. I am hoping that he puts some more flesh on how
he is going to make that happen.
But we cannot expect that this is going to
work if we continue on with the kin d of rhetoric that we
have heard in the past approach to this whole thing. And so, you know, just like what happened in the prior
PLP Government, you cannot expect folks to readil y
stay here when you berate them, when you do not look out for their interest s. And I am not saying that
we had to sell our souls. Not at all. But there was op-portunity there to sit down and to discuss how we
could come to a happy medium here to ensure that
Bermudians thrive in their own Island, their home.
But yet, we scared many of them away. And I
had conversations in 2013 with many of them who
had left the Island and we were seeking out opportunities to bring them back. Some came back. But if you
scare them off and then you turn around and say,
Well, hold on a second, no, no, no, no, we want you to come . . . we do want you to come , then that is going
to take some time, because birds of a feather flock
together. And these folks all talk, whether they ar e
talking in Bermuda or whether they are talking abroad.
As I have been remi nded many times by this
Government, you know, they say stop the rhetoric .
Then some of the things that we are seeing taking
place in a democracy here in Bermuda when people
speak their minds, to be berated by this Government
for standing up— all you have got to do is look in the
paper today —for what they believe in they become
berated. And I am not talking about expats, I am talking about Bermudians —Black Bermudians, female
Bermudians —for standing up for what they believe in
and then they have to be subjected to a berating by this Government for talking and speaking to what they believe in. What kind of democracy is that?
I mean I know in my conversations with the
Premier he believes that this particular system that we
have is one of the best in the world. An d so, the system that we have is working. And because it does not
go according to the plan of this Government, you get a
berating for it. You are either tied into this Government, or the Governor, or you are tied into Number 10
Downing Street. It is hypocr isy! It is foolish. People
need to be able to speak their minds.


Bermuda House of Assembly Not everybody wants to line up and put on
green and say Premier, play that next tune. I mean it
is foolhardy. Thi s is a democracy, and we need to allow people to be able to speak. Creating fear does not
work. And at some point in time all governments know —the PLP has been subject to it and so has the
OBA—that when you create that fear it will come back
to sting you.
So, no one is immune to this. So, if we are going to get this right, I herald the efforts of this Finance
Minister and what he is saying. I have got a lot of respect there for that —a lot of respect. The question is,
will he be able to carry the rest of the Cabinet along
with him in this endeavour? I am hoping so because
the future of Bermuda really, at the end of the day, is
relying on it.
And so, the global context that the Honourable Member has brought forward in the Budget in talking about the fact that, you know, we have our challenges, and through COVID -19 we have had to borrow money. You know what? Hey, it is what it is. We
recognise as an Opposition that those things had to happen.
But the local context as we move forward is
where I am concerned. And unless we start putting
things in place and, yes, we saw the numbers that the
Honourable Member put forward about how retail increased. But retail is so far behind and so far in debt it is going to take another decade of positive results in
order for it to rebound. And the only way that we are
going to be able to do this is we have got to defer the
duty that these companies pay up front. It has just got
to be deferred on to the point of sale. And so, cashflow is paramount. And the reason for the challenges that these businesses who have been around for a
while are having is because c ashflow is low. Why is
cashflow low? Well, the number one reason is the fact that their expenses are so high and they have got to
pay this money up front for their goods and servi ces.
And the number two [reason] is there are
[fewer] people here. And so, t his Government has got
to find a way. And any upstart and new entrepreneur opportunity, whether it be in retail and the likes, is reliant on numbers. The intellectual capital may be here,
but if you do not get the people spending the money
and taking the opportunity, then we are going to fail.
And so, our young people coming along who
we are looking to ensure that they have opportunity to work in Bermuda, they are the ones who are going to
have to pay for that inverted demographic that I told
you about —those of us who are getting older and older. But we are still around; we are healthy. You know,
we are having some challenges, yes. But the fact remains that they have to foot the bil l. And so, balancing
the Budget is vital, ensuring that we have an economy that thrives is important, but it all stems on one thing—
and the rest of the world is now experiencing the
same thing we are —and that is low birth rate or nega-tive birth rate and the fact that we need more people to supplement and to keep the economy going.
And we are not the only ones in this. The Chinese, you know, they did away with the fact that you
could only have one baby for that mere fact. Numeri-cal reasons, but number two, t hey needed to ensure
that they need money being paid into the coffers. The
last administration, and I am sure Biden is going to be
faced with the same thing, they have got to get their businesses and their people back to pay off the debt
that they have. And the only way we are going to pay off this debt is not with the population t hat we do have,
we have got to grow the intellectual capital in this Island to ensure the safety and the future of Bermudians.
Now, on page 27 the Finance Minister says,
“If ther e are obstacles to growth, we must remove
them, quickly .” Another one I like from the Finance
Minister. You know, in 2018, almost, not quite, a year
after . . . several months into this Government’s administration, I was calling on the Government at that time. You know, we were still having challenges with
job losses and the l ikes. We needed the economy to
be stimulated and that we were heading in the wrong
direction, we were not getting enough people back
into the working field. Well, if we are going to gr ow, we
must remove them quickly.
We have been talking about immigration reform. Whether we were on a committee or not, this
has been at the table for Lord knows how long. It is no
new issue of getting people here on this Island. We
have got to move with some swiftness. Why? Because our people and their livelihoods are at stake. And I know at times I have gotten very animated
about how I feel about this here, because I am hearing from people every day. I know Government is
hearing from people every day. Well, what are we going to do? What are you going to do? I have not had a job for the last two years.
So, when I ask the question about Caroline
Bay and growth and the likes, it would be very, very,
very interesting to hear from the Finance Minister exactly w hat happened when Brian Duperreault came
with some of these ideas and opportunities.
And one of those other areas that is interesting is Grand Atlantic or the Bermudiana Resort out on
South Shore. And we have had our bantering back
and forth because I always believed that the OBA stifled the opportunity there. This thing has b een around
probably 15 years plus, costing . . . a low -cost housing
project of $42 million. The value of it is certainly not $42 million as of today, and the taxpayer continues to
pay millions of dollars into this particular opportunity.
We now hear that t he Finance Minister is putting $10
million more into this opportunity. And one of the
things that he states why it is different than Grand Atlantic is that —

576 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: MP Cannonier, you are in your last minute. I did not realise that. You started at 5:47, it is
now 6:17, you have got your 30 minutes. Just wrap up
quickly if you can.

Okay. Well, the Honourable
Member says . . . he is being quoted in the paper today saying, you know, he needs to move forward. And I am wondering wha t exactly is happening up there,
we spent a lot of money.
At the end of the day, Mr. Speaker, and I
apologise, the time went by so fast, . . . we are hearing about the Arbitration Cent re. Well, Mr. Speaker,
you cannot hire an overseas contractor, not tender the project, not advise on costs, not have approval from
the Minister of Finance, and expect people not to ask
questions. And so—

Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, I just want to begin by saying
that we are definitely in a position here where it is a bit of a holding pattern. And, you know, I have heard this quote lately that we are surviving, we are not thriving
yet. And when I think about COVID -19 and the pandemic that we have been through, and certainly we
have shared all of the pros and cons of that experience, I do want to share some optimism for the vaccination protocols that ar e taking place right now.
I am giving my little testimony that I have had
my first shot, my first vaccination. And certainly, things
are running very well. And it immediately brings me to
thank the so many patient and supportive members
who are conducting the vaccinations, the essential
workers that have spent so many hours making sure that they can keep this Island safe and healthy. And I cannot take . . . every opportunity I just have to say
thank you because we are, as a country, so appreciative of it.
But the economic recovery is going to depend
on as many of us as possible to get vaccinated. And I
am bringing that to the fore because I see that if we could get what is termed as herd immunity, where
enough of us are vaccinated, then it puts us in the
unique opportunity for especially our tourism industry, that people will have a sense of security, wanting to
come to this Island because they know it is safe. And
that, in and of itself, has been a major motivation, at
least for me, to make sure that I do my part by getting
myself vaccinated.
And it is going to take the whole Island to
bring the economy back into a healthy position. We
are all going to have to play our part. And certainly,
when I reflect back on essential workers, I have to
also realise the struggles that they have been through.
They have worked through some v ery long hours,
they have been affected, whether it is through job
hours that have been reduced or even, in some cases, job losses. And so, with that I recognise through
the Budget Stat ement that as many as 2,924 jobs
have been lost, and 1,056 of them are in accommodation and food service, 256 in retail and wholesale, and 484 jobs lost in health and social services. And so that
is a lot of people that have been without work and
those who are working, many have seen, as was
quoted in the Budget Statement, their salaries de-crease by something short of 7.5 per cent.
So, I am just wondering, you know, has Government really accounted for the fact that even if we
get things started again, ther e are going to be folks
that are out there working [fewer] hours and receiving less pay, and whether the idea of the financial unem-ployment assistance will be extended any further. I
know that we have put a cap on it, but I am just . . . to
mitigate the ri sk that we are not able to get the economy up and going fast enough, [I wonder] whether the
Government has considered putting some funds aside
to extend that unemployment assistance.
When out canvassing I found that there are a
number of people, especial ly those that are at retirement age who were working part time, and the ir hours
were not sufficient to qualify for the unemployment
assistance. I can understand that in, sort of, a healthy
economic environment when you are pulling together
the formula for who gets financial support during a
pandemic such as this, but at the s ame time I just
want the Government to be reminded, or to recognise,
that there is also a population of people out there who
were not able to get any unemployment assistance
because they were not working enough hours to quali-fy, and the impact that this is having on folks that are
often quiet and silent about the struggle that they are
experiencing, but they are still out there. And what
could be done, or at least what preparation could be made just in case we are not able to get the economy
going again as quickly as we may like.
So, the Budget Statement had mentioned that
we are at about 8.5 per cent unemployment and that
the rebound, the pent-up demand for people to come
out and start spending again should create some employment. And we are projecting, through the Budget
Statement, that we could have as much as a 3.5 per
cent rise in employment. But, Mr. Speaker, that still


Bermuda House of Assembly leaves 5 per cent of the population unemployed, who
are not wor king.
And what can we do, what can we sit around
and consider finding as a way to supplement . . . and I
do not mean, necessarily, by just doling out additional
funds. But that we must recognise that even if we do
start to see the demand and we start to s ee the economy begin to pick up, that we are still going to have, to
me, a high percentage— 5 per cent possibly —that will
remain unemployed even when things start to pick up again.
And one of my other . . . you know, the job of
the Opposition . . . you k now, it is not about me wanting to be critical about a situation, but I do like to see
whether I can peer between the lines and find the
gaps so that there is almost a bit of a contingency
plan on the side. So, you know, we have looked at the really big nu mbers in the Budget. But what happens
when we are talking about the individual and the experiences of the population that are going through
their day-to-day experiences and are feeling the challenges and the struggles? And because of that I feel
as though it is important for somebody to be a bit of a
Devil’s advocate in order to prepare for the unexpected. You know, having come through an entire
year, almost to the date, of an experience that the
world has not ever had to go through in our lifetime
creates a level of uncertainty that makes me want to
consider what we may need to put aside or think
about just in case things do not go according to plan.
And one of my observations has been consumer behaviour. So, we all think that, yes, as soon
as we are allow ed to freely move about the community that people will start spending money again and we
are just going to all bounce back. Well, I am also considering the fact that people have been living at home for the past year, and because of that there could be some unexpected changes that we may not be prepared for or are not recognis ing right away. And just
as an example, I think about consumer behaviour with
the reopening of the economy. And you know, I do not
mean to be trite about this, Mr. Speaker, but people
may spend differently. I mean many people have been
living in, you know, socks and sweatpants for the past
year, so, you know, is going back to work going to create that relatively expensive professional wardrobe
again?
Are people going to move into a new k ind of
consumer behaviour? And are we considering that?
Are we looking at things from a different perspective,
just in case they are not going to snap back as normal?
You know, certainly I have heard the Premier
and the Minister of Finance say that it is not going to
be the same; we are not going back. But we have got
to loo k to what the new future looks like. And I just
want to make sure that we consider the fact that there
are certain behaviours that have, I am sure, undoubtedly changed over the past year and whether we, as a Government, are considering those possible changes
and are preparing for the eventuality that some of the
stuff may be different when we come out of this overall shelter -in-place.
So, just getting back to those 2,924 jobs that
have been lost, and where do the people go, so, yes,
3.5 per cent back in em ployment, demand is up again,
the economy is moving. But where do we, as a Government foresee those who are returning to work, going to go back to work [at]? The international business, as has been mentioned numerous times before,
has fared quite well through this. But, you know, international business is not for everyone. Working in an
office in front of a computer is not for everyone. And
then just the sheer volume of numbers of people who
would be looking to return to work far exceeds what the international business would be looking for or would be demanding as far as their employment figures are concerned.
So, where are all the people going to go back
to work? We have lost so many hotel beds that I do
not see a huge rebirth in the tourism industry right
away. Even when the cruise ships are given permission to start sailing again, it is going to take them
months before they are really up to standard and
ready to sail again. So, we are looking at an extended
period of time, especially in the hospitality and tourism
industry. And so, yes, I have heard that the Minister of
Public Works is looking at infrastructure projects so
that we can get some people back [to work]. But I do
believe that we really have to start having a national
conversation about the spec ific kinds of jobs, whether
they are to feed into, sort of, greenhouse agriculture (if
we are going to go with vertical farming), or else . . . or
other, that we can start to look at what we can do now
so that there are jobs for people to come back to.
Now, the Budget Statement also mentioned a
national unemployment insurance scheme, which
would have been fantastic if we had had one. But it is
unfortunate that we do not. But I do not see the positive side of us starting a national unemployment insurance now, or even a year from now, because so
many companies are struggling financially right now.
And the idea that additional funds would have to come
out of an already empty pot in order to build an insurance fund for unemployment . . . these are the kinds
of things that I see us getting involved in and starting
to build up when we are in economically good times. But to try to all of a sudden flip the switch on unem-ployment insurance when ev erybody is on their knees,
to me, just does not sound like it is the most timely . . . I want to say the most sensible time to start that kind
of initiative. I think that it will scare a number of businesses to think about the idea that they would be having to create or having to find the finances to put aside
now when every dollar counts to keep the businesses
open.
The Budget [Statement] talked a little bit about
what we can do with our $935 million that we spend
578 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly running the Government. And it immediatel y made me
think about the government reform. And a couple of
years ago [they] came out, fired away, energised
about government reform, and it would be interesting to find out the status of the reform and any of the, sort of, trimming of the sails that has taken place within the
public service to see how we can make things mor e
efficient. And the Minister of Finance mentioned in the
Budget Statement that, you know, we definitely need
to manage the public’s expectations, we need to
achieve better value for money, and I could not be in more agreement with that.
It is just that it will be important, I think, for the
Government to share as much information about how the services that may be provided by the public service may change, whether it is because they are becoming more digital . . . I mean, certainly, in the
House of Parliam ent we are in our digital space.
Leave aside the fact that we are having these virtual sessions of Parliament, but I would imagine that the
House of Assembly must be over the moon with the savings on the paper. I mean we used to get everything on paper and now we are getting everything
electronically. Those are the kinds of things that
sound very small, but when you think about the amount of the little things that we can find efficiencies
in, how those small projects and those small savings
actually build u p to much larger savings.
And I have all confidence that the Government is looking at all of those things. But I definitely feel that it is important for the public to remain aware of, you know, again as it was stated, making sure that
the public understands or gets the information so that they know that things are different, and they can adjust their expectations when approaching any of the
public services knowing that these efficiencies arise. Because, you know, in all of the Government’s energy to make ef ficiencies, there is nothing more frustrating
than not knowing what those efficiencies are, and then the client or the taxpayer or the resident that is looking
for services from govern ment, is feeling as though
they are getting a bit of a run around becaus e that
department is no longer active or now you cannot do it
in [person], you have to go do it online. These are the kinds of things that can create a lot of frustration.
And so, I a m certainly hoping that the Government is going to communicate with the public when these efficiencies take place, and that the items that
have been included in the government reform are actively pursued, and whatever initiatives that the Gov-ernment had wi shed to implement, they move forward
with in the sp irit of efficiency.
When I think about Government, one of my
concerns, I guess, is the Sinking Fund. Everybody
likes to have a savings account. And it is unfortunate
that the Sinking Fund had become deplet ed and that
the funds that are in the Sinking Fund now are borrowed funds that have been put into savings so that
we will have something moving forward. But as the Finance Minister has mentioned time [and time] again,
it makes absolutely no sense [to borrow] money in
order to save it. And so, you know, that argument was
accepted, and we stopped making contributions to the
Sinking Fund in 2019.
But I guess I am mentioning this because I do
not want the public to think that the $400- odd million
that may be s itting in the Sinking Fund now is savings,
like genu ine savings. This is just the leftover funds
from the Government . . . leftover funds, I should say,
from when the Government went out to increase our national debt and this is sort of the balance remaini ng
that is sitting in that account.
We do not know w hat is going to come up this
year. I know that the Government hopes that they will
be able to use those funds in order to sort of balance
the deficits moving forward over the next couple of years. But, ag ain, this is one of those situations where
I have to come back and just put it out there that, you
know, we have to be prepared if something else un-expected shows up. And some of that unexpectedness is probably going to hit us from offshore. Certainly, we have got the OECD that are breathing down our
backs, we have got the European Union and the effects of Brexit, and my focus through the Budget
Statement is certainly heightened by the contributions
that the IMF (the International Monetary Fund) has mention ed.
So, just for the public’s understanding, the
IMF is a lender. They are a global lender, so large
countries all deposit money into a big pot and then
that money is distributed to countries that are really
struggling financially and are unable to raise debt on their own, basically. And so, you know, they are the
watchdog. They are also sort of the dark cloud looming on the side there because if any country were to,
you know, really financially fall to their knees and the
IMF is the option, and any country has to knock on
that door, the lending of that money comes with a lot of control and lot of oversight and, certainly, Bermuda
would not ever want to get into that position.
So, when the IMF makes recommendations,
as were stated in the Budget Statement, to find pathways to economic recovery, I certainly would think
that the Government would take heed of those rec-ommendations, because, without doing that, the IMF,
which has, you know, substantial experience in the
world of economy, would . . . it would be in our best
interests to make sure that we are able to tick those
boxes so that we can, at least, show that we are per-forming and accomplishing things that globally are
considered to be good procedures, good behaviour to
maintaining our own independent economy.
So, the IMF in their Pathways to Economic
Recovery mentioned three suggestions. One, find projects to create jobs, and the Minister of Public Works
has already listed a number of infrastructure projects
that can be initiated in the short term to get us back
into job creation.


Bermuda House of Assembly [Two,] that we have fair an d inclusive legislation. And so, it will be interesting. Certainly, last week
we had a piece of legislation that was around the potential for some economic stimulation. And certainly,
the Government has made a list of some of the initia-tives that they are interested in pursuing as sort of
new pillars within the economy here in Bermuda. And
making sure that the legislation which is drafted does
remain as inclusive and as fair as possible, because
we want to be able to create legislation that opens up
opportunity for everybody and does not necessarily
make legislation that is only going to be good for a
few.
The other piece that the IMF had brought up
is the environmental industry. I believe that this is definitely the way that the world is going. And we talk a
lot about what Bermuda can do to become more environmentally conscious, where we might be able to
create more environmental sustainability within our
own Island. But I would like to hear a little bit more
about what kinds of industries, or what kind of busi-ness or research we might be able to attract to the
Island that is environmental.
I have not heard much conversation around,
yes, and certainly, I do not want . . . I do not need a
sort of point of or der, because I certainly know that
from time to time different environmental projects are
brought to the House of Assembly and mentioned. But I am just wondering whether a more comprehensive
environmental . . . I do not want to use the word “pillar,” but, you know, how can we create or how can we discover how environmentalists might be able to use
Bermuda as a hub, or how we may be able to support
people who are creating environmental industries to do their creation and have the potential for head offices, research facilities, and the like here in Bermuda.
You know, it is wonderful to be able to sort of
wave and clap when BIOS [Bermuda Institute of
Ocean Studies] says that yes, they have initiated a
programme, or there is going to be some research in
the oce an. But it would also be really, really nice to
have a bit of a plan where we have looked at the environment from a number of angles and tried to figure
out how we might be able to create a business com-munity here that would attract businesses from overseas to want to come here in order to establish some
form of head office or organisation here in Bermuda in
order for them to develop environmental . . . I do not
know, products and services and that they would then
go and market globally.
So, if it is possib le, it would certainly be a positive point to be abl e to add the environment to the list
of diversifications within the economy. So far, I have been able to garner that some of the diversifications
that the Government has suggested so far are: the national digital bank, commercial cannabis, an onshore fishing facility, vertical farming and, if the environmental sustainability piece is added to that I think it
will help. But when I look at this list of diversifications within our economy, I do recognise that there is risk
there. There is risk of people’s feeli ngs around the
reflection which that might have on Bermuda, you know, when I think about the commercialisation of
cannabis, how that would be received.
And when I think about the national digital
bank, ag ain, there is the idea of risk around how the
due di ligence, how the security of it all is put into
place. What are the prospects of this taking off? How
can we grow something like a digital bank so that
there is not a recirculation of Bermuda dollars, but that
there is an influx of currencies from overseas ? Because that is the real crux of it. You know, it may look
good that we are out there in town and people are
shopping again and maybe some folks are starting to
do some renovation and the rest. But that is money
that is already here in Bermuda. So, it is not going to
grow, it is just going to recirculate around the community. And what we need to do is come up with industries that we can market to other jurisdictions to come
to Bermuda, and with it they bring with them their investments. They bring the financial stimulation with
them.
And the Bermuda Development Agency, they
have within the Budget Statement, it was quoted that
the Bermuda Development Agency would want to
safeguard and enhance Bermuda’s out standing reputation and remain an exceptional destination to live, work and play. And when I think about diversifying the
economy, I also feel that Government needs to place
a balance between who we are as a culture and—
[Timer rings]

Go right ahead.

Hon. Tinee Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, anyone knows that managing a
budget can be very, very challenging, because you
can only spend what you have, or what you borrow.
So, I remember as a young girl listening to videos
about money management and I remember hearing
the advice that you either want to make more money,
you want to invest your money, so that money i s being
made over time or you are making money w hile you
sleep, you save your money and if you want more, you have to be able to make more or you have to pay
more. And I think people forget that, particularly when
we are managing a government’s budget. The more
things we want, the more we have to pay out, if we
are not staying within a particular budget or ceiling.
And so, this Budget that we have [been] presented with is something where we have not added any new taxes because we do not want our people to have to pay more money by the way of taxes. When
governments are looking at budgets, they are looking
at the opportunity to make more money, to make money through new initiatives, sometimes through
tax—we do not have any new tax this time, but they
do look at how they can increase tax or create some
sort of new tax. Governments look at how they can
save money and how they can borrow money. But
there is always a . . . it is a fine line, Mr. Speaker, how we balance our economic stimulus and also balance
our s aving and how we balance our borrowing.
Going t hrough this particular budget with my
team, Mr. Speaker, was very interesting because, you
know, when we are saying we have to stay within our
particular ceiling within a budget, and the team is saying, Well, my goodness, how can we be squeezed
anymore? We have been squeezed for the last couple
of years. It is difficult to squeeze, squeeze, squeeze
some more.
But we are confident, Mr. Speaker, that this
Budget which was presented by this Government is a recov ery budget. And I smile when I think of that because, you know, we have been really . . . we have
been hit hard with this COVID -19 pandemic. And we
have to see that it has done a number to us, to every
country around the globe. We have businesses
around th e globe that have shut down and possibly
even locally. There are increased rates of unemployment and non- employment. Some children are not
even back in school, Mr. Speaker. They are not even back in school yet. Fortunately, our students are back in school.
And so, it has been a very, very drastic measure and nobody . . . nobody wanted, nobody predicted that we would be going through such a drastic pandemic. And so, it has affected us. It has affected us as
a country. It has affected many countries around the
globe— all of the countries around the globe. And so,
we cannot deny that this must be our first thing that
we should focus on. We should focus on protecting
our citizens so that we do not find ourselves in any
further economic decline.
I remember some time ago, Mr. Speaker,
when I was in the Senate. I was attending meetings
as it related to the new airport that we had. And we were being told that the new airport was a good idea,
that it was good for Bermuda, and that there was very
minimum chance that we would have to pay back this
minimum revenue guarantee because Bermuda, ac-tually, had really low rates. Actually, I do not think we
had any rates for the Zika virus, which was out some years ago. And that is what they were using as a
benchmark, as a pred iction, for us not having to pay
the minimum guaranteed revenue.
But look at what has happened today, Mr.
Speaker. Look at what has happened today. We are
now faced with COVID -19 and we find ourselves in
that very same [situation] that we thought that we were safe from. Even though it was not a Zika vi rus, it
came as COVID -19. And so, we are still having to fork
out money via the minimum guaranteed revenue, something that we thought that we were protected
against.
I bring that up because there are so many
things sometimes that are unknown, particularly when
it comes to how our economics will be affected.
So, again, I have to boast, Mr. Speaker, that
we have done a good job in trying to protect our citi-zens because we want our people to be able to do
well so that they can contribute and be productive
members in our society. But, again, COVID -19 has
thrown everything in the ringer, and we are hoping to
bounce back. We do have an Economic Recovery
Plan, which I am sure you will be hearing more about
over the next couple of months. And we are hoping,
and we are praying, and we are actually quite positive
that we will have a bounce back once we get through this COVID -19 period.
And I would have to say that we have done a
great job thus far. Well, at least my constituents tell
me that, Mr. Speaker. They tell me that we have done
a good job. And I would hope that that good job will
carry us over and carry us through with our tourist in-dustry bouncing back because they are going to want
to know whether or not Bermuda is a safe jurisdiction
to come to, to travel to. They are going to want to
know how well our processes work, whether or not
there is too much red tape to be able to travel, where
our COVID -19 numbers are. They are going to want to
know all of that information in order to make decisions about travel. Because nowadays, Mr. Speaker, you
can just about travel anywhere. You have many
choices. And so, Bermuda’s bounce- back is going to


Bermuda House of Assembly be contingent on how well we continue to manage the
COVID -19 virus. And, agai n, I do believe that we have
done a good job thus far and that people do travel here, right now, [and] they feel safe. And we have to
give compliments to all of those health workers who
are out there who are making Bermuda safe for our
citizens and our tourists.
Mr. Speaker, this budget still accounts for
those in need, you know, even going through the
budget process, we know that people are unemployed. There are many people who are unemployed,
and there are still many people who are vulnerable out
there, and we have provided stimulus packages for
our people so that they do not find themselves too
much in the rough. I am not saying that the stimul us
packages helped everyone, nor did they probably pay every single one of our bills, or their bills, but it was
definitely a step to be able to help people to have
some sort of income coming in.
There was so much and there still is, so much
uncertainty as we navigate through the coronavirus, Mr. Speaker. It is uncertainty with jobs, there is still
uncertainty with income, but our first order of business, Mr. Speaker, is the protection of our people and
so that is what we are focusing on as a Government.
We have an economic plan. It is important,
Mr. Speaker, that we keep the people in our country safe so that we c an have them return back to work
and stay steadily employed. It is important, Mr.
Speaker, that we continue to work on reducing our
cost of living. We know that a huge topic and burden for our people is the cost of living in Bermuda, and so
we will continu e to work towards that. We will also
continue to work towards physical prudence, as well
as financial wholeness, because we have heard the
term financial wellness, or financial well -being. What
we want is a picture of financial wholeness.
It is also import ant, Mr. Speaker, that when
we are introducing things and we are introducing leg-islation to help encourage our economic stimulus that
we do it i n a timely manner, and that is very, very,
very important to our economy. It is also important
that we display f airness as well, making sure that we
are touching all groups of the social economic population. You know, it is important that we touch every,
every group. Not just the rich, not just the poor, not
just the middle class. We have to be able to create
some s ort of balance so that our people can live comfortably, and, you know, especially have their needs met. So, we are quite comfortable in believin g that in
the years to come, Mr. Speaker . . . and we are not,
you know, saying that everything is going to bounce
back like this, because we know that it is going to take
some time. But we do believe with the things that we
have in place that we will bounce back, Mr. Speaker.
But even though we have encountered some
economic disruptions, you know, many families hav e
gone through many hardships, financial hardships,
and the solution is not, Mr. Speaker, to just throw more money at these financial hardships, because
economic challenges also have social consequences.
So the Ministry of Social Development has been very
conscious of the fact that we still have to be able to
provide for those families who are experiencing finan-cial hardship and to make sure that we are still being
able to provide for those persons who are vulnerable.
We have heard, you know, in regard to C OVID -19
coming to Bermuda, and all over the globe, that it has just shown that it has been a magnification of some of
the many problems that hav e already existed. And so,
there is still a need to be able to protect the most vulnerable persons in our community, so that, you know,
we do not fall further in a slump.
And so, this fiscal year, Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Social Development has a budget allocation of
$23,733,000, and we are going to use these monies, Mr. Speaker, to continue to assist the t hird sector . Actually, 17 per cent of the monies within the Ministry of
Social Development are going toward the third sector. We are going to use these resources or allocations,
Mr. Speaker, to continue to help programmes such as
the centre for abuse, as well as the Women’s Resource Centre. We did hear that there was a magnifi-cation of physical abuse, particularly over the COVID -
19 period, and so, we k now that once COVID resolves
itself that those issues are not just going to go away. So it was very important th at we continue to maintain
those funds for those services. And we have managed
to do that, Mr. Speaker.
We have managed to still be able to provide
for our emergency shelter, which is the Salvation Army. When we have difficult times, people find them-selve s in sometimes difficult positions when it comes
to housing. And so, we have made sure that we have
allocated funds to still be able to provide for the Salvation Army. Because when you are doing a budget or
looking at a budget, Mr. Speaker, you know, you have
to evaluate what services our people need the most.
And we never know what sort of situation we are going to be in, having to go through something that is so
traumatic, such as COVID.
I remember, you know, listening to people’s
stories about not knowi ng whether or not they were
going to be returning back to work, or people calling
me and saying that they got laid off and they are still
waitin g to hear back whether or not they are going to
be returning to work. And so, these are very unsettling
times. W e want our people to know that we are just
not going to leave them out in the cold. We have provided for them via the unemployment benefit. We
have also provided more opportunities within Financial
Assistance so that if persons were in need, they could benefit from the financial hardship through financial
assistance. And so, those sorts of benefits or allocations have been put aside to be able to help our people.
We are looking forward to some new initiatives as well, because you know, even though we
582 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly have to be able to maintain programmes and services
that we have within our ministries, we also have to
look at some new initiatives as well that might not
necessarily cost us money but may put us in a planning sort of process so that we can predict what sort
of funds we will need in the future.
I have heard a lot this evening in regard to our
ageing population and how that population will grow over the next couple of years. And so, the Ministry of
Social Development is committed to a national senior strategy. And I have to say that there are already
many reports and lots of research that has been done
already in regard to our seniors. I have seen lot s of
reports and studies already that we have done in
Bermuda, statistics that we have collected in regard to
our ageing population. And so, we are looking to have
a national senior strategy, particularly looking at dementia care in Bermuda, and that is something that is
not going to cost us money, you know. We have a
technical team that is going to be allocated to bring all
this data together to make sure that we are consider-ing our ageing population as we go forward. And so,
this is a new initiative that the Ministry of Social Development and Seniors is going to take on, which is
something we need and something we need to stay on top of.
We are also looking forward to the Children’s
Commission, Mr. Speaker, which is going to be re-placing the Childcare Pla cement Board, so that we
can stay on top of oversight of children in care and outside of care by promoting progra mmes and services and best policies to respond to children’s needs.
One thing that I am particularly elated about
as well is that for some time, well, since 2019 when we passed the Child Safeguarding [(Miscellaneous
Amendment)] Act, Mr. Speaker, we were able to meet the obligation of being able to put funds aside for providing physical and psychological assistance to a
child victim of a sexual o ffence as well as a child perpetrator of a sexual offence. And so monies have
been allocated to be able to provide support services
for them by the way of psychological assistance,
which is something we should all be very thankful for
and very proud of. This will benefit children who need these services to help with whatever trauma that they
may have undergone.
And we have spoken a lot in the media, Mr.
Speaker, in regard to the independent living coordina-tors, particularly making sure that children who turn 18
within the Department of Child and Family Services are not feeling unsupported when they turn 18. And
so, now they will have the choice, because we cannot
make someone stay if they are 18, even our own children, you know. If they want to leave and they are 18,
I mean, I am sure we will probably be trying to put on
the brakes if we feel like they are not making the right
decisions. But we are definitely giving our children
who are in the care of the Department of Child and Family Services the option to stay on and be financially supported.
And so, these are some new initiatives that
we are very thankful for, thankful that we were able to
find the allocations to be able to meet these needs. And so, we want our people to know that even though
we are going through hard times, this Government is
very, very cognisant of the many social issues and
concerns that are out there and that we are a Government that about our people, and we will continue to press on. There are many initiatives that we have en-acted over the years as well, and, I mean, I just, if you
give me a minute, I would just like to speak to those.
We elimi nated important payroll taxes for the
disabled —

[Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr., Deputy Speaker, in the Chair]

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, imagine you being the
Finance Minister of a country when COVID -19 hit. Imagine being responsible for trying to come up with solutions to address and meet the impact of COVID in


Bermuda House of Assembly the way that many governments worldwide have been
tasked with doing. It is not an enviable task. But yet, it
was a task that I can say that I was extremely proud to be part of while I sat in Cabinet, given the way that our
Government responded to COVID -19 and the economic impact that it has had.
In fact, Mr. Deputy Speaker, the whole world
looked at how we handled that situation, and we re-ceived accolades and praise from all over because of
the way in which we did respond. And I think we are all familiar with some of those responses. But as a Government our first concern was how we were going
to carry the most vulnerable through this so that they
at the end of the day could still have bread and butter
on their table, could still feel confident that a roof
would still be over their heads. And the answer to that
was the unemployment benefit and the relaxation of certain regulations that did govern areas like financial
assistance and allow persons who would not otherwise be able to benefit from the unemployment benefit, because they did not pay into the tax system, to at least be able to benefit, so that they too w ould not
have the worry about whether or not they could feed
their children the next day.
Amidst trying to put a new health reform
package in place that would mean at the end of the
day down the road our people would realise better
health benefits, we continued to work on that even though I can say th at this has not come to full realisation. And so, when the Opposition asks, What are we
doing and what have we done? , those are some of the
things we are still doing and those are some of the
things that we have done.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we see the major i mpact
that it has had on the delivery of things like education.
And I have no doubt that going forward it will task the Education Minister, and he is already looking through a lens that will allow him to ensur e that as we reform
education, we do it after C OVID -19 has forced us to
address this and forced the world to have education
online. We know that there are some things in the delivery of education that were brought to the fore because of the pandemic that w ill remain. And measures
are being looked at in terms of how we are going to
deliver that for our people going forward, because we do live in a technologically advanced society where
technology every single day is becoming the centre of
how we do our busin ess.
So, when we took office, this Government
looked at the FinTech space and what we needed to
do and we put in regulations and the like to try and
create an environment where businesses cooperate in
that space without being considered to just simply operate in that space in a way that demonstrated to our
regime that you can create regulations that make this
a safe space to operate in. I will put it like that, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
And we are still tasked with looking at how we
can expand and grow going for ward in that realm. And so when we are asked, What are we doing to address
the issues that pertain at this point in time?, those are
the things that we are doing on a continuum to try and
ensure that this 21
st century Bermuda meets the need
of our people and our businesses. We are not blind to
the needs . In fact, Mr. Deputy Speaker, look within
government itself. We are still in the throes of reforming government to try and make it a 21st century government for the people of Bermuda. We said that we would be leaders in this area. And with every step that
we make we are making it mindful of that, so that the
government that operates in our jurisdiction matches
the broader environment. We cannot have our people
operating as though they were in a 20
th century B ermuda when everything dictates that we are now operating in the 21st century, and we cannot have institutions that hold on fast to the former way of doing
things when we say as a Government [that] we are
going to move our people forward.
So, at every step of the way where we can
employ measures that pu ll our people forward in the
way that we do business and the way that we are setting up our government institutions in Bermuda, we
are doing it, and the laws and regulations we are doing it in a way to ensure that this transition is a smooth
one and will p ut our people in good stead to operate
as we continue to move forward, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
We recognise the major impact financially that
this has had on us, and we are all familiar that this is
the effect worldwide. But yet, we still have a commission that has been tasked to work out a minimum
wage and a living wage and they are working on establishing that minimum wage while they continue to do work, to make certain that a living wage will follow.
Because we know that it is important that our people
be able to . . . if they go into work and work in dignity
and have respect in the workplace, then they at least have to have the assurances that their income is such
that they can go buy bread and butter and keep a roof over their heads.
And so, any modern- day jurisdiction that
boasts to be democratic and concerned for its people of course will look to ensure that a proper minimum and living wage operates in their economic space to
give people some measure of conf idence that they are
being treated fairly.
We ha ve put measures [in place] that deal
with bullying and that deal with sexual harassment in the workplace, and we are at the same time looking at
pay equity to make certain that in this modern- day
Bermuda you get paid for the job. You don’t get paid
based o n the fact that you are male, based on the fact
that you are white or Black. You get paid for the job that you do. And that pay should be equal to anyone
else who does the same type of job, regardless of their sex, regardless of their ethnicity. So, when
asked, What are we doing to ensure that measures
are being put in place ?—that is what we are doing.
Because when the Premier reshuffled his Cabi net, he
584 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly put together a Ministry for Social Services. He reshuffled some of the agencies that we have within government because the focus has to be, especially given the financial constraints that we have to operate under, How can we do this efficiently an d efficaciously?
How can we do this? Because guess what? We know
that . . . this Government knows money does not grow
on trees, and we know that we have to operate within a tight, constrained budget. So, it requires recalculating. It requires putting in policies that will allow for things to happen more efficiently, whil e not necessarily causing greater expenses, even if anything, reducing the expense to deliver with the same programmes.
And so, when asked, What are we doing to try
and meet this task of tr ying to bring stability back ?
That is what we are doing. We are looking at every avenue to try and deliver for our people with a tight budget. And I think the Finance Minister is seeking to
save something to the tune, like . . . I hope I am not
. . . I hav e got a little more grey hair, so I hope my
memory serves me correc t. I think he was trying to
reach a savings of something like $20 million, while at
the same time the Cabinet is tasked with ensuring that
the programmes that they deliver on still allow for our
people and encourage institutions that employ our people to be able to do it in a way where you don’t
see businesses fold, but we see them, I guess, reinvigorated and push to use ingenuity and figure out
how they can continue to offer the services that they
do.
I saw first -hand how we did that. And with the
policies and programmes that are being suggested
going forward, and the fact that this Government
demonstrated both from the health perspective as well as with the programmes that they put in place to carry
us through this pandemic, I have every confidence with our hands held together that we will —regardless
of the challenges —help march our people through this
successfully.
Yes, it means that we all have to do our fair
share. It has to be a shared sacrifice. We all have to
do that. But that shared sacrifice, if we are willing to
go through it —make the sacrifices, put the types of
policies and programmes that can frogmarch us through this to a better state—then, once again, we
will be able to establi sh to others that we have the
ingredients to make it, to make it work.
Again, Mr. [Deputy] Speaker, with the health
care reform, with the unemployment insurance that we have talked about getting in place for protection, be-cause we do not have a safety net , or we did not operate with a safety net such as those types of safety
nets in place. When we get policies and programmes
like that in place, it will indicate to our people, as we
have told them over and over as a Government, that
their needs are what we consider first. I think we have demonstrated that every step of the way throughout
these crises, and I think it has forced us to be innovative and use ingenuity that maybe we did not even know we had, and figure out a way for us to march
through this.
Again, no one said in response to this pandemic that it is going to be easy for us, but what we all
have said with the programmes, with the budget that
has been put in place, with the regulations that we
intend to put in place, with the changes that we mak e,
with the reform that we have proposed and will continue to put in pl ace from the Government proper itself, with all of that we are showing and demonstrating that this is how you get the job done.
So, Mr. [Deputy] Speaker, I chose to approach my comment s in a very general way, but I am
also mindful of the fact that we need to remind us as a
people that we have done the job that the people
elected us to do. And we have demonstrated that we
have put them first. We have demonstrated, I guess by putting this fiscally prudent budget in place, by redesigning our ministries, by telling our people of the
programmes that we are still working on to level the
playing field so that people can have some confidence
that what is being implemented addresses equity at
every level.
I wanted to approach that in a general way
and just remind our people of Bermuda that this PLP
Government is here to do the work for them and that
this PLP Government will leave no stone unturned to make it happen for them.
So, on that note, Mr. Deputy Speaker, I thank
you.

Thank you, sir.
First of all, Mr. Deputy Speaker, I would like to
express my gratitude to the Minister of Finance and
his civil service support team who have undoubtedly
contributed countless hours to this budget. Although I say it tongue in cheek, it is with a bit of admiration and
sympathy because it is hard to divide by zero and he has nonetheless put in the effort. I don’t want anything
I say to ever detract from his acumen, his effort, and
the effort of the permanent secretaries, the civil service, a nd even the Cabinet Ministers with whom, by
the way, I disagree. And we will get to that. But none-theless, their efforts are appreciated.
I am sympathetic to their plight. Bermuda
went through a significant crisis just like the rest of the


Bermuda House of Assembly world and we ar e hard- pressed to come out of it in a
way that will be beneficial, well, first of all, hold us together and, secondly, be beneficial to us altogether as
a nation as a peopl e. And so the efforts, especially in
the social services area, of this Government to ensure
that our people are taken care of are to be commended, even where I disagree with them. So, I want that
to definitely be on the record. So thank you for that.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, I found the Opposition
Leader’s speech to be objective and thorough. It was
very long. And it had a number of points in it, some of which were contentious. I am mindful that contention
can raise the volume of a conversation. Whilst I am
going to speak to international business and immigration, I will wrap -up by putting my two cents in about
the volume of our conversation and how that does not help us because, following on from Honourable Minis-ter Furbert, there is a thing to be done here an d it is to
be done with all deliberateness and seriousness and
we want to make sure that we get it done.
And for that I will offer the following. I just
want to also reiterate my colleague, Michael Dunkley’s position, that the Opposition Leader’s position was
very thorough; and my colleague, Honourable Member Craig Cannonier, that the Opposition is not actually attacking the Government but scrutinising it. We do
have a role to play, as said by Honourable Member
Susan Jackson, to be the devil’s advocate. And so to
that we will commit ourselves thoroughly and completely and, with any luck, c ontribute and make us all
better for it.
So with that being said, I would like to quote
the Opposition Leader. We are a service economy
with no physical exports and only tw o pillars, two- pillar
industries, one of which produces much of our foreign
exchange , employment and tax revenues, i.e., international business.
Now I am going to reiterate what Honourable
Member Craig Cannonier said about our competition. And I think it is important because even though we all
subscribe to the song “ Bermuda is Another World”
(because it is), unfortunately that does not mean that
we are isolated from the rest of the world. And we do
have competitor jurisdictions that would love to eat our breakfast and then take some more. Cayman, Jersey,
Hong Kong, Singapore are all [chomping at the bit] for
a piece of the reinsurance pie that is in fact a product
of Bermuda, of this jurisdiction. The innovative insurance products that have been generated h ere are descendants of a kind of [I NAUDIBLE ] that has only
happened here. As other j urisdictions are trying to
catch up, we are hot on the heels of huge financial
centres in our financial services industry, so much so
that we attract international attention.
Much can be said for the motivations of the international authorities in address ing us. I do not think
they are all nefarious. But, nonetheless, little old Bermuda has got a lot of people’s attention, and that
means that we have something of value, som ething to be retained and something to be used for the benefit
of our people.
I am m indful that, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that
not all people will be able to participate in the international business sector or reinsurance, as it were. It requires a certain kind of training and expertise and
one of our . . . I would say one of our downfalls nationally has been that we have never had an organic
ability to feed our labour force, or our upcoming labour
force, directly into that industry. They often have to go
overseas to be educated and trained and even then, you need quite a lot of experience. So, I am not even
sure if that is a possibility, but without that initial first
step in the educational process, making us qualified to
enter that space, organically, on Island , I do think that
we are at a disadvantage.
So with that being said, that single pi llar of the
economy has been . . . sorry. Of those twin pillars of
the economy, only one of them has been bearing the
weight of our economy. As COVID -19 ravaged the
world and wiped -out other portions of our economy,
the international financial services wer e trucking along
steadily. And that speaks to their resilience; that
speaks to the things they do. And that speaks to a
kind of insurance Bermuda has, that we have an industry that could weather a storm as bad as this.
One of the things I want to be very c areful of
here is, because we have competitive jurisdictions, that we do not make our environment hostile. Now,
that is not to say that we have to make sure that everyone is accountable. Right? Because there are disparities, there are obvious cases of people being treated unfairly in these markets, and we have to make sure that we regulate it well, not just in terms of
the Bermuda Monetary Authority, but in terms of the
labour market. Just because a person sits behind a
desk all day does not mean that they are not offering
their labour and that we should not avail all the protec-tions to them. So, we do have a thing to contend with,
and it is a great and valuable jewel, so to s peak, with
$830 million contributed to the economy, and I think it was 1,700 employ ees ABIR reported, 72 per cent of
which are Bermudian. We are seeing, there is a lot of up here.
We have to be careful, though, because a lot
of times, especially in our political discourse. Perhaps
we are not aware, but international business is sensi-tive to inflammatory language. They are in the business of measuring geopolitical risks, and they have
many equations which will tell them just about when to
pack up and leav e. Whilst I hope and pray that we will
never see that equation being run in and on Bermuda,
nonetheless it is there. And if anyone tells you otherwise then I am not entirely sure we have been paying
attention to the world news.
So one of the things that I want to make sure
that we do here is that we do not, in this conversation,
Mr. Deput y Speaker, especially in this conversation
where we are talking about the Government budget
586 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly and we are trying to save a lot of people from a lot of
pain, that we do not at tack one another for having alternative points of view. I know that might be hard, because I can only imagine the amount of time that it
took to put this thing together, our Budget. Nonethe-less, it is not a piece of perfection. There is no monopoly on bein g absolutely right.
And even though it has been chewed on, digested, argued about up and down, in the civil service
and in the Cabinet, nonetheless, in our democracy it is
subject to scrutiny. I have spoken about this quite a few times now, Mr. Deputy Speaker. Anyone who
flinches from scrutiny, concerns me, because scrutiny
is accountabil ity. And as much as I will hold the Government to account, I would expect nonetheless for myself to be held to account.
I think, Mr. [Deputy] Speaker, and I truly mean
this, that the best position for Bermuda comes from
the contention between us. Now I know that is a hard thing to digest in our political framework because as I
said, the books have been printed and circulated, so it is not as if there is a lot of room here. And of course,
we in the loyal Opposition have only so much political
heft in this c urrent environment. Nonetheless, we will
do our best to make sure that the Government is held
accountable.
Mr. [Deputy] Speaker, if we use words, if we
call our political opponents . . . well, first of all, if we
call those with alternative points of view “opponents”
or “disingenuous” or “complainers” we are actually to my mind cheapening the dignity of the House. We are cheapening the fact . . . I mean, parliamentary process, Mr. [Deputy] Speaker, we refer to, you just said
it, Does anyone else have a contribution to make?
We did not say, Does anyone else have a
gotcha moment? We do not say, Does anyone else want to complain? We say, Does anyone else have
something to add?
And I think that this pro forma parliamentary
language is built there to remind us that we are actually all in this together. We are 65,000 more or less
people on one rock a long way from anything that
looks like a road, Mr. [Deputy] Speaker.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, good
evening.
The Honourable Member is speaking about
we are one rock, and inflammatory language. But on
page 8 of the Reply to the Budget it says, “The Minister of Finance has failed to deliver either one of these
objectives in any kind of robust or detailed fashion. ” On and on, disparaging whatever we do. So you cannot in one breath say we need to be Kumbaya but in
your own writing you are disparaging what the Gov-ernment is doing.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy
Speaker.
And to that end I do not think an evaluation,
however uncomfortable, is always inflammatory. And
to that end that is why . . . and I am going to continue
with this point, but I do take the Honourable Member’s
point. And he is someone whom I have always wanted
to speak with so with any luck we can do that outside
of the House.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, our international business sector is, as I said, sensitive to our political processes and we have to be very mindful that when they
see us attack one another over alternative points of
view then what is bound to happen is they are going
to question, Well, what happens when I raise an alternative poi nt of view? What happens when I have a
question? Do I get attacked as well? We have to be
careful so that business confidence is something we maintai n as high a level as possible.
Now, that does not mean that we let them
have a carte blanche run. As a compliance professional, I can tell you that the last thing we want is an
unregulated market. Nonetheless, we are very much
dependent on them at this st age. And I would like us
to just be mindful of that, because our restaurants, our entertainment industry, s o many of our subsidiary industries, or feeder industries, I should say, many of
our other industries are fed by the revenues that are
generated and then paid out into those industries from
international business. So to that end I just want to
make sure th at what we are doing is not something
that kills the golden goose because we do not have another one.
So, with that, Mr. Deputy Speaker, I will also
speak to immigration. The Opposition Leader’s points
said that good immigration policy is good economic policy. Although I am not sure where this came from,
someone had spoken to Honourable Minister Hayward saying something to the effect of holding the
keys to the door. And one of the things I think we want
to make sure about in our immigration policy, and I
have made this point publicly, is obviously that we take care of the people who are here. And that is what
we have to do. But one of the things that we are
aware of is that we need a diverse and larger tax
base. These things, taking care of those who are already here and have every right and . . . I don’t believe that they are opposing forces. There may be some tension between the two, but they do not need
to be enemies.
And by that, Mr. Deputy Speaker, what I am
saying is that we do not need to take care of one


Bermuda House of Assembly group of people over another in order for us all to be
here. There has to be some balance because if a person is going to commit some 20- odd year s to Bermuda, then the amount of money that they are going to kick into the economy and their role that they are go-ing to play in our community and in our society, is
consequential and it should not be disregarded. I am
very mindful —

No, no, no, Mr. Deputy
Speaker. I mean, it is hard to sort of balance in a half
hour all the good . . . not all the good, because I
mean, I am trying not to say that something is horrible
and there is something that is wonderful. There is
complexity to this conversation and nuance. And what I want to make sure that we are doing is we are actually having that conversation, because it is so complexed, because it is so nuanced, and we are so
poised on th e precipice that if we get it wrong it ends
badly for everybody. So, it is sort of like, All right. Well,
let’s talk about the hard thing instead of each other.
And that is what I was saying here. I mean, I
will point out that immigration . . . and the Honourable
Deputy Premier actually said this, I understand the
difference between a Ford Model T and a Tesla. I
would use that to point out that not all jobs are alike and that is part of the thing we have to contend with here. A reinsurance broker is not like the building inspector, he is not like a librarian, he is not like a teacher, he is not like a landscaper. And so what I
would say is that if we are going to . . . since we have
to control this industry by way of immigration, all of
these industries, then we do things like have standards and qualifications for each one of these. And I
know that there has been some space or some effort
to work there.
To that end I believe . . . and I could be corrected by the Honourable Immigration Labour Minis-ter, but I di d look at the statistics that relate to our labour market and how we quantify which positions
work and where. When the Honourable Minister, for
example, announced that we were adding more people to the constrained or controlled or Bermudian- only
occupations, (I do not quite have the verbiage there,
Mr. Deputy Speaker.) But I did look up which ones,
and it was a bit har d from the announcement because
he said “waiter” and then there were sort of six or
seven different criteria or types of waiter. So my point
here is that if we are going to fight the immigration battle then we have to fight it with all of our —all of
our—efforts, as clear -eyed, and as unemotive as possible.
I think that the more we make it an emotive
issue, the less successful we are going to be at it, because, again, following on from the Honourable Education Minister, who said, People are watching. Yes,
lots of people are watching. And we want to make
sure that those who are watching, if they are going to
commit a lifetime to join our small co mmunity, if they
are going to commit all of those funds to our small
community, they are not made enemies simply because they are different. I do not want us to get into
the habit of making political scapegoats of those who
are different from us because we ourselves are the
descendants of those who were scapegoated the most.
To that end I would say that there must be
some value from Emma Lazarus ’s poem "The New
Colossus ." It is actually, part of it is sketched on the
Statue of Liberty in New York. “Give me your tired,
your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe
free.”
There has to be value in that. Right? There
has to be a moral high ground to be accepting of people who are different from us.
We are all aware that the utility of the Immigration Act has expired. The world has just changed way too much. That thing was drafted in 1956, Mr.
Deputy Speaker. Our Islan d has changed so much in
that time period. I echo what the Honourable Deputy
Premier had actually said in terms of understanding
that we need to build a different Bermuda going forward. So to that end we have to throw ourselves
wholeheartedly at dealing wi th immigration, again, not
[dealing with it] as an emotive issue but as one that
can be dealt with as clinically as possible, even
though the consequences are not that. The social
ramifications to our population are significant and could be detrimental if handled improperly. So we
have to handle it with all of the professionalism and all of the calmness that we possibly can. I take the point
of Honourable Member Famous that this conversation
has not always been had in that way. But I just got here, so maybe I can help in some way.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, as much as we have to
concern ourselves with population control, when I was
in the Regiment, I w as fortunate enough to be assigned to the Royal Gibraltar Regiment. So we had to
spend some time in Gibraltar, what is called colloquially “Gib.” And what blew my mind about Gib was (and I have a few statistics) how small it was but how big
the population was. They had some 2.6 square miles
and had 33,000 people. And let’s not forget that in the
middle of this is a big rock that no one lives on. So,
you just thought, I wonder how they did that. Because
you come back home and we have 20.5 square miles
(I thi nk; I looked it up.) and we have about 63,000
people. So you go, Okay. Something is happening
588 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly here. I don’t think t hat we have dealt with this in a
proper fashion. They have got 12 per cent of our land
mass, but half of our population. So clearly, we can do
better at this.
And this strikes me that this has a lot to do
with planning and how we actually preserve our lands.
Now, I am very mindful that planning came about during the glory days of tourism. And I am mindful that
those glory days have abruptly come to an end and
we have to determine what happens next. What do we build? Maybe it is a specialised tourism product . I
don’t know. But the 1980s are over. So, we cannot
live in the 1980s.
And I would impress upon the Honourable
Members of the Cabinet to remember that —the 1980s
are over. In fact, I think one of the Honourable Members spoke to the past, not constraining ourselves by
the past. So that means not only racially but that also
means institutionally. So, insofar as we are going to
move forward and f ix a lot of the problems that Bermuda has, institutionally, then we have to address
things that were built for another age. And, again,
those things are not going to be addressed if we
spend the whole time having a go at each other, Mr.
Deputy Speaker.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am just going to wrap
[up] here. I have about seven minutes left. I want to close with somethi ng that I have not seen a lot of, and
I think that we could probably use a healthy dose of.
And that is things like feasibility studies, Green Papers, and White Papers. The reason is not because
the ideas are bad in and of themselves. It is that the
level of examination of the idea appears to not be as
deep as is required.
For example, when we addressed the licensing and trading of a previously illicit commodity in
Bermuda, what was the impact on . . . now I know
there was a lot of work that went into this , so I do not
want to take away from anyone. But what I am saying
is that there was not a document that came out and
said, Here is how it is g oing to work for Health. Here
how it is going to work for Education. Here is how it is
going to work for Security. And so I think that is what
led to Okay, well, what about . . .? And we have to be
mindful, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that there is always go-ing to be someone who says that. Right?
So we do have to curtail the extent to which
we ask these questions. But noneth eless they are
there and I think we have to move from a place where
we have ideas to a place where we have substantiat-ed ideas backed up by fe asibility studies, by Green
Papers and White Papers. I think that is the only way
that we can conceivably enter such complex topics
and then have a mature and thoughtful and considered conversation, not just in and amongst ourselves
as parliamentarians, but with the public at large, as well as stakeholders. So I think that this is very important. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I do not want to poohpooh the idea of all these task forces and committees
and groups, but we certainly have had a fair share in
our time, and I have not been around that long. But it
beggars belief that we could have that many for one topic. I mean, how many times are we going to beat
up immigration? It is just sort of like, Okay, surely, you
must have an idea by now guys? So, I am not convinced every time I see a new committee, task force,
group, whatever you want to call it . .
. I am not convinced that this is always the best way, because I
have seen so many of them and they do not seem to be producing a lot.
And Mr. Deputy Speaker, I go back to my earlier point that I think we need to be looking more in the
direction of feasibility studies, impact studies, someone has to commit to writing the things that we have
discovered and the things that we are . . . the risks
that we are going to face and the costs we are going
to face. And then we can go down that road.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, we are in drastic times.
We do require drastic actions. In principle, Mr. Deputy
Speaker, I therefore disagree with a lot of the Minis-ter’s works, but only because I see it as the same level of thinking that got us into this situation. (Which I
believe is a quote from Albert Ei nstein.) And I do not
see that drastic change. I do not think the minimal reduction of spending. I don’t think our efforts to increase revenues . . . for example, they are based on a
lot of hope. A few people have already spoken to that
saying that we are hoping that the world gets better.
I agree again with the Honourable Education
Minister, people are listening and as we face larger and greater problems, our political spectacle, our political theatre is just cheapening our efforts to fix things .
If we pu sh back too hard on people with alternative
points of view, we are only going to generate fear.
Hyperbole, sideways insults, for example, are not going to be helpful. And like the wave on the beach, every time we do that, we ebb away at what we have
earned so hard, which is the franchise to actually be in
this Honourable House and have this conversation.
So, we need not always, granted we are not
going to be . . . we do not have to be friends. We do
not have to sing Kumbaya, Mr. Deputy Speaker, but
we sure as heck cannot be enemies.
With that being said, again, I express my
gratitude to the Finance Minister and his efforts. I refer to his quote about the obstacles to growth and how he
can remove them. I would say right now, our largest
obstacle to growth is our necessity for one side to be
right and the other side to be wrong. There is no monopoly on being right. There is always room for improvement. I look forward to getting into the Committee stage. Our vision of the future must be mor e than
hopeful, it must be evident. It is not going to be enhanced by the spectacle of political theatre. It needs
no help . . . that is, vision needs no help from our political biases and prejudices. I hope that we are all ready


Bermuda House of Assembly to go into having a frank and fulsome and professional
conversation for the betterment of our country.
Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.

The Deputy Speake r: Thank you, Honourable Member Richardson.
Are there any further speakers? Is that you,
Mr. Pearman?

Hon. Renee Ming: Yes, Mr. Deputy Speaker.

Oh, I called her Mr. Pearman.
Yes, Honourable Minister, Ms. Ming. You have the
floor.
Hon. Renee Ming: Good evening, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and listening audience. Thank you for allowing me
a few minutes to be able to add my thoughts and
comments to the general Budget Debate.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, I think I have been doing
budgets now for probably, maybe the last eight to nine years. And one of the things I always think about
when I start any type of budget, and I think I kind of
belaboured this in the 2014 budget, that budgets are
not just numbers they are actually about people as well. We have to keep that at the forefront when we
are looking at budgets and even talking about the impacts of budgets.
Mr. Deputy Speaker , this would be my first
budget in the capacity of Minister. And that would still be the mantra that I would look at in terms of estab-lishing a budget, looking at your budget, looking at
what things may need to be cut, what things need to
be kept, because at the end of the day we are our people. I think that is something that for me that I
would never want to forget. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the last year has been a
challenge, to say the least. Actually, I was on a page
today. If anyone gets time, KPMG put the ir 2021/22
budget s tatement up on their page, and it is speaks
about what their thoughts are on the budget. And they
actually titled it “A Year Like No Other.” And I remember seeing that and thinking, Absolutely correct! A
year like no other!
I do not thi nk many of us will forget 2020 and
the things we either went through or some of the
things we even learned. A pandemic! Mr. Deputy
Speaker, not many people can say that they would
have even lived through a pandemic. And science, in
some ways, says that thi s happens maybe every 100
years. I know, Mr. Deputy Speaker, you will be around
the next time and you will be able to give some good
advice to whoever the Government is and those who
are sitting in these places because . . . You know, you
brag about people who seem to st ay around for quite
some time.
But, Mr. Deputy Speaker, it was definitely a
year like no other. And when you stop and you think
about the “people” aspect of the budget, there are so many things that we could look at. We could sit here
and w e could talk about the numbers, because the
numbers are very important as well. But what I would like to start off talking about is the people part of it and
what did this Government do for the people?
I know one thing for sure. There was $56 million spen t on unemployment b enefit payments. Mr.
Deputy Speaker, if you were in the space of losing your job, just like that, and not even understanding the
impact of the pandemic . . . we did not know what was
going to happen. And within a very short space of time
the Government com es and says, Here you go. Here
is something to help you. Here is something to put
some food on your table. It might even be enough to
keep your lights on. You know what? That is something that they will not forget. Okay? It is about cari ng
for our people.
And there is . . . you know, we could look at
the Budget Statement that the Minister of Finance has
provided us. I have had a read of the one that the Opposition has put forth as well. And I say, Where does
the caring side of this lie? Well, one evidence of that is
the $56 million spent on unemployment benefits. And
then when you go further into the Budget Book, Mr.
Deputy Speaker, $127 million on unbudgeted COVID -
19 expenses. So these were things . . . because we
would not have budgeted last year for a pandemic we
would not have known about. So unbudgeted expenses, Mr. Deputy Speaker. That is your testing, your
PPE, your cleaning products, now your vaccinations,
all of these things have been offered to our people at
the expense of the Gov ernment.
So imagine not having job, not having any
money, having to pay for tests, having to purchase PPE, having to pay for vaccinations. Come on, this is
what a caring Government does. Okay? And, yes, it is
not an easy hit for the Government in any stretch of
the imaginat ion—$127 million is a lot of money. But
that is the price that we have paid to keep our people safe, to keep them vaccinated, to keep them covered,
to keep surfaces clean, because that is what a caring
Government does, Mr. Deputy Speaker .
Mr. Deputy Speaker, I note . . . and I wouldn’t
say I smiled because I didn’t smile. The Opposition
Leader in his speech spoke about using COVID -19
as, I think he meant, Get-out-of-jail-free card. But
those types of comments do not indicate us caring.
Because there are 12 families in Bermuda who are
mourning the loss of loved ones as a result of COVID -
19. And Mr. Deputy Speaker, when I think about those families and what they went through and what they
continue to go through, because the grieving process
could last from now to whenever . . . you know, you
can finally get out of your bed some days.
I think that as a Government and what it is we
have done is phenomenal. I too have had people stop
me on the street, Mr. Deputy Speaker, send messages, place ph one calls to say, T he Government is doing
a great job. Okay? And those persons who have lost
590 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly loved ones, I have had the opportunity to speak to not
all, but a few. And even though they are in a difficult
stage, they too still feel that the Government did a
good job, that the Government is doing a good job.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, the pandemic, and I
think it was written somewhere, has forced us to urgently recalibrate. And what does that mean for us? It
means that we have to look at doing things differently.
Our Finance Minister , who has worked extremely
hard—extremely hard— he speaks today in the Budget, he speaks to us doing things differently. He speaks to us advancing. He even speaks to us working collaboratively with persons who may not even think like
us, because at the end of the day, we are in this together, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
And another part of recalibration with regard
to the pandemic is family. That is what I think about as
well, Mr. Deputy Speaker. We had opportunities to
probably spend more time wi th our families than we
have had in past years. There are many negative
parts, I think, that you can look at with regard to the pandemic, but there are also some things that we
could say we learned from this. And not just learned
as a Government, we learne d as a people. We
learned about family. We learned how to do things
differently. I know in my home during the pandemic
we did some budgeting and menu planning and cooking meals together and things like that. And things that, you know, [previously] we were generally busy
[to do], Mr. Deputy Speaker. I probably always did not
have time to do, but we were forced and urgently required to recalibrate. And you know what? We take a
minute to kind of look and see what is important to
[us].
But again, Mr. Deputy Speaker, budgets are
about people. And I continue to say that because this
Government, again, when you look [there were] no redundancies or reductions in our staff. No reductions
in scholarships. Because you know what? As a parent
who has a child in school, y ou are thinking abo ut that.
Where is the money coming from? Things are tight all around. No elimination in critical programmes such as
the [Child] Day Care Allowance, the Summer Employment Programme for students, support for our seniors in rest homes, and no extension of the 10 per
cent public sector payment. Mr. Deputy Speaker,
these are things that a caring Government does.
These are just examples of it.
We recognise that we are now in recovery
mode, Mr. Deputy Speaker. And it won’t be easy, it won’t be easy. We have to be prudent. Our Minister of
Finance has told us this, that it will be a challenge. But
you know what? He has told us to be prudent about it
. . . to remember that . . . we are at a stage right now
where we cannot have everything we want, but let’s try and mak e sure we have everything we need.
And Mr. Deputy Speaker, that extends beyond
just the Government. That is for us as Bermudians —
period—right now to live by. We may not have every-thing we want; but let’s make sure we have everything
we need. What we saw, Mr. Deputy Speaker, through
this pandemic and this past year was strong leader-ship. It was strong leadership that got us through and
is continuing to carry us through. And it is the same strong leadership, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that is goi ng
to get us through our recovery, because it will not be
easy. But strong leadership, a caring Government, I
have no indication in my mind that we will not be able
to achieve that.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, a caring Government. I
am just going to refer to the v ery last page of the
Budget Statement. You are listening to the Minister of Finance tell you that he is the son of parents who
worked hard to educate him. He is the father of three
children, [with] his wife. He wants his children to have opportunities in Bermuda with all of the possibilities. He wants to have a fair and level playing field for his
children.
He also talks about protecting our public
health. That is evident, as far as I am concerned, that
he has, and this Government has, done that. He sees
a new economy like no economy of our past. We also
see . . . because his view is our view, Mr. Deputy
Spea ker, as a Government. He says, “It must not only
be diversified but must actively engage diversity .” And
that is another conversation, Mr. Deputy Speaker. “It
must not on ly be stable, but it must cultivate innovation.” That is again asking us that we need t o now be
creative. We have to think outside of the box because that is where we are now as a Government and as a
people. And he also says, “ If there are obstacles to
grow th, we must remove them, quickly. ”
The future of the economy requires all of us to
dig deep, collaborate, listen, and most of all, not fear
change. Because change will come. And if we do
have a fear of it, then address that fear. And have the courage to press on. And that is another thing, Mr.
Deputy Speaker. We are in a new space. And so as
we embrace the space we are in, let’s not be fearful.
Let’s not stifle our growth. Let’s be creative.
So, Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am going to close
my comments on that. But my one thing I want to say
is that I am thankful, thankful, for this caring Gover nment that got us through with their strong leadership
and will continue into recovery with our strong leadership. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, it is hard for
me believe that as the once- newbie, this is in fact my
third Budget Debate already. It has gone quickly, I
know, I know. But here I am. What I did in my first two
was to try to be as balanced as I could and make ob-servations about the budget that I thought were commendable and then offer what I hoped was constructive criticism. And having done that twice, I think I am
going to try it a third time.
So let me start, Mr. Deputy Speaker, with the
elements of this budget that I woul d like to commend.
Firstly, and it has been said by others before me on both sides of the aisle, I note, that this was not an easy budget for this Minister of Finance. And I think
everybody needs to recognise the difficult circumstances that our Island finds itself in. And so this was not an easy budget. And just for having the boldness
to tackle it, he deserves our commendation, and we
freely give it.
Likewise, I do want to reach out and pay
compliments to his efforts last year to restructure our
debt. T hat was something that went largely unnoticed
by a number of the people in the population. It was a
clever move, it was done well and, again, he deserves our credit there and I freely give it. I also have had an opportunity to look at and read carefully the Budget
Statement.
One of things that I would observe is that
when the Minister of Finance has identified what he
calls “the way forward” and a broad umbrella concept
of an economic recovery plan, he identified six principles, which are on page 12 and page 13 of the Budget Statement. I think what is interesting to me is how in
relation to these six principles, all of us, I think, agree.
One, combating COVID -19 is a priority. Absolutely!
Yes! And you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, when my col-league, MP Richardson, was speaking earlier, interjected to make an observation about how during COVID -19 the Government tried to help all. And you
were right to do so. I would make an observation
along a similar line, offered in good spirit, which is that
the Opposition did its best to support the Government
during COVID -19. And we really were not squawking,
or at least I did not think we were.
The second principle identified on page 13 of
the Budget Statement, Reducing the cost of living. I
do not think there is a single MP in t he House, or in-deed anyone in Bermuda, who does not think it is a
good idea if Bermuda was able to reduce the cost of
living. It is a principle we can all support. It would have bipartisan agreement. The more difficult question is,
How? And the answer to t hat question is where people start to have different ideas.
Likewise, Fairness and equity. That is the
third principle identified by the Minister of Finance, the Honourable Minister of Finance. Again, agreed. Fairness and equity. The question is, How?
The next two are Financial viability and Fiscal
prudence. Certainly, the latter sounds as if it is something that falls easily from the mouth of the Minister of Finance, He is certainly someone who is an advocate
of fiscal prudence. And we on this side of the aisle
very much agree. He has our support there.
And his sixth principle is Ti meliness. If I could
be objective about it, one of the difficult things for any
Government is deliverables. It is easy to say something; it is a lot harder to do it. And even i f you are trying to do it, it is a lot harder to get it there to the end as a de liverable. It is not just a box -ticking exercise,
because box -ticking really does not help anyone, but
actually getting it done so that it matters and so that
the recipient of that effort knows that he or she has
benefited.
Likewise, Mr. Deputy Speaker, if one were to
turn to page 24 of the Budget Statement, there the
Minister of Finance has determined to defund any vacant posts unless the funding for it has been allocated
in su pport of delivering a service, or active recruitment
for the post is underway. Now, it was before my time,
but I understand that this was something that the OBA Government did during its tenure as well. And whether
they did or whether they didn’t, as I sai d, it was before
my time. But I think that this is a positive step by the
Minist er of Finance. And where I see a positive move,
I call it as I see it. So, well done there.
Another slightly more complicated discussion
or debate is the Minister’s explanation of why he does
not think it is a good idea to borrow money to put it
into a sin king fund which is intended to be a rainy -day
fund to pay off debt when you can. Why do you in-crease your debt to have money to put into a fund
dedicated for decreasing your de bt? It all sounds very
circular , and it costs us cash. And so, on that point
too, I am entirely with the Minister of Finance. I know
there are some who would disagree. But I do not see the point in paying the bank interest to borrow mon-ey—
[Inaudible interjection]

Excuse me. The Leader of the
Opposition is remindi ng me that the entire OBA team
says that as well. It does not make sense to pay a
bank to borrow to put into a fund to pay back the
money you borrowed from the bank. And so there too,
I offer commendation to the Minister of Finance.
592 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report
B ermuda House of Assembly The last point of commendation that I would
like to highlight . . . and I am going to dovetail this with
something that one of the previous speakers said before me, the Honourable Craig Cannonier. He commended the Minister of Finance by pulling a quote from the Budget Statement where the Minister of Finance himself said this: “If there are obstacles to growth, we must remove them, quickly.” And like MP Craig Cannonier before me, I would commend the Minister for that observation, and I would offer our agreement and support. If there are obstacles to growth, we must remove them quickly.
And I would also pause to note for a moment,
Mr. Deputy Speaker, what MP Jarion Richardson said about that quote as well, because that quote was re-ferred to in his speech to this Honourable House. A nd
he pointed out that one of the largest obstacles to growth is the necessity for one side always to be right
and the other always to be wrong. And he said there
is no monopoly on being right because there is always room for improvement. And that certainly struck a chord with me because in this game of politics we do often try to be right and try hard to portray the other
side as always wrong. And of course, that is the politics that the people do not like, because there is no
monopoly on always being right. And there is always room for improvement.
And Mr. Deputy Speaker, it is in that spirit that
I would now turn to some slightly more critical observations. And lest MP Famous chooses to point -oforder me, these observations are freely given and
honestly held. Not to be critical but to offer a critique,
and those are different things.
I want to identify one of the overarching
themes. Having identified the point about obstacles to
growth and the need to remove them quickly, I am very much agreeing with that sentiment. Let me identify another theme which runs through this Budget Statement, which I really do not agree with. We have been hearing it a lot. It is a cliché. And it is the idea
that the perfect is the enemy of the good. With the
greatest of respect to those who have used the phrase, I would ask them to step back and pause and think about whether that is really the sentiment by which they want to live their life.
The perfect is the enemy of the good. Well,
sure. Because achieving perfection is so dif ficult. But
does that mean simply because we cannot achieve it we should not try? The perfect is the enemy of the good is, again, like saying, W ell, I have done something, and something is better than nothing, so I
should be rewarded for doing something. And, again,
Mr. Deputy Speaker, that approach does strike me as flawed.
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Point of order, Mr. Deputy
Speaker. Mr
. Scott Pearman: And I would offer, as I have offered previously —
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Point of order, Mr. Deputy
Speaker.

What is your point of order?
POINT OF ORDER
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Deputy Speaker, I do
not want to interrupt MP Pearman’s flow, but I t hink
context is really important when referencing my re-marks and then offering a critique or a criticism of what was said.
The statement w as mad e in a context of t he
unemployment benefit and not havi ng th e time to perfect a perfect s olution because people were at the risk
of pot entially go ing without f ood. And s o I appr eciate
the comment, but I think that its context should also
be considered before offering a critique.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
I readily accept the intervention from the Minister of Finance. I take his point. I fully accept that the
quote was deployed in the context that he states it was. Nonetheless, it is a quote that I have been hearing a lot of late. And not just from the Minister of Finance. And I think it is perfectly reasonable of me, and
I hope I am doing it in a reasonable way, to ask whether that is the mantra by which we, Bermuda, collectively, want to live our lives. And it seems to me,
and I have said this before, that I prefer, and it is a
cliché as well, but I prefer the cliché, Do it well or not
at all.
Now, I will take another cliché that was in the
statement that came from the Minister of Finance, and that was, A good plan poorly executed [can be] worse
than no plan at all. And with that sentiment, I wholeheartedly agree. It is not always true. Sometimes a good plan poorly executed gets me out of some hot water and quick. But sometimes it is better to do noth-ing than to do something badly or do something that is wrong. But I do say in terms of the perfect being the
enemy of the good, I would prefer the approach to do
it right or not at all.
Anyway, moving from high themes to the reality on the ground, almost every speech this evening,
and rightly so, has identified that COVID -19 has
turned the world on its head. I would just like to ob-serve, yes, COVID -19 has done our economy a great
deal of damage, a great violence. But I would also like to observe, again, fairly, I think, that we were in bad
shape before. Our economy was diseased before COVID -19. COVID -19 was the proverbial coffin. As I
am talking about clichés, let me move on to another one. It amazes me, and one of my colleagues on this
side of the aisle, used it earlier. It amazes me that


Bermuda House of Assembly people are talking about approaching cliffs. Maybe I
am the negative one here. But I think the cliff came
and went long ago. I think we are over that cliff and
we are falling fast. I wish it were not the case. I really
do. And contrary to some of the interventions, and one
speci fic intervention earlier, we do not wish the Government ill simply because we are the Opposition, but
we are entitled, and indeed obliged and duty -bound,
to point out when we differ , and why we differ, because we are here to offer solutions or alternatives .
The biggest issue to me about this budget and
our economy and where we are going . . . yes, it is
COVID -19. But actually COVID -19 will pass. And to
me the biggest issue here is de bt. Debt is the big
monster in the room. We are $3 billion in debt net of the sinking fund. And the Minister of Finance informed
this Honourable House back in, well, reasonably recently, that in August 2020 the gross debt figure was
$3.35 billion.
I have not checked the number myself, but it
was suggested earlier this evening in the debate before the House that are unfunded pension obligation
was $1.47 billion. So if one takes the net debt, which I
accept is a fairer way to approach it, and adds the
$1.47 b illion, then that is $4.47 billion. Now, that is
pretty much $4.5 billion.
So far in my speech I have been speaking in
the spirit of good will, and actually I think a number of the contributors to the debate this evening have spoken in the spirit of good w ill. I was a little disappointed
to hear earlier from the Minister of Educ ation about
how when you make a mistake you must own it. But
let me throw it back at him. Minister, who owns $4.5
billion in debt?
Anyway, as MP Richardson pointed out, and I
am paraphrasing, we can disagree respectfully. We
can disagree without rancour even though we are still
disagreeing. This $3 billion in debt, or $4.5 billion in
debt if you include the unfunded pension obligation, you know . . . just take the $3 billion. In 2020, our
population was 62,278 according to the UN statistic. If you divide the population, that is the resident population, so that is Bermudians and others, you divide $3
billion, that means a per head figure of $48,171.10. That is $48,171.10. That is $50,000 for each head of a
resident in Bermuda if you think our residency is certain around 62,000. If it were only the Bermudians it is
far higher. And why do I mention that? Well, because
if we get out of control along taxation, it will be only
the Bermudians. Because everyone else will have the
freedom to leave and will not necessarily want to remain here to help us repay our debt.
Turning now to the budget itself. The Opposition Leader noted in his Budget Reply at page 7 . . .
with your liberty, Mr. Deputy Speaker, if I may just
quote. The Opposition Leader said this: “Mr. Speaker, many Bermuda residents see this budget as very aspirational, and one that lacks detail.” I appreciate that
this criticism by the Opposition Leader may not have been welcomed, and I preface in my speech this
evening that I recognise the difficulty and I commend
the Minister for the difficulty in which he is functioning
in producing this budget. But it is an aspirational
budget, and it is one that lacks detail. We looked at the six principles earlier at pages 12 and 13 of the
Budget Statement.
Slightly les s persuasive in my opinion are the
initiatives at [pages] 13 and 14. Those, we can remind
ourselves, were, firstly, economic diversification. This
is interesting. Economic diversific ation. If you asked,
Shouldn’t Bermuda have a more diversified economy?
I think 9 out of 10 people would say yes. Possibly 10
out 10. But then you start to say, Well, diversification,
how? Well, we need to find more pillars. We start talking about a green economy, a blue economy, a tech economy, FinTech, crypto , et cetera. All of these ideas, some of which may be very good ideas, others
which may be unicorns in the sense that they do not
exist. I think that it is right to try to diversify Bermuda’s
economy. I think most people wouldn’t differ. But it is also difficult.
What is le ss difficult, in my respective opinion,
is that you have got that which is right before your
eyes. You have an opportunity to grow what you
know. Again, I will remi nd the House of what MP
Richardson said earlier. Take care of the people who
are already her e. So insurance and reinsurance, yes.
Harder to grow, I appreciate, because there is a lot of
merger going on in that sector. The fund industry. I
said it and perha ps it is going to be a Pearman cliché
because I have said it so often. But imagine what the Bermuda economy would look like if we had just one or two more Orbises here. I mean, it would be fantastic. Hard to achieve, I accept. But grow what you
know.
Likewise, we have this massive trust industry
here. If we could focus on growing our trust indus try, if
we could start to take it to some of our competitors to
the south, and in this occasion, it is not Cayman I am
talking about. But, you know, the trust indust ry is an
area of great growth and benefit to our islands.
Another observation that I would like to agree
with earlier in the debate was actually a comment by
MP Dunkley. And what he said was Thank you to international business. I am very sensitive to the fact
that some of the things that we throw one way or another in the House get heard by those who are visitors
to our Island, who are residents here, not necessarily Bermudian, who are working in international business
or a part of international business l ooking at our Island
from afar. And because international business is the
success that it i s, and because it has actually weathered the COVID -19 storm better than any other sector
in Bermuda, it is easy to forget the gratitude.
So I echo that sentiment, a nd I do thank international business, because there were a lot of Bermudians employed by in ternational business and they
could have been cast aside. There were other islands
594 5 March 2021 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly facing COVID -19 who were putting people on planes
and shipped them out. We welcomed and we embraced those who were here from international business and by in large they repaid the favour by maintaining Bermudians in employment even though there was little work, or less work, to be done. And it is, I
accept, hard to adjust to working from home but some
people have jobs who can do that better than others,
but I think the fact t hat they maintained people on their
payrolls rather than jettisoning them is something for which we should offer thanks collectively.
Now, solutions . Mr. Deputy Speaker, how
much time do I have left?

Okay. I’m grateful.
Looking at page 14 of the Budget Statement, I
am delighted to see that one of the seven identified
initiatives is extending the resident population. I think
the PLP is right to be on board with this. The OBA has
been there before. But this is not a he- said, she -said
moment. There is no benefiting in crowing. There was
a bipartisan committee before the election that as I
understand, although I did not sit on it, reached a high
degree of consensus on this very delicate and sensitive issue of immigration. I fully accept that it is a delicate and sensitive issue. Not only owing to historical atrocities and improprieties, but also because we all
do not necessarily agree about what it is to be Bermudian and who should be Bermudian and when
should they be Bermudian and how.
And yet, you know, look around the House.
How many of us are married to people who were not born here? How many of us might have had kids born
here or born elsewhere? It is very, very difficult to de-fine what it means to be Bermudian. And I think when
we embark upon this journey to grow the resident
population, which I hope we will do, we must remind
oursel ves that it is not as easy as the stark contrast
picture that we (and I say “we,” collectively) politicians like to paint.
The Opposition Leader said in his speech earlier today that a good immigration policy is a good economic policy. And that is absolut ely right. And I
would like to extend praise to the Minister of Finance
for recognising this as a fundamenta l and important
initiative and I would also like to commend the Minister of Labour for perhaps saying the unexpected. Because I think it is right to have the conversation. I am
not saying we all are going to agree. I know that historically one party has certainly been more proimmigration than the other.
But the fact is that our collective backs are
against the wall. Bermuda is in deep, deep, deep
trouble. [We are] $4.5 billion in debt. How are we going to repay that? To me —
Hon. E. David Burt: Point of order, Mr. Deputy
Speaker. Point of order.

Point of order, Honourable
Premier.

POINT OF ORDER

Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Honourable Member cannot make up figures. The debt
figures are clearly published for all to see. And we
understand exactly what Bermuda’s net debt position
is. And Berm uda’s net debt position is not $4.5 billion.
The Honourable Member must speak to the facts; he
cannot make t hem up.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
It is unfortunate perhaps that the Premier tuned in late
because I explained precisely how I got to the figure
of 4.5. I added in the [$]1.47 [billion] unfunded public sector pension fund, which is a promise to our public
sector workers —

Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Honourable Member . . . Point of order, Mr. Deputy
Speaker.

What is y our point of order?

POINT OF ORDER

Hon. E. David Burt: The Honourable Member cannot
invent what the definitions of debt are. And so, he
cannot use in his argument that Bermuda is $4.5 billion in debt when we have laws and statements which
state what the net public debt actually is. So he cannot just throw thin gs in. Is he going to start throwing in
something else to make the figure larger? Maybe that is what the Opposition Leader was doing. We have
facts and he must stick to the facts as they exist, Mr.
Deputy Speaker.

Yes. I am grateful, Mr. Deputy
Speaker.
Our gross debt, as I said, as of August 2020
was $3.35 billion. Our net debt as I understand it from
the presentation is just below $3 billion . . . or just


Bermuda House of Assembly above $3 billion. Our unfunded public sector liability,
which is a promise for pension for public sector workers, as I understand it earlier in the debate, was $1.47
billion. I pointed out earlier in my speech that I had not
checked that number, but if one adds $3 billion, which is the lesser number the net number, and $1.47 billion, we are pretty close to $4.5 bill ion.
I accept that one is a net debt, and one is a
pension obligation payment. But really, we are dancing on the head of a pin here, Premier. What I am talking about is what we as an Island have to repay, and you can point -of-order me —

Hon. E. David Burt: Point of order, Mr. Deputy
Speaker.

Point of order, Mr. Premier.
POINT OF ORDER
[Misleading]
Hon. E. David Burt: It is wholly inaccurate to state
that future pension obligations which are unfunded
due to actuarial calculations on money that has to be
repaid. It is not accurate. It is not keeping with finances. It is a way to go with a political item to make
something larger, but we must deal with facts, Mr.
Deputy Speaker. And the facts are that it is not proper
to say that underfund ing on pensions . . . because
there are numerous things. The pension liability assumes that there are no more payments into pensions
as of this day and that is where the underfunded mat-ter comes from, and that is not correct, because people are paying into pensions every year. And so for
the Honourable Member to say that this is money that
has to be paid back is not correct. He is misleading
the House, Mr. Deputy Speaker.

And I would just point out that
splitting hairs between $4.5 and $3.0 billion . . . I
mean, they are both pretty bad. But I will leave it to the Minister of Finance and the Premier to have the
conversation about the unfunded pension liability and
I will leave it there. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker,
for the direction.
Let me move on now to the principles. Where
I was before the interjection, Mr. Deputy Speaker, was commending the idea of expanding the resident population. The reason for that is because if we have a $3
billion net debt obligation as an Island, we are going to have to figure out some way to pay that back. Yes, you can raise taxes, and we have seen taxes being
raised. But the other way, and in my opinion the preferable way, is to try to expand your tax base which
means getting more people here. And it was interesting to hear the earlier speech by MP Richardson talking about the size of Gibraltar and how much smaller
it is than Bermuda, and yet the population is just half
the size of ours, give or take.
I understand from the Premier’s statement to
the House this morning that there will be 30 key initia-tives to follow. It might be thought unfortunate but
here we are having our Budget Debate and the 30 key
initiatives have not yet been announced. And we will
not know them for another 11 days until the 16
th of
March. It would have been more helpful perhaps for us to know and the public to know what those 30 key
shiny pieces of hope might be. But we don’t. We don’t.
And we will wait to see what the 3 0 initiatives are and
we look forward to seeing them and we hope that they
are more than 30 pieces of silver.
The Opposition Leader in his speech said this:
“The question is, what now?” I do not think anybody
approaches this budget with any sense of pleas ure or
pride in where we stand. It is depressing news indeed.
I, for one, do not envy the Minister of Finance his position and as I said at the beginning of my speech, I
commend him in many, many ways for the difficulties he faces.
In another context the Reverend Dr. Martin
Luther King, [Jr.] spoke of, quote, “the fierce urgency of now.” And to me that about sums it up. The fierce
urgency of now. Here is where we are, and as the Opposition Leader said, the question is, What now?
So, Minister of Finance, good luck to you. Be
bold. Do grow the resident population; you will have
our support. You will not get cheap shots from us on
that. We will support you. Why will we support you?
Because we must grow our tax base. We must. Otherwise, there will be fewer and f ewer people here to
pay $3 billion in net debt, and whatever the pension obligation happens to be as the days and years unfold
in front of us. Also—