The Deputy Premier presented a controversial development order for Riddell's Bay that will allow 18 luxury homes to be built while creating 64 acres of public conservation land, expected to bring $75 million in investment. The Education Minister detailed how Black history and African heritage are already taught throughout Bermuda's public school curriculum from primary through senior levels. The Works Minister announced plans to revive St. George as a tourism destination ahead of the new St. Regis hotel opening and indicated municipal reform legislation will return to parliament. The Labour Minister revealed that 159 work permit renewals were denied during COVID-19 lockdown and announced a meeting between government, hotels and unions to discuss industry recovery.
Riddell's Bay development project creating 18 luxury homes and 64 acres of conservation landCOVID-19 related regulations and unemployment benefitsBlack Studies curriculum in public schools and Bermuda's African heritage educationMunicipal reform plans for Hamilton and St. George corporationsHotel industry recovery meeting planned with unions, employers and government
Bills & Motions
Public Health (COVID-19) Emergency Orders and Regulations - papers submitted for information
Riddell's Bay Special Development Order 2020 - presented for House consideration
Various customs and unemployment benefit regulations - papers submitted for information
Notable Moments
Opposition questioned why the Riddell's Bay project bypassed normal planning approval processes, with hundreds of public letters submitted
The Works Minister bluntly told St. George it must "up their game" with only 10 of 55 shops open, calling it a "sleepy ole town"
Government acknowledged its workforce development systems are not mature enough to track qualified Bermudians available for jobs where work permits were denied
Debate Transcript
559 speeches from 30 speakers
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning, Members. Welcome. We will now have the prayer to start us off this morning. Thank you Mr. Allen for a nnouncing and getting us started. Ms. Beale, would you like to do the prayer? PRAYERS [Prayers read by Mrs. Kara A. Beale, Assistant Clerk ] CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning, Members. Welcome to today’s sitting. The Minutes from the sitting of the 19th of June have been circulated. Are there any omissions, corrections which are required? There are none. The Minutes are confirmed as printed. [Minu tes of 19 June 2020 confirmed] MESSAGES FROM THE GOVERNOR
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE SPEAKER OR MEMBER PRESIDING OMBUDSMAN FOR BERMUDA ANNUAL REPORT 2019
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI have the honour to announce that I have received the Ombuds man of Bermuda’s Annual Report for 2019. This report has been submitted in compliance with section 24(1) and (3) of the O mbudsman Act 2004. And it will be circulated for all Members. MESSAGES FROM THE SENATE
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are no messages from the S enate. PAPERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS TO THE HOUSE
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe have a number of papers and communications this morning. The first is from the Minister of Health . . . the first three, in fact. Minister of Health, would you like to present your papers? PUBLIC HEALTH (COVID- 19) EMERGENCY ORDER 2020 PUBLIC HEALTH (COVID- 19 EMERGENCY POWERS) REGULATIONS …
We have a number of papers and communications this morning. The first is from the Minister of Health . . . the first three, in fact. Minister of Health, would you like to present your papers?
PUBLIC HEALTH (COVID- 19) EMERGENCY ORDER 2020
PUBLIC HEALTH (COVID- 19 EMERGENCY POWERS) REGULATIONS 2020
PUBLIC HEALTH (COVID- 19) EMERGENCY EXTENSION ORDER 2020
Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Yes, thank you. Good morning, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to attach and submit for the information of the Honourable House of Assembly the Public Health (COVID -19) Emergency Order 2020, as made by the Minister of Health under section 107A of the Public Health Act 1949. I have the honour to attach and submit for the information of the Honourable House of Assembly the Public Health (COVID -19 Emergency Powers) Reg ulations 2020, as made by the Minister of Health under section 107A of the Public Health Act 1949. And finally, Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to attach and submit for the information of the Honour able House of Assembly the Public Health (COVID -19) Emergency Extension Order 2020, made by the Mini ster of Health under section 107A of the Public Health Act 1949. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Min ister. The next paper this morning is in the name of the Deputy Premier. Deputy Premier, would you like to present your paper? Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Good morning. 4328 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT O RDER 2020 Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I have the ho nour to attach and submit for the consideration of the Honourable House of Assembly the Riddell’s …
Yes. Good morning. 4328 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT O RDER 2020
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I have the ho nour to attach and submit for the consideration of the Honourable House of Assembly the Riddell’s Bay (Warwick Parish) Special Development Order 2020, proposed to be made by the Minister of Home Af fairs, the Minister responsible for planning, in exercise of the power conferred by section 15(2)(a) of the Development and Planning Act 1974. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. The next paper this morning is in the name of the Mini ster of Finance. Minister, would you like to present your paper this morning? Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Yes. Good morning, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning. PUBLIC TREASURY (ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENTS) (TEMPORARY UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT) AMENDMENT (NO. 2) REGULATIONS 2020 CUSTOMS DUTY (BERMUDA TOURISM AUTHORITY) REMISSION AMENDMENT ORDER 2020 CUSTOMS TARIFF (APPROVED ORGANISATION) AMENDMENT NOTICE 2020 Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to attach and submit for the information of the …
Good morning.
PUBLIC TREASURY (ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENTS) (TEMPORARY UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT) AMENDMENT (NO. 2) REGULATIONS 2020
CUSTOMS DUTY (BERMUDA TOURISM AUTHORITY) REMISSION AMENDMENT ORDER 2020
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to attach and submit for the information of the Honourable House of Assembly the following Regul ations : Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) (Temporary Unemployment Benefit) Amendment (No. 2) Regulations 2020 —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Do all three of them, Minister. Hon. Curtis L. Dickin son: The C ustoms Duty (Bermuda Tourism Authority) Remission Amendment O rder 2020; and the C ustoms Tariff (Approved Organisation) Amendment Notice 2020 . Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. PETITIONS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are no petiti ons this morning. STATEMENTS BY MINISTERS AND JUNIOR MINISTERS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe first Statement this morning is that of the Deputy Premier. Deputy, would you like to present your Stat ement? Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020 Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good morning to Honourable Members. Mr. Speaker, earlier today I laid before the House the Special Development Order titled the Riddell’s Bay (Warwick Parish) Special Development O rder 2020 (SDO). This SDO …
Continue.
RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good morning to Honourable Members. Mr. Speaker, earlier today I laid before the House the Special Development Order titled the Riddell’s Bay (Warwick Parish) Special Development O rder 2020 (SDO). This SDO comes at a time when the Island is reeling from the unprecedented economic downturn due to COVID -19. Mr. Speaker, in accordance with Section 15 of the Development and Planning Act 1974, the Order will grant subdivision approval for the purposes of residential development and also to create new conservation lands. Specifically, a total of 18 vacant lots will be approved, each to be developed with a detached house; and additionally , two significantly sized vacant conservation lots will be approved to be comprehensively planted and restored, which will provide a number of environmental and publ ic benefits. Such benefits are to include the re- establishment of diverse native and endemic ecosystems, as well as opportunities for passive recreational use. Mr. Speaker, I am acutely aware of the deve loper’s enthusiasm to proceed with this project. An d to this end, I am pleased to confirm that remediation and initial planting works have already begun on the site for the conservation areas. Mr. Speaker, the preparation of this Order was preceded by the subdivision application process by the Department of Planning. This project has undergone exhaustive environmental analysis and scr utiny. The application submission included an Enviro nmental Impact Statement and Conservation Manag ement Plan. By virtue of the statutory objection process defined in the Dev elopment and Planning Act 1974, this application was afforded public scrutiny. The submission details were comprehensively reviewed by technical officers of the Departments of Planning and Environment & Natural Resources, as well as non - government organisations and members of the community. Mr. Speaker, to specify the details of the scheme, the developer proposes to convert approx imately 25 per cent (or 23 acres) of the total acreage of Riddell’s Bay to residential lots, while at the same
Bermuda House of Assembly time converting the remaining 75 per cent of the total acreage, 64 acres, to publicly accessible conservation areas. Mr. Speaker, the addition of 64 acres of conservation land is a significant contributing element of the scheme. The two conservation lots are split into four categories including nature reserve, open space, recreation and wood land. Notably, the overall size of this conservation area exceeds the size of the majority of government nature reserves and/or national parks on the I sland. Mr. Speaker, the creation of such conserv ation lands will be achieved by way of conditions appended to the Order requiring the implementation of a conservation management plan, a plan which details the necessary restorative works and planting works , together with the financial pla n for delivery and subsequent maintenance thereof. Mr. Speaker, against the backdrop of the current challenges being faced by our community, I am certainly proud to introduce such a scheme that re presents a significant ecological and social gain for the Island. Further, this is one of the largest single luxury developments proposed in some time. It has undoubt-edly tremendous potential to inject an estimated $75 million capital investment into the economy ; provide a much -needed stimulus to various business sectors including construction and landscaping, real estate and other retail and service industries; and most i mportantly, provide jobs for Bermudians. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take the opportunity at this time to thank the developers for undertaking such a significant venture to create a luxury development while creating valuable conservation land for the benefit of the community. We applaud the developers for continuing to believe in Bermuda as a sound and promising jurisdiction in which to invest. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. The next Statement this morning is that of the Minister of Works. Minister Burch, would you like to present your Statement this morning? [Pause]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister Burch, are you with us t oday? [No audible response]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister Burch seems to be having technical difficulty. Can we move on and come back to Minister Burch? Minister Burch? Okay. We will move on and come back. Minister of Education, would you like to pr esent your Statement at this time? Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Yes. Can you …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. We can hear you. Yes. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: I am having some technical difficulties as well.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. We can hear you. And we can see . . . or, we do not see you in the camera, but we hear you. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Right. I am trying to turn the camera around. I just cannot figure out how to do that right now.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. [Laughter] Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: It is showin g through the back. But I can continue with my Statement.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Continue with your Statement, and we will work with you until you get it solved. SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA AND GLOBAL STUDIES Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain : Okay. Mr. Speaker, every so often there is a cry from members of our community for the introduction …
Okay. Continue with your Statement, and we will work with you until you get it solved.
SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA AND GLOBAL STUDIES Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain : Okay. Mr. Speaker, every so often there is a cry from members of our community for the introduction of Black Studies or African Studies in our schools. It comes as no surprise that, with the recent protests at home and abroad over ongoing racial injustic es, this perennial cry has resurfaced. In response, Mr. Speaker, this morning I rise to share with my honourable colleagues detailed information about the B ermuda and Global Studies strand of the social studies curriculum that is currently taught in our public schools at the primary, middle and senior school levels. Mr. Speaker, we are all aware that the major ity of Bermuda’s population is of African descent, and it cannot be denied that the journey and struggle of Black Bermudians has defined significant aspects [ of this Island’s history. ] It is therefore appropriate that I provide my honourable colleagues and the country with information pertaining to the social studies curriculum in our public schools, and particularly the strand which focuses on Bermuda and Global Studies. Let me emphasize that the work carried out by the D epartment of Education, inclusive of curriculum, is guided by Plan 2022, the strat egic plan for public school education. This is the pathway the department has been on since January 2018, and will continue on until we achieve an education system that is transformative for all students. Mr. Speaker, our technical officers have this year focused their efforts on ensuring that the social 4330 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly studies curriculum is grounded in a Bermudian context. Officers have revised and [enhanced ] the Prim ary 1 curriculum with resources, activities, formative assessments and outside learning ( i.e., field trips) for all primary years , P1 through P6. As the curriculum changes focus with each year level, teachers at the primary level can centr e Bermuda’s Black culture and history, or use African cultural references in the classroom. Mr. Speaker, for children i n Primary 1 through 3, the emphasis is on learning about who they are both individually and collectively. At Primary 1, the family unit is central to the learning experience, and Afro–Caribbean and African references can be used to examine the family. At P rimary 2, children are exposed to their cultural origins , which include but are not exclusively African and Caribbean. Young learners are exposed to food, music, cultural expressions and economic activities of our various identities. Berm uda’s cultures and traditions —that is, our holidays, celebratory activities, as well as national and cultural symbols —are taught in Primary 3. Mr. Speaker, specifically, Black history is co nnected to Cup Match, the tradition of Emancipation activities and the Gombey, a Bl ack Bermudian cultural symbol that finds its origins in Africa, and, having passed through the Caribbean, now has its own di stinctive Bermudian appeal. Bermuda’s history conti nues at the upper school level with the teaching of geography, economics and civi cs taking centre stage. Children learn about the Island’s discovery in the context of the Age of Exploration and our journey through various global historical milestones , as well as the global connection to Bermuda’s economic activities. Bermuda’s Black hi story is interwoven throughout these historical narratives. Mr. Speaker, our technical officers are conti nuously reviewing the teaching resources and engaging in community partnerships around Bermuda’s history. This year, Primary 4 students learned of the m igratory experiences of Black Bermudians and how slavery developed in Bermuda during the 1600s. Pr imary 5 students deepened their knowledge of Berm uda’s slave history , as well as the emancipation mov ement through Bermuda’s own Mary Prince, who was pivot al to the anti-slavery moment and abolition of slavery in the British Empire. Students learned about Sally Bassett, an icon in the slave revolt narrative; they also learned about the role F riendly Societies played in advocating for and supporting newly emancipated Black s. Icons such as Wesley L. Tucker and Roosevelt Brown are also introduced to students at this level. Mr. Speaker, the social studies curriculum also includes Bermuda’s history of racial segregation, unfair work practices , the nature of raci al injustices, the struggle for reform and those personalities who led this struggle. Hence, in Primary 6 students learn of personalities and activists such as the Progressive Group, Dr. E. F. Gordon, Dr. Barbara Ball, Dame Lois Brown e-Evans and Sir John S wan, and their socio - political impact. They also learn about the Tucker’s Town dispute and the socio -political and economic impact of the displacement of the Black Bermudian community. The social studies teaching resources explore the racialised climate of Bermuda in the 1960s and 1970s, and the parallel experiences of African Americans who form part of the African Diaspora. Mr. Speaker, at the m iddle school level the curriculum shifts from the local studies to global studies. Featuring the Caribbean and ancient African kingdoms, the curriculum during the past school year has seen the addition of Mansa Musa, who predated the Trans atlantic slave period, and the introduction of the African Diaspora Heritage Trail. At the senior school level there is consider able flexibility on what is taught, but Bermuda Studies is mandatory, with Pr eserving Our Heritage and Introduction to Africa cour ses offered as electives. The latter course provides a window for our senior students to see African history outside of the Mi ddle Passage experience. Mr. Speaker, earlier I mentioned community partnerships. These partnerships have supported teaching and learning with the development of new resources and materials , helped to enhance the social studies curriculum and supported professional deve lopment. The Bermuda National Trust, for example, produced an interactive history book on Black history and worked with the Department of Education to deliver remote learning to over 350 primary school st udents on topics such as “ From Shipw reck to Settler ” and “From Slavery to Emancipation. ” Our partnership with the Bermuda National Museum resulted in the creation of the Trans atlantic Slave Trade e-book for Middle Level 2 teachers and students, the Develo pment of a Tourism e-book for Primary 6 teachers and students , and final editing of the Prudence Rebels Teacher Resource Guide. Mr. Speaker, we have several Bermudian professionals who have been a tremendous support to the Department of Education in providing professional development for teachers who deliver the social stu dies curriculum to our students. Thus, in closing , Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the professional services of Ms. Melodye Van Putten, who delivered the Ashay Professional Development series for middle school teac hers. Also, the Department’s Education Officer , Dr. Radell Tankard, made a presentation on Mansa Musa, while Mr. Glenn Fubler of Imagine Bermuda delivered a Transformative Leadership Wor kshop. Additionally, our middle school teachers further developed and enhanced their Bermudian Black history knowledge base with participation in bus tours organised by Titan Express , highlighting the history of Black female slaves Sally Bassett and Mary Prince. Mr. Speaker, both Bermuda and Global Studies ha ve been incorporated into the social studies curriculum for our public schools. Our children are recei vBermuda House of Assembly ing the history and culture of Black Bermudians and our African ancestry. We will continue to review, r evise and enhance the curriculum so that our students have rich, relevant, rigorous and authentic learning experiences grounded in their history and their heri tage. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Minister Burch, would you like to do your Statement now?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. We can hear you. We can hear you and see you, so you are in order with what needs to be done this morning. INTRODUCTION TO THE MUNICIPALITIES
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchOkay, great. Thank you, Mr. Spe aker. On June 5 th, I assumed responsibility for both municipalities, the Corporation of Hamilton and the Corporation of St. George. My usual approach in these situations to any new department, quango and now municipalities , once under my remit , is to do …
Okay, great. Thank you, Mr. Spe aker. On June 5 th, I assumed responsibility for both municipalities, the Corporation of Hamilton and the Corporation of St. George. My usual approach in these situations to any new department, quango and now municipalities , once under my remit , is to do a meet -and-greet with the leadership shortly thereafter. Notwithstanding, as the Government was navigating its way through the phases of the COVID -19 pandemic, I did not have that luxury on that occasion. Howe ver, as soon as we were able, the Permanent Secr etary and I carved out time to meet with the mayors and their secretaries/chief operating officers. Those meetings occurred on the 17 th and 18th of June, r espectively. Mr. Speaker, the meetings were fruitful and provided the respective mayors the opportunity to share with us a few of their objectives for the next year, as well as provide a snapshot of any outstanding matters which we could assist with. For both munic ipalities , I committed to advancing a number of E xchange of Land Agreements between them and pr ivate landowners for the purpose of enhancing public sidewalk access, as in the case of the Corporation of Hamilton, to swapping a parcel of land for a nominal fee for the Corporation of St. George, which logistica lly made sense. Both mayors were advised these agreements were passed by the Cabinet this past Tuesday, and it is my intention to advance these agreements to this Honourable House before we pr orogue for the summer. Mr. Speaker, I had no preconceived thoughts heading into these meetings. So for me this was somewhat of an educational exercise, and I soon learned that these two municipalities are quite differ-ent. On the one hand you have the Cor poration of Hamilton that has quite a large facility , with a human resource, finance and engineering section to ensure the effective operation of the capital city. While on the other hand, you have the Corporation of St. George that has just under 20 staff in total, with these staff serving in many capacities (willingly, I might add) all in an effort to ensure the Town of St. George’s functions daily, albeit at a much slower pace. Mr. Speaker, we are well aware of the construction of the new St. Regis Hot el in St. George’s. Hotelco Bermuda has remained true to its commi tment to bring to Bermuda the first new hotel in over 30 years. Concurrent with that activity is the upgrade works ongoing at the St. George’s Club, which, similar to the St. Regis project, is scheduled to come online in April of 2021. Mr. Speaker, everyone in Bermuda likes to travel. So now that the airport is officially reopened, I am certain residents will be looking for the first thing smoking to get them off the rock. The expectation of landing at their desired travel destination brings with it the ability to have access to comfortable accommodations, good shopping, dining options, souvenir stores, to local entertainment. So if we can expect a certain level of service offerings while tra veling, surely we must provide the same for our visitors. Mr. Speaker, I have never been one to mince my words, so I took the liberty of reminding the team of the Corporation of St. George that they must “ up their game” and be ready for when the visitors descend on their town in 10 months. No longer does anyone want to hear, St. George’s used to be this or used to be that. I challenged the team to get with the programme, as none of us want visitors landing on our beautiful Island only to complain that St. George’s was a “sleepy ole town” with nothing to do . That would not be fair to the investment made by the developers in the East, and it would not bode well for Bermuda’s reputation as a vibrant tourism destination. Mr. Speaker, I was equally disappointed to learn that there are over 55 shops in St. George ’s with less than 10 of them open on a good day. I also heard, whether anecdotally or factual, that if you are not from St. George’s, it is an uphill battle for an outsider trying to make a go with their business. I met this week with the area MPs, Mr. Kim Swan, JP MP , and Mrs. Renee Ming, JP MP, who have both pledged their commitment to working with the Ministry and the Corporation to make the Town of St. George’s the vibrant place it can be. I reiterated to the area MPs the same message of that to the Corporation of St . George, and that was , we have to bring some life back to the t own, which could include the oncepopular historic tours of the t own, re -enactments, to the use of any other assets. You hav e to forgive me, Mr. Speaker, but I am not from St. George’s. So my recommendations were somewhat general in nature. But on that same note, the East Enders have to be creative, as the modern traveller is looking for an experience that they cannot 4332 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly find else where. So this has to be an “all hands on deck” approach, as April 2021 will be here sooner than we think. I have invited the Corporation of St. George to collaborate with the departments in the Ministry of Public Works, especially the quangos, for advice, resources and support. A good example of reviving a product is what has been done by the West End Development Corporation at the opposite end of the Island. I will not go into detail, as we know that product speaks for itself. Mr. Speaker, I am convinced that the people of St. George’s can rise to the occasion and make their town the vibrant but still historic metropolis that we all know it can be. This Government stands ready to work with them to make that happen. Mr. Speaker, as for the Corporation of Hami lton, therein lies the elephant in the room, that being the municipality reform legislation that was tabled in this House last year. It is no secret that it was the i ntention of the then Minister who had responsibility for municipalities to bring thi s legislation back to the House after the summer break. He was carrying out a Government initiative, and I can see no reason why I would change course now that I have assumed this responsibility. Mr. Speaker, on an island as small as ours, I simply cannot understand why there are three separate “ governments .” In the case of the Corporation of Hamilton we have to consider economies of scale, more so in this post -COVID environment. You have the government on the one hand collecting garbage, providing engine ering services, and managing waste and sewerage, while the Corporation of Hamilton pr ovides the exact same services, only delineated by the invisible line in the sand. This is but one example of duplication of effort, and we must have the serious conversat ion, as the Island is only 21 miles long and, in most jurisdictions, the municipality has a larger footprint. Mr. Speaker, I realise that many have their views on this. But what I can say is that the former administration had a similar view; however, thi s administration is not afraid to take this on—hence, the tabling of the legislation. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Permanent Secr etary and I had the privilege of being accompanied by one of our outstanding summer students, Mr. Dimitrius Richardson, on a si te visit to the Corporation of [Ha milton’s [INAUDIBLE ]. Also accompanying me was the Mayor of Hamilton, Mr. Charles Gosling; the Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Dwayne Caines; and the City Engineer, Mr. Patrick Cooper. This visit included a tour of the various areas from the maintenance and stores facilities, the sign painting shop, the electrical and carpentry shops, to the human resource area. It was also evident that the corporation has taken to heart the Government’s COVID -19 policies, as adequate signage, sanitisation stations, social distancing and mask protocols were being followed. Mr. Speaker, this visit also supported my thought process in that truly there could be some form of consolidation to achieve economies of scale and reduce expenditure. Howe ver, what this consolidation looks like has yet to be determined, but this visit did provide me food for thought. So, Mr. Speaker, I will close with this. Not everyone likes change. Not everyone understands change or why it is necessary. But what I will s ay is this: This administration will effect change by doing what we believe is best for the people of this country, despite the backseat drivers telling us where they think we should go. In the case of both corporations, the discussions were frank and honest in both directions. But we all agreed to work collaboratively for the benefit of our joint constituents, the people of Berm uda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. The final Statement this morning is in the name of the Minister of Labour. Minister Hayward, would you like to present your Statement? Hon. Jason Hayward: Good morning, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning, Minister. MINISTRY OF LABOUR TO HOST NATIONAL TRIPARTITE SOCIAL DIALOGUE Hon. Jason Hayward: Thank you. Today I am pleased to announce that the Mi nistry of Labour will hold its first National Tripartite S ocial Dialogue Meeting [“the Dialogue”] to focus on the hotel industry on Friday, the …
Good morning, Minister.
MINISTRY OF LABOUR TO HOST NATIONAL TRIPARTITE SOCIAL DIALOGUE Hon. Jason Hayward: Thank you. Today I am pleased to announce that the Mi nistry of Labour will hold its first National Tripartite S ocial Dialogue Meeting [“the Dialogue”] to focus on the hotel industry on Friday, the 10th of July 2020. Mr. Speaker, the overall objective of the meeting is to help ensure greater cooperation among the tripartite partners and build consensus on the way forward for the hotel industry. The Dialogue will bring together representatives from employees, employers and the Government to discuss policies, laws and other matters that affect the hotel industry in light of the COVID -19 pandemic and the impact it has had on Bermuda. Mr. Speaker, the more detailed meeting objectives involve having constructive dialogue and pr oposed solutions to 1. gain common understanding of the issues and challenges facing the hotel industry in Berm uda; 2. identify collective “ quick wins ”; 3. identify actions needed to enable hotels to r eopen; 4. identify ways to increase the number of Bermudians employed in the industry over the long run;
Bermuda House of Assembly 5. enhance training and development opportunities for Bermudians to prepare for initial entry and re- entry in to the hotel industry; 6. identify how job security can be i ncreased for industry participants; and 7. articulate factors needed to ensure the growth of the hotel industry , long term. Some of the topics that may be discussed include the following: • Current and Future State of the Hotel Industry Post-COVID -19; • Collecti ve Bargaining Agreements; • Redundancy and Layoff s; • Work Permit Issues; • Repatriation of Workers; • Hotel Redevelopment Matters; • Unemployment Benefit; and • Training & Development Program mes. Mr. Speaker, National Tripartite Social Di alogues bring together Government, workers and employers to discuss public policies, laws and other d ecision -making that affect the social partners. A tripartite consultation can ensure greater cooperation among the tripartite partners and build consensus on the way forward for the hotel industry. The Tripartite Social Dialogue methodology includes (1) preparation; (2) discussion of the issues; (3) clarification of goals; (4) negotiation of agreements; and (5) implementation of agreed actions. In light of the COVID -19 global pandemi c, Bermuda’s economy has been significantly disrupted, leading the hotel industry to sustain substantial los ses. With the gradual re- opening of the country, it is critical that urgent actions are taken. Mr. Speaker, the meeting will be held on Fr iday, the 10 th of July 2020 from 9:30, with represent ation from the following meeting attendees: 1. the hotel employers of Bermuda; 2. the Bermuda Hotel Association; 3. the Bermuda Industrial Union; 4. the Ministry of Labour; and 5. the Ministry of Tourism & Transport. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister Hayward. That brings us to an end of the Statements for this morning. We now move on. REPORTS OF COMMITTEES
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are no reports this morning. QUESTION PERIOD
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are two w ritten questions this morning, both requiring oral response. However, the first question this morning has been carried over until next sitting. QUESTIONS: BERMUDA INFRASTRUCTURE FUND [Deferred] Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Will the Honour able Minister pleas e inform the Honourable House of the individual projects and …
There are two w ritten questions this morning, both requiring oral response. However, the first question this morning has been carried over until next sitting.
QUESTIONS: BERMUDA INFRASTRUCTURE FUND [Deferred]
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Will the Honour able Minister pleas e inform the Honourable House of the individual projects and associated investments the Government has initiated using the Bermuda Infrastructure Fund, since its establishment in 2017?
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Will the Honour able Minister please inform the Honourable House of the total number of jobs thus far created by investments, undertaken in Bermuda by the Government through use of the Fund’s assets?
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Will the Honour able Minister please provide this Honourable House with the details of the fees and expenses the Government has paid in relation to the Fund since its inception, itemizing the fees and their related expenses?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSo we will move on to the second question. And that second question is to Minister Hayward from MP Richards. And the time now is 10:38. And you know we have 60 minutes for the entire Question Period. Mr. Richards, would you like to put your question? Mr. Sylvan D. …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue, MP. QUESTION 1 : WORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Good morning. The first question is this : In order to gauge Bermuda’s workforce requirements, will the Honour able Minister please advise this Honourable House of the number of work permit renewal s applied for but …
Continue, MP.
QUESTION 1 : WORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED
Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Good morning. The first question is this : In order to gauge Bermuda’s workforce requirements, will the Honour able Minister please advise this Honourable House of the number of work permit renewal s applied for but subsequently denied since the inception date of the first curfew imposed in relation to COVID -19?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. Minister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, the total number of work permit renewals applied for but subsequen tly denied was 159. 4334 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly The Speaker: Thank you. A supplementary? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: No supplementary at …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWould you like to ask your second question? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. QUESTION 2: WORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Will the Honourable Minister advise this Honourable House of the specific job categories and the number of work permit renew-als applied for but subsequently denied in each cat egory since the inception date of the first curfew i …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, the specific job categories and the number of work permit renewals denied are as follows: • administrative support team leader —one; • assistant manager —seven; • assistant restaurant manager —one; • assistant store manager —one; • assistant supermarket manager —three; • associate— one; • …
Minister.
Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, the specific job categories and the number of work permit renewals denied are as follows: • administrative support team leader —one; • assistant manager —seven; • assistant restaurant manager —one; • assistant store manager —one; • assistant supermarket manager —three; • associate— one; • baker —two; • driver —one; • supply and restaurant manager —one; • beauty therapist ––one; • butcher —one; • caregiver —one; • carpenter —one; • chef—one; • chef de partie— 19; • chef manager —one; • cleaner —five; • cleaner/caregiver —one; • supervisor —one; • prep chef—one; • dining room captain —one; • domestic worker —one; • executive assistant —one; • executive director —one; • experienced landscape gardener —two; • experienced associate —one; • experienced cleaning technician —one; • experienced landscape/hardscape—one; • experienced server —two; • fire protection specialist —one; • food and beverage server —26; • food and beverage waiter —one; • French/ Spanish head of foreign language — one; • general assistant, dining room —one; • group and local sales AVP —one; • hair stylist —four; • hair stylist neo- technician —one; • housekeeper/cleaner —eight; • IT services manager —one; • landscape foreman—two; • landscape gardener —nine; • landscape gardener/mason—one; • landscape/hardscape gardener —two; • legal secretary —one; • live-out caregiver —one; • live-out caregiver/housekeeper —one; • manager —one; • mason —three; • mechanic —one; • paralegal —one; • pastry chef —one; • personal trainer , yoga —one; • prep chef —one; • qualified accountant —one; • restaurant manager —two; • retail operations manager —one; • silver service/food and beverage/waiter person—three; • massage therapist —two; • superior landscape gardener —one; • switch manager —one; • technology sales specialist —one; • waiter/waitress —14.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerIs that it, Minister? Thank you. Supplementary, MP Richards? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: No supplementaries at this time.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWould you like to put your third question? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. QUESTION 3: W ORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: I would like to thank the Minister for that very comprehensive list. Third question: Will the Honourable Minister advise this Honourable House of the number of qual ified Bermudians registered with t he Department of Workforce Development …
Continue.
QUESTION 3: W ORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED
Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: I would like to thank the Minister for that very comprehensive list. Third question: Will the Honourable Minister advise this Honourable House of the number of qual ified Bermudians registered with t he Department of Workforce Development available to take the pos itions in each category where work permit renewals
Bermuda House of Assembly were applied for but subsequently denied since the inception date of the first curfew imposed in relation to COVID -19?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank yo u. Minister, would you like to respond? Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, this information is not available to the House at this time for two reasons. First, the system and processes within the D epartment of Workforce Development are not yet at a point of maturity to enable …
Thank yo u. Minister, would you like to respond?
Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, this information is not available to the House at this time for two reasons. First, the system and processes within the D epartment of Workforce Development are not yet at a point of maturity to enable these data to be received. Some of these data are not captured. Additionally, some of the data available may not be current and will require data cleansing. Second, the categories of information in the Workforce Development IT systems do not directly align with the immigration work permit descriptions, leading to a mapping exercise being required. This is not precise and will provide misleading comparisons. For example, in immigration work permit categories, there are 14 distinct job ti tles in the restaurant industry. However, the Workforce Development D epartment’s data indicate the restaurant industry count of 1,534 persons employed, consisting of both Bermudians and non- Bermudians. Mr. Speaker, clearly the aforementioned indicates that more information is simply not available in a focused format to answer the question. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. MP, would you like to put a supplementary question, or . . . Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, I would, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Put your supplementary. SUPPLEMENTARY Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes. The supplementary to the Minister is this: I understand the difficulty that he is encountering [providing] the answer to that par-ticular question. Does he anticipat e the processes being put in place that would enable the department to get …
Okay. Put your supplementary.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes. The supplementary to the Minister is this: I understand the difficulty that he is encountering [providing] the answer to that par-ticular question. Does he anticipat e the processes being put in place that would enable the department to get that information? And if that information does become available, would he make it available to the O pposition?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, the answer t o that question is yes.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. No further supplementary? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: No further supplementaries. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Would other Members — Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, is it a supplementary? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir. Perhaps you could find me on the list . . . oh, here we go.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerCould you speak up just a little? I am having a little trouble hearing you come through. Hon. Patri cia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes. The Mini ster—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Gordon -Pamplin. Put your suppl ementary, yes. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes. Thank you, sir. The Minister indicated, yes, he intended for the information to be made available ultimately. Does the Minister have any indication in terms of the time frame within which he is projecting that …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister. Hon. Jason Hayward: I do not have a date on the time frame. But I can elaborate a little bit on the pr ocess. And once we get the unemployment information, we will be able to do an assessment of those persons who are unemployed. You would …
Thank you. Minister. Hon. Jason Hayward: I do not have a date on the time frame. But I can elaborate a little bit on the pr ocess. And once we get the unemployment information, we will be able to do an assessment of those persons who are unemployed. You would appreciate that you have persons registered on the Job Board who are not necessari ly unemployed, but persons who are gainfully employed and also seeking occupation in other categories.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. No further supplementaries? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: No, I will pass, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Members. We will now move on to questions this mor ning regarding Statements that were given by Mini sters. The first Statement this morning was by the Deputy Premier in reference to the SDO [Special D evelopment Order]. And, Deputy Premier, you have two Members who wish to …
Thank you, Members. We will now move on to questions this mor ning regarding Statements that were given by Mini sters. The first Statement this morning was by the Deputy Premier in reference to the SDO [Special D evelopment Order]. And, Deputy Premier, you have two Members who wish to ask questions of you this mor ning. 4336 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly The first is from the MP from constituency 10, MP Dunkley. MP Dunkley?
[No audible response]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe second is from MP Richards. MP Richards, would you like to put your question to the Minister regarding his Statement this mor ning? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead. QUESTION 1: RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020 Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Thank you. From the Statement this morning by th e Depu ty Premier, the development application or the future application, because the subdivision to create residential lots in a recreational zone failed …
Go right ahead.
QUESTION 1: RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020
Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Thank you. From the Statement this morning by th e Depu ty Premier, the development application or the future application, because the subdivision to create residential lots in a recreational zone failed to conform to various provisions of the draft Bermuda Plan of 2018, which was recently extended in thi s very House, I have been made aware that more than 10 sections of the Planning Act were violated. My question is this: Why did the Minister d ecide to override the decision of his own Development Applications Board and allow this project to proceed at this point?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister, would you like to respond? Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes. Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead, Minister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Thank you for the question from the Honourable Member. I think the question is slightly implying an effort to violate. And I do not believe that is the appr opriate way to look at this, Mr. Speaker, in that …
Go right ahead, Minister.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Thank you for the question from the Honourable Member. I think the question is slightly implying an effort to violate. And I do not believe that is the appr opriate way to look at this, Mr. Speaker, in that the planning law did not allow for the board to approve the development based on the numerous different zonings and th e type of zoning that is in the Riddell’s Bay project. So in order to ensure that this development [was approved], which it was believed by all was def initely in the national interest, the SDO process was recommended to be used. This did not exclude, as m y Statement said, the opportunity for the public to have their say. It did not exclude the opportunity for this to be very transparently handled. But as the current law accomm odates, it could not be approved by the board under the current law. And that was the recommendation that we followed. So the SDO process is being followed based on having gone through the process. And it is felt that this is clearly a project in the national interest, and the SDO process is the best way to ensure that it gets the appr opriate public scrutiny and moves forth in the best interests of the country. So this was not . . . I take issue with the impl ication of [there being a] violation of planning law; I do not believe that is the appropriate way to address this.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. MP Richards, do you have a supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, I do. Thank you, Minister, for clarifying that aspect of the process. The Minister did mention that the public was given the opportunity to weigh in. I am curious, what was the number …
Thank you, Minister. MP Richards, do you have a supplementary?
SUPPLEMENTARY
Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, I do. Thank you, Minister, for clarifying that aspect of the process. The Minister did mention that the public was given the opportunity to weigh in. I am curious, what was the number of letters sent to the Department of Planning by members of the public, those both supporting the project and also those who had objections to the project?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: That information I do not have at hand right now an accurate [answer to the] actual question of the Honourable Member. I know that there were considerable letters, in the hundreds. I also know that of persons who gave comment to the de-velopment, some of …
Minister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: That information I do not have at hand right now an accurate [answer to the] actual question of the Honourable Member. I know that there were considerable letters, in the hundreds. I also know that of persons who gave comment to the de-velopment, some of those letters were actually from people overseas. So they had to be very much i nspected and scrutinised by the Planning Department. But I will get a precise number to the Honourable Member if he allows me to make that undertak-ing.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. MP, are you comfortable with that? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Would the Minister be able to give me a time frame of when those answers will be available? Hon. Walter H. Roban: I will, during this session, make the inquiries to my Pla …
Thank you, Minister. MP, are you comfortable with that? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Would the Minister be able to give me a time frame of when those answers will be available?
Hon. Walter H. Roban: I will, during this session, make the inquiries to my Pla nning team. And if I can get them to him today, I will do so. If not, I will get a precise time that I will get them, and I will communicate back to him as soon as I can.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Member, further question or supplementary? [Crosstalk] Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: I have a suppl ementary, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: That is it for me, Mr. Speaker. Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Okay, for you. Supplementary I hear from MP GordonPamplin? Hon. Patricia J. …
Thank you. Member, further question or supplementary? [Crosstalk]
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: I have a suppl ementary, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: That is it for me, Mr. Speaker.
Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Okay, for you. Supplementary I hear from MP GordonPamplin?
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir. The S peaker: Is that correct? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWould you like to put your supplementary? SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. The supplementary question is, the Minister indicated that there was a plethora of [ INAUDIBLE ] that were not provided for within the legislation to allow this application to go through the normal process. …
Would you like to put your supplementary?
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. The supplementary question is, the Minister indicated that there was a plethora of [ INAUDIBLE ] that were not provided for within the legislation to allow this application to go through the normal process. The question that I have of this Minister is, Is there any intent to make legislative changes to ac-commodate a bett er process to harmonise these things going forward?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Minister, were you able to hear the question? Hon. Walter H. Roban: I am sorry; I did not hear the Honourable Member clearly. I have [ INAUDIBLE] the Honourable Member clearly. I have some sound problems.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. MP, can you just summarise it? Rather than going into the full detail, can you just put summarisation to what the actual question was? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir. The Minister indicated that there were a plethora of reasons why the application could not go through the …
Okay. MP, can you just summarise it? Rather than going into the full detail, can you just put summarisation to what the actual question was? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir. The Minister indicated that there were a plethora of reasons why the application could not go through the traditional process. The question is, Is there an intent to make legislative changes to harm onise things so that, going forward, these types of applications will be able to go through the normal pr ocess as opposed to an SDO?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you for the question. I cannot predict what legislative changes the Government will make around these matters. But I would suggest to the Member that the House currently has the opportunity, as the legislation provides, to give scrutiny to any applications of SDO. This …
Minister.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you for the question. I cannot predict what legislative changes the Government will make around these matters. But I would suggest to the Member that the House currently has the opportunity, as the legislation provides, to give scrutiny to any applications of SDO. This application actually did go through the normal process with Planning, and people did have the opportunity to critique it and give their comments and views on it. And that particular process will not be abridged, because that is a right that every member of the public should have to any application. And certainly, I am not necessarily able to say where we are going to go right now with the planning law, because I do not believe that the fact that we have had to come this way is a problem. The fact that SDOs at this point come to the House was to ensure the highest level of public scrutiny to applications that may have a public interest value. So, at this point I cannot give a crystal ball [prediction] as to where the Government will go to any such changes.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Any further supplementaries? No further supplementaries. I am going to move on. MP Dunkley, are you availabl e to put your question now? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Good morning.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning. Go ahead and put your question to the Minister. QUESTION 1: RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020 Hon. Michael H. Du nkley: To the Deputy Premier: You mentioned twice in the answer to my colleague, MP Richards, this decision was made in the national interest. Can …
Good morning. Go ahead and put your question to the Minister.
QUESTION 1: RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020
Hon. Michael H. Du nkley: To the Deputy Premier: You mentioned twice in the answer to my colleague, MP Richards, this decision was made in the national interest. Can you define the parameters regarding your decision made in the national interest? What were the overriding fac tors in your decision- making process?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I can loosely give a descri ption. Certainly, the magnitude of the project itself; the implications that it had for the changes in the zoning, which were substantial; the amount of investment that the developer and the team desired to bring to the actual development; …
Minister.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: I can loosely give a descri ption. Certainly, the magnitude of the project itself; the implications that it had for the changes in the zoning, which were substantial; the amount of investment that the developer and the team desired to bring to the actual development; the protection, the substantial protection of land that will be afforded the area; as well as the number of jobs and opportunities that it would bring to the country. In an informal way, those are the sorts of things that were considered to be in the national interest. There is also some description in the law as to how SDOs should be actually used, as well.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. You have a supplementary? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. 4338 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly The Speaker: Go ahead. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: To the Honourable Deputy Premier, I appreciate the answer. Does this now set a precedent in that …
Yes. You have a supplementary? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
4338 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly The Speaker: Go ahead.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: To the Honourable Deputy Premier, I appreciate the answer. Does this now set a precedent in that ind ividuals or groups who buy land on the one set of planning regulations, knowing very full well that what their development magnitude might be, can appeal it down the road to the Minister and, in time, change it to allow more development than was originally agreed to?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Minister, you can answer. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes. I would say no. SDOs are considered on a case -by-case basis. And even the fact that we came this direction was after technical review and technical advice. So this is not a decision that is made on …
Thank you, Member. Minister, you can answer.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes. I would say no. SDOs are considered on a case -by-case basis. And even the fact that we came this direction was after technical review and technical advice. So this is not a decision that is made on the whim of the Minister alone. It is made after the Plan-ning team and the Department of Planning and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the expertise within those departments and others have given proper consideration to any such deve lopment and have advised the Minister from a tec hnical standpoint. These decisions are not made just by the whim of a Minister. They are made actually after receiving advice as such. [Crosstalk]
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsMr. Speaker. Hello! This is Cole. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Second question, Mr. Speaker. [Crosstalk]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? Go ahead, Mr. S imons, MP Simons. SUPPLEMENTARIES
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsMinister, can you reconfirm the acreage that the project will give as far as public community space? Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes. It is outlined in the Statement. It is 64 acres. It is 75 per cent of the land. The total acrea ge of Riddell’s Bay is around 90- …
Minister, can you reconfirm the acreage that the project will give as far as public community space?
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Yes. It is outlined in the Statement. It is 64 acres. It is 75 per cent of the land. The total acrea ge of Riddell’s Bay is around 90- plus acres. So 75 per cent of the land will actually be pr otected conservation land open to the public.
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsAnd that will include a part of our park system? Hon. Walter H. Roban: No. It will be privately . . . I believe it will be privately held. But it will be open to the public.
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsAnd final supplementary. And what type of agreement will we have with that? Hon. Walter H. Roban: A part of the condition that you saw in my Statement . . . that will be embedded in the SDO.
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsThank you. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Along with the . . . as I said in the Statement, the funding to support the conservation plan and the funding to maintain it thereof are built into the actual conservation plan and the conditions of the SDO.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMr. Simons, you have used up your supplementaries. Does anyone else have supplementaries?
Ms. Susan E. JacksonYes, I have a supplementary. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I have another question.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerIt sounds like the Opposition Whip. Honourable Member, you can put your su pplementary. SUPPLEMENTARY
Ms. Susan E. JacksonThank you. Minister, I am just curious. Given the fact t hat we are in an economically financially strained env ironment right now, and given some of the historical Bermuda House of Assembly financial strains that other special development pr ojects have incurred in the past, what assurances do the …
Thank you. Minister, I am just curious. Given the fact t hat we are in an economically financially strained env ironment right now, and given some of the historical
Bermuda House of Assembly financial strains that other special development pr ojects have incurred in the past, what assurances do the people of Bermuda have that this project will act ually be developed and then sold appropriately? Have there been any indications that these properties are already committed financially?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you for the question, Honourable Member for constituency 20. The developer, as I made clear in my Stat ement, is quite enthusiastic to move forward with this project. We have been working closely with the developer to make sure that everything was shaped in …
Minister.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you for the question, Honourable Member for constituency 20. The developer, as I made clear in my Stat ement, is quite enthusiastic to move forward with this project. We have been working closely with the developer to make sure that everything was shaped in a way that was appropriate and would meet the r equirements that the Government wanted in the SDO, but also would make it suitable for the project to move forward. This developer is ready to go as soon as this process is finished. And they have continually expressed their confidence in Bermuda and that their capital is still waiting to be deployed to start and complete this project. And the developer has also indicated, if I can just include here, that there is interest already ex-pressed in purchasing any —some of the 18 lots, or units, that will be developed on the properties.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNo supplementary? Thank you. MP Dunkley, you had started that round of questioning. You put one question; other Members had supplementaries. Do you have any more questions? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWould you like to do your second question? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. QUESTION 2: RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020 Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: To the Honourable Deputy Premier: Did the advice of the technical officers to the DAB differ from the advice that we got when reviewing [INAUDIBLE ] these SDO decisions? Was it the same advice, or …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I was advised by the Depar tment of Planning, and that is the advice that I relied on. There was no conflict in any advice that was given from any of the bodies within–– as far as I know, in the Department of Planning. I …
Minister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I was advised by the Depar tment of Planning, and that is the advice that I relied on. There was no conflict in any advice that was given from any of the bodies within–– as far as I know, in the Department of Planning. I got one set of advice from those who would have had responsibility for consider-ing this. And that is what I took into consideration.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Supplementary on this,
Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerSupplementary. Yes. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Michae l H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, the Honourable Minister in his response to the questions from my colleague, Sylvan Richards, mentioned that there were hundreds of objections. And the Minister was unable to provide any detail. Is the Minister able to provide details on what the …
Supplementary. Yes.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Michae l H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, the Honourable Minister in his response to the questions from my colleague, Sylvan Richards, mentioned that there were hundreds of objections. And the Minister was unable to provide any detail. Is the Minister able to provide details on what the main objection point would have been by the hu ndreds of objectors?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: Actually, Mr. Speaker, I thank the Honourable Member from [constituency] [10] and the Honourable Member from [constituency] 7 for their questions around this. I actually have the information on the objections, afforded to me by able members of the technical team at Planning. There were …
Minister.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Actually, Mr. Speaker, I thank the Honourable Member from [constituency] [10] and the Honourable Member from [constituency] 7 for their questions around this. I actually have the information on the objections, afforded to me by able members of the technical team at Planning. There were actually 39 objections and one petition. It is the petition that had hundreds of names on it . That is why I made reference to hundreds , I believe. But actual objections, there were only 39 proper objections and one petition.
[Crosstalk] Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: On the petition . . . how many names on the petition, Mr. Speaker? Hon. Walter H. Roban: I have no idea. I would have to go back and look at that. But there was a petition. I will confirm the number. And I withdraw my reference to hundreds, because that may be incorrect. But I know that I did hear a reference at one point in the convers ation that . . . Okay, there were petitions. Whether there was an official petition on social media that made reference or some sort of petition was made, we were made known of, that had hundreds of names. I do not know whether it was an official pet ition. But since my technical officers have provided it, I will find out more about it and provide it to Members who have asked.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. 4340 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: My last question, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP, would you like to do your third question? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Mr. Speaker, I have a supplementary on that.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerA supplementary? Hold on, MP Dunkley. MP Gordon- Pamplin, you have a supplementary? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPut your sup plementary. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: My supplementary question is, the Minister did not indicate the categories of, you know, the areas of objection. Could he share that with us in respect of his response that there were 39 objectio ns, plus a petition? The categories …
Put your sup plementary.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: My supplementary question is, the Minister did not indicate the categories of, you know, the areas of objection. Could he share that with us in respect of his response that there were 39 objectio ns, plus a petition? The categories —what major categories underlie the objections that were received by the department?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I will get that information and provide [it]. I do not have it with me at thi s moment.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. MP Dunkley, would you like to put your third question? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I do have a supplementary to that original question I asked.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou have a second supplementary to your second question? Put yo ur supplementary, yes. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: What was the advice of the technical officers that the Deputy Premier r eceived? Hon. Walter H. Roban: Hello? I did not hear. It was very muffled, that question, Mr. Speaker. …
You have a second supplementary to your second question? Put yo ur supplementary, yes.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: What was the advice of the technical officers that the Deputy Premier r eceived?
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Hello? I did not hear. It was very muffled, that question, Mr. Speaker. I did not hear it .
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, what was the advice of the technical officers?
Hon. Walter H. Roban: I think the Honourable Member would know that advice between Ministers and technical officers is privileged. I think he understands that as a for mer Minister and Premier. So I cannot say I can share that at this point. But certainly, my dec ision to actually move forward with this SDO, and the Cabinet’s decision and the Government’s, is reflective of whatever advice that we received.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Would you like to do your third question now, MP? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. I appr eciate the answer. I am not so sure I agree with that. I do not think it is confidential. And this SDO decision, I think the advice is pertinent …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWell, [ INAUDIBLE]. Put your third question at this point. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I just made that point.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. QUESTION 3: RIDDELL’S BAY (WARWICK PARISH) SPECIAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER 2020 Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Third question to the Honourable Deputy Premier: Will the properties be avail able to Bermudians and non -Bermudians?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerDeputy. Hon. Walter H. Roban: That was very muffled. I did not hear the question from the Honourable Member.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHis que stion was whether the properties would be for sale to Bermudians and nonBermudians, or available to Bermudians and non - Bermudians. Hon. Walter H. Roban: I think the property will be available to anyone. I do not know what the ARV or the level is. But these are …
His que stion was whether the properties would be for sale to Bermudians and nonBermudians, or available to Bermudians and non - Bermudians.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: I think the property will be available to anyone. I do not know what the ARV or the level is. But these are luxury properties. I do b elieve they will be available to international and local purchase.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary? No, not . . . that was your supplementary. Do you have a third question now, MP? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: That was my third question. I am finished. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThat was your third question. No su pplementary to your third question, rather? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: No, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: None? Thank you. [Crosstalk] Hon. Walter H. R oban: Mr. Speaker, I do have some answers related to some of the questions …
That was your third question. No su pplementary to your third question, rather?
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: No, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: None? Thank you.
[Crosstalk] Hon. Walter H. R oban: Mr. Speaker, I do have some answers related to some of the questions that Members had. Shall I just send them to them directly or give them now?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSay that again? Hon. Walter H. Roban: I have some of the answers to some of the questions that Members had, that they presented to me that I said I would undertake to give. Shall I just send it to them directly or shall I give them now?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWould you like to give them now, being you have introduced this? Hon. Walter H. Roban: I am happy to. You know, I am all about transparency on these matters, so I want —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Continue on, Minister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: In relation to objectors and the types of objections that came, of the 39, objectors wanted it to stay in open spac e. The interesting point to make is that recreational zoning allows a wide var iety of development —i.e., the fact …
Okay. Continue on, Minister.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: In relation to objectors and the types of objections that came, of the 39, objectors wanted it to stay in open spac e. The interesting point to make is that recreational zoning allows a wide var iety of development —i.e., the fact of the matter, Mr. Speaker, is that right now you could put an amus ement park up there, based on the zoning that is at Riddell’s Bay. But with the changes that we are making, it will be protected conservation land. So the actual direction we are going will provide further protection rather than leaving it open now to a type of deve lopment that would not be in the public interest. The actual peti tion was titled “ The Santa Claus Petition, ” or there was somebody, one of the names on the petition was Santa Claus . So that is the type of names that we found on the petition. I can get more precise numbers as to what ––how many people were on the actual petition. The main items of objection were the perceived loss of open space, which I do believe, by vi rtue of the direction we are going, Mr. Speaker, that is not actually the truth. Actually, we will be creating one of the largest public open conservation spaces in the history of Bermuda, based on what has been done in the past. Sixty -four acres —which is one of the largest areas that will exist [compared] to Spittal Pond and the Arboretum and other areas. Obviously, perhaps there were others who will come forward publicly to say what they may have objected to, but I am outlining actually what was the main content of the objections, was the loss of open space.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you for providing that additional information. Okay. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Mr. Speaker, I have a supplementary in respect of that provision of new information. Is that permitted, sir?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerLet me just check. I know when you asked the supplementary, you had asked one. So that means you would have one more supplementary left. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Minister, you just indicated in your response that you are creating one of …
Let me just check. I know when you asked the supplementary, you had asked one. So that means you would have one more supplementary left.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Minister, you just indicated in your response that you are creating one of the largest public open spaces. But earlier you had indicated that this was still going to be privately held land and that there may be some kind of permissions given. Can you clarify? Or maybe I misunderstood.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: I did not say that there would be any permission given. This will be privately owned, but it will be publi cly accessible conservation land.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Hon. Walter H. Roban: And so it may be privately owned, but there is a commitment that the public will have access. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. And that brings us to an end of the questions for your Statement. The next Statement where Members had— [Inaudible interjection]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. The next Statement that Members have indicated they would like to put questions is for the Mi nister of Works. Minister Burch, you have two Members who wish to put questions to you. The first is the Oppos ition Whip. Honourable Member Whip, would you like to put your …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo ri ght ahead. QUESTION 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE MUNICIPALITIES
Ms. Susan E. JacksonMy question for the Minister is that, given the advice, resources, support and ser i4342 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly ous conversations that he mentioned in his Statement, I am wondering if the Minister and the corporations have considered offering entrepreneurial opportunities for some …
Ms. Susan E. JacksonIs there some intention to consider the fact that some of these services that you mentioned —things like sign- painting and body work — could be entrepreneurial opportunities in the future?
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchAll options are on the table. But I can say that in the case of the Corporation of Hamilton in relation to those areas, they actually perform them quite efficiently. And there is cause for a review of some of the things that we are doing in Public Works that …
All options are on the table. But I can say that in the case of the Corporation of Hamilton in relation to those areas, they actually perform them quite efficiently. And there is cause for a review of some of the things that we are doing in Public Works that we do not do as efficiently. So I am not sure that that would be an area that we would head down the road of privatisation. But certainly it is early days yet. The conversation has just started. And all options really are on the table at this stage.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Further supplementary or new question?
Ms. Susan E. JacksonMinister, especially given the St. George’s Corporation and the small team there, are there any thoughts of increasing some of the services that the St. George’s Corpor ation provides and, again, allowing for an opportunity for entrepreneurial development?
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchThe short answer would be that we have not had those discussions, but all options are on the table. What we have done initially is to offer to the Corporation of St. George’s support from areas of the Ministry and the quangos, particular-ly those that have similar challenges to themselves, …
Ms. Susan E. JacksonI have one second question. The S peaker: Second question, yes.
Ms. Susan E. JacksonMinister, given the serious conversations had with the Corporation of Hamilton, I know historically they have had a real issue with the complexities around some of the sewage and drai nage in the city. Was that one of the conversations that was addressed as far as moving forward? And what …
Minister, given the serious conversations had with the Corporation of Hamilton, I know historically they have had a real issue with the complexities around some of the sewage and drai nage in the city. Was that one of the conversations that was addressed as far as moving forward? And what could be done, whether it is joint with the Ministry and the corporation, to address some of those issues?
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchThe discussions did not delve down to that level of detail. But during the tour yesterday there is a pumping station at the depot. And so we briefly touched on those subjects in terms of some of the challenges that the corporations are having. Those are quite timely, as the …
The discussions did not delve down to that level of detail. But during the tour yesterday there is a pumping station at the depot. And so we briefly touched on those subjects in terms of some of the challenges that the corporations are having. Those are quite timely, as the Water and Sewage Section of the Ministry has done a significant amount of work in terms of an Island- wide effort to deal with that subject. And is an RFP out for ideas on that subject. And so we will certainly piggyback both corporations’ challenges in that regard.
Ms. Susan E. JacksonThank you very much, Mini ster. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Nothing else.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister, you have one other Member who would like to put questions to you. And that is the MP from constituency 10. MP Dunkley, would you like to put your questions now? QUESTION 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE MUNICIPALI TIES Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and …
Thank you. Minister, you have one other Member who would like to put questions to you. And that is the MP from constituency 10. MP Dunkley, would you like to put your questions now?
QUESTION 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE MUNICIPALI TIES Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and good morning, Minister. Minister, there was a good deal of angst last year when this legislation was discussed. Has the Government had any discussions with the two corp orations to review the legis lation to make any changes which might deal with some of their concerns?
Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Minister.
Lt. Col. Hon. David A. BurchNot at this stage. With both corporations we did touch on the Municipalities Act. But as I indicated in the Statement, it was a meet - and-greet actual meeting. I am scheduled to attend . . . Well, I do not think it is scheduled yet. But I have indicated …
Not at this stage. With both corporations we did touch on the Municipalities Act. But as I indicated in the Statement, it was a meet - and-greet actual meeting. I am scheduled to attend . . . Well, I do not think it is scheduled yet. But I have indicated that I wish to attend the actual council meetings for each corporation. And I am sure that even prior to today’s Statement, those i tems will be up for discussion.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSupplementary or new question? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: No. I am good. Thank you,
Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerOkay. Minister, that brings to a concl usion questions for you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe next questions this morning are in reference to the Statement from the Minister of Ed ucation. Minister, you have one Member who would like to put questions to you, and that is the Member from con stituency 19. Honourable Member Atherden, would you like to put your question now? …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. I see you; I do not hear you right now. Can you check? Okay. Good now? QUESTION 1: SOCIAL STUD IES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA AND GLOBAL STUDIES Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister indicated in terms of the social studies curriculum in …
Yes. I see you; I do not hear you right now. Can you check? Okay. Good now?
QUESTION 1: SOCIAL STUD IES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA AND GLOBAL STUDIES
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister indicated in terms of the social studies curriculum in public schools that they were going to continue to revise and enhance t he curriculum so that students have an understanding of their history and their heritage. And so, while I am pleased to see the very specific reference to Black history, et cetera, my question to the Minister is, What is taught in the schools with respect to Anglo- Saxon and Portuguese history?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Minister. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: I want to thank that Member for that question, Mr. Speaker. I think it is important that when I [read] the Statement, it did talk about history, and the Statement was concentrated on the context in which African - Bermudian history, …
Thank you, Member. Minister.
Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: I want to thank that Member for that question, Mr. Speaker. I think it is important that when I [read] the Statement, it did talk about history, and the Statement was concentrated on the context in which African - Bermudian history, as well as Caribbean and African history, is incorporated. All of the other histories are incorporated within the curriculum. However, this Statement spoke specifically t o just that. So I am hoping I am answering that question. This was something that this Government has promised to do and has delivered on. And as I spoke in the Statement, this started, the new curriculum, this portion of the curriculum and the revising of the curriculum started this school year in 2019. And so, we are looking . . . this part of the Statement was to specifically point out that, with all of the things that we do teach, there is a component that specifically deals with African -Bermudian his tory, African- Caribbean history and African history in itself. I hope that does answer the question that the other history is taught within the social studies course. But this particular Statement was to focus specifically on those topics that have becom e quite topical here today with the Black Lives Matter movement.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. And supplementary? Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Yes, a supplementary.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. SUPPLEMENTARY Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: While I applaud what yo u are saying, I guess because Bermudians are out there listening, and I realise that if we are going to have a better understanding of the fact that we are all Bermudian and how we mutually interact, it might …
Continue.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: While I applaud what yo u are saying, I guess because Bermudians are out there listening, and I realise that if we are going to have a better understanding of the fact that we are all Bermudian and how we mutually interact, it might be us eful if people would understand, especiall y when you spoke about Primary 1 to 3, about their individual and collective heritage. I just wondered, is it possible to indicate to the listening audience who are out there now what type of history is taught with respect to that? Bearing in mind that Blacks make up 53 per cent, but whites and others make up the rest of it.
Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Well, I will respond to that and say that I will endeavour to get back. If we know historically there has not been any lack of Anglo - Saxon history taught with in our school, it is time for us to recognise that we need to have this Black history taught within our schools, and we are doing that and moving forward with it. To come now and ask, What are doing to ensure that our Black children know about Anglo- Saxon history? when it has always been incorporated in the system I find just a bit disingen uous. But I will endeavour to get back and let the Member know exactly what is being taught on that level.
4344 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, it is unfort unate that t he Minister would choose to focus on one part of my statement and make a conclusion that it was disingenuous. I said with respect to Portuguese and Anglo- Saxon because if you look up the official language in Bermuda, it is English and Portuguese. And so I want to understand, as I am sure Bermudians out there, what is being taught. I asked the question about the people who make up this country. And I wanted to know genuinely what is being taught. I am not being disingenuous. I want us to increase our m utual respect in this country and our mutual understand ing. So what is taught with respect to Port uguese?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister. Minister, do you have a r esponse? Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I do apol ogise. I completely dropped off. My computer just shut down and I missed the last bit of what she said. So if she could repeat that, I am connected on my cell …
Minister. Minister, do you have a r esponse? Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I do apol ogise. I completely dropped off. My computer just shut down and I missed the last bit of what she said. So if she could repeat that, I am connected on my cell phone while my computer is rebooting.
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Okay.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe Member has basically indicated that she was not being disi ngenuous. She was just trying to make sure there is a balance being taught in the schools of our heritage. That is my synopsis. Am I on spot there, without your having to repeat it all, Member? Hon. Jeanne …
The Member has basically indicated that she was not being disi ngenuous. She was just trying to make sure there is a balance being taught in the schools of our heritage. That is my synopsis. Am I on spot there, without your having to repeat it all, Member? Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Yes. But the one part which I think is important to repeat is the fact that, as I said, English and Portuguese are the two official lan-guages. And therefore, I was not specifically talking about Anglo- Saxon. And the last of that question was, What is taught in the schools with respect to Port uguese and Portuguese heritage?
Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: And I said earlier in my response that I will endeavour to get back to the Member on exactly that particular topic. But I also wanted to be very, very clear that this particular one, it is a well- known fact that African American . . . African - Bermudian history, African- Caribbean history and A frican history have not been equally represented as all of the others. And this was just to point out that we have started to move in that direction. But I w ill endeavour to get back to that Member for a fuller listing of what is taught at the social studies level.
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And as I said before, I just do not want to see the pendulum swing —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNo problem. Thank you. Thank you, MP and Minister. Thank you. We now will move on to . . . And that brings us to an end, first, of the questions that were put regar ding Statements for this morning. So it brings us to a close of Question Period. …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerDoes any Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood morning, sir. You have the floor and you have your three minutes.
Mr. Michael A. WeeksThank you, sir. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratul ations out to the grandson of Joy Wilson Tucker, and his name is Iziah Tucker, and his parents, Brian and Bernadette Tucker , for doing such an excellent job. This past Monday, Mr. Speaker, Iziah graduated from the Berkeley. …
Thank you, sir. Mr. Speaker, I would like to send congratul ations out to the grandson of Joy Wilson Tucker, and his name is Iziah Tucker, and his parents, Brian and Bernadette Tucker , for doing such an excellent job. This past Monday, Mr. Speaker, Iziah graduated from the Berkeley. He received a number of awards. One was the Gold Community Service Award for giving over 100 hours of community service. He also r eceived a Berkeley PTA sc holarship award for his excellent academics. This fall, Mr. Speaker, this young Iziah Tucker will be studying marine science at Roger Williams University. And also I must add that he took part in his bold, adventurous journey back in Zambia in 2009. So def initely he is an adventurous spirit. Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this time to send belated birthday wishes to Mr. Edwin Wilson, who celebrated his birthday yesterday. Some of you may remember Mr. Wilson as the former Co mmissioner of Prisons. H e was also an educational officer. He is now a senior enjoying his life. And I think it just fitting that I send out congratulatory remarks on his belated birthday. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Does any other Member wish to speak? Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHonourable Member, I think I heard a male voice first. Was it the Minister of Education? Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Yes, Mr. Speaker. Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: Minister, you ha ve three minutes. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe note that your camera—and let me remind Members about trying to have their video on when they speak, as well. I know you had difficulty with your system just now. But I am reminding all Members to make sure their cameras are on. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Okay. …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou are perfect. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Okay. Mr. Speaker, I want to take the time to send congratulations to all of our graduating seniors who have graduated from our public schools at the Berkeley Institute and CedarBridge Academy. And I want to associate the entire House with these …
You are perfect. Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Okay. Mr. Speaker, I want to take the time to send congratulations to all of our graduating seniors who have graduated from our public schools at the Berkeley Institute and CedarBridge Academy. And I want to associate the entire House with these congratulations. Mr. Speaker, CedarBri dge Academy had 115 graduates this year, with seven of them from the dual enrolment programme with the Bermuda College. Berkeley Institute had 125 of them, with 11 graduating from the dual enrolment programme. Mr. Speaker, while we know COVID -19 has stopped us from doing things the way we normally have, and I know these graduates ––and judging by some of the comments that we received from the parents––when they started the senior school four years ago they did not expect to be able to be graduating as they did. But I just want those graduates to know that we in this Honourable Chambers and we in the D epartment and Ministry of Education are very proud of them for what they have accomplished. And I want them to understand that the Government will always be there to support them, Mr. Speaker. And so I want to send hearty congratulations to all of those graduates. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to join MP Weeks in congratulating Mr. Ed Wilson on his 85 th birthday. And I do recognise that MP Weeks would not also include in his accolades that he is a man of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, Mr. Speaker, a man of [ INAUDIBLE ].
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNo, no. You have to do that on another occasion. Would any other Member like to speak on congratulations and condolences? I had heard MP Atherden earlier. Are you still interested in speaking?
Ms. Leah K. ScottI would like to speak, Mr. Speaker. I would like to speak, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou can see you, yes? We cannot see you, though. Keep talking. I will let you keep talking until you get it sorted out.
Ms. Leah K. ScottOkay. Mr. Speaker, I would like to offer congratulations today to Martha Dismont, who has retired from the Family Centre. And anybody who knows Martha knows her tireless efforts that she has expended for over 30 years within this c ommunity. I have known Martha since, I think 28 years. …
Ms. Susan E. JacksonYes, me, too. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Associate me as well. [Crosstalk] 4346 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly The Speaker: Associate the entire House. I suggest you associate the entire House.
Ms. Leah K. ScottThank you, Mr. Speaker. I will associate the entire House. Martha started out on Victoria Street in the building that used to be the Bermuda Sun. And when she started out, it was just Martha and, I think, one other person. And to be a part of her growth and …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will associate the entire House. Martha started out on Victoria Street in the building that used to be the Bermuda Sun. And when she started out, it was just Martha and, I think, one other person. And to be a part of her growth and watch what she has done for this community, and she continued to be a champion for the rights of our chi ldren and f or the rights of the members of this country. I wish her every success as she embarks on her new journey. I do not know what that is going to be. I know that one of the things that she always says to me, [INAUDIBLE ] talking about the Family Centre, I cannot talk about it without including Martha’s name. And I have to learn that she is not there working an ymore. And I just want to commend the Family Centre. And I think Sandy [DeSilva] is going to take over the role that Martha had. But I hope that they continue to grow by leaps and bounds. And I hope that we conti nue to support them as an organisation and as a char ity. I partnered with Martha at the beginning of the pandemic to assist her in helping families in need. And we raised quite a bit of money to help people. And I will continue to do so. So I wish her well in her retirement, and I thank her for all that she has done for Bermuda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy Opposition Leader. Does any other Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerIt sounds like the MP from constituency 28?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe hear your voice; we do not see your picture, MP Lister.
Mr. Dennis Lister IIIOh. Okay. I just have a few short comments. I would just like to send condolences to the family of Ms. Phillipa Bassett, of 34 Pearman’s Hill, in her 86 th year, with condolences to her family. And also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to send a Happy Birthday shout …
Oh. Okay. I just have a few short comments. I would just like to send condolences to the family of Ms. Phillipa Bassett, of 34 Pearman’s Hill, in her 86 th year, with condolences to her family. And also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to send a Happy Birthday shout -out to my fiancée, [because] today is her 25th birthday. So I would like to send out congratulations to her, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Sounds like Mr. Tyrrell.
Mr. Neville S. TyrrellYes, it is. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, with some regret I also wish to associate with the condolences for the family of Ms. Phillipa Bassett, who was actually a constituent of mine and a family friend. She and her deceased husband, “Tab” Bassett, were family members. So I …
Yes, it is. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, with some regret I also wish to associate with the condolences for the family of Ms. Phillipa Bassett, who was actually a constituent of mine and a family friend. She and her deceased husband, “Tab” Bassett, were family members. So I had an opportunity to have discussions with Ms. Bassett over a number of years. And I can certainly say that it took me a while to realise that she was actually a teacher, because all of her discussions with me were instructional. So I certainly will miss her. And I send special condolences to her son, Richard, as he and I were colleagues at Cable & Wireless in an earlier life. And so to her siblings as well. Mr. Speaker, changing gears, I would like . . . I had a phone call earlier this week from a lady. And, you know, as Members of the House we get lots of phone calls. And I did not recognise the lady’s voice. But she told me her name was Helen Bartley, and from the name, I knew she was not one of my consti tuents. But anyway, she was very excited, telling me abou t the accomplishments of her granddaughter, Tamia Place who graduated with the graduating class of CedarBridge 2020. She was actually the Valedict orian. And her grandmother spoke very, very highly of her. And the penny did not drop until I realised that she mentioned her parents are Br yce and Carlene Place, because they are actually constituents of mine up in Khyber Heights Road. So I certainly would like to congratulate Tamia, because actually I understand previously she was elected Miss CedarBridge. And having graduated now from CedarBridge, she has been accepted at Georgia State University. So I wish her all the best, and I look forward to her coming back and taking her place amongst other graduates coming back to Bermuda. And, Mr. Speaker, I would like to also assoc iate myself with the birthday wishes for Edwin Wilson. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Tyrrell. Thank you.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanMr. Speaker. Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: MP Swan, that sounds like you.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanMr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the condolences sent out to the Bassett family. A nd I would also like . . . I would like to recognise and say thank you to the PGA of America, whose first female President, Ms. Suzy Whaley, from Connecticut, is …
Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the condolences sent out to the Bassett family. A nd I would also like . . . I would like to recognise and say thank you to the PGA of America, whose first female President, Ms. Suzy Whaley, from Connecticut, is certainly very familiar with Bermuda. They made a historic announcement acknowledging an even t, a disastrous event in their hi story, where the Caucasian -only rule was in place in the PGA, in the Professional Golfers Association of America, which impacted events like the Masters, the US Open and other major professional golf events. The Horton Smit h Award was rescinded because, as a former president, but also as a former Masters Champion, he associated very significantly . . . he and others associated very significantly with that terrible rule that was in place. I am encouraging those in authority, whilst I thank the President, Ms. Whaley, for what she has done in her role in leadership to bring about this recognition, to also recognise those who were denied their opportunity to even compete in the same Mas-ters that Horton Smith played in. No less t han Louis Rafael “Kid” Corbin, who through, Mr. Speaker, the good work of Dr. Jeffrey Sammons, Professor at New York University, whom I know you have had the opportunity to meet, has unearthed that Mr. Louis Rafael “Kid” Corbin from St. George’s was one of the main forerunners to the end of this Caucasian- only rule. When he passed in 1951, he had played in major championships like being the first person of African descent to play in the Canadian Open and other tour-naments only because of his forthrightness and tenacity, and he was able to help break down that barrier. He and persons like Herman “Tucci” Bascome, Earl Anderson, Leonard Jones, Bill Pitt Sr., the Lowe Brothers (Earl and George Lowe) and others in Bermuda, need to be equally recognised along wit h other Americans and other persons from the African community who were denied their opportunity, and take a page out of what major league baseball has done and the leaders around America recognising the 100-year anniversary of the Negro Leagues where those packed stadiums of Black s-only because there was a rule and a culture and a systemic system that prevented Black s from competing equally, econom ically and professionally.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Your time has expired. Would any other Member lik e to speak this morning? Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMs. Atherden, I recognised your voice that time. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Hopefully, you can see me.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. We hear you, but do not see you yet. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Okay. Okay. Do you want to see me? You have seen me before.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe point is that we should see you when you speak, yes. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Let us see if it wi ll come up then.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerKeep talking as you are adjusting it. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Okay. All right. Hopefully, it will set. Okay.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. There you go. Continue. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated wi th the congratulatory remarks to Martha Dismont. I mean, as far as I am concerned, Martha is one of those individuals who, although she says she has stopped working, she never has …
Yes. There you go. Continue. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated wi th the congratulatory remarks to Martha Dismont. I mean, as far as I am concerned, Martha is one of those individuals who, although she says she has stopped working, she never has and never will. And Bermuda has been very fortunate to have had her out ther e not only working for children in the beginning, but also for families. And Dr. Sandy DeSilva, who is taking over from her, I am sure will carry on her tradition. I would like also to have best wishes sent out to Nydavyah Williams and also to Kirk Wilks, Jr., the two soldiers who were injured. I just want them to know, especially Nydavyah (whom I know well and who is a friend of my grandson’s) that Bermuda wis hes them well. And we would like to think that, as we go forward, we will do something better to make sure that we take care of ourselves. And we respect the laws. But thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP, thank you for that. And on that note, I would just like to have the entire House associated with— 4348 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly [Crosstalk]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNot only the House, but Bermuda. To hear of how those young men were injured in trying to carry out their duties on behalf of all of us, best interests [INAUDIBLE ]! So the whole House will be ass ociated. Would any other Member wish to sp eak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI hear Mr. Simons, and then Mr. Commissiong.
Mr. Simons.
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsYes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I woul d like to send congratulatory remarks to a young Emmanuel Smith. He is a data scientist living in the UK. And he recently joined Envelope Risk. He is doing great things. I thought I would showcase the achievements of Bermudians overseas. He has …
Yes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I woul d like to send congratulatory remarks to a young Emmanuel Smith. He is a data scientist living in the UK. And he recently joined Envelope Risk. He is doing great things. I thought I would showcase the achievements of Bermudians overseas. He has a master’s degree from Bristol University in machine learning, high performance computer and data mining. He is going to be a star, and he is building his own reputation and is an upcoming specialist who has been recognised by Great Britain and people in that space. So I wish him all the best, and [want to] let him know that Bermuda supports him. I would like to also send congratulatory r emarks to Rowan Vickers. He has a theatre company called The Venture [Project]. He will be teaching a drama programme for all middl e school and high school students this summer. So I wish him all the best. Again, the arts do a great job in trying to help develop our young people and make them good cit izens. So I thought I would give him recognition. R owan is a young Bermudian. He is c ommitted to the arts, and he is committed to bringing people along with him. He has done well on Broadway, and he just comes back to share his experiences with our young Bermudians who are interested in the arts. I would like to associate myself with the comments made in regard to Mr. Edwin Wilson. Mr. Wilson taught me at Sandys. He was a no- nonsense teacher, but had a great heart. And he was committed to education. So I wish him all the very best on his birthday. I would like to associate myself with the comments made in regard to the senior schools’ gradu-ates. They have all had a trying year, but they have all come through. They have achieved success and are on their way despite the challenges of COVID -19. And they are committed. The speakers gave very s ound messages at the graduations, and I am sure that our young people will have their path . . . they will be on their paths to success. Again, I also send support and congratulations to the teachers for the work done to date. Martha Dismont is in a world of her own, [a world of] social justice and supporting families in Bermuda. It is unbelievable. And I wish her all the best in her retirement, but as was said, she is not going to retire. I am sure she has other projects on the horizon because she is a person committed to supporting our people and supporting the development of young people. So I would like to be associated with that. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. And the other voice that I heard before was MP Commission. MP Commis siong, would you like to make your comments now?
Mr. Rolfe CommissiongThank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if I may very quickly, I was heartened to hear the comments by Opposition Mem-ber Jeanne Atherden with respect to those young men who were horribl y injured, particularly Mr. Williams. I remember my wife and I taking a short walk on the Harbour …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if I may very quickly, I was heartened to hear the comments by Opposition Mem-ber Jeanne Atherden with respect to those young men who were horribl y injured, particularly Mr. Williams. I remember my wife and I taking a short walk on the Harbour Road, and during the time of the so- called lockdown. And I remember commending these young men on the job they were doing at the checkpoint near Belmont on Harbour Road. And you could see the reaction from it. They were so happy to know that they were being appreciated. But, Mr. Speaker, more particularly to this part of our agenda, I just want to offer condolences to the family of Henry De Silva, Bermudian, q uintessential Bermudian who passed away hundreds of miles from his beloved homeland of Bermuda, in Virginia. He was the father of the police officer Don De Silva, Detective Don De Silva; Louis De Silva; Andrea Felder; Norman; Jennifer Caines; Carl De Silva ; Sherr y De Silva; Terri Smith — the names go on. And we are related in terms of my wife, through my wife’s family with him and his offspring. And it is a tragedy to know that he passed away after a struggle with illness over the last couple of months. And my heart goes out to his family and his numerous offspring. And I know that they are feeling it at this time. We have so many of our people who live overseas and have been there for generations. His daughter, who we are very close with served in the US mi litary, along with her Bermudian husband, both born in that sort of Cleveland County/Harrington Sound area. And I know they are feeling it right now. So our hearts go out to them. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Commissiong. Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Chris topher Famous: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Honourable Member, you have the floor. Honourable Member Famous.
Mr. Christopher FamousYes. Good morning, sir. How are you? Good morning, House. Mr. Speaker, can you hear me?
Mr. Christopher FamousI would first like to give condolences to the family of Mr. [Randall O’Brien] King, a local taxi driver who passed away recently.
Mr. Christopher FamousAlso want to give co ngratulations to the new Go vernment of Anguilla, Premier Mr. Webster; the re- elected Government of St. Kitts and Nevis, our home country, Prime Minister Harris. Congratulations to the Class of 2020 from our alma mater, Berkeley Institute; and the Class of 2020 from CedarBridge. …
Also want to give co ngratulations to the new Go vernment of Anguilla, Premier Mr. Webster; the re- elected Government of St. Kitts and Nevis, our home country, Prime Minister Harris. Congratulations to the Class of 2020 from our alma mater, Berkeley Institute; and the Class of 2020 from CedarBridge. I want to give special congratulations to my little cousin, Ms. Tamia Place. Mr. Speaker, I will just read out a few things. Ms. Tamia Place won the PTSA Shield for Bermuda’s highest GPA. Bermuda’s Secondary Valedictorian, the Gavel Club Award under the auspices of the Toastmasters Club. She is one of four persons receiving this award. The English Language Arts Achievement Award, one of two persons recei ving this award. The Danielle Richards Award for E xcellence in Accounting. The Temar Richards Math Award, s tudent who most excelled in math. And the Deloitte Limited High School Award. I would like to really reiterate that this young lady comes from a strong family. Her grandmother is Ms. Helen Bartley, I think you know her. And she said to tell you, Make sure I wear my blue- and-blue today, sir. So, thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNormally Ms. Bartley and I get along very good. But I am going to comment to her about that.
Mr. Christopher FamousBut anyway, so I thank you very much. And I also want to give thanks to the young men. The young man Wilks actually is one of my constituents. And his brother -in-arms, they grew up together. Mr. Williams is on the mend; his mother says he is on the …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. I would like to recognise the . . . Is it MP Furbert? Ms. Furbert, would you still like to make a contribution?
Mrs. Tinee FurbertI just want to send condolences to the family of one of m y beloved constituents, Ms. Ida Young, who passed this past week. This is the sister of Kenyatta Young. I am just sending cond olences to her children, siblings, grandchildren, and the Ferguson Park area out there in …
I just want to send condolences to the family of one of m y beloved constituents, Ms. Ida Young, who passed this past week. This is the sister of Kenyatta Young. I am just sending cond olences to her children, siblings, grandchildren, and the Ferguson Park area out there in Southside. Going to miss her greatly. Sh e would not ever let me leave her Ferguson Park without seeing her. So a very —also a great supporter of the Progressive Labour Party ––so, condolences go out to her family. And just wanted to let them know that I am thinking of them at this time. Also want ed to take the opportunity because there were many businesses that had tried to spread their wings and open prior to COVID -19. And I think that it is important that we acknowledge businesses and entrepreneurs who open up in our country and throughout our economy so that people know about successes. And I would just like to send congratulations out to Nekeisha Cameron who has opened up a Black bookstore by the name of The Griot. And I know in our history we have had many Black bookstores that we can shop at . And when I say “ Black bookstores ,” what I mean is that there are books there of our Black history. So I just want to send a shout -out to them, and congratulations to the Griot for taking this step and opening up throughout this COVID -19 period. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPremier, I see you in front of the camera. Were you the one? Hon. E. David Burt: I can speak if you will, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to first associate myself with the condolences to the family of Mr. [Randall] King. A nd certainly recognise the Opposition Leader, including him in that, as I know that Mr. King was a relative of his. …
Yes. Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would like to first associate myself with the condolences to the family of Mr. [Randall] King. A nd certainly recognise the Opposition Leader, including him in that, as I know that Mr. King was a relative of his. Also, I would like to ask the House to send a letter of condolences to the family of Mr. Avantae Wi l4350 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly liams, who tragically lost his life in a water accident this weekend. Mr. Williams was a constituent of mine, Mr. Speaker. I had stopped by to visit the family after last evening’s press conference to offer my condolences to his mother , Antoinette, his father Terrence and his brother Antoine. And we express and extend thoughts and prayers to Mr. Williams’s family and friends. And as they mourn his passing, may he rest in peace. Mr. Speaker, I would like to associate myself with the congratulatory remarks given by Honourable Members to all publ ic school students who participated in graduation or school -leaving ceremonies over the past several weeks. I would also like to specifically highlight the recent graduations held by our two public high schools, the Berkeley Institute and the CedarBridge A cademy, with congratulations to the Class of 2020, with best wishes to the students in their future endeavours. Our public school educators, of course, d eserve to be highlighted and commended as well. In the midst of a global pandemic, they invested their time and resources to ensure our students successful-ly completed their final year, Mr. Speaker. And I want to thank all of our teachers for their service. And congratulations again to the Class of 2020. Finally, Mr. Speaker, I know it has probably been done in some way, shape, form and fashion b efore, so I hope that you will not rap my knuckles too hard. But last weekend the Minister for Community Affairs and Sports and I participated in a drive- through celebration for the trophy presentation for the BFA [Bermuda Football Association] League Champions. And at this time I wanted to at least extend officially to all of the league champions —I think we may have recognised some already. But I ask that the Honour able House do send a letter of congratulations to the teams involved. And I will associate all Members with this. First, the Premier Division Champions, the North Village Community Club; the First Division Co - Champions, Devonshire Colts and St. George’s Colts; the Under -17 Champions, PHC [Zebras]; the Under - 15 Champions, Warwick Archer Bows; and the Under - 13 Champions, Next Generation Onions. And I would hope that the House would send an appropriate note of congratulations to those fine football clubs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Premier. MP Simmons, I think you were trying to get in before the Premier just now. Would you like to make your comments?
Mr. Scott SimmonsYes, good morning, Mr. Speaker. I would like to join the Premier in acknowledging the graduations of so many of our students throughout Bermuda and the job that they have done, congratulating them on their graduation services that they had in whatever form during this very difficult time, and wishing …
Yes, good morning, Mr. Speaker. I would like to join the Premier in acknowledging the graduations of so many of our students throughout Bermuda and the job that they have done, congratulating them on their graduation services that they had in whatever form during this very difficult time, and wishing them the very best in all of their f uture endeavours. Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge and send out congratulations to Mr. Ne lson Ible, who celebrated his 60 th birthday yesterday at his celebration. And we would like to give him firm congratulations. Mr. Speaker , Mr. Ible —and I can acknowledge also his brother Monte— are very i nstrumental in our commercial fishing industry, in our charter fishing industry in Bermuda. Many of us throughout the community have extensive knowledge in the commercial [sector]. And I can say that Mr. Nelson Ible was instrumental in instructing me and sho wing me in the charter fishing industry. And I appreciate him in the work that he has done just with me, and also with many, many, many others in shari ng his knowledge and sharing his ability in that area and e nhancing us all as we serve the people of Bermuda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and acknowledging him. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. Does any other Member wish to speak? Hon. L. Craig Canno nier: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Is that Opposition Leader? Honourable Member, you have the floor. Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. Thank you. I am just trying to make sure my camera is on.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. We see you this morning. Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Thank you very much, and good morning to everyone. I would like to echo the sentiments in relation to the fine work that the Regiment has and continues to do. It was a shock for all of us, I know, …
Yes. We see you this morning.
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Thank you very much, and good morning to everyone. I would like to echo the sentiments in relation to the fine work that the Regiment has and continues to do. It was a shock for all of us, I know, to hear of the disturbing news that took place just a few days ago. And so I just want to add my support to the Ber-muda Regiment and its efforts to keep Bermuda safe. I have two condolences that have been mentioned, and I want to echo sentiments to these two individuals. One, first of all . . . both of them actually were unforgettable once you met them. And the first I will say is Randy King, a very close cousin. I declare my interest to say this was my mother’s first cousin. And unfortunately, he passed away. And w e will sur ely miss him. He was a long- time member of St.
Bermuda House of Assembly George’s Cricket Club, and many of us would say once you met him, That was a piece of work. You would never forget meeting Randy. And so he will be definitely a miss to us. On the other hand, also I would like to echo the sentiments and declare my interests. Ida Young, who has passed away, as just has been said, she was a sister, the younger sister of Kenyatta Young. And again declaring my interest as far as family is concerned, that is my wife’s auntie. My wife’s father was the eldest of those Youngs. And she will be sorely missed. When I first met her, you know, she was like, Who’s this boy from St. David’s? type of thing. And here I am sitting down with her brother, Kenyatta, and herself and listen ing to a huge amount of history that they had about the labour movement and how we have gotten and progressed to where we are today. So I am grateful for her life and will never forget the many, many, many, many chats that we have had. In fact, I have in my possession many memor abilia from Kenyatta and the many marches and many pushes towards equalising and looking for equity amongst Black s in Bermuda. I have many of these things in my possession. And so again, we lament the loss of Ida Young, a sister who also contributed to and supported the cause. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSounds like the Honourable Opposition Whip. Honourable Member, you have the floor.
Ms. Susan E. JacksonThank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to send out condolences on the death of Elizabeth Britton. She was in her 92 nd year, and she was a long- standing member of the constit uency 20 in Pembroke South West. She was known for her gentl e nature and her …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to send out condolences on the death of Elizabeth Britton. She was in her 92 nd year, and she was a long- standing member of the constit uency 20 in Pembroke South West. She was known for her gentl e nature and her generosity, a very, very sweet woman. And she will certainly be missed. And she was a bit of a figure in the Mayflower Court Apartment Building. And so I know that there are a number of people who will genuinely miss her. I would also lik e to be associated with the congratulatory messages to Martha Dismont on her 30 years with Family Centre. I have worked with Martha not so much on frequent occasions, but in the few times that I have worked with her they have become very long- term and in- depth cases. And if I ever worked with anyone with more generosity of her time, her advice, of resources to assist in particular our young Black males who are suffering from trauma and trying to make a go of it in Bermuda, she certainly is a figure in Bermuda for spearheading and being a lead-er in that area of support. So I certainly hope that she does continue her philanthropic activities in Bermuda and that she continues to give her advice and her time so that the next generation of people in the community, especially in the third sector, will follow in her footsteps. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Pearman, you have the floor.
Mr. Scott PearmanThank you, Mr. Speaker. I am not sure if you can see me on the camera. There we are.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. We can see and hear you, yes.
Mr. Scott PearmanAs the Honourable Deputy Leader said earlier, she could see her, but we could not see her. But hopefully you can see me. It has already been said by several other Honourable Members, but let me just add my voice of thanks to Martha Dismont. I have had the pleasure …
As the Honourable Deputy Leader said earlier, she could see her, but we could not see her. But hopefully you can see me. It has already been said by several other Honourable Members, but let me just add my voice of thanks to Martha Dismont. I have had the pleasure and honour and privilege of serving on the Board of the Family Centre, with working with Martha, for the past 10- plus years. And it has been absolutely amazing to me to witness such a formidable person who acts so compassionately and selflessly to try to i mprove the lot of everyone on this Island. She is just a fireball. And it is amazing how much she manages to get done. A lot of people talk about problems that we have and solutions that we may develop. But she just tackles them, gets right in there and does her best. I know that this is not the end of t he book for Martha. She will soon be announcing her plans for her future, if she has not done so already today. And I know that she has shared that with me in confidence. And I know that that will continue to be championing causes in the sector that she cares about so much. So we are not seeing the end of Martha. And I know we will get some more good deeds from Martha. But it really has been a pleasure to work with her and watch her work for the betterment of all Bermudians. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The Sp eaker: Thank you, MP. Does any other Member wish to speak? Deputy?
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Yes.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe recognise the Deputy Speaker. Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the remarks concerning Randy King, a member of the Midland Heights Se venth- day [Adventist] Church down there in Hamilton 4352 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of …
We recognise the Deputy Speaker.
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the remarks concerning Randy King, a member of the Midland Heights Se venth- day [Adventist] Church down there in Hamilton 4352 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Parish. And I am sure the church and its family will sorely miss him. Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated also with the remarks concerning the graduati on of our high school, middle school and elementary school graduates, and also those who attended school, un iversities overseas and who have graduated. We certainly congratulate them all. Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated with the remarks c oncerning Edwin Wilson, who has been a resident in Hamilton Parish for over 20 years. And I can recall most recently —well, what I call recently, his last job was the Labour Relations Officer. And I can tell you that I think that Edwin Wilson was the best l abour relations officer that this country has ever had. Again, happy birthday , cousin Edwin Wi lson.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. Does any other Member wish to speak? No other Member? We will move on to the next item on the Order Paper. MATTERS OF PR IVILEGE
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. PERSONAL EXPLANATIONS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. NOTICE OF MOTIONS FOR THE ADJOURNMENT OF THE HOUSE ON MATTERS OF URGENT PUBLIC IMPORTANCE
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are none. INTRODUCTION OF BILLS GOVERNMENT BILLS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, today we have seven Government Bills to be introduced. And I will call on the Minister of Finance to introduce his Bills. I believe the majority of them are his. So, Minister of Finance, would you like to take this moment to introd uce your Bills? FIRST READINGS MINISTERS …
Members, today we have seven Government Bills to be introduced. And I will call on the Minister of Finance to introduce his Bills. I believe the majority of them are his. So, Minister of Finance, would you like to take this moment to introd uce your Bills?
FIRST READINGS
MINISTERS AND MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE (SALARIES AND PENSIONS) AMENDMENT ACT 2020 PUBLIC SERVICE SUPERANNUATION TEMPORARY AMENDMENT ACT 2020
NATIONAL PENSION SCHEME (OCCUPATIONAL PENSIONS) AMENDMENT (NO. 2) ACT 2020
TRUSTS (SPECIAL PROVISIONS) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES (SUPERVISION AND REGULATION) ACT 2020
INSURANCE AMENDMENT ACT 2020
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am introducing the following Bills for their first readings so t hey may be placed on the Order P aper for the next day of meeting: • Ministers and Members of the Legislature (Salaries and Pensions) Amendment Act 2020; • Public Service Superannuation Temporary Amendment Act 2020; • National Pension Scheme (Occupational Pe nsions) Amendment (No. 2) Act 2020; • Trusts (Special Provisions) Amendment Act 2020; • Registrar of Companies (Supervision and Regulation) Act 2020; and the • Insurance Amendment Act 2020 . Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
[Pause]
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, you are on mute.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSorry. Minister Furbert, the last Bill to be introduced this morning is yours in reference to the Parliamentary Act. Would you like to introduce your Bill now? FIRST READING PARLIAMENTARY ELECTION AMENDMENT ACT 2020 Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am introducing the following Bill …
Sorry. Minister Furbert, the last Bill to be introduced this morning is yours in reference to the Parliamentary Act. Would you like to introduce your Bill now?
FIRST READING
PARLIAMENTARY ELECTION AMENDMENT ACT 2020
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. 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: the Parli ament Election Amendment Act 2020.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. OPPOSITION BILLS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere are no Opposition Bills. Bermuda House of Assembly PRIVATE MEMBERS’ BILLS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNo Private Members’ Bills. NOTICE OF MOTIONS
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNo notices of motions. ORDERS OF THE DAY
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThis now brings us to the first item on the Orders of the Day. And the first item today is the consideration of the Casino Gaming (Casino Fees) Amendment Regulations 2020. It is in the name of the Premier. Premier, would you like to introduce this set of Regulations? Well, …
This now brings us to the first item on the Orders of the Day. And the first item today is the consideration of the Casino Gaming (Casino Fees) Amendment Regulations 2020. It is in the name of the Premier. Premier, would you like to introduce this set of Regulations? Well, not introduce, but present your matter for debate.
Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move that consideration be given to the draft Order entitled the Casino Gaming (Casino Fees) Amendment Regulations 2020 , proposed to be made by the Minister responsible for gaming and exercised in the power conferred by section 196 of the Casino Gaming Act 2014.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections to the Premier continuing? No objections. Premier, continue. Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to invite this Honourable House to take und er consideration the Casino Gaming (Casino Fees) Amendment Regulations 2020. These regulations provide the Minister …
Are there any objections to the Premier continuing? No objections. Premier, continue.
Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to invite this Honourable House to take und er consideration the Casino Gaming (Casino Fees) Amendment Regulations 2020. These regulations provide the Minister responsible for gaming the authority to waive and to defer the fees prescribed under the regulations. Mr. Speaker, since the Green Paper on Gaming for Bermuda 2009, we as legislators and the wider community have wrestled with what gaming could represent for Bermuda. In the intervening decade, Mr. Speaker, to say that the economic and tourism landscape of Bermuda and the world has changed woul d be an understatement. Whatever gaming may have been, it does not on its own represent the sea change required to boost tourism or this economy. It is, ho wever, one of those things that must be pursued, developed, properly regulated and managed as part of any recovery we hope to advance. Mr. Speaker, the original regulations were made in March 2017 and created a regime of fixed fees which in certain cases were to be reimbursed to the applicant. Honourable Members will recall that the regulations called for a casino licence application fee of $600,000, a provisional licence issue fee of $1.4 million and a licence fee of $1 million. Mr. Speaker, that is $3 million payable before the first dice are rolled or a card is dealt. Mr. Speaker, the rationale for the imposition of such onerous financial requirements is likely to have been threefold: firstly, to ensure that fly -by-night operations were discouraged from entering the industry to the prejudice of Bermuda’s need to maintain high le vels of industry in the anti-money laundering and anti - terrorist financing arena. Secondly, the fees are to be paid into the commission and are meant to support the various regulatory functions and operations. Thir dly, Mr. Speaker, these fees also provide the financial support for training for Bermudians entering the gaming industry and critical support to the Problem Ga ming Council. Mr. Speaker, what these regulations did not have was an ability of either the commission or the Minister responsible for gaming to consider economic changes which would impact the ability of an investor or prospective casino operator to meet the strict fees required. The Amendment Regulations before the House now include that ability. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members will note that the regulations propose that the Minister respon-sible for gaming may on application in writing by the commission waive or defer payment of a fee under the regulations in whole or in part for a specified period with respect to a specified person or class of person in exceptio nal circumstances. Mr. Speaker, the new Regulation [12(7)] defines “exceptional circumstances,” and it will not surprise Honourable Members to know that these include where a state of emergency has been declared, or a public health emergency has been declared, or in the event of hurricane or an event which significantly and negatively impacts a sector of the economy or the community in Bermuda. Mr. Speaker, in this pandemic recovery per iod, Bermuda will distinguish itself in a crowded marketplace clambering for investment by demonstrating flexibility and speed. We must anticipate the needs of investors and do what we can to keep existing investors at the table. We must also inspire confidence in those who are looking to invest in Bermuda. Adding this authority to waive and/or defer the payment of fees takes into account the very real ec onomic reality that has befallen the world as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. This is the kind of clear signal that we are determined to send, that we are open and accessible, reasonable and determined to fulfil our mandate to the people of Bermuda using our best efforts. Mr. Speaker, the additional amendment pr oposed to be made by these regulations will retain the allocation of funds to the two critical areas that this 4354 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly industry must also support. Rather than ascribe fixed amounts in these areas, Honourable Members will note that 10 per cent and 15 per cent of the provisional licence fee, respectively, has been proposed to fund the training of Bermudians in the industry and the Problem Gaming Council. This is proportionate with the fixed sums previously set under the 2017 Regul ations. Mr. Speaker, as I quote, “Today’s debate is not a debate on gaming. This is not a debate on the Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission. This is not a debate on the merits of the integrated resort model or any of the other issues which have been canvassed extensively in previously debates in this Honourable House. This, Mr. Speaker, is a debate about the change required to ensure gaming can move forward in Bermuda for the benefit of Bermuda and Bermudians. This is a Government changing Bermuda’s reputation as intractable, slow to change and tone- deaf to market forces. And we wi ll continue to act decisively.” Mr. Speaker, as I commend these Regul ations for the consideration of this Honourable House, I would invite Honourable Members to recall the already -challenging tourism environment during which gaming was advanced by the previous Government. That environment has significantly worsened as a r esult of the coronavirus pandemic. Any true developers’ continued interest in the revised business model should be supported, and with the change we make today we acquire the ability to do just that. Thank you,
Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThank you, Mr. Premier. Does any other Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe hear you. We see a photo of your surroundings. But we do not see you. So as you are talking, you can try and adjust your camera for us. But continue on.
Ms. Leah K. ScottOkay. Mr. Speaker, thank you. And I thank the Honourable Premier for providing me with a copy of his brief before the debate. I agree with the Premier in that we have to make changes to ensure that we can create an ec onomic environment that people can work in …
Okay. Mr. Speaker, thank you. And I thank the Honourable Premier for providing me with a copy of his brief before the debate. I agree with the Premier in that we have to make changes to ensure that we can create an ec onomic environment that people can work in and be able to survive in in Bermuda. Mr. Speaker, the times that we are living in now were not anticipated. I am sure that nobody expected that we would be living through a pandemic and that the entire world would be shut down. So I agree with the Premier that we must demonstrate flexibility and speed, and I appreciate the need to be ni mble in our legislation in order to adapt to the changes to our environment. And it is important that we get investors here, we anticipate the needs of the people who want to invest in Bermuda and do what we can to keep those investors in Bermuda and putting their money in our country. And keeping them at the table is not going to be an easy job. But we also have to ensure that as we are looking to keep these investors here, that we have to have immigration reform and we have to be welcoming not only to the money of the investors, but to the investors themselves. The Premier said recently in an article in the Royal Gazette that his vision is to get casino gaming up and running as quickly as possible. And I agree. I mean, the Act came into force in, I think it was 2014. And we are now six years on, and we are no further ahead. We do not have an executive director. In 2018 they had advertised three times for an executive director; no one has yet come forward to apply for the pos ition. We have been sustaining the Gaming Commi ssion, paying rent and salaries and maintaining overhead. And we are no further ahead in actually getting gaming going in Bermuda. So my question is, you know, we continue to develop a regulatory framework around gaming. But will it become a reality or are we taking a gamble and just putting money in a black hole for something that is just not going to happen? And I know the Premier has said that this is not a debate about gaming and the Gaming Commission and banking proceeds and things like that. But you cannot separate them out. I mean, they all have to come together. The truth is that it was anticipated that gaming would be a means of creating employment. And we have not seen that. It is an amenity, and it is a tool that can be utilised in our tour-ism arsenal. But are we going to be able to get it going? I think that is the thing; that is the answer. We continue to make laws about and around gaming. But if we are not going to be able to get it going off the ground, then I do not see the sense. And i f we are not going to get that as an amenity and a potential rev enue stream for the country, then what are we going to do to create jobs? What are we going to do to create a tourism product that is going to attract people to Bermuda, besides our beautiful pink beaches and our wonderful service? We have to find something that is going to make us attractive. I do not gamble. I do not find gambling to be attractive. I just cannot understand why people actually set aside money to lose it. But people do it. And so, if we are going to create an infrastructure to support it, then that is great. But we can continue to make rules and make rules and make rules. If it is not going to come to fruition, then it is just a waste of time.
Bermuda House of Assembly So I hope that with this amendment and with the potential investors who are looking to come to Bermuda, that we will be successful. I hope that we can get an executive director, and I hope that we can get gaming moving , because it is something that we need. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? None? Premier, would you like to—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWhile you are speaking to us . . . There you go. Good. All right.
Mr. N. H. Cole SimonsI would like to follow up on what my colleague has just said. At the end of the day, you know, we are about investment. We are about improving the tourism product. And we are about ensuring that gaming is an amenity. But I think, as she said, the legislation …
I would like to follow up on what my colleague has just said. At the end of the day, you know, we are about investment. We are about improving the tourism product. And we are about ensuring that gaming is an amenity. But I think, as she said, the legislation c ame into being in 2014. And we are here six years later, and we have still not got an industry up and running. And we could, you know, make all the rules we want. But the question now becomes, Can Bermuda deliver on gaming? At the end of the day, we still are not positioned to support that industry because we do not have all the tools in gaming to make it work yet. We have not jumped all of the hurdles to make gaming in this country oper ational. And he is wondering, What am I talking about? We have spoken about it before. And that is the banking side, because gaming involves money. Gaming involves shifting money around the world. And therefore, we need to have the infrastructure to support that. I listened intently to the Premier’s comments, and I thought he would have basically pr esented some information and an update on what he thinks of where Bermuda stands on getting a banking solution for this industry , because if we cannot get that solution, the industry will not be going anywhere. It will not be going anywhere! I know the banks are having challenges, but I also know that the banks are working on trying to find a solution. But at the end of the day, we cannot deliver on this industry. And all the frameworks, all the rules are null and void until we pas s the obstacles, address the obstacles and provide infrastructure that truly can support the industry. At this point we cannot support the industry because we do not have the tools to do so. So I would like for the Premier to speak to what is going on in t hat space and what is stopping us other than the banking side to deliver the gaming industry. As we said, some of our institutions are ready to do it now. But we as a jurisdiction cannot deliver because we have not provided a solution to the banking side of the industry. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: I do, Mr. Speaker. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. MP Atherden, your voice came across first that time. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Are you able to see me now? I must make sure that I get it properly.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI can hear you; I still do not see you— Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Can you see me?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerNow we see you, yes. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Okay. So, Mr. Speaker, I guess my question on this, and it takes off from where my colleague Cole Simons spoke. When I saw that casino gaming was going to transfer to the Premier, I thought that m eant there was …
Now we see you, yes. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Okay. So, Mr. Speaker, I guess my question on this, and it takes off from where my colleague Cole Simons spoke. When I saw that casino gaming was going to transfer to the Premier, I thought that m eant there was going to be some action because the Premier had always talked about this being an industry which was going to be very i mportant to Bermuda. And I am disappointed that this just has to deal with money and has to deal with fees, with no indication as to when anything might occur. I am reflecting back on the fact that before there was an indication that there would be opportuni-ties for people to be trained, people could end up, you know, becoming people who would not only work into the industry , that there was the opportunity for people with respect to management, et cetera. And we keep talking about our tourism industry, and we keep tal king about having new attractions to offer our tourists. Bearing in mind that we are going to now go into thi s new normal, I just would like to think that the Premier would tell us, what is the hold up? What is causing us not to be able to roll this out and say to the people, especially the people who are building hotels . . . we have the hotel down in St. George’s. And ev erybody is sort of saying, Okay, there was the belief 4356 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly that a hotel would open up. There would be gaming. That would be really great for St. George’s with r espect to the trade- off, or the extended economic activity. And we have not heard anything other than the fact there is some change in fees. I know that you have to talk about what would happen with respect to COVID or any other health disruption. But to me, I was expecting to hear som ething that was going to say, These are the fees because now we are going to start. We have a way to introduce gaming here, and we are putting some new fees in place so that people can say, Oh, great! I have got the opportunity now to get into this new industry. So, as my colleague Cole Simons said, and I am sure others will say, it is in the Premier’s lap. We are expecting to hear something more about how it is going to start and some indication of preparation. B ecause even if it were to start next month, I know that training for some of the jobs in there takes longer than that. I know that there are infrastructure, training. And not enough has been said about any of that for a long time. So I would like to think that the Premier would tell us what is holding it up and give the people of Bermuda some realistic indi cation of when he thinks that this industry will actually come to Bermuda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: I do, Mr. Speaker. Hon. Cur tis L. Dickinson: I do as well, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHonourable Member Gordon- Pamplin. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes. Thank you, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHonourable Member, you have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am not sure if you see me—oh, here we are, yes. Mr. Speaker, I just have to refer to the Honourable Premier’s introductory statement on the legi slation that we are doing …
Honourable Member, you have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am not sure if you see me—oh, here we are, yes. Mr. Speaker, I just have to refer to the Honourable Premier’s introductory statement on the legi slation that we are doing today and to tie those into the comments that have been made by my ho nourable colleagues heretofore. The Premier indicated about what today’s legislation is not. It is not, he says, a debate on gaming, which has been had extensively. It is not, he said, a debate on the Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission. And it is not a debat e on the merits of the integrated resort model or any of the other i ssues which have been canvassed extensively in pr evious debates. Mr. Speaker, any changes that we make to the legislative framework surrounding gaming is inextricably intertwined with all of those issues that the Premier has just indicated that this debate is not. And I realise that the debate surrounds the changes that are being made in the fee structure and the likes, and to show that we are nimble and to put us in a position of being able to respond when the call is made by the respective stakeholders. But, Mr. Speaker, it is i mportant to understand that the one thing about legisl ation is that all motion is not progress. This legislation today is motion; it is not necessarily progress. W e cannot make progress in this field, Mr. Speaker, no matter how nimble we are, if the various portions of the infrastructure and the overarching conditions are not put in place. So while I applaud the idea of trying to appear that we are not tone deaf and that we are not slow to market forces and that we will continue to act dec isively. Mr. Speaker, what the Premier is really saying in his brief is, Don’t look at our failures. Look at our intangible aspirations. And I do not know if that is good enough, Mr. Speaker, for the people of Berm uda. And what I am suggesting is my support for the comments that have been made by my honourable colleagues who have spoken before me in terms of, there is nothing wrong— if this is the intent —to conti nue down this path in respect of gaming. We could have the educational component. See, this is something that we heard about that was being put in place three or four years ago, Mr. Speaker. There is no reason why we cannot at least have it reach that stage in terms of educat ing people, how their involvement in this industry can be monetised almost at the very moment that the industry becomes operational if in fact that does happen. It does not hurt to train somebody. It is always better to be prepared and not required than to be required and not prepared. And I believe that what we have seen thus far in the movement towards making sure that this is a significant industry which could create significant jobs, that there are things that we as a country have failed to do or have been unsuccessful in achieving. And I do not think it is fair for the Premier to come with this particular legislation, which I understand, and I know exactly what is being done here. But to say, Don’t di scuss these things. Let’s just look at what we want to do. You know, it is almost like, you know, Mr. Speaker, when you see Penn & Teller on the stage and D avid Copperfield on the stage, Mr. Speaker. It is not about what you see in the left hand or what you see in the right hand. Let us be honest and forthright and straightforward with the people of Bermuda to say that this is the position. When we come with these kinds of changes, Mr. Speaker, I do not believe that it is out of order for there to be a statement so that the people of Bermuda understand the purpose behind our nimbl eBermuda House of Assembly ness and our necessity to be nimble in changing the legislation. So let us give an overarching statement saying, This is where we are. This is what we are d oing. This is what we have accomplished. These are still our challenges. Th is is what we are looking for. We know that there are hotels. We have people who are investing in infrastructure, in physical plant, who had a reasonable expectation to believe that once their organisations were able to be up and running there would be so me support for their expectation that there would be gaming. And right now it is fine to say, We’re not going to charge you the fees as in when . . . you know, we are going to make sure you can pay and there could be extenuating circumstances considered on application. But by the same token, Mr. Speaker, that is all of no consequence if there is not something that we can give them to hold onto. I underscore, Mr. Speaker, this is not a crit icism. It is just wanting information so that the people of Bermuda can say, Is this a legitimate expectation that this industry will be up and running? It is fine to make legislative changes. It is fine to do all of those things so that we can respond. But what are we r esponding to? What are the challenges that still obta in from the commencement of this, of this initiative, probably however long ago it has been until now? Where do we stand? What are our realistic chances of finding some kind of solution to the challenges that we have? So to say that this is not the debate on the Casino Gaming Commission, it is, I respectfully sub-mit. It is a debate on the Casino Gaming Commission. It is a debate on gaming. It is a debate on the merits of the resort model. And it is a debate on all of those things, Mr. Speaker, because without them, the legi slation that we are debating today will have absolutely zero consequence or economic impact. And what we are looking for, Mr. Speaker, is for the Government to show how they are being efficient and effective with implementing some level of economic activity. And changing legislation to say that we are going to manage these component parts of an industry, when the main thrust has not been addressed, somehow seems to be a futile effort. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Does any other Member wish to speak? Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Continue, Minister of Finance. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I listened to some of the commentary from colleagues and I am just astounded. We have a colleague who is a banker, and we have a colleague who is a director of a bank. And I have been in …
Yes. Continue, Minister of Finance.
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I listened to some of the commentary from colleagues and I am just astounded. We have a colleague who is a banker, and we have a colleague who is a director of a bank. And I have been in the House on a number of occ a-sions when gaming was a part of my portfolio, explai ning the position that we find ourselves in as a country. The issue then is the issue now. And I will r ecall that in 2016, before my venture into politics, it was my bank, my former employer, the Bank of Butterfield, who made the Government of the day, the OBA Government, aware that they were going quick, fast and in a hurry d own a path about to crash into a wall b ecause they had not consulted the banks on banking the pr oceeds from gaming. And I took then Minister of Tourism, the Honourable Shawn Crockwell, along with the Executive Director, Mr. Scheutz, and the Chairman of the Gaming Commission at that time, Counsellor Alan Dunch, to New York to meet with the Bank of New York, who at that point in time had some serious concerns about gaming in Bermuda. The Bank of New York, for those who do not remember, is the principal correspondent bank for Butterfield Bank. And Butterfield’s concerns were that if they upset their correspondent, they would run the risk of losing the ability to move money around the country which is a critical part of our financial ser-vices industry. The not ion that Members would be critical of amending legislation that makes it more adaptable, more flexible to the participants in the industry is alarming. One, I recall that the structure of the legisl ation had a one- size-fits-all approach. Now, I certainly can appreciate —
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Point of order, Mr. Speaker.
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I certainly can apprec iate—
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Point of order, sir. Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerWe will take yo ur point of order. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYour point of order? POINT OF ORDER [Misleading] Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes. I believe the Honourable Member, maybe inadvertently, is misleading the House. I do not th ink that I heard anybody cri ticise the legislation that is being put forward. What is being criticised is the progression …
Your point of order?
POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes. I believe the Honourable Member, maybe inadvertently, is misleading the House. I do not th ink that I heard anybody cri ticise the legislation that is being put forward. What is being criticised is the progression of the structure as to where we are. And we have had no report in r espect thereof. Thank you, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Minister . 4358 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I would r emind the honourable colleague of her own recitation in which she made a point about not being critical, but in fact was, in my view, …
Thank you. Minister .
4358 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I would r emind the honourable colleague of her own recitation in which she made a point about not being critical, but in fact was, in my view, critical. And so her point of order is the subject of her opinion. And I respect as much, but I disagree with her. The reality is that there was a one- size-fits-all. And this Government, in making the amendments that it is making today, is seeking to be adaptable to the participants in the industry. One certainly does not c riticise the former Government for a one- size-fits-all approach, because in the days that the legislation was initially passed, there was no industry. We now have two participants, at least. And their characters are somewhat different, and their geographies in terms of their businesses are different. And so, to make legislative changes to r eflect the changing dynamics of each of the participants seems to me to be a wise thing. I am not sure why anyone would ever be critical of adapting to the industry that we are trying to grow. What I will say is this: The banking piece continues to make progress. And the progress that has been made on the banking piece has all come during the duration of this Government’s term. We are close. But there is still more work t o be done. And I would say that as long as we can get the banks comfort able—and I think they are comfortable— with a solution, the other work that needs to be done is to get their correspondents comfortable. And once the corr espondents are comfortable, then we can move forward. But there has been significant progress, and I have reported on it a number of times in this House. And so we will continue to do the work, and we will look forward to a day when there is gaming in Berm uda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. Would you like to speak now? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. But I believe there were two people. So who are you recognising?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI caught MP . . . the voice I caught loud was your voice, MP Dunkley. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Okay. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the introductory by the Honour able Premier and the comments just now from the Honourable Finance Minister. I think we should be clear …
I caught MP . . . the voice I caught loud was your voice, MP Dunkley. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Okay. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the introductory by the Honour able Premier and the comments just now from the Honourable Finance Minister. I think we should be clear that we are not critical of this set of regulations. What we are critical of is . . . specifically to my point, the criticism is around the H onourable Premier’s intr oduction today in which the Honourable Premier made the point to state in his brief that this debate was not about gaming. Well, it is all about gaming. Because obviously, if we do not have a structure, we do not have an organisati on in place, these regulations that we make will not amount to much in that regard. And I will come back to that more in just a few minutes. But in regard to these regulations, Mr. Speaker, we understand and we can appreciate the need for flexibility, as the Government Members have said dur-ing this debate. Certainly, in a world that changes so quickly you need flexibility. Certainly, in a world that now is beset with more difficult conditions that anyone would have imagined at the beginning of the year you need more flexibility. So there is the support for the ability, the need, for that flexibility by the Government. I think, Mr. Speaker, in my view what would have been suitable and helpful during this debate would be for the Honourable Premier and collea gues to give a bit of an overview, a bit of a flavour, you might say in a different way, to what the feedback is with our potential gaming partners in regard to the flexibility that they need to open their casinos. B ecause here we are today, we are being asked to support the regulations with a very short brief by the Premier. And the brief trying to say to us, Well, stay in this sandbox. All we are talking about is the regul ations here today. We don’t want to talk about anything else. And so, we have an iss ue because the more detail on what the industry or potential industry par tners need in Bermuda is important. And where we stand generally with gaming is important. Now, in regard to the regulations specifically themselves, Mr. Speaker, I think that colleagues would appreciate and realise that we have a feebased government. The revenue raised by gover nment is for fees all over, you know, throughout our community, whether it is land tax or your dog licence or licence for a well, business licences. You know, for everything you pay a fee. That is how government raises its revenue. And the Premier did allude to the fact in the introduction that he gave a few moments ago that, with these regulations gaming was set up to allow for the industry to be run by the fees that were charged to the players within the industry. And that is correct. That is what we envisioned as the OBA, that we would allow the industry to pay the fees to help run the industry from the beginning to the end. So not only to open their casino, but also to deal with problem gaming, to deal with training, all of those types of things.
Bermuda House of Assembly And so I am pleased to see that the Premier still recognises that this is an appropriate approach. And now that the Government is going to give themselves the flexi bility to waive fees or change fees through the period coming up, I think it would be appropriate just what they envision that to be and if they envision that the industry will still be able to support itself through the fees paid to government. That would help us, that would bring some clarity to this issue. That would certainly allow us to have a better understanding of the regulations, other than just reading them on paper. We know that there are a couple of partners that are looking to open up a casino. I do not think anything has changed since the time when we were the Government, that the hotel in the East End and the property in town are interested in that, because they were close at that point in time. And we also rea lise, Mr. Speaker, as the Honour able Finance Minister alluded during his short presentation, we realised from the very beginning that banking would be a very diff icult scenario to deal with in gaming. And our approach at that time, to help make the banking challenge surmountable, was tha t if we had a good framework, a good structure in place for gaming, it would be easier for correspondent banks to help us get through and deal with that hurdle so that our partners in Bermuda did have a bank that they could work with. So we a lways realised that challenge. And now, as the Minister of Finance has shif ted from [being an employee at] a bank that was interested in being a partner to [being] the Minister r esponsible, you know, he sees the challenge from a different seat, so to speak, Mr. Speaker . And I am pleased to see that the Honourable Minister says that we are now close and that they have made significant progress. However, we have heard that in statements in the past. We have heard that over the past three years. And we have not seen any fr uits to a final dec ision being made. So we will take the Minister at his word, but we look forward to . . . with this significant progress , we look forward, Mr. Speaker, to having the Gover nment come to Parliament very shortly and say, Yes. We have found a correspondent bank. Because clearly, if Government is waiving . . . the potential to waive fees to allow them to work with partners to put them in a better position to open their casinos, and with the hotel in the East End due to open next year and the other partner already open at this point in time, it would seem that the sand is coming out of the hour-glass very quickly and those potential partners in gaming are going to need that correspondent bank. And so while we will pass the regulations here today (whether the Opposition supports it or not because we do not have any numbers to make a differ-ence), it is clear that there is a timeline approaching very quickly where potential partners in gaming will need to see not only significant progress in corr e-spondent banking, but the ability to work with a bank to actually deal with the proceeds for gaming. So, Mr. Speaker, the Premier did not want to have a debate about gaming, but this is what the Bill is about today. It is about gaming. So we have dealt wit h the banking issue. One other issue that is important, Mr. Speaker, because obviously we have seen gaming, in my view, become a hot potato for the current Government . . . a hot p otato in the fact that we have seen a number of differ-ent Ministers, and now it is back in the Premier’s lap. And we wonder how long he can hold onto that hot potato. But unless we have a structure and an organisation that works for gaming, the industry will not be successful. And I think we all know that. But we need to stop and reflect on that for just a short minute, Mr. Speaker, because, obviously, this is a complicated industry. This is an industry that comes with the cha llenges. This is an industry that could have those who want to be less forthright with how proceeds of gaming [are] used take it in a different direction. So we need to have all the checks and balances in place so this further amenity to our tourism industry can be the success that we all want it to be. Let us face it: We have spent a great deal of time and a significant amount of money to date on the gaming industry. We are close enough now where, you know, you might be to see the horizon where you will have some success. We have to get it right. And so we can take Government at the face value about correspondent banking. And we look for-ward for an announcement very soon about who that partner will be. But we also, Mr. Speaker, need to see how the structure and organisation are going to work to be successful because if we are going to have a correspondent bank , if we are going to have licences being issued to casinos, we need to have somebody who is running the organisation. It cannot be Gover nment Ministers. Ministers have their place in our sy stem of governance. But we cannot have Government Ministers interfering with day -to-day activities of som ething as important as gaming. And that is why the Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission was set up. So perhaps when the Minister would like to speak or the Premier wraps up, he can give an update on our search for an exec utive director, because this Government has failed in that. It has been three years, and we cannot find an executive director. Ma ybe Government has found one, and they just have not told us yet. But in three years we cannot find an executive director; it does not sit well with gaming. It cer-tainly does not sit well with our partners if they do not have somebody responsible at the Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission that they can go to on a day -today basis with any questions or any concerns, or any initiatives that they would like to launch. So I would ask that the Premier give an u pdate on where we stand with an executive director. 4360 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly And so, having a proper structure is important, Mr. Speaker. An executive director is a key part of that. And I guess the last t hing that I would just like to touch on a little bit, because the Honourable Premier did say that this is not a discussion about the mod-el that we are using. And I have read his brief very quickly that it is not a debate on the merits of the int egrated res ort model or any issues previously ca nvassed in this Honourable House. Well, we take difference to that. I am not going to discuss the model in itself, Mr. Speaker. But as we talk today about fees and as the Minister of F inance has talked about a correspondent bank, perhaps the Government will give an update on their views on cashless gaming. And is that going to be the way to go? Because we know there has been a great deal of controversy about cashless gaming through the time. So where does that stand in the scenario that Government, this Government today, sees going forward? Mr. Speaker, in wrapping up, yes, we always want a Government to be more flexible, to be able to move, be able to deal with concerns, certainly in these very difficult and challengi ng times we face. And I think there are many of us in the community who rea lly do not understand the enormous challenge we do face at this present time. So we want that flexibility. But as we debate this amendment today, which is not minor, [and] it is not that complicated, we also need to look at the broader scope of the challenges we face in gaming. So where is the leadership coming from? B ecause Government has not shown it yet. There has not been any progress, Mr. Speaker, other than words. And words ar e not progress. No licences are issued. There is no executive director, and we still do not have clarity on who the correspondent bank is going to be. So I support a government being nimble. But the Premier, now that this hot potato is back in his lap, needs to deal with it and answer questions so everyone in this House and people in the community understand where we are going to go and are par tners fully buying into what the changes [are which] are taking place and the future of this industry. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
Mr. Scott PearmanMr. Speaker, rather interestingly, when t he Honourable Premier opened the debate on these regulations, he sought to define the parameters of the debate, telling us what we are allowed to talk about and what we are not allowed to talk about. U nlike some of my other colleagues, I …
Mr. Speaker, rather interestingly, when t he Honourable Premier opened the debate on these regulations, he sought to define the parameters of the debate, telling us what we are allowed to talk about and what we are not allowed to talk about. U nlike some of my other colleagues, I will accept the parameter as defined by the Premier, which is that this is a debate about a change required to ensure gaming can move forward in Bermuda. So let us look at what the change is really doing. Because it is difficult when we look at amending regulations . . . we get a piece of paper (in this case three pages), and we just see a few words changed here and a few words changed there. And unless you go back and look at the principal Regulations and look through those and look how the words that are chan ging apply, i t is hard to know what is really going on here. What is going on here is the ability for the Government to reduce fees in respect of gaming. And if you put it like that, you can understand why the Government might need greater flexibility to reduce fees i n respect of gaming, because they might want to have the flexibility to make it more affordable for those who enter into Bermuda and carry out casino gaming. But the fees that are being amended are not limited just to those fees, because the fees that were provi ded for did not go merely to the Government. And I just want to highlight this point because the Honourable Premier did touch upon the points in his opening remarks. And he said, “Honourable Mem-bers will note that 10 per cent and 15 per cent of the provisional licence fee . . . has been proposed to fund the training of Bermudians . . . and the Problem Ga ming Council.” And so it is necessary to look at the amendments to see what is happening for the fees that were previously going to go towards either those who may have gambling addiction issues, some money to support people in the community who might have gambling problems, and secondly, money that was earmarked to go towards the employment of Bermudians so that they could participate in the gaming in dustry. And the Honourable Premier in his remarks described the change as being something where the new proposals were “proportionate” (quote/unquote) the fixed sums previously provided. Well, in respect of addiction issues, the previous regulations were going to provide $150,000 out of the provisional licence i ssue fee. Now the provisional licence issue fee, the Honourable Premier noted, was to be $1.4 million.
Bermuda House of Assembly That is now changing to 10 per cent. And perhaps it is proportionate, but it is a reduction. So by reason of the change, if the fee stays the same, the amount of money being given to help treat those with gambling addiction issues will be going down. Likewise, the amount that was allocated to train Bermudians for employment in casinos ($250,000 under the previous Regulations) is now being adjusted to 15 per cent of the fee. The fee, as we remember, if it stays the same, was $1.4 million. So that too is going down. It is going down from a fixed fee of $250,000 to a reduc-tion to $210,000 if the fee sta ys the same. But another change that is important for these regulations is that the fee might not stay the same. So not only might the money allocated for addiction i ssues and to employ Bermudians go down, but it could also go down drastically now becaus e the amend ment is seeking to put this as a percentage. So i nstead of having fixed earmarked amounts of $150,000 here, $250,000 there, solid tangible amounts for ad diction, for employment of Bermudians, we are now going to have a percentage adjustment based upon the fee. And this change allows that fee to be waived in whole or in part. Now, obviously whether it is waived in whole or in part will depend upon the factors set out in clause 3 of the amending Regulations. But if the fee is waived in whole or in part, we must appreciate, and it must be appreciated by those in this Honourable House and by the members of the public, that this r eduction could greatly reduce the amount of money that was earmarked both for those with gambling addiction issues and for those . . . which was going to be earmarked for the employment of Bermudians. Sometimes the devil is in the details, Mr. Speaker. But I just want everyone to know that this is what this change could mean. And it would be greatly unfortunate if Bermuda were to see casino gaming, but the protective measures in relation to gambling addiction were watered down, and the positive— very positive measures involving employment, monies for employment of Bermudians, were also to be watered down. So watch this space. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThat sounds like the Opposition Whip. Honourable Member, you have t he floor.
Ms. Susan E. JacksonThank you, Mr. Speaker. For me, I believe that the elephant in the room are these fees being changed or being given a little more flexibility, because there may be other layers of non-casino gaming that may be out there that the Government wishes to support in building an industry …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. For me, I believe that the elephant in the room are these fees being changed or being given a little more flexibility, because there may be other layers of non-casino gaming that may be out there that the Government wishes to support in building an industry here in Bermuda. I mean, certainly we have had in the history some of the FinTech companies that have wanted to do some sports trading activities. We have had, you know, the long- existing betting shops that we have had in Bermuda. And so, my curiosity is whether these fees are being changed so that it will allow for more of what I am going to consider to be local betting on Island. So there are a couple of things that crossed my mind. These betting institutions, companies that may want to set up on Island . . . you know, the Premier in the past has always said that there is a lot of scrutiny before any businesses, in particular in the FinTech industry, are opened up for services here in Bermuda. An d I would hope that that would continue. But at the same time, are these fees being adjusted to allow more of these online betting activities to occur? In addition, any of the sort of local betting houses, is this also an initiative to allow an increase in any of the local betting? And of course, my concern pivots [ INAUDIBLE] directly to [ INAUDIBLE ] that in this economically challenged time, I would imagine that many of the customers are going to be locals. And so if we are going to, on the one hand try t o encourage business in Bermuda in order to improve re venue and get the economy going, but on the other hand it is at the detriment to the . . . in the capacity around gambling, then, you know, there is some reason for concern and certainly further, as I had mentioned, around therapeutic support services that may be needed for any of the local population that is getting involved in gaming if we are going to be seeing a bit of an open door as far as increased presence of gaming houses and online betting acti vities in Berm uda. And with that, thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? [Inaudible interjection]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerIs there any other Member who wishes to speak? [Inaudible interjection s]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI beg your pardon? Hon. E. David Burt: Happy to close, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAnd we are four minutes to one. So you have the floor. Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. 4362 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Mr. Speaker, I am happy to see so much i nterest in this topic from Members of the …
And we are four minutes to one. So you have the floor. Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. 4362 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Mr. Speaker, I am happy to see so much i nterest in this topic from Members of the Opposition. The Honourable Members opposite certainly have made a lot of noise. And by the noise that has been made, Mr. Speaker, you would think that casinos opened under their tenure when they were the Government and somehow managed to close under our tenure as the Government, Mr. Speaker. But I am very happy that the Honourable Minister of Finance corrected the record so that people could not run away from the history. Mr. Speaker, let me just be clear: 100 per cent of nothing is nothing. And that is what we have right now, nothing. And we are going to build something. As I said in my brief, Mr. Speaker, this is not a debate on gaming. This is a change to the fees regulations. And I am happy that the Opposition is supportive of the fees changes that are part of these regulations which have been brought by the Government. There will be a chance to debate gaming before this House rises for the summer. At the next day of sitting I will table amendments to the Casino Gaming Act. But I will be happy to have the full gamut of a gaming discussion at that time, and I will also be happy to give a Ministerial Statement on the tabling of that Bill to answer many of the different matters which may have been raised by Members of the Opposition, [and] to give the country a full update on where we stand in regards to our pr ogress on casino gaming here in Bermuda. With that, Mr. Speaker, I move that the said draft Order be approved and that a suitable message be sent to His Excellency t he Governor.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Premier. Are there any objections to it being approved and the said message being sent? No objections. We will consider that matter has been approved and the said message will be sent. [Motion carried: The Casino Gaming (Casino Fees) Amendment Regulations 2020 were approved.]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPremier, it is two minutes before the one o’clock hour. If you would like to move us to lunch, we can acknowledge that at this time. Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Happy to do so. Mr. Speaker, I move that the Honourable House do now adjourn to …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAny objections to that? No objections. The House now stands adjourned until 2:00 pm for the lunch period. And just to remind the Members, f or ease of being able to get on again, if you want to just mute your microphones and turn off your cameras, your system will …
Any objections to that? No objections. The House now stands adjourned until 2:00 pm for the lunch period. And just to remind the Members, f or ease of being able to get on again, if you want to just mute your microphones and turn off your cameras, your system will stay active until we resume in an hour. Enjoy your lunch. The House is now adjourned.
[Gavel]
Proceedings suspended at 12:5 9 pm
Proceedings resumed at 2:00 pm
[Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood afternoon, Members. It is now 2:00 pm. I trust everyone enjoyed their lunch break. Members? [Crosstalk]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay, good, nice to hear. On thi s rainy afternoon I am sure you all are glad that you were able to stay in the comfort of your own residences, rather than the rest of us having to be out in this rain and slipped out for a little bite, …
Okay, good, nice to hear. On thi s rainy afternoon I am sure you all are glad that you were able to stay in the comfort of your own residences, rather than the rest of us having to be out in this rain and slipped out for a little bite, got a sandwich in the rain while I am sure you just w alked into your kitc hens. But that is the luxury of virtual meetings. Members, we ended before lunch concluding Order No. 1, which was the Casino Gaming Amendment. We are now on Order No. 2 for the day which is the Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 in the name of the Minister of Finance. Minister, would you like to present your d ebate at this time?
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Hello, Mr. Speaker?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, we see and hear you Minister. You have the flo or. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Thanks. Mr. Speaker, I move that the Bill entitled the Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 be now read the second time.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections? No objections? Continue, Minister. BILL SECOND READING COMPANIES (RATIFICATION OF DEFERRED RETURNS, FEES AND TAXES) AMENDMENT ACT 2020 Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, the Bill now before the House is the Companies (Ratification of Bermuda House of Assembly Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes ) Amendment …
Are there any objections? No objections? Continue, Minister.
BILL
SECOND READING
COMPANIES (RATIFICATION OF DEFERRED RETURNS, FEES AND TAXES) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, the Bill now before the House is the Companies (Ratification of
Bermuda House of Assembly Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes ) Amendment Act 2020. Honourable Members will recall that following a severe threat to public health by the communicable disease COVID -19, government offices were closed on 19 March, following which the Governor made a proclamation of a state of emergency in Bermuda on 2 April 2020. Mr. Speaker, this Bill establishes the legal authority instituting temporary measures by the Government to defer compliance with certain statutory requirements that must be satisfied by local and permit companies on or before 31 st of March every year. Mr. Speaker, following the closure of gover nment offices, it emerged that not all local companies had the means to facilitate their filing and the payment of their fees electronically. Therefore, they would have found themselves in breach of the Companies Act. In order to accommodate those companies who could not make their submissions and payments electronically, the Government instituted temporary measures to assist such companies by extending the 31 March 2020 deadline for three months to 30 June 2020. Mr. Speaker, the Government extended the deadline by way of a formal notice with the intention to seek ratification via the Legislature of the deferred compliance with the requirements of the Companies Act 1981 to 30 June 2020. Mr. Speaker and Honourable Members, this Bill ratifies the deferred compliance with certain prov isions of the Companies Act by the Minister of F inance, while also providing power for the Minister of Finance to defer to a later date filings required under sections 121 and 135 of the Companies Act. Mr. Speaker, with those brief comments I welcome the comments of other Honourable Members. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to speak? [Crosstalk] Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, thank you,
Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerYes, continue Member. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. I thank the Minister for those introductory r emarks and the overview of the Companies (Ratific ation of Deferred Ret urns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment. We certainly support this from the Opposition’s perspective. It was a difficult time and …
Yes, continue Member. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. I thank the Minister for those introductory r emarks and the overview of the Companies (Ratific ation of Deferred Ret urns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment. We certainly support this from the Opposition’s perspective. It was a difficult time and certainly unprecedented and something that we had never expe-rienced before in terms of . . . [00:04:45 NO AUDIO UNTIL 00:05:01] The S peaker: MP? It seems like we had lost you there for a moment. MP Pamplin?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Yes. MP you are having a tec hnical difficulty right now. Does one of your other co lleagues want to speak until you can get it sorted out?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Scott, I have done that to you twice today. I am sorry about that.
Ms. Leah K. ScottI don’t sound like her. Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Okay. MP [Gordon- ] Pamplin is back.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. MP [Gordon- ]Pam plin, have you sorted yourself out? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, I have act ually started. I was just saying that we supported the legislation.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: As the Minister gave his overview and in that overview he indicated that at the appropriate time —at 31 March—there was no ability for him to be able to . . . or no ability for some companies to be able to meet the …
Okay.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: As the Minister gave his overview and in that overview he indicated that at the appropriate time —at 31 March—there was no ability for him to be able to . . . or no ability for some companies to be able to meet the fiduciary r esponsibilities that they had in terms of filing their r eturns and their taxes. The Government accommodated that by notification, which gave them an extension until June 30 th to permit them to be compliant with their responsibilities under the Companies Act, both in terms of the taxes as well as the returns that were made. This legis lation now enables a situation to be put into place, a procedure to be put in place in case we have something that happens again. And I think it just makes eminent good sense for this to happen. We certainly support the legislation and thank the Government for making life a little bit easier for those companies that had a bit of anxiety between March and June, companies who knew that they did not have 4364 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly the means to comply, but were not going to be penalised. We know that the penalty for noncompliance, espec ially with the payment of taxes, is absolutely prohibitive. And that is done for a good reason. It is to ensure that the Government has access to the rev enues to which it is entitled under the legislation and we want to make sure that companies comply to t he extent that they are required to do so. So, by being unable to be compliant, it was difficult for some companies, they did have anxiety, and the Minister and the Government have actually assuaged those co ncerns. So, with this piece of legislation, we s upport it. It makes eminent good sense. It is kind of a hous ekeeping measure that effectively says to the corpor ations that we understand that the situation that occurred was beyond your control and that as a Government, we want to ensure that things are m ade a a little easier for you in or der to be able to comply. So, we support the legislation, Mr. Speaker. And recognising that in these difficult times there is likely to be different types of legislation that will come through that, sort of, take the “ne w normal” and put it into practical terms. So, this is what we have done in this respect and we support it from an Opposition’s perspective. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, yes, Honourable Member, you have the floor.
Mrs. Renee MingLet me take off my mask —my St. George’s mask.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMember, I know you only came in front of the camera with that mask for one purpose, but my flag of red and blue is still flying over my shoulders much higher than your mask. And the cup will remain in Somerset. But you have the floor.
Mrs. Renee MingMr. Speaker, I would just like to add my brief comments to this piece of legislation. I think my colleague who spoke before me kind of summed it up, that it is one of those pieces of legislation that is necessary as we continue to nav igate through COVID -19 …
Mr. Speaker, I would just like to add my brief comments to this piece of legislation. I think my colleague who spoke before me kind of summed it up, that it is one of those pieces of legislation that is necessary as we continue to nav igate through COVID -19 and t he worldwide pandemic, I think that we should probably get ourselves in a space to expect that there will be pieces of legislation that come, very similar to this, that are designed to provide relief, to make a difficult situation not so diff icult, and tha t there will be legislation that can, where applicable, assist. And at this time this legislation is going to assist the companies. And the Minister has the power to defer the date to a later date in compl iance. So, I am glad to see that we are bringing something like this. I think that it is incumbent on any government to assist wherever it can and, in this case, it is a bureaucratic assistance. And I look forward to seeing other pieces of legislation like this that provide relief, reduce stress, and make our difficult time not so difficult, Mr. Speaker. So, thank you very much.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member Ming. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? No other Member? Minister, would you like to wrap this up? Hon. Curtis L. Dickin son: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move that the Bill entitled the Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) …
Thank you, Honourable Member Ming. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? No other Member? Minister, would you like to wrap this up?
Hon. Curtis L. Dickin son: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I move that the Bill entitled the Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 be now read . . . I am sorry, I move that the Bill be committed. I am sorry.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Yes, commit the Bill first, Minister. We are trying to move ahead in this rainy afternoon, but we’ll do that step first. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I am sorry. I move that the Bill be committed, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI will move the Bill into Committee and the Deputy will take over. Deputy? House in Commi ttee at 2:12 pm [Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr., Chairman] COMMITTEE ON BILL COMPANIES (RATIFICATION OF DEFERRED RETURNS, FEES AND TAXES) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Minister. Honourable Members, we are now in Commi ttee of the whole [House] for further consideration of the Bill entitled Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees an d Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 . Minister, you have the floor. Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Chairman, …
Thank you, Minister. Honourable Members, we are now in Commi ttee of the whole [House] for further consideration of the Bill entitled Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees an d Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 . Minister, you have the floor.
Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Chairman, this Bill seeks to ratify the deferred compliance with the r equirements of sections 121 and 135 of the Companies Act 1981 to 30 June 2020 following a severe threat to public health by the communicable disease, COVID - 19, which led to government offices being closed on 19 March 2020 and the Governor making a Proclam ation of a State of Emergency in Bermuda on 2 April 2020. This Bill further seeks to amend the Companies Act 1981 to provide power for the Minister to de-fer to a later date compliance with requirements relating to filing of returns to be made by a specified date under the Act where there is an occurrence in Berm uda of any of the exceptional circums tances provided in section 22(7) of the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Act 1969. Mr. Chairman, I move clauses 1 through 3.
The ChairmanChairmanContinue, Minister. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Clause 1 provides a cit ation for the Bill. Clause 2 pr ovides for the ratification of the d etermination by the Minister to defer compliance with the requirements of sections 121 and 135 of the Companies Act 1981 to 30 June 2020. Clause …
Continue, Minister.
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Clause 1 provides a cit ation for the Bill. Clause 2 pr ovides for the ratification of the d etermination by the Minister to defer compliance with the requirements of sections 121 and 135 of the Companies Act 1981 to 30 June 2020. Clause 3 amends section 287A of the Companies Act 1981 to provide power for the Mi nister to defer to a later date compliance by any person or class of persons with requirements relating to filing of returns to be made by a specified date under that Act in the case where there is an occurrence in Bermuda of any of the exceptional circums tances provided in section 22(7) of the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Act 1969. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Minister. Are there any further speakers? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, Mr. Chai rman.
The ChairmanChairmanThe Chair recognises the Honourable Member Pat Gordon- Pamplin. Ms. Gordon- Pamplin, you have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. Mr. Chairman, as we mentioned in the debate of the whole, we have no objection. We support this legislation. It makes eminent good sense. I just …
The Chair recognises the Honourable Member Pat Gordon- Pamplin. Ms. Gordon- Pamplin, you have the floor.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. Mr. Chairman, as we mentioned in the debate of the whole, we have no objection. We support this legislation. It makes eminent good sense. I just have one question of the Minister and that is in respect of the deferral until June 30, 2020, as tabled and laid out. Can the Minister give us any indication as to which companies, or how many compa-nies were non-compliant by the June 30 th extension? Was that June 30th deadline sufficient for companies to have made their filings from the April deadline or the March . . . yes, the April deadline to June 30th?
The ChairmanChairmanMinister? Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Chairman, we are only three days into July and so, having an exact count on those companies that were late would be difficult for me to get my hands on at the moment. But what I can undertake to do is to provide the …
Minister? Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Chairman, we are only three days into July and so, having an exact count on those companies that were late would be difficult for me to get my hands on at the moment. But what I can undertake to do is to provide the Honourable Member with those details once we have had at least a week under our belt in the month of July.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Mr. Chairman?
The ChairmanChairmanMm-hmm? Continue. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, thank you, sir. I appreciate the undertaking. I think it was . . . the question was in the context of if people would have been able to file by April and then, over the course of the next three months, some …
Mm-hmm? Continue. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, thank you, sir. I appreciate the undertaking. I think it was . . . the question was in the context of if people would have been able to file by April and then, over the course of the next three months, some may have been able to get their filings in as they were able to do so, you know, as time went on. So, that was real ly my question, just to know whether we are severely deli nquent, and I understand and accept the Minister’s u ndertaking to give us some indication in terms of who . . . if there were still companies that were unable to comply by June 30 th. But we have no o bjection to any of the clauses of the legislation.
The ChairmanChairmanAre there any further speakers? There appear to be none. Minister, do you want to move the clauses 1 through 3? Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Chairman, I move that clauses 1 through 3 be approved.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that clauses 1 through 3 be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. [Motion carried: Clauses 1 through 3 passed.]
The ChairmanChairmanYou can move the preamble. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I move that the preamble be approved.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that the preamble be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. 4366 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I move that the Bill be r eported to the House as printed.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. The Bill will be reported to the House as printed. Thank you, Honourable Minister. Hon. Curti s L. Dickinson: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. [Motion carried: …
It has been moved that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. The Bill will be reported to the House as printed. Thank you, Honourable Minister. Hon. Curti s L. Dickinson: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[Motion carried: The Companies (Ratification of D eferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 was considered by a Committee of the whole House and passed without amendment.]
House resumed at 2:17 pm [Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair]
REPORT OF COMMITTEE
COMPANIES (RATIFICATION OF DEFERRED RETURNS, FEES AND TAXES) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. We are now back in the House. Are there any objections to the Companies (R atification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 being reported to the House as printed? No objections? The Bill has been reported to the House and accepted. We now move …
Thank you, Deputy. We are now back in the House. Are there any objections to the Companies (R atification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 being reported to the House as printed? No objections? The Bill has been reported to the House and accepted. We now move on to the third item on the O rder Paper for today and that is the second reading of the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 and, again, this is in the name of the Minister of Finance. Minister of Finance, would you like to present your Bill?
BILL
SECOND READING
PUBLIC TREASURY (ADMINIS TRATION AND PAYMENTS) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Government wishes this Honourable House now to give consideration to the Bill entitled the Public Treasury (Administration and Pa yments) Amendment Act 2020. The purpose of this Bill is to provide power for the Minister of Finance, in exceptional circumstances, to write off or defer payment of public money and to expand the regulation- making provisions. Honourable Members will be aware that the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Act 1969 provides for the financial control and management of government finances, the establishment of the Accountant General’s department, the payment of monies withdrawn from the Consolidated Fund, and related matt ers. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members are aware that Bermuda is experiencing the economic impact of COVID -19, with almost a third of the workforce having been laid off during the Island’s mandatory stay -athome period and the cessation of regular flights and cruise ships to the Island. Government has already taken various actions to assist employers and employees during these unprecedented times. The Ministry has already instituted several temporary emergency measures to assist businesses that have a pressi ng need for financial relief. Some of these measures were as follows: tax filing deadlines were extended; current penalties or fees that would have normally applied for that period were waived; upon request, fees included in the Government Fees Regulations 1976 could be deferred or waived. Section 22 of the Act provides authority for the Minister to approve the write- off of public money and the Emergency Powers Act 1963 may also provide for writing off certain fees. In addition, the Government Fees Act 1965 empowers the Minister of Finance to waive any particular Government fee in exceptional circumstances. Mr. Speaker, to provide greater certainty and authority, it is proposed to amend section 22 of the Act to provide for the following: to grant the Minist er of Finance power, in exceptional circumstances, to waive or defer payment of public money; to create a process to be followed where public authorities’ r equest for a waiver or a fee, tax or penalty payable under the Government Fees Regulations 1976 or under a particular enactment; and ensures that the process is transparent. Mr. Speaker, to assist employees who have laid off, terminated or made redundant as a result of COVID -19, the Government quickly introduced an u nemployment benefit. The unemployment benefit came into effect on the 24 March 2020 and the application period ended on the 30 June 2020. It provides a week ly benefit, the lesser amount, 60 per cent of an individual’s remuneration or $500 to eligible persons, including work permit holders, for up to 12 weeks, which has recently been extended to 16 weeks. Honourable Members are advised that authority for the appeal provision that is included in the Pub-lic Treasury (Administration and Payments) (Temporary Unemployment Benefit) Regulations 2020 wi ll also be made clear. Mr. Speaker, the proposed Bill seeks to address this issue and makes technical amendments to
Bermuda House of Assembly widen the regulation- making power set forth in the Act to include provisions for appeals. These technical amendments are required pursuant t o the making of the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) (Temporary Unemployment Benefit) Regulations 2020, which set forth the new regime for the abovementioned unemployment benefit and had to be draf ted as a matter of urgency due to COVID -19 and its economic impact. Mr. Speaker, this part of the Bill will be deemed to come into effect on the 24 th March 2020, the day when the Unemployment Benefit Regulations came into effect. This provision also seeks to provide greater flexibility in the Act, moving forward, to allow inclusion of provisions with respect to savings and transitional matters in the Regulations. With those introductory remarks, Mr. Speaker, I now read for the second time the Bill entitled Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Does any other Member wish to speak? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, thank you,
Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerWe recognise the Honourable Member Ms. Gordon- Pamplin. You have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, certainly from an Opposition perspective we fully understand the necessity and how the Government has been required to move in a nimble fashion in order to be …
We recognise the Honourable Member Ms. Gordon- Pamplin. You have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, certainly from an Opposition perspective we fully understand the necessity and how the Government has been required to move in a nimble fashion in order to be able to am eliorate some of the challenges that we experienced as a result of the unprecedented COVID -19 and the pandemic to which the country was exposed. So, very clearly, we support the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 and offer the Government our support and thanks for assisting in making our citizenry a little bit less anxious in terms of their responsibilities, in terms of being able to receive part of the unemployment benefit that was established very quickly. I believe the Minis ter indicated in one of his prior press conferences that this was something that had occurred over a period of about six or seven hours, that it was not a matter of days or weeks, and it shows that when we put our minds to it, we have the ability to respon d to the very straitened circumstances in which people find themselves. So, with those few comments, Mr. Speaker, we definitely support the Amendment to the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Act 2020. Thank you, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Does any other Member wish to speak? No other Member? Minister? Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I move that the Bill be committed.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. The Bill has now been committed. Deputy Speaker? House in Committee at 2:23 pm [Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr., Chair man] COMMITTEE ON BILL PUBLIC TREASURY (ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENTS) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Mr. Speaker. Honourable Members, we are now in Commi ttee of the whole [House] for further consideration of the Bill entitled Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 . Minister Dickinson, you have the floor. Hon. Curtis L. Dicki nson: Mr. Chairman, this Bill seeks to amend …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Honourable Members, we are now in Commi ttee of the whole [House] for further consideration of the Bill entitled Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 . Minister Dickinson, you have the floor.
Hon. Curtis L. Dicki nson: Mr. Chairman, this Bill seeks to amend the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Act 1969 to provide powers for the Minister of Finance, in exceptional circumstances, to waive or defer payment of public money. Mr. Chairman, I move clauses 1 through 6.
The ChairmanChairmanContinue. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Clause 1 provides a cit ation for the Bill. Clause 2 amends the principal Act in section 1 to provide for the definition of the term “public money,” which is to include taxes collected under the Taxes Management Act 1976 and other Tax Acts; fees …
Continue.
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Clause 1 provides a cit ation for the Bill. Clause 2 amends the principal Act in section 1 to provide for the definition of the term “public money,” which is to include taxes collected under the Taxes Management Act 1976 and other Tax Acts; fees pa yable for the performance of a function by a public authority under any enactment establishing the public authority; and penalties payable under any enactment for the failure to submit returns or pay taxes or fees by a date specified in the enactment. Clause 3 repeals and replaces section 22 of the principal Act as follows: • The new section empowers the Minister of F inance, on application by a public authority, to waive or defer payment of public money af ter consulting the Minister responsible for the en-actment under which the public money is pr escribed and notifying the Accountant General in writing, and only if satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances justifying the wai ver or deferment of payment in that particular 4368 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly case. The Minister may waive or defer pa yment with respect to any or all of the following: the amount of the waiver or deferment of payment, the period of the waiver or deferment of payment or the person or class of persons to whom the waiver or deferment of payment applies. • The Minister may provide for the waiver or de-ferment of payment to be with retrospective effect and subject to such conditions as the Minister may deem appropriate to impose upon the person benefitting. A duty is placed on the public authority granted the waiver or de-ferment of payment to maintain proper books or records and provide details of the value of the amount waived or deferred to the A ccountant General. A waiver or deferment of payment shall not be granted for a period g oing beyond the financial year in which the public money is waived or deferred. Where a person benefitting from a waiver or deferment subject to a condition fails to comply with the condition, the Minister may require that the amount waived or deferred for the entire per iod or a portion of the period of the waiver or deferment to be repaid and, if necessary, may require that the amount be recovered before a court of summary jurisdiction. • The term “exceptional circumstances” is de-fined to include: a Proclamation of a State of Emergency under section 14 of the Bermuda Constitution Order 1968; a declaration of a public health emergency by the Minister of Health under section 107A of the Public Health Act 1949; hurricanes and other major adverse natural or weather -related events negatively and significantly impacting Berm uda whether directly or indirectly; a situation where a person is selected to participate on behalf of Bermuda at an international event or required to represent Bermuda at such an event; and such other events or circumstances that the Minister may, by notice published in the Gazette, deem to be exceptional ci rcumstances in a particular case, after consul ting the Minister and public officers connected with the case. The Minister is r equired, when tabling the financial statements of the Conso lidated Fund at the end of the financial year, to lay before each House of the Legislature a r eport of public money waivers and deferments granted during that year. Clause 4 amends the principal Ac t in section 33 with respect to the scope of the regulation- making power conferred by that section further to the Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) (Temporary Unemployment Benefit) Regulations 2020 which were made due to COVID -19. Clause 5 amends the Government Fees Act 1965 to repeal section 2A. Clause 6 provides for commencement. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Honourable Minister. Are there any further speakers? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, Mr. Chai rman. The Cha irman: Yes, Ms. Gordon- Pamplin, continue. You have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. As indicated in the other debate, Mr. Chai rman, these clauses make …
Thank you, Honourable Minister. Are there any further speakers? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, Mr. Chai rman. The Cha irman: Yes, Ms. Gordon- Pamplin, continue. You have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. As indicated in the other debate, Mr. Chai rman, these clauses make eminent good sense and from an Opposition perspective we support the Go vernment in this particular piece of legislation with no recommendations for amendment.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you. Are there any further speakers? There appear to be none. Minister. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Chairman, I move that clauses 1 through 6 be approved.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that clauses 1 through 6 be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. [Motion carried: Clauses 1 through 6 passed.] Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I move that the preamble be approved.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that the preamble be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I move that the Bill be r eported to the House as printed.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been m oved that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. The Bill will be reported to the House as printed. Thank you, Honourable Minister Dickinson. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Thank you, Mr. Ch airman. …
It has been m oved that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. The Bill will be reported to the House as printed. Thank you, Honourable Minister Dickinson. Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Thank you, Mr. Ch airman.
Bermuda House of Assembly [Motion carried: The Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 was considered by a Committee of the whole House and passed wit hout amendment.]
House resumed at 2:29 pm
[Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair]
REPORT OF COMMITTEE
PUBLIC TREASURY (ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENTS) AMENDMENT ACT 2020
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. The Bill has now been reported to the House. Are there any objections to the Bill being reported to the House as printed? There are no objections. The Bill has been reported and accepted. And we will now move on to the next item on the Order …
Thank you, Deputy. The Bill has now been reported to the House. Are there any objections to the Bill being reported to the House as printed? There are no objections. The Bill has been reported and accepted. And we will now move on to the next item on the Order Paper for today, which is the second reading of the Employment Act Amendment 2020 in the name of the Minister of Labour. Minister, would you like t o present your matter?
[Feedback]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister Hayward. Hon. Jason Hayward: Good afternoon, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood afternoon, Minister. Hon. Jason Hayward: I move that the Bill entitled the Employment Amendment Act 2020 be now read a second time.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections to that? No objections? Continue, Minister. BILL SECOND READING EMPLOYMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2020 Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, the Bill before this Honourable House is the Bill entitled the Emplo yment Amendment Act 2020. Mr. Speaker, the purpose of this Bill is to amend section 32 …
Are there any objections to that? No objections? Continue, Minister.
BILL
SECOND READING
EMPLOYMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2020
Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, the Bill before this Honourable House is the Bill entitled the Emplo yment Amendment Act 2020. Mr. Speaker, the purpose of this Bill is to amend section 32 of the Act to exclude the period of the state of emergency in Bermuda from 1 April 2020 to 30 June 2020 for the calculation of the four month lay-off period, beyond which, under the Act, an employee who has been laid off must either be recalled or is deemed to be terminated and is entitled to his severance pay. Mr. Speaker, by way of background, the World Health Organi zation responded to the outbreak of respiratory diseas e caused by a novel coronavirus, which has now been named coronavirus disease 2019, COVID -19. The COVID -19 outbreak is an u nprecedented and severe threat to public health in Bermuda. Accordingly, His Excellency the Governor issued a proclamation of emergency under section 14 of the Bermuda Constitution Order 1968 . Mr. Speaker, subsequent actions of this Government were swift and aimed to reduce the spread of the disease. Actions included: the implementation of a curfew; a series of emergency regulations, s tarting first with shelter -in-place regulations and continuing of caution regulations as restrictions were gradually lif ted. These actions had the effect of closing businesses in the country, ranging from a complete closure to li mited operations, depending upon the sector. The ec onomic implication of these actions is very significant and will be felt for some time. Over 9,800 employees were laid off and subsequently applied for the unemployment benefit related to COVID -19. The Gover nment acted quickly to put these provisions in place to provide a safety net for employees who would otherwise have no means of income. Mr. Speaker, following engagement with i ndustry associations and union representatives, the Bill will amend section 32 of the Act with respect t o lay -off due to the impact of the COVID -19 pandemic resulting in the state of emergency. The amendment will exclude the period from 1 April to 30 June 2020 from the calculation of the period of four months after which a lay-off is deemed to be a terminati on for a redundancy and the former employee is entitled to his severance pay. The statutory severance allowance under section 23 of the Act ranges from two weeks’ pay, where an employee has completed one full year of service, to a maximum of 20 weeks’ pay, depending on the length of service. The period from the 1 st of April to the 30th of June will not be counted toward the four months after which lay -off is deemed to be termination if the employee was laid off before or during the state of emergency. The purpose of these changes is to protect both employees and employers in these unprecedented times. In the face of this global pandemic emplo yees should not lose their benefit entitlement of redundancy under the Act. Despite the lobby by industry to remove t he entitlement for employers to pay redu ndancy payments to workers, the Government did not acquiesce as we strongly believe that these rights must be protected. The Government moved to protect employees by first introducing an unemployment benefit under a very short time frame to assist the people. Secondly, the Government, with cooperation from the public, 4370 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly moved quickly to contain the spread of the virus and is now moving rapidly to reopen the economy. Mr. Speaker, it is said that the best social po licy is a job and this Government is acting quickly to enable businesses to open safely and get people back to work. Mr. Speaker, finally, this amendment to the Employment Act must be seen within the context of these previous steps to simultaneously protect the public and reopen the economy. The Government is allowing for the exception period that allows the state of emergency to be excluded from the calculation lay - off periods to assist employers in retaining their bus iness and ongoing concerns. Mr. Speaker , under any normal circumstances this change would appear to disadvantage employees by extending their lay -off period and their entitlement to redundancy payments. However, this amendment serves to protect employees by ensuring that laid- off employees remained employed by extending the time period for automatic termination. Mr. Speaker, forcing companies into bankruptcy, which is the alternative for many businesses without the amendment, will be a net destroyer of jobs. Removing jobs from the economy cannot be the consequence of a Government that is attempting to restore economic growth. While in the long term this amendment protects workers, it provides employers with time to re- employ workers rather than forcefully terminate them because of their inabilit y to recall e mployees based on depleted cash flows. Employers expressed that they did not want to make their employees redundant as they would rather keep workers employed and re- employ them as the country pr ogressed with the new normal and business activi ty increased. This amendment serves to reduce loss of jobs to the economy. Mr. Speaker, a compromise must be reached. This move represents a balanced approach to provide both groups an opportunity to adapt to the new normal. It should be noted that the concerns of the Bermuda Hotel Association, the Bermuda Employers’ Council, union representatives and others have been fully considered in arriving at this policy decision. Both the Bermuda Hotel Association and the Bermuda I ndustrial Union have publicly acknowledged that the amendments represent a positive move for both employees and employers. Moving forward, the Government will continue to work with industry partners to find solutions to many of the problems they are experiencing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister Hayward. Does any other Member wish to speak? Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker, Sy lvan Richards here.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, MP Richards, you have the floor. Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Thank you, sir. Mr. Spe aker, Opposition Members support this amendment to the Employment Act. As a result of the pandemic that we find ourselves in, the Gover nment is having to make decisions and this is one …
Yes, MP Richards, you have the floor. Mr. Sylvan D. Richards, Jr.: Thank you, sir. Mr. Spe aker, Opposition Members support this amendment to the Employment Act. As a result of the pandemic that we find ourselves in, the Gover nment is having to make decisions and this is one that we fully support. Mr. Speaker, the Act amends section 32 of the E mployment Act 2000. Section 32 states, basically in layman’s terms, that if an employee is laid off due to the unavailability of work for a period exceeding four months, then the employee must be made redundant under the Act and redundancy payments must then be made to that employee. As a result of the COVID -19 pandemic, thousands of employees Island -wide have effectively been laid off since the beginning of the state of emergency, which began April 1, 2020. Mr. Speaker, if the Act is not amended, these employees would have to be made redundant, effective June 30, 2020 and, therefore, entitled to severance pay. This would, obviously, make it financially difficult for many employers to meet their own financial obligations in this regard and could force some of these businesses to permanently close their doors. Mr. Speaker, the amendment, as a result of the impact of the COVID -19 pandemic for the period April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020, provides that references to the four -month period after which lay -offs are deemed to be a termination for redundancy do not apply to the period April 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020. The Act provides that the four -month period will come into effect June 30, 2020 and will end October 30, 2020. Mr. Speaker, we note that this is a temporary amendment that takes into account the economic i mpact of this pandemic. We also note that with the I sland slowly opening up, this amendment provides r elief, in my opinion, primarily for employers and em-ployees in the hospitality and restaurant sectors, al though it does apply across all industry sectors. So, with those comments, Mr. Speaker, I once again reiterate that we support the amendment to the Act and I will now let my fellow colleagues on this side weigh in if they choose to do so. Thank you, Mr. S peaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Would any other Honourable Member like to speak at this time? Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI recognise the Deputy Speaker. Deputy Speaker, you have the floor. Hon. Der rick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Bermuda House of Assembly I would also like to thank the Minister, Minister Hayward, for bringing this Bill to this House. As you know, it has been said that …
I recognise the Deputy Speaker. Deputy Speaker, you have the floor. Hon. Der rick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Bermuda House of Assembly I would also like to thank the Minister, Minister Hayward, for bringing this Bill to this House. As you know, it has been said that the present legislation . . . this will jus t amend it where the four -month lay-off period will start the 30th of June for a further four months. Mr. Speaker, what this Act . . . let me put it this way. Some people have abused this clause in their businesses. They will lay off people for three months or three and a half months and then call them back in order not to pay severance pay. That is som ething we must look at and try to fix —that loophole— because as much as we complain about it, it still occurs. Now, Mr. Speaker, in some collective bargai ning agreements, which the Act does not address, some agreements address issues like the pandemic that we have and it takes into consideration where you will not be liable to pay severance pay. But, let me say that severance pay is due and payable once you decide to close your business. Now, I see there is one particular guest house, hotel, that is going to sell . . . not sell, but they are closing and they had an announcement in the papers that they will pay severance pay to their emplo yees, but they are going to reopen in, I believe it is, April 2021. Now, I do know that particular guest house and those at the BIU have very good working relations with them. So, my concern there is that we have employees that have worked there for many years and once they take this severance pay, if they are called back, then they start as a brand- new employee, mean ing that their vacation entitlement will be that of a brand- new employee. So, I am just a little cautious about that because I just hope that it is not — [Crosstalk; Feedback] Hon. Derrick V. Burge ss, Sr.: —the way they are doing in order to get rid of some people [INAUDIBLE]. But I can assure you that the Bermuda Industrial U nion—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI got it. Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Okay. I know the Bermuda Industrial Union, headed by Chris Furbert, will certainly keep an eye on that. And Mr. Speaker, this Government has done a great thing for this country in dealing with this pan-demic. They quickly enacted unemployment benefits, the …
I got it.
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Okay. I know the Bermuda Industrial Union, headed by Chris Furbert, will certainly keep an eye on that. And Mr. Speaker, this Government has done a great thing for this country in dealing with this pan-demic. They quickly enacted unemployment benefits, the first we have had in this country in my lifetime and, if I [correctly] read the history, the first ever. And yes, the Minister acknowledged that some people did not get paid on time, but the Minister of Finance always came out and said—and we all believe him because it is the truth—you will be paid. There will be teething problems, and with countries that have this in their natural way of life, their normal life, they have problems. But I would venture and thank those who work [who made] sure people got their unemployment benefits, and they got them in a timely fashion. Now, let me say this here, Mr. Speaker, on this reduction in pay, a pay cut. This Government has bent over backwards to [make sure], despite the pay cut, that nobody takes home any less pay. And that is remarkable. It is remarkable because there are other employers in Bermuda where folks have taken a 10 per cent cut, some have taken a 25 per cent cut; It was announced in the papers a couple of weeks ago one company had a 50 per cent cut. And I do know that the Bermuda Industrial Union staff has taken a 40 per cent cut. And so, other employers are taking cuts in pay. Now, and I venture to say many, probably most of them in the country, there are some that probably did not have to or can afford not t o, you know, so that is what has happened, Mr. Speaker. But now, as I do understand, the unions have met with the Government and I think it was the teac hers and the BPSU, their workers have accepted . . . and I applaud them. And I thank the Bermuda Industrial Union, probably our President, reporting to their generals, and I would venture to say that I am pretty sure that would be the same result at the BIU. But there are some that [have] not —at this point —agreed to what Government has put out. I read in the papers yesterday where one particular . . . the uniform was the police and they said there were some unresolved grievances that still have to be tackled. I guess there was a reason why they have not agreed yet or whether they agree or not. But this is n ot a grievance, this is not negotiation, this is clear fact. This Government is trying to save jobs for everybody and we have people talking about grievances? This is a pandemic, you need to put those grievances aside and let us deal with what is at hand—k eeping people employed. Every government worker in this country has not received a pay cut. They are continuing to get their full pay despite whether they came to work, could not go to work, or whatever. During this pandemic, during this shutdown, they hav e received their pay. And I applaud this Government for doing that. And those that were unemployed in other areas, they all were entitled to receive a $500 a week unemployment benefit. And I would venture to say most of them got it. So, this country, this Government, is trying to save jobs, and the Minister of Finance has said that we have got a revised deficit for 2020/21 of between $275 and $315 million. Let me advise some of those uniformed service folks (I do not think they are all thinking this way) th at the government does not print money. We earn our money through foreign exchange. That is where we earn our money. So, we do not have any gold to back up printing our own money 4372 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly like some of the bigger countries who can print their money. And I applaud, again, those unions that have agreed to this arrangement that Government has come up with. This Government does not want an yone to lose jobs. We are trying to take care of all Bermudians, including some of our guest workers that we would need. So, that is w hat we are trying to do and for one to say that, you know, when you get some of these . . . I do know in the Police Service, when you consider their benefits compared to the other gover nment workers, compared to what Ms. Smith gets, there is no comparison. They get unlimited sick leave, they do not pay any health insurance, they get a housing benefit on top of many hours of overtime. And the taxpayer, Ms. Smith, who is struggling to make ends meet, she has to pay taxes in or-der to give these folks free hea lth insurance, a housing allowance, unlimited sick leave —something that most taxpayers do not get. And now, you are talking about there is some grievance to be settled? The only grievance to be settled is we are trying to save jobs for all workers. Not just some —for all workers. And some of these folks that serve in the uniformed services are from other countries. And I would venture to say that they are not getting these benefits from those countries, they are not negotiating because of the pandemic, sayi ng we’ve got some outstanding grievances before they agreed to something. They are not doing that there. And many of these folks that are here, when they r etire, they go back home where the dollar is 2 to 1 or even 2.6 to 1 and live good lives. I do not envy that. I thank you for your services. But do not hold this Government at ransom because you think that we have to have you. We have Bermudians here that can serve in the Police [Service], we have them that can serve in the Fire [and Rescue Service] and everywhere else, that are unemployed and that would love to have that job. So, let us not think that we are indispensable because Government House, the Judiciary . . . all of us share in this pay cut. The Premier said it, I think, two weeks ago, 10 days ago, on TV. Everyone will share in this pay cut. The politicians . . . all of the pol iticians have taken a 12.5 per cent cut. Ministers have taken a 15 per cent cut. You could not get better leadership than that. So, let us be fair. We are trying to save the jobs of everyone who works under this Government. Again, not one government worker has lost a dime because of this shutdown which has been caused by the pandemic. So, I am asking all, let us . . . we should be thanking the Government because [we the peopl e] have got jobs, [we have] lost nothing despite a pay cut, which just amazes . . . we have done some innovative things so you do not take home anything less. Where do you get this in any other country of the world? Where? Where millions are unemployed in the United States and other places? And we depend on the United States for most of our foreign exchange. Look at our hotel workers. Two thousand of them un-employed; their future uncertain this year. And we have got government workers guaranteed their job to this point saying that, Oh, we’ve got some issues to settle before we can agree to that . Come on, we had better start being grateful for the things we have got because we have got workers that are suffering, that do not get and are not getting what you get. And do not get me wrong because I do think we have some good people in uniform, and I think they are all good. But some of them . . . they think they can hold this Government to ransom. We will not be held ransom by anyone, particularly when we have got Bermudians who are capable of doing your job. And if you are not satisfied with our Government, then you do what you have got to do to satisfy yourselves. But I can assure you this Government should not be backing down when we have the larger unions who have agreed . . . most of them. I think the BIU . . . I am not that certain about, I know they are meeting with their generals now, as I said earlier. Now, we need to be grateful for this here. Again, as I say, Government House, Judic iary—all of them —must , will, participate in this situ ation. There is no legislation that protects them. I have read it. There is no Constitution that protects them from pay cuts. It is not in the Constitution. So, let us not go there, I have read it, seen it. The Constitution talks about an award. No, they cannot take your pension. And that is, if you are entitled to a pension when you retire, you get that. That is what is protected, not pay cuts. Mr. Speaker, with those remarks, I thank you for allowing me.
Hon. Michael H. Du nkley: Mr. Speaker, I would like to speak —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. Does any other Member wish to speak? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSo, is it MP Dunkley? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou have the floor. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, good afternoon. Bermuda House of Assembly My, my, my, my, Mr. Speaker. Now the shoe is on the other foot. Listening to the Honourable Dep uty Speaker wanting people to put a grievance aside at this point and deal with the …
You have the floor. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, good afternoon.
Bermuda House of Assembly My, my, my, my, Mr. Speaker. Now the shoe is on the other foot. Listening to the Honourable Dep uty Speaker wanting people to put a grievance aside at this point and deal with the offer that is being put in front of them . . . I find that extraordinary coming from a Labour Leader. And I certainly —
Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I certainly do not think, Mr. Speaker — Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere is a point of order. We will take a point of order. POINT OF ORDER Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker. That is not what the Honourable Member said. The Honourable Member said he wants them to put aside the grievance based on a pandemic and Bermuda …
There is a point of order. We will take a point of order.
POINT OF ORDER
Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker. That is not what the Honourable Member said. The Honourable Member said he wants them to put aside the grievance based on a pandemic and Bermuda being in a situation heretofore it has not been in. And if he is going to . . . he has to quote him [correctly]. He said “based on the pandemi c.” Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Mr. Dunkley, you have the floor, continue. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: The Honourable Member was too quick to the trigger because he cut me off on a point of order, and that is exactly where I am going. But I see no reason why grievances still cannot …
Thank you, Member. Mr. Dunkley, you have the floor, continue. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: The Honourable Member was too quick to the trigger because he cut me off on a point of order, and that is exactly where I am going. But I see no reason why grievances still cannot be considered as we go through this, Mr. Speaker. That is my point. That is my point.
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Point of order, Mr. Speaker.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: For a Labour Leader to say put a grievance aside based on the pandemic, Mr. Speaker, I find that . . . I find that quite interesting to say the least, Mr. Speaker. I, for one, Mr. Speaker —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSorry, Mr. Dunkley, I think there is another point of order from the Deputy Speaker. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker. POINT OF ORDER [Misleading ] Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Mr. Speaker, obviously, the Member is misleading the House and probably inadvertently because he really does not understand …
Sorry, Mr. Dunkley, I think there is another point of order from the Deputy Speaker.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
POINT OF ORDER [Misleading ]
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Mr. Speaker, obviously, the Member is misleading the House and probably inadvertently because he really does not understand what I said. Minister Caines made it quite clear. The only grievance we have now is saving people’s jobs. That is more important than anything, because if you do not have a job, there is no grievance.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, I clearly u nderstand. I clearly understand. And yes, we all want to protect jobs, Mr. Speaker. But the fact of the matter is, if people have a grievance, we should not just say, Well, that’s not important at this point. …
Thank you, Deputy.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker, I clearly u nderstand. I clearly understand. And yes, we all want to protect jobs, Mr. Speaker. But the fact of the matter is, if people have a grievance, we should not just say, Well, that’s not important at this point. If they believe it is, it is. And the Gov ernment has to deal with it in the appropriate way, Mr. Speaker. And I do not want to get sidetracked with this because I find it interesting coming from a Labour Leader. And I certainly am not going to sit here today, in a virtual session of Parliament, Mr. Speaker —
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Point or order, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere is another point of order. I will take your point of order. POINT OF ORDER Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Let me say this here to you, Mr. Dunkley. Labour Leaders are not subject to certain language or words they can use . . . or feelings. We deal …
There is another point of order. I will take your point of order.
POINT OF ORDER
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Let me say this here to you, Mr. Dunkley. Labour Leaders are not subject to certain language or words they can use . . . or feelings. We deal with common sense and principle. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: That is not a point of order. That i s an opinion, Mr. Speaker, and you know, I accept his opinion, but it is not a point of order.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerJust accept it and let us move forward. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, I accept his opinion, but it is not a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I am not going to sit here in this debate today and criticise the Police Service or any emergency services who worked through …
Just accept it and let us move forward. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, I accept his opinion, but it is not a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I am not going to sit here in this debate today and criticise the Police Service or any emergency services who worked through the loc kdown . . . tirelessly, to serve the community. They put themselves at risk to serve the community. In the be-ginning of the pandemi c they were subject to the fear of the unknown, of not knowing how this COVID -19 would spread. They worked day and night to serve us. Some got injured in serving us —drastically injured— as we saw earlier this week, Mr. Speaker. So, I am not here to criticis e the Police Service or the Bermuda Regiment —any of our health care providers. We need their service and they have done a good job. We are here today to debate this Employment Act 2020, Mr. Speaker. And as I start my comments 4374 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly on it, I think we need to nev er forget that we have two primary concerns in dealing with this. We have the health pain and we have the economic pain. The health pain, Mr. Speaker, we have done a commendable job to date of pushing it back, of deal-ing with COVID -19, of containing its spread and now, almost, to the verge of eliminating it. But we lost brothers and sisters along the way, unfortunately. But that health pain could still potentially be there for people because if we are not vigilant, if we do not wear our masks, if we do not social distancing, if we do not practice good hygiene, if we do not take personal r esponsibility, that health pain could come back. So, while in the beginning we really struggled with the unknown of this virus, and now we seem to contain this health pain, we are still not . . . we cannot rest on our laurels, because we have seen it flare up in other countries around the world in very serious situations to this day, as I speak, Mr. Speaker. So, we have the health pain, the health pain which has impacted all of us in the community because it put 10,000 people in the lay -off position— 10,000 people in the lay -off position. And now, Mr. Speaker, while we still have the remnants of the health pain which could flare up again, we have an economic pain. And I speak today, Mr. Speaker, not being critical. Some Government Members might consider it critical, but I am not being critical. I am being a realist here. We have economic pain, which at this point in time, while we take measures to try to alleviate that pain, to try to protect Bermudians, to try to protect jobs, to try to give people hope moving forward, the economic pain is just starting. And why do I say that, Mr. Speaker? I say that because the prognosis for the next 9 or 10 months, until we get to, perhaps, A pril of next year, is looking bleak. That is a reality. Even some Government Members have said that. I think in a statement earlier today one Government Minister referred to 10 months, Mr. Speaker. And so, we have an economic pain that is just commencing. And so, we are going to have to take a lot of steps to protect jobs to help our people— the government sector, the private sector, all our people. And Mr. Speaker, the private sector is hurting more now than the government sector. Because, as the Deputy Spe aker said before me, the [government] sector has been fully employed, even when they were working from home or unable to work. But the private sector, from day one, has taken the pain and conti nues to take the pain. And what does that mean throughout our community? It means that throughout our community that people are living in fear of the unknown because now we have a better understanding of how we can push COVID back by doing simple things, like wearing our mask and things I have already mentioned. People now are living in the fear of what happens next in our community. When can I get back to work? How is my place of employment going to be able to cope over the next 9 or 10 months? Are people going to want to come back to Bermuda? Is it going to be suffi cient enough to drive the business in our hotels, in our res-taurants, taxi drivers, with the transportation industry? We already know cruise ships are probably not coming back this year because they have been pushed back to October and November and then our season goes quiet because we are in the North Atlantic and it is not conducive to calm travelling across the ocean to get here. So, people now are living in fear of the u nknown of what happens with the economy. They are living in concern of where we go. And Mr. Speaker, I understand the challenges that Government is going through. There is no sure fix. But we need to consider every option we can to help us get over this hump. We need to have these constructive debates where we can go forward and come up with solutions. Because what we are doing here today with the Employment Act, while we support this, just says to me, Mr. Speaker, what next? It says what next because it is not going to get us until April of next year. There is no way it is going to get us until April of next year. And when the Government says that no one has taken a pay cut, they are playing smoke and mirrors, Mr. Speaker. We have alleviated the payment of pensions for the next year, Mr. Speaker, that is how we have done it. Now, you kno w, that is a reasonable way to do it. The Opposition has supported that. But we are using pensions right now — Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker. Point of order, Mr. Speaker. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: —we are using pensions right now and what happens later, Mr. Speaker?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHonourable Member, there is a point of order. POINT OF ORDER [Misleading] Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker. The Member is misleading the House. The use of the term “the Government is playing smoke and mirrors” has a negative connotation and the last time we met you chastised …
Honourable Member, there is a point of order.
POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
Hon. Wayne Caines: Point of order, Mr. Speaker. The Member is misleading the House. The use of the term “the Government is playing smoke and mirrors” has a negative connotation and the last time we met you chastised a Member that used it at that time, the terminology “smoke and mirrors.” It is not appropriate language to be using with reference to a plan to make austerity cuts for the ben-efit of the people of Bermuda. To use the term “smoke and mirrors,” Mr. Speaker, is unfortunate.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister. Member, please be mindful of the fact that in your same comments you did say that you agreed with the efforts that the Government was making to try Bermuda House of Assembly and get us through this economic crunch. So, if you are in agreement with it, …
Thank you, Minister. Member, please be mindful of the fact that in your same comments you did say that you agreed with the efforts that the Government was making to try
Bermuda House of Assembly and get us through this economic crunch. So, if you are in agreement with it, you cannot be calling it smoke and mirrors and be negative about it.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Oh, yes —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerEveryone has got to share in this launch of trying to get us through this. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I agree, Mr. Speaker. But you mentioned two separate things. What I talked about when I used “smoke and mirrors” . . . and I will not use that if that …
Everyone has got to share in this launch of trying to get us through this. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I agree, Mr. Speaker. But you mentioned two separate things. What I talked about when I used “smoke and mirrors” . . . and I will not use that if that is offensive to the Member. I do not think it is offensive to the . . . those words are certainly not derogatory. But the Government says all the time no one is taking a pay cut. Well, if no one is taking a pay cut, how are we saving money to move us forward? We are kicking the can down the road because we are using the pensions. And if that is the way they want to go, well then that is fine. But r emember, somebody is going to have to pay later on down the road. Somebody is going to have to pay later on down the road. That is the reality that we face, Mr. Speaker. So, I will not allow Government to use la nguage that casts it in a different way because no one is taking a pay cut . They are just not paying into pe nsions. And some people will have to make it up. And we know people are grieved about t his because I have seen tapes, videos going around, of people in meetings talking about their pensions and what might happen to them and their family and their children. So, I get that. The fact is, Mr. Speaker, this Act here today — the Employment Act —push es the can down the road, or is just a triage bandage and here is why, Mr. Speaker. Because having said that it is going to be 9 or 10 months more until we see improvement, there might be small improvement over the coming months. But I cannot see where it is going to be significant i mprovement because our flight schedule is still rather thin coming in. It might pick up. Our biggest trading partner, where all our flights come from, is right in the middle of a pandemic, maybe even the second wave. So we have to be very cautious about accepting vis itors in. Bermudians are still very concerned. Some Bermudians are still very concerned about the airport opening up and I understand that. But Mr. Speaker, I also understand that we have to open up, and we can open up safely. But Mr. Speaker, bearing in mind that we have all [ AUDIO SKIP] the next 9 or 10 months are going to be very tough. And if anybody disagrees, I will take a point of order with that. This four -month . . . this deferment for the months of April, Ma y and June, pushes the can down the road, or is just a triage bandage because what happens at the end of October, Mr. Speaker? What happens at the end of October, Mr. Speaker, when we get to the month of November, when traditionally our hotels start really pulling back? And we do not know what is going to be the case this year b ecause we will probably have less business than in a normal year, so the pullback could be even more. So, what happens in November, December, January, Fe bruary, the real bleak months of the winter? What happens to the taxi drivers? What happens to people in transportation? What happens to the hospitality wor kers? What happens to the hotel workers? And, Mr. Speaker, we should not forget that every Bermudian business —bar a small handful —is directly impacted by COVID -19 in a serious way. So, all of those businesses are going to struggle. So, doing what we are doing here today, Mr. Speaker, we support it. But in my view, we are going to have come back in a couple of months’ time and do something else. And so, I ask the Government now . . . we support these initiatives; we support the u nemployment benefit. When Government said it was put together in six or seven hours, we were not overly critical about that because we knew something had to be done. But Mr. Speaker, now, we have caught our breath, we understand. We understand what COVID - 19 is. We understand how we can . . . instead of wai ting for COVID -19 to come after us and figure it out, we understand how we can go back and push back COVID -19 and deal with it. We understand now how we can protect our vulnerable. We understand how we can protect our seniors. We understand how we can run a hospital. We understand how we, as Bermudians, can protect ourselves. We also understand how we can move about the community more and Government has done a reasonable job with all of that in pushing people in the right direction, and we in the Opposition have supported that. But Mr. Speaker, now we have to understand the gravity of the economic crisis that w e face. And the Government needs to say, Okay, well here is our next plan . You know, the Economic Committee that was put forward to discuss this with some fanfare, we have heard very little about it. And I understand that because they are probably . . . they are grappling with a serious situation. And it is probably a hard, a real hard challenge for them to find common ground to move forward, Mr. Speaker. So, today we will support the Employment Act, but what happens in October? What happens in November? Because right now while people are going back to work, and people will trickle back to work, the trickle is going to stop. And so, what happens when the unemployment benefit ends at the end of this month? What happens when hotels do not open up like many people in the community expect them to open up because they know it is not going to be viable for them to do it? What does a taxi driver do? Taxis, you know, TCD is looking for taxi drivers to renew their licences now. So, what happens then? What happens to all the people involved in transportation 4376 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly and the minibuses? What happens to the hotels, the restaurants, that are going to try to open up and Bermudians are going to be reticent about going out, one, because they are still concerned about the health cr isis, and two, they do not have the money to spend? Yes, we have allowed people to tap into their pensions to save, you know, to help them get through, to pay their bills and to keep a roof over the heads and take care of their families, Mr. Speaker. And I do not look at that . . . the Government has said this is a “stimulus” to the economy. I do not like that terminol ogy. And I will not say what I said earlier about it, but it is not good terminology. Allowing that is to keep Bermudians from really struggling more than they are nowadays, it is allowing them to have some decency in life to buy some groceries, to do some of the things they have to do in life. It is not a stimulus. It is to live, Mr. Speaker. You know, and I am not being critical. I am saying it again, I am being real. And I am not being negative because I do have hope. I know we can get through this situation, but we need to stop looking at these temporary fixes and look at something that will get us to next spring, look at something that will get us into April and May, Mr. Speaker. Because we should . . . I do not want to come back and amend this legi slation, because it just pushes it down the road. It is a triage bandage. So, I am asking the Government here today, while we support this, what is t he plan? What is the plan? How are we going to get Bermudians through? We have asked a number of times about the unemployment benefit and the Minister, while I am sure they are discussing it, says Well, we’ll let you know when the time comes. But, you know , don’t you think that the thousands of Bermudians, Mr. Speaker, who are getting the benefit now, want to know? Because they have only got one or two payments left and are thinking, What next? What next? Thousands of them [are] not going back to their jobs . So, everyone in Bermuda is struggling and these things, while they help, while people appreciate them, we need to start looking at the bigger picture because this thing is not going anywhere for a while. And as leaders in the community . . . and I behove the Government. Let us look at this to get us to March and April and we will all be better off because people have had enough of uncertainty. People have been locked down. They have come out of the lockdown, many people, depressed about things. Their live lihood has been taken away from them. Their movement has been taken away from them. They have been stuck with family for longer periods of time than they are used to, so we have seen a rise in domestic violence. We have seen behaviours change because of that, Mr. Speaker. If we could show that we are going to get through this and here’s the long- term plan, I think people would have some comfort. Now, Mr. Speaker, I do not think I have said this publicly yet, but in January of 2020, to me, one of the bigges t challenges we faced in Bermuda was the size of our debt and the continued government deficit. That is not our biggest challenge right now, Mr. Speaker. Our biggest challenge right now is making sure that Bermudians can see a better 2021 and we need to ha ve a plan. And if the deficit this year is going to be $275 million or $350 million, I support the Government doing that as long as we spend that money to help our people, Mr. Speaker. They are hurting, and I would expect every Government Member to rally t oday and show what that plan is going to be. Give us some specifics. The Opposition Leader sits down with the Premier every week. We are willing to talk and get through this. But we cannot wait . . . Oh, well, we don’t know what’s going to happen with the benefit when it ends in a couple weeks’ time. We haven’t decided yet. We’ll tell you when we’re ready to tell you. Mr. Speaker, that is not good enough! People are struggling and each one of us is hit up every day, Mr. Speaker, with this stru ggle. People c all us all. So, we all know how real it is. It is not just Michael Dunkley talking here. All 36 Members of Parliament are getting the same challenge, Mr. Speaker. And so, let us put some more meat on the bone of this plan and let us stop these triage fixes, which we support 100 per cent. We need to bring some comfort to our people or we will continue to see our people really upset about the way things are going. We need to show them there is hope at the end of the tunnel by the actions we do. Thank you, Mr . Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, okay. Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Michael A. Weeks: So, Mr. Speaker, thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Weeks, you have the floor.
Mr. Michael A. WeeksI would like to start by saying, Mr. Speaker, that I commend—oh, I never said th ank you. I would like to start off, Mr. Speaker, by commending our Labour Minister for bringing this amendment so swiftly, and, by extension, our government for continually working hard and diligently and cour …
I would like to start by saying, Mr. Speaker, that I commend—oh, I never said th ank you. I would like to start off, Mr. Speaker, by commending our Labour Minister for bringing this amendment so swiftly, and, by extension, our government for continually working hard and diligently and cour ageously, Mr. Speaker, in making sure that we answer the call of our people. Obviously, Mr. Speaker, we are going to get naysayers, you know, and think that we should do more. But, we, as a Government, our Cab inet, is doing an excellent job and I take my hat off to the Premier and his team. Mr. Speaker, I also wholeheartedly agree with our Deputy, you know, that we all must be in this thing together. And those, unfortunately, that do not want to be a part of it and they are not necessarily from here, well, now that our airport is open, they could tak e that option. Mr. Speaker, these are really some unprec edented times. And as I have been working on the frontline at a helping agency feeding many of those who have been affected by COVID -19, this amendment, this initiative by our Labour Minister, is goi ng to give a lot of people solace, Mr. Speaker. We know there is more to be done, but when you get up there on that frontline and hear people talking who are hungry, most of them want to get back to work, Mr. Speaker. Most of them want to take care of themselves. So, when they hear of this kind of initiative, it could take out some of the fear that they are experiencing, Mr. Speaker —fear of never being able to get back to work, fear of being made redundant, fear of . . . some of them fear the age that they are. If they are made redundant they will not be able to get another job. So, let’s not keep preaching doom and gloom ( those who feel more comfortable doing that) . We know we have got a task ahead of us. I take my hat off to the Labour Minister for his cour ageous stance, Mr. Speaker. And, as we go forward, I know that many of those that this is going to affect are going to be grateful, just as grateful, Mr. Speaker, as the unemployment benefit that our Government put in place. When you hear these residents of ours (I should not say “these”. . . our residents) . . . when you are on the frontline feeding them and filling their bags, how grateful they are for the things that this Gover nment is doing or attempting to do. It was nothing that was planned, but the y have risen to the occasion. So, Mr. Speaker, as I take my seat, again I say, Well done, Minister, and you have our support. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Weeks. MP Pearman, do you still want to speak at this time?
Mr. Scott Pearma nYes, Mr. Speaker, I am just tur ning on my video for you.
Mr. Scott PearmanThank you, Mr. Speaker. I think it is helpful just to give a little bit of context to what is actually being done today in the House, what we are actually doing. Most of those in the Chamber will be aware that we are amending the Employment Act 2000. The …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I think it is helpful just to give a little bit of context to what is actually being done today in the House, what we are actually doing. Most of those in the Chamber will be aware that we are amending the Employment Act 2000. The Employment Act 2000 is the primary piece of law in Bermuda dictating the relationship between employers and employees. And it is a funny Act. It is not really the best -worded Act. There is a lot of difficulty with it. People have difficulty interpreting it. There have been lots of arguments over it, what it means, what it does not say, what it should say. And our former Chief Justice, Ian Kawal ey, gave a decision in Mitchell where he tried to trace back the origins of the Act and figure out where it came from and how it got to be where it was. And, no doubt, MP Famous may appreciate that it came from the CARICOM Model Harmonisation Act. So, it i s a gift to Bermuda from CARICOM and, before that, Chief Justice Kawaley chased it back to the I nternational Labor Organization. It does what it says on the tin, it talks employment in Bermuda. And what we are looking at today is a little section tucked away in the back called section 32. And before COVID , nobody really paid attention to section 32. And the reason for that is that section 32 was really directed at seasonal workers; but seasonal workers in jurisdictions to the south of us where, when there was the low season, workers, say , in hot els or otherwise, would just take a series of months off. And it was in the interest of the employers in ensuring that when these down times occurred they would get their hotel workers back, and it was in the interest of the employees that they knew that, even though they were having some down time, this lay -off, they would have a job at the end of it. And in order to make sure there was not any funny business at the end of the lay-off peri od—here in Bermuda it is a four month lay - off period—at the end of the lay -off period, if the employer does not bring the employee back to work, then there is severance pay payable. The job terminates and the employee receives severance pay. So, it is a balance. The section was int ended as a balance to allow employers some space to breath during the down time, during the seasonal break, to allow employees to know, if they wanted it, there would still be a job there come the high season return and, also, to allow employees, if the job came to an end, to get the proper protection of a severance pay. So, section 32 is really a section intended to pr o4378 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly tect those workers’ rights. At the same time the e mployer gets benefit. And that is interesting to note because our Premier, two days ago, made the statement that we are not going to use this pandemic to relax protections on workers. Now, I leave it to you to decide whether or not this change is a relaxation of a protection for a worker. Most people see this change to section 32 as being a “pro-business” (quote/unquote) change, as being something that the Chamber of Commerce called for and is being brought in. It seems to me, per-sonally, it is more of a balance. I see benefits to both sides. So, what are we actually doing? What we are doing is saying that that four month lay -off period . . . and pausing for a minute, the word “lay -off” can be a bit confusing because when we talk about lay -offs (if we are sitting around the pub or a bar, we say so -andso got laid off) you usually think of that as meaning they have lost their job altogether. But that is not what lay-off means in this context. Lay -off in this context is more like what we think here in Bermuda as a furlough; it is a temporary cessation. And so, what is this Act doing? This Act, t his amendment Act is just changing section 32 of the pr imary Employment Act, of the law as it is in Bermuda, and it is saying, Hey, here’s a three- month period — April, May and June— and we had COVID, so we are not going to count April, May and June as months that relate to section 32. They will not count at all . So, if you are an employee and you were laid off in March or April, May, June, et cetera, the protections in section 32 are not going to kick in for you. They will only commence on the 1 st of July and onwards for a four -month period. Now, that is a good thing for businesses because, as the Honourable Deputy Speaker mentioned (I think it was him) companies might not have to shut down by reason of the cost of these payments. And it is a mixed blessing f or employees. On the one hand it is positive for employees because it gives another four months where employers might be able to continue to employ them. On the other hand, it is certainly a r elaxation of a protection to them because were it not for this a mendment, come the 1 st of August, they would gain severance pay. They now will not gain severance pay. So, I think it is important to be straight about what this is doing and not try to spin it and just let us recognise what it is doing. So, yes, it is a relaxation of a protection for workers; but it is a relaxation of a protection for wor kers that might be for their benefit. Let me also just say that this is a bit of a missed opportunity for the Government. We absolut ely support this amendment. But it is a shame that when you came to look at section 32 you did not take the opportunity to do a bit more with it, because it is a badly worded section. It makes clear that there is a lay-off period of four months. But it does not say one thing about what is paya ble during those four months. It does not say anything. It does not say salary is pa yable. It does not say salary is not payable. It does not talk about benefits; it does not talk about health insurance, pensions, payroll tax, social insurance. So there i s a big question mark out there right now, for lawyers, for people, for businesses, for employees. What does this section mean? And when you grapple with it, unfortunately, you have to say, Well, we don’t really know, because it is not very clear, because it is not very good law. And that is unfortunate because there was an opportunity here, when making this amendment, to fix this section and to make very clear what a lay -off means. Does a lay -off mean a temporary suspension from work where no pay is payabl e and no benefits are payable? Does it mean no pay is payable, but you still have to continue ben efits? Many, many, employers on our Island, quite rightly and properly, sought to continue to pay health insurance during COVID lay -offs. And that was the right thing to do. They probably were not legally obliged to do it because it does not say anything about that in section 32. And they should be commended that at this difficult time they maintained health insurance for their workers. But it is a shame, it is a missed opportunity, as I say, because all that was necessary is to consider and define what a lay -off meant so that we all know, well, it does not mean you pay, but you still get certain benefits, or you do not get certain benefits. But at least we know . And, unfort unately, as we have not clarified it, I fear that there will be some litigation after this and we will have to wait and see what the courts say about it. Mr. Speaker, one of the speakers earlier t oday, the Honourable Deputy Speaker of the Hous e Derrick Burgess, made two observations in his speech that I cannot leave un- responded to. He started to stray off the topic of what we are focusing on today and got into the notion of pay cuts. And he said that this Government is “remarkable” —and that was his word—because they are going to give a pay cut wit hout anything less going home in someone’s takehome salary. And then he said, and this is a quote too, “we’ve done new and innovative things.” Well, the innovative thing is that you are having a pay cut, it is just a pay cut from your pension. It may not hit you now in your take- home pay, but your pension is going down because of it. So, we are kic king the can down the road. We are not dealing with it here and now. So, if that is innovative, it is innovative. It is good for people? I respectfully do not think so. The second thing the Honourable Deputy Speaker said is that Government does not print mon-ey. And I agree with him. Government does not print money. But then he went on to say governments earn our money through foreign exchange. Well, I would respectfully disagree with the Honourable Member. Governments do not have money. Governments are
Bermuda House of Assembly given the people’s money and they are given the people’s money to spend wisely. There are not concepts of Gov ernment money. It is not Government’s money; it is always the people’s money. Mr. Speaker, let me finish with a practical point, if I may. And I just make it because it was a little odd to me when I looked at this. I was expecting to see a longer period of carve -out than the 1st of April to the 30th of June. Now, the Governm ent has decided to give a three month carve- out. Now, that is fine. Obv iously, that is for the Government to decide and we support the Bill. But I just would issue this word of warning. There were some in Bermuda who because of their concern over the health issues of COVID, access of the public or otherwise, actually started to lay off workers prior to the 1st of April. There were lay -offs occurring in March. Likewise, this amendment only goes to the 30th of June. So, if your worker is still si tting at home for the last three days, this Act does not apply to you anymore. And I just highlight that because if you are an employer in Bermuda, or an employee in Bermuda, you do need to look at what the situation was in March and what the situation is in July so that you do not get tripped up by thinking that this Bill obviates any need to deal with the lay -off situation. Any portion of March where there was a lay -off, or any portion of July or August where there is a lay -off, will now come back within the provisions of section 32. And, therefore, they will count towards the four -month period in section 32. And I think that is an important point about which people should be aware so that we do not get any surprised employers or disgruntled employees. Just as a high- level conclusion, Mr. Speaker, we do support this. It is a sensible change. It is good to see the Government listening to the Chamber of Commerce on this and this is something that the O pposition can and does support. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? An. Hon. Member: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, I see Honourable Member Ming. I see you in the camer a here. I heard two voices, would you like to go right now, Honourable Member Ming?
Mrs. Renee MingMr. Speaker and listening audience, I am pleased to have this piece of legis lation in front of me today. I think I spoke about it earlier, Mr. Speaker. We are in extraordinary times, and so I am hopeful that my colleagues who (I was going to say sit across …
Mr. Speaker and listening audience, I am pleased to have this piece of legis lation in front of me today. I think I spoke about it earlier, Mr. Speaker. We are in extraordinary times, and so I am hopeful that my colleagues who (I was going to say sit across from me) are receiving what it is because I spoke earlier and I said that w e should not be surprised to have legislation that comes before us that is, in some cases, extraordinary, being done differently, because of these times and the pandemic that we are living in. We have people, Mr. Speaker, who are suffering right now. And t he Minister told [us] in his brief that we have 9,800 employees who have been laid- off. Now, to appreciate that number, and I think I have heard it, someone said it is almost like looking at the amount of people that go down to Cup Match and i magining that all of those persons do not have a job to go to and have no form of income. So, Mr. Speaker, I think that we are well beyond doing things on a normal basis. We have an extraordinary situation, Mr. Speaker, and as a Gover nment we have to stand up, rise up, to that occasion. The Employment Act is probably one piece of legislation, Mr. Speaker, that I have enjoyed reading over the years. And I will say this here, if you go back and you look at the history of the Employment Act 2000, which at that time came under the first PLP Administration, the history of it was minimal standards of employment. Because at that time, for a country that was so developed, we did not actually have mi nimum standards of employment. And so the PLP Government at that time came up wit h these minimum standards of employment. And that is how you have the Employment Act 2000. Mr. Speaker, I heard my colleagues speaking on this. And, in principle, I am happy to see that the Opposition are supportive of the emerging legislative changes that this Government has had to do to deal with a global pandemic. But I also heard my colleague who spoke before me making reference to section 32. And his exact words were “it is badly worded.” And I just want to say this here because it has been one of my p et peeves, from my time in the Senate, Mr. Speaker, even [now] as an MP. This legislation [which is] named the Employment Act . . . the first change that we saw to the Employment Act was in 2000, and it was under the second PLP Administration. And so, we are talking almost . . . it was not quite 20 years (because we are now at 2020), but it may have been 18 years or 19 years before this legislation was touched. And so, I can take it that my colleague feels that this particular section is badly worded, but t here were opportunities for previous administrations to touch this legislation as well. And I am hopeful that as a Government we even take this legislation and do more to make it r obust, to make it more evolving and even dynamic for the times that we are l iving in, because this piece of legislation, in terms of the Employment Act, Mr. Speaker, is huge. It has so many pieces in it that actually provide protection for our workers. And my per-sonal view on it, Mr. Speaker, is that it is what I call a work -in-progress legislation. It should always be 4380 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly changing, we should always be adding to it. We will always be looking at it because as markets change, trends change, jobs —all of that —then the piece of legislation that is attached to our employment should be changi ng as well, Mr. Speaker. So, I do want to say that when the Minister spoke, he spoke about protecting employers and employees. And I think that this is what this change sought to do. It is not a major piece of legislation. We are not looking at hundreds of pages or anything like that, Mr. Speaker. We are looking at two pages. But the protection that the Minister spoke about, to me, that is also what is expected of this Government. We are a Labour Government, and we would be looking to protect employees and employers, Mr. Speaker. I know that a lot of the things that we have done since coming into this pandemic, the people have appreciated. There is no way we would not mention the unemployment benefit payments because to someone who has zero income, knowing t hat they can have a pay cheque— whether it be large, small or whatever —coming in on a weekly basis from the Bermuda Government . . . do you know what that would mean? Like if you had zero and you may now have $500, it may not be the panacea to pay every single thing that you have got going on, but it gives you something to at least put food on the table and maybe pay some other bills, Mr. Speaker. So, I can understand that some people think that we should be doing more, and they may come up with these vast plans and stuff like that. But one thing I am going to say is that there is no manual —there was no manual, there is no manual —on how to nav igate through a global pandemic. And I think that as a Government we are doing the best we can. And we would be foolhardy if we did not think that at times we may make a mistake. But Mr. Speaker, as long as our decisions are in the best interests of our people and the legislation that we bring here is in the best interests of Bermuda and her people, again, I think that ev en from an O pposition perspective you have to admit that we are doing a good job. So, Mr. Speaker, my comments are not even going to be long on this. This is, again, necessary leg-islation, Mr. Speaker, which provides relief, assi stance, and reduces some of the stress that we have out there. I thank the Minister and his team for bringing it. And I just hope that as we move forward we see more necessary changes that can come to the E mployment Act, and that as we navigate this pandemic we are reminded that we can put aside our politics sometimes for the best interests of our country. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP Furbert, yes, you have the floor.
Mrs. Tinee FurbertThank you, Mr. Speaker. I just wanted to chime in on this topic because I have had many constituents reach out to me in r egard to this. And the Minister would know that I have sent him emails about it because I guess people just want clarity in regard …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just wanted to chime in on this topic because I have had many constituents reach out to me in r egard to this. And the Minister would know that I have sent him emails about it because I guess people just want clarity in regard to their employment status. Often when we are thinking about legislation or looking at legislation, we have to consider whether or not the legislation is good for Bermuda, whether or not it is good for Bermudians. And guess what, Mr. Speaker? This piece of legislation also applies to our guest workers as well. So, it is a good piece of legisl ation. The Employment Amendment Act 2020 is a good piece of legislation in which this Government has tried to find balance because, look, we all know it is hard times. It is hard times economically, and health wise, globally, all over the world. And like my previous colleague said, there is no handbook for this. We have never, ever, been through COVID -19 before. And we all hope and pray that the measures that we have had to put in place are temporary ones. The previous colleague also mentioned that it is temporary legislation. Would we like to see som ething long- term? Yes! We would like to see something long-term. But we also must take baby steps because we know that COVID -19 was unprecedented . . . we do not know . . . everybody is up in arms in regard to the uncertainty of it all. Things may get better; things may not get better. But this is a Government that is willing to work with its people. This came out with the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce and probably other businesses due to the concern of having to pay r edundancy pay. So we are a Government that listens. We brought legislation today to try to address this. Now, come October we will have to look at this again. I am sure we will look at this again to try to help our people. We know that the loss of a job cr eates much trauma in people’s lives —not having access to income— which is why we have taken steps, Mr. Speaker. We have taken . . . you know, we talk about what is next? As a Government, we have taken steps to alleviate pension [payments] to try to save us money, to give the people and businesses the opportunity to not pay social insurance, to not pay into pensions. We have opened up our pension benefits for our people. We have supplied unemployment benefits and we are actually looking to extend the unemplo yment benefit and, I am sure, should there be a need for us to look at that further, we are committed t o looking at that further. So, we are a Government that is thinking about our people. There are many countries out there, Mr. Speaker, who are in a predicament. [They are not] able to offer such things to their people. And so, we should be very grateful t hat we have these great peoBermuda House of Assembly ple, our teams, who are coming up with these ideas to be able to alleviate some of the stress and the burden that is caused to our people during this difficult time of COVID -19. I was listening intently to everyone, particularly, MP Pearman when he spoke a little bit about the history of how the change that we are making today had come into effect. And I remember as a young girl my mom used to work for the hotel. And she used to come home and tell us how she had been laid off. And we always understood “ laid off” to mean it was temporary, it was seasonal, the hotel was slower and so she had to be laid off for a period of time. But it meant that it was temporary and that she was going to go back to work. And I am sure what this legi slation was intended to do was to provide a medium, a security for our workers with the term of “laid off.” I would be curious to know if “laid off” is a global term that we use. But “laid off” was a temporary term, because I always knew Mom was going to go back. She was a good worker in the hotel and she was going to go back to work once the season picked back up. Member Pearman also mentioned that we should have taken the opportunity to make other changes. And as a Government we have made many, many, cha nges to lots of our legislation as it relates to COVID -19. All sorts of legislation has been changed already to try to meet some of our people’s needs as they relate to COVID -19. So, we are not opposed . . . we are actually going to be looking at the Emplo yment Act a little bit more in hopes of making further amendments. Member Renee Ming spoke about how this particular Act brings passion to her, and she is quite involved in it. And I would like to just add myself to that because we also previously put for ward changes that we felt should be included in this particular Act. This is a very important Act for us as a Labour Party; a very important Act. And so, we know that this is not the last time that we will probably hear about amendments to the Employment A ct, but this was a necessary, urgent matter that we had to deal with at this time in trying to create a fair balance for our emplo yers and to create a fair balance for our employees. But what I do want to mention also is that it is my hope that employers do not play with employees. Meaning, I hope that they come to their employees and they are upfront with information; that they communicate well with them so that they are not left hanging in the air, because not communicating, Mr. Speaker, creates a lot of uncertainty as well. So I plead with employers to be upfront with their employees on whether or not this is a true lay -off or whether or not it is being redundant because they are having those conversations. I am sure businesses are looking at their books and they are trying to figure out whether or not they are going to make it. But we must . . . you must take the opportunity to explain to your employees what’s what, what those books are looking like. Do not give people false hopes either. Do not have t hem hanging on to false hopes. Be upfront. People understand that it is hard. It is hard, yes. I am not denying that. But employers must also be upfront with their employees. The redundancy portion in the Employment Act I feel also needs some cleaning up because it leaves employees not secure, in my opinion. For i nstance, it does not sometimes allow for valid reasons why an employee would be made redundant. And sometimes employers make people redundant be-cause (and they don’t admit it) they just do not fit in or it is some sort of personality characteristic that is just not working. And so employers will use this piece of legislation to terminate someone. And I still feel like there needs to be so much clarity and support for employees in these types of sit uations. But we are hopeful and, you know, I hope that our citizens are hopeful that these are temporary times. And I know that our Government is working very hard for the protection of our people, because we hear it all the time. People are not happy wi th some of the decisions that we make because they are so stri ngent. But our Government has our people’s health and this economic crisis at heart. We often hear about how we are trying to balance this economic crisis and this health crisis. And this is a v ery real, real thing. Som etimes I do not understand it, Mr. Speaker. But I can only be hopeful, and I am hoping that my colleagues can continue to give our community hope because we are going to be experiencing some very, very hard times going forward. So, I am thankful. I am thankful that our Government has considered the things that they have considered. And, again, I just want to reiterate to our people that many countries —many countries —do not have available to them what our Government is ma king availa ble to its people. COVID -19 testing . . . I have to reiterate this. We hear of visitors trying to come to Bermuda, people returning back saying how difficult it is to get access to COVID -19 testing within the timeframe in which we are requesting it. But here we are in Bermuda, and we have access. I can just pop down to Shelly Bay MarketPlace and go get a COVID -19 test. How grateful I am for that opportunity. So, I support this piece of legislation. I am looking forward to further changes to this legislation, Mr. Speaker, and I am just hopeful that with this balance that we have tried to create for our employers and our employees that this change will also be appreciated. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak?
Mr. Ben SmithYes, Mr. Speaker. 4382 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly The Speaker: Yes, it sounds like MP Smith?
Mr. Ben SmithSo, Mr. Speaker, I would like to start off by echoing the sentiments of my colleagues in that we support this amendment. But Mr. Speaker, I guess what I want to say is this little carve -out that we are going to do over this three- month period is something …
So, Mr. Speaker, I would like to start off by echoing the sentiments of my colleagues in that we support this amendment. But Mr. Speaker, I guess what I want to say is this little carve -out that we are going to do over this three- month period is something of a stopgap b ecause of all of the issues that are happening presently because of what has happened with COVID and the impact that it has had on our economy. The reality is that there are a lot of businesses in Bermuda that were struggling prior to COVID and this has put them on the brink and, in many cases it has already pushed them over. I believe that our country has gone into survival mode and it is important to understand the rel ationship between the employees and the employers. So, this particular amendment is really trying to help the employers to s tay alive a little bit longer, which will allow them to potentially employ their employees in the future. Many employers have been waiting for the opportunity for the economy to open up more, and as we moved into phase 4 there would be a little bit of hope that they would see some changes and potentially be able to bring their workers back, and in some cases, be able to actually just start doing business again. But it is difficult because, as you go around Bermuda, you do see more activity, but is it a lev el of activity which actually allows a business to survive? So, it is a balancing act where they are trying to make a decision whether , if they open their doors and take the risk that, as they bring everybody back, they are now put ting themselves on the c ountdown clock . How long can the busines s survive under the conditions that are now available? Some companies have already made the decision to close their doors and pay the redundancy pay. But understand that this is not an easy decision. When somebody makes a decision that they are going to start a business, and goes through all of the hoops that they have to go through to start a business —that is their blood, sweat and tears that went into trying to make something happen and, with that, employ a lot of Bermudians. So when that decision is made that they are going to close their doors . . . that is an extremely difficult decision. The impact on the people of our community, from the employer’s perspective and the employees’ perspective . . . we all have t o be really understanding of the position that we are in at the moment. The decisions that are being made to carve this portion out is putting a bandage over a problem that is extremely large. Both our citizens in our country and our employers of small to medium -sized bus inesses have, potentially, over this three- month period, had deferment of their rental or, in some cases, hopefully, they have had a situation where the landlord has actually said, We’re not going to charge you rent over this period of time. They have had deferrals of their BELCO bills and of their Internet and cell phone [bills by their] providers. But we have already started to see that some of those relief benefits have started to change. So now we are going to get cut -offs and shut - offs. So, as we are in this position where we are talking about this relief for the last three months, which is an important piece because of the anxiety that has been built up by the employers, and with the employees not being sure whether the businesses that they were working for prior to this are going to survive, which is going to potentially mean that they are not going to have the jobs that they were having to support themselves prior to this . . . we have to understand that there are a lot of factors that are going on at this very moment, as we have moved into July and those bills are starting to come home. And, so far, the decisions that have been made are for us to go into our piggy banks. We are making adjustments to our pension, which is for our future. And I understand that these are unprecedented times, and we are having to make decisions that no one thought we were going to have to make. But at some point we are going to have to put some plans in place, or at least discuss some plans about how we are going to stimulate the economy so that we can start to pay back these bills that we are going to be accumulating as a country as we are in this survival mode. Because at some point we will have borrowed all that we can borrow, and our citizens will have r aided their pensions as much as they possibly can. And if we do not have a plan for how we are going to be able to get our country back on track, get our citizens back to work, allow businesses to be able to not just survive, but thrive, which will mean that they can employ more people and pay them the benefits that ever ybody has been talking about them getting, then we will be in the real trouble that we can see on the horizon. We are in that position right now. We know that the storm is coming, and we hav e that anxiety across our entire country because it is before the storm. We have had the health storm, but the financial one is the one that we are all looking at. And these decisions right now are just hoping that boarding up the windows is enough. But we are going to have to have a lot more and [we need to] focus on a real plan for how we are going to stimulate the economy to move forward, or the storm that is about to come may have results much worse than what the health problem has been under these COVI D times that we have just gone through and, potentially, will continue to go through. Because for all the things that have happened locally with our health under COVID and now
Bermuda House of Assembly with the economy under COVID, the return of more COVID cases could really wipe o ut the businesses that have been holding on and trying to survive. So, yes, we are in agreement with the amendment. But this is just a step, just a piece to cover up where we are right now. We are going to have to start to move towards a plan on how we are going to stimulate our economy and move forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. You have the floor . Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. I just have a very, very — [Pause]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHonourable Member Pamplin, you have the floor. [Feedback] Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. I just [ INAUDIBLE ] comment to make and that is on the fact that I believe that colleagues on both sides have expressed the major concerns that our population is experiencing throughout the …
Honourable Member Pamplin, you have the floor.
[Feedback] Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you, sir. I just [ INAUDIBLE ] comment to make and that is on the fact that I believe that colleagues on both sides have expressed the major concerns that our population is experiencing throughout the practicality of this change in the new norm, the change in what has become the new norm. But we have got some specific challenges that have obtained inasmuch as the Employment Act as it presently exists before t oday’s amendment provided for — [Feedback]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP, we seem to be losing you, [you are] in and out. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: —in some i nstances — [Feedback]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI know this morning you were very clear. I do not know if it has been affected by the weather this afternoon, but you were coming in quite clear this morning. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Probably so, Mr. Speaker. I live in Devonshire so there is no telling what …
I know this morning you were very clear. I do not know if it has been affected by the weather this afternoon, but you were coming in quite clear this morning.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Probably so, Mr. Speaker. I live in Devonshire so there is no telling what has happening down here.
[Laughter] The Speaker: I tell you the west is the better part of the Island, you know.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: I think the Honourable Member Famous says he has to go to the west side of his house in order to speak.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThere you go. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin : [INAUDIBLE] on the south side of mine. But let me just say that there is a practical challenge that has been brought to my attention, and that is t hat in some instances we have employers who looked at the existing …
There you go.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin : [INAUDIBLE] on the south side of mine. But let me just say that there is a practical challenge that has been brought to my attention, and that is t hat in some instances we have employers who looked at the existing Act and said, I’ve got a four - month period of time. So, they have communicated with their employee to say, I’m not going to bring you back. And that now, because this legislation is effectively [ INAUDIBLE] will not count, now their four - month count from July 1 st when it is known that the employee is not going to be brought back. So, I am just wondering if the Minister can perhaps speak to how this situation can be ad-dressed, if at all. It certainly cannot be addressed u nder the existing legislation. I think that it is something that has to be considered, because as opposed to expecting a redundancy payment next month, which would be the end of a four -month period of time, this individual, or these individuals, as mentioned, will not be getting a redundancy payment now for, not just the three months from April to June, but also the period of time when it is, you know, that the four months start. So, I am just speaking on behalf of those people who have concerns as to whether in fact when they were anticipating that [INAUDIBLE ] that they are not going to be taken back. It is going to be under lay - off, so it is expected a seven- month delay (the three months plus the four months, a seven- month dela y) before these individuals are able to get redundancy payments when redundancy is actually staring them in the face. That is just a practical concern that I wanted to bring to the attention of the Minister . Because this information came to me very recently, I did not have the opportunity to reach out and ask for his clarific ation in respect of this particular matter, but I think that when we start to look at problems and challenges that our people have, even though anecdotally it may not necessarily be a broad application, I think that even one person who is hurting is one person too many. I think that given that we did not have a whole lot of options in terms of the building up of the economy and giving people other options to find employment, people are finding themselves in very straitened circu mstances. And now it is going to be seven months down the road before these individuals —knowing that they are not going to come back to work —are going to be able to get redundancy [payments]. 4384 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly I am just wondering whether we could look at this in the context of, if there is an expressed intent that the position will be made redundant, then redundancy must be considered for the entire period for which that person has been off work. It just seems to me to knit together and make eminent good sense to try to minimise the financial stress that people have found themselves in. So, those are my few comments that I needed to make, Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the constituents who have effectively asked for me to bring up the ir issue. I thank you for your time, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member . Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? Any other Honourable Member ? No other Honourable Member . Minister?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMr. Swan, the Minister almost got the opportunity that time. Mr. Swan, you have the floor.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanThank you, Mr. Speaker . These are, indeed, sobering times that we have to consider all legislation that comes before this House. I have heard it said on numerous occasions, so I guess it must be one of the mantras that has to come forward today from the Opposition that …
Thank you, Mr. Speaker . These are, indeed, sobering times that we have to consider all legislation that comes before this House. I have heard it said on numerous occasions, so I guess it must be one of the mantras that has to come forward today from the Opposition that the plan, the plan, the plan. And the one thing that I would say, hand over heart, about our Progressive Labour Party Government here is that we care and we are planning daily to look out for the best interests of the people of Bermuda. Many of my colleagues have reiterated that there is no template a vailable for COVID anywhere in the world. The circumstances that we deal with are unique even to us, in some areas, in dealing with this pandemic, be it from a health point of view and even from an economic recovery point of view. There are some areas wher e we will look to other jurisdictions and there are some areas where they are looking to us as to how best to move forward. And just as an aside, people like Dr. Carika Weldon and persons like that in that sphere need to be commended for the great work that they have done in this field. We do not know, Mr. Speaker, what the future holds for COVID. And I have likened it on many occ asions to a design- and-build of a building where you are not going to tear it down, where you got to go into the walls and you do not know what you are going to find around the next corner. And that is what COVID is for us right now, Mr. Speaker , economically and from a health perspective. We do not know what tomorrow will bring. And we do not know, definitely, what August or Sept ember is going to bring as it relates to a health crisis or, indeed, the economic challenges that we face. But we do know this much: Our Government has done a sterling job, and we have worked hand in hand together with those opposite to try to do what is best for the people of Bermuda. So, with that in mind, this seems to be the plan: to hold the course. The plan to know that it is one thing to come here and say, I support, but . . . . and we hear a lot of that. We hear a lot of that type of posturing, and we hear a lot of the subliminal messaging that goes along with trying to sow the seeds of doubt in some areas. But let me be crystal clear, Mr. Speaker . This is a moving target and it remains a moving target mainly because we have no control over the acti ons of persons to our south, to our west, to our northwest, to our east. We have no control over what they do. So we are doing all we can. And we are leaders when it comes to making sure that our people are kept as safe as possible, and we must do even mor e to ensure that we do not allow people to lower their guard when it comes to the proper practi ces necessary to make sure that we remain a safe j urisdiction from a health point of view. So it is very rich for persons who when in Government increased the debt by a billion- plus [dollars] during four years to say that we need a plan. I have great confidence in our Finance Minister and our Minister s to make the best decisions to take Bermuda forward and to keep the needs of the people of Be rmuda front and centre, because I have often heard, You need to put Bermuda first. As we stand right now, we certainly need to put Bermudians first, and we are aiming to do that respecting the fact that we work with our partners as well who come here from overseas who we res pect and appreciate. But these are unprecedented times in our country and around the world. And I think sometimes it is a little bit rich to be preaching to those who definitely know how to plan forward in a situation such as ours to be using the narrative to sow the seeds of doubt in persons in our community.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Point of order, Mr. Speaker .
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanThank you, Mr. Speaker . Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Point of order, Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint of order? I will take your point of order. Bermuda House of Assembly POINT OF ORDER Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Yes, I realise, Mr. Speaker, that the Honourable Member is probably just wrapping up his speech, but I think it is important to—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou made your . . . if you like, we can continue on now. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: No, I think it is important to make it clear that when the Honourable Member says it sows seeds of doubt to hear “but” . . . I believe every single …
You made your . . . if you like, we can continue on now. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: No, I think it is important to make it clear that when the Honourable Member says it sows seeds of doubt to hear “but” . . . I believe every single one of us in this Honourable House, Mr. Speaker, is intent on making good law. The fact that on the one side of the aisle anything that is put down is supported wholeheartedly . . . and they may have had it bent backwards and forwards in this caucus, but from our perspective, we are hearing it when we are debating —
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanThat is not a point of order, Mr. Speaker, that is a speech! Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: We are— [Laughter]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerShe is going to wrap up now. You are wrapping up. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Mr. Speaker, if there is something that we find that could be better or needs to be pointed out, we have an obligation to do so. And we will continue to do so, irrespective …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYour point is taken. Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Thank you for making your point. Continue, Member.
The SpeakerThe Speaker[INAUDIBLE] longer , but you can c ontinue wrapping up.
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanI certainly know when persons are trying ever -so-skilfully to sow the seeds of doubt. And I recognised it —and I pointed it out. So, I encourage the public to listen, as well, and I just want to encourage thos e in leadership making decisions for the good of this …
I certainly know when persons are trying ever -so-skilfully to sow the seeds of doubt. And I recognised it —and I pointed it out. So, I encourage the public to listen, as well, and I just want to encourage thos e in leadership making decisions for the good of this country, given these unprecedented times, to know that it is appreciated. Thank you, Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? Any other Member ? No other Member ? Minister Hayward, would you like to take us to wrap up? Hon. Jason Hayward: Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker , and thanks to the Members on both sides of the …
Thank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Honourable Member wish to speak? Any other Member ? No other Member ? Minister Hayward, would you like to take us to wrap up?
Hon. Jason Hayward: Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker , and thanks to the Members on both sides of the aisle who have weighed in on this debate and basically supported the legislati on. Mr. Speaker, I have already publicly acknow ledged that we are in for a rough ride for the next 18 months, at a minimum. So in a time when we need to pull together for the betterment of the country, this is no time for political pontification which off ers no sol utions. Mr. Speaker, I think some Member s raised some realistic concerns in terms of [employers] pla ying with this piece of legislation, the amendment, and further keeping employees on lay -off when they ult imately intend to make employees redund ant. And that is why we are only moving to cover the COVID period . . . exclude the COVID period. You may or may not know that what the employers were actually asking for was a 12- month extension. They were also asking that they be allowed not to pay the redundancy payments based on the state of their operations. We were not agreeable to that. And so, this is when we try to say this is a balance. It is not the best for either party, but it is the best solution based on the situation that we are currently i n at the moment. Mr. Speaker, I have heard a lot of talk in terms of what is in it for the way forward, and I did announce this morning in this very House that I will be having national tripartite social dialogue, in particular with the hotel industry to discuss the state of the hotels, items regarding collective agreements, redundancy and lay - offs, work permits, repatriation of unemployment benefits and training programmes moving forward. We recognise that we need to have that frank dialogue with industr y and that is what we will be committed to doing over the coming weeks. With those brief comments, Mr. Speaker, and having read the Bill entitled the Employment Amendment Act 2020 for the second time, I move that the Bill now be committed.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister . We are going to move to Committee and the Deputy Speaker will take the Chair. House in Committee at 4:1 4 pm [Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr., Chairman] 4386 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly COMMITTEE ON BILL EMPLOYMENT AMENDMENT ACT …
The ChairmanChairmanHonourable Members , we are now in Committee of the whole [House] for further consider ation of the Bill entitled Employment Amendment Act 2020 . Minister Hayward, you have the floor. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, the Bill seeks to amend section 32 of the Employment Act 2000 with respect …
Honourable Members , we are now in Committee of the whole [House] for further consider ation of the Bill entitled Employment Amendment Act 2020 . Minister Hayward, you have the floor. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, the Bill seeks to amend section 32 of the Employment Act 2000 with respect to lay off, due to the impact of the COVID -19 pandemic resulting in the state of emergency in effect in Bermuda during the period of 1 April 2020 to 30 June 2020. Mr. Chairman, I wish to move all three clauses.
The ChairmanChairmanContinue, Minister . Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, clause 1 is the title. Clause 2 inserts new subsection (4) into section 32 of the Employment Act 2000 (lay-off). This provides that references to a period of four months after which lay off is deemed to be a termination for redundancy …
Continue, Minister . Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, clause 1 is the title. Clause 2 inserts new subsection (4) into section 32 of the Employment Act 2000 (lay-off). This provides that references to a period of four months after which lay off is deemed to be a termination for redundancy do not include the period from 1 April 2020 to 30 June 2020. Clause 3 provides that the Act is deemed to have come into effect on 30 June 2020.
The ChairmanChairmanThank you, Minister Hayward. Are there any further speakers? No further speakers? Minister Hayward, do you want to move the clauses? Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, I move that clauses 1 through 3 be approved.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that clauses 1 through 3 be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. [Motion carried: Clauses 1 through 3 passed.]
The ChairmanChairmanThe preamble now. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, I move that the preamble be approved.
The ChairmanChairmanIt has been moved that the preamble be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, I move that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. The Chai rman: It has been moved that the Bill be reported …
It has been moved that the preamble be approved. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. Approved. Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Chairman, I move that the Bill be reported to the House as printed.
The Chai rman: It has been moved that the Bill be reported to the House as printed. Are there any objections to that? There appear to be none. The Bill will be reported to the House as printed. Thank you, Minister Hayward. [Motion carried: The Employee Amendment Act 20 20 was considered by a Committee of the whole House and passed without amendment.]
House resumed at 4:17 pm
[Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair]
REPORT OF COMMITTEE
EMPLOYMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2020
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. Members, the Bill is now being reported to the House. Are there any objections to the Bill e ntitled the Employment Amendment Act 2020 being reported to the House as printed? No objections. The Bill has been reported and received in the House. Members, that brings us …
Thank you, Deputy. Members, the Bill is now being reported to the House. Are there any objections to the Bill e ntitled the Employment Amendment Act 2020 being reported to the House as printed? No objections. The Bill has been reported and received in the House. Members, that brings us to a conclusion of the Orders on today’s Order Paper. We will do our third readings for the items that we have done today. Minister, would you like to do your readings now?
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMinister Dickins on? SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21 Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I move that Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move that the Bill entitled the Companies (Ratification of Deferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 be now read for the third …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections to that? No objections. Continue, Minister . [Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.] Bermuda House of Assembly BILL THIRD READING COMPANIES (RATIFICATION OF DEFERRED RETURNS, FEES AN D TAXES) AMENDMENT ACT 2020 Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Mr. Speaker, I move the Bill be now read a …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Now to your second one. [Motion carried: The Companies (Ratification of D eferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 was read a third time and passed.] SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21 Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I move that Standing Order 21 be suspended to …
Thank you. Now to your second one.
[Motion carried: The Companies (Ratification of D eferred Returns, Fees and Taxes) Amendment Act 2020 was read a third time and passed.]
SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21
Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: Yes, Mr. Speaker, I move that Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move the Bill entitled Public Treasury (Administratio n and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 be now read for the third time by its title only.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections to that? No objections. Continue, Minister . [Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.] BILL THIRD READING PUBLIC TREASURY (ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENTS) AMENDMENT ACT 2020 Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson: I move that the Bill be now read a third time by its title only and passed.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections? No objections. The Bill has been read by its title for the thi rd time and passed. [Motion carried: The Public Treasury (Administration and Payments) Amendment Act 2020 was read a third time and passed.]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister . Minister Hayward, would you like to read yours? SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21 Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, I move that Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move the Bill entitled Employment Amendment Act 2020 be now read for the third time by …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAre there any objections to that? No objec tions. Continue, Minister . [Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.] BILL THIRD READING EMPLOYMENT AMENDMENT ACT 2020 Hon. Jason Hayward: Mr. Speaker, I move that the Bill be now read a third time by its title only and passed.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThe Bill has been read by its title for the third time. There are no objections. It has been received and approved. [Motion carried: The Employment Amendment Act 2020 was read a third time and passed.]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Minister s. That now brings us to a close of the business for today. Mr. Premier. ADJOURNMENT Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker . Mr. Speaker, I move that this Honourable House do now adjourn until Friday, 17 July, at 10:00 am.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerDoes any Member object to that?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou object? Would you like to speak to that?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou have your 20 minutes. 4388 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA AND GLOBAL STUDIES
Mr. Rolfe CommissiongThank you so much. Mr. Speaker, there are certain f ictions that we as Bermudians —and we call ourselves Bermudians, and from a standpoint we are— hold dearly to. So, while we describe ourselves as Bermudians, nowhere by way of a legal or constitutional construct in our Constitution, for example …
Thank you so much. Mr. Speaker, there are certain f ictions that we as Bermudians —and we call ourselves Bermudians, and from a standpoint we are— hold dearly to. So, while we describe ourselves as Bermudians, nowhere by way of a legal or constitutional construct in our Constitution, for example (which is the final word on matters to do with our Constitution and the political framework, everything like that), will you find the word “Bermudian.” And I have said this before. Neither will you find the word “ citizen ,” because Bermuda is not an independent nation— we are a colony. And thus why would there be the word citizen in your constit utional order which was passed in a parliament tho usands of miles from here, I believe, in 1967. Apparently, there is another fiction that I have to dispel. Earlier we heard the c omments by the Member Jeanne Atherden that told us, unbeknownst to myself and probably thousands of Bermudians, that English and Portuguese are our “official” languages. Now, they may be our “common” languages, partic ularly English, with Portuguese in a subsidiary manner being spoken by a significant minority, but certainly we have no official language. But more pernicious was the assertion that by asserting Black Lives Matter [we are] somehow diminishing whites, Portuguese and others within the country. No! Nothing could be further from the truth, when it comes to the decision by the Honourable Minister as evidenced today on this decision, which was arrived at by way of his sterling team which he mentioned, to ensure that we will have Black lives matte ring in Bermuda even when it comes to the stories we tell about ourselves, our historical narratives, it should be no other way. I do not know the age of the Member on the other side, but I suspect she is of my generation, Mr. Speaker . And from my generation, we have the reality that at age six or seven or eight, I can remember as if it was yesterday, we were taught history at Mount Saint Agnes [Academy]. And the first thing I reme mber being taught was that the Anglo- Saxons and Jutes came into what was then Celtic Britain (I later found that at the invitation of one of the warring Celtic chiefs —and long story short). They then became the dominant groups within Britain and what would later become the country that we call England, which is still a kingdom. So muc h so, that the Angles, which were the dominant tribe of the three of these Germanic tribes from what we now would say, I guess the wes tern, north- western parts of Germany, went on to have their name become the name of England. What do you think England means? It means land of the Angles, we now more commonly refer to as Anglo- Saxons. But that was what I, as a six - or seven- or eight -year-old boy in Bermuda, 1963, 1964, 1965, learned about our history. So, when we talk about what the Minister has said toda y . . . long overdue. It is not about placing Black history in a superior position. No, no, we are not going to indulge in the same evils that were perpetrated against us. But we are going to ensure that Black history, so- called, is going to be part of our central narrative; it is going to have a centrality within the context of the Bermuda story. And no one with a straight face can tell me that has been the case up to the present. And there must be some responsibility for that, or the lack ther eof, up unt il this point for many who preceded us. But the buck stops here and now. It is not everything that we need to have on this front, but the Minister and his team have done great. And let me just say this here, these measures were agreed to in our caucus (and I hope I will not get in trouble for revealing this) before there was either a pandemic or before we had the br utal murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, which became the catalyst for a worldwide protest with its sl ogan being the very apt Black Lives Mat ter. You see, Mr. Speaker, and Mr. Deputy Speaker, we are about ensuring that these stories become central to our Bermuda story and experience, as I have said, not only for our little Black kids, it is just as important for the little white kids so that w e can begin to continue to deconstruct the evil of white s upremacy and its impact not only on generations of Black s but generations of whites, too. Notwithstanding, so that all know that the biggest burden or the greatest damage as a consequence of that, as our dearly departed Dr. Eva Hodgson always took the opportunity to remind us, [was to] Bermuda’s Black community and generations of our fathers and foref athers and grandfathers, and those within what was formerly called the British Empire and throughout its precincts. Yes, Black lives do matter. This Government is determined to make that a reality, to address the systemic reality that has impaired and damaged so many within our community. And it has to do that. It must do that. It made a commitment to do that. It is heartening that there are growing numbers of white Bermudians, although still to be seen when we come with these hard concrete measures to address racial inequality —and they are being worked on— whether some of those whites we saw out on the s treet arm in arm, hand in hand, are going to be prepared to actua lly see tangible public policy solutions to address the lack of racial equity and equality in Bermuda. So, we will see. But as we speak right now, not only here, but even more so globally —both in western Europe and in the USA and Canada— we have seen [more of] a level of white support for these principles than not. Mr. Speaker, we need to understand. I hope the Member here will accept this and know that I
Bermuda House of Assembly come with the best intentions. Both h ere and in the US there are two things we have in common, such that the democracy that you see in the US, the d emocracy such as it may exist in Bermuda, was fas hioned, was given birth to by the oppressed Africans in America and persons of African descent i n Bermuda. It is these groups that forced these colonies and the space that we call the United States of America to realise the ideals that it said it held to, but which they deny to people of African descent. It is not only in America and Bermuda we saw this phenomenon, believe me. But I only mention America because the two colonies from the same A ngles (the Anglo- Saxons that became the English who then became the British Empire) had their beginning, that Empire overseas, in Bermuda and the US in a place called Virginia. We are tied at the hip. So, we are not going to feel any way about ensuring that this mission to force the West to live up to its ideals, many of which were fashioned during the period of enlightenment . . . we are not doing it for this generation. We have a responsibility to our ancestors and to those yet to come to continue to march that road towards democracy and freedom. And we shall make no apologies for it. Mr. Speaker, I thank God that I had parents who were conscious, who believ ed in racial justice. So, when I went home from that schoolroom I got the proper narratives, the proper story —both in terms of family, at the personal family level, but in terms of the larger story of our people and not just our people in Bermuda but our people throughout the diaspora — particularly in the Caribbean and the USA. That was what helped me to navigate these issues of identity, of culture. And why this is so vitally necessary for Black and white, our young kids, is that many of them will not be getting that in their homes —and not in every case —but largely because their parents themselves do not know our story, our history. But we are going to make sure that for those children, Black and white, who do not get this story in their house, the story of oppression and the story of the resistance to racial oppression and how that helped forge Bermuda and make us the democracy, still imperfect that it is, today, that they are going to get that in their school, in their schoolhouse. And through that, we can begin to forge One Bermuda. I know Bermudians, know, we are a practical people. You know, we are pirates, and privateers and smugglers. But I think we are at a point now where we cannot allow expediency to continue to be the engine that fuels successive generations and the oppression that they have suffered in this country. I saw a picture earlier, Mr. Speaker, of a good friend of mine. And I am not going to call her name, I might get in trouble. (How dare I?) But she was out at the Black Lives Matter, o ne of the locations, and she held a sign that said “ Black Lives Matter Too In Bermuda, ” because you had your neck (and I might be paraphrasing a little bit) . . . you have had, you know, your boot (in other words) on the neck of our young men in this count ry for generations. And I had to marvel at that. Actually, I just saw it today. I did not see her during that period, during the time of the march and the protest. But she had it as a picture on her WhatsApp and it said, So am I . Mr. Speaker, I am going t o close with this thought, and it ties in to the previous debate. And, b elieve me, I hope I am not going to cross the line in terms of reflection. We are going through an unprec edented crisis. We know the numbers of over 9,000 who are suffering right now l aid off, unemployed. We know that the vast majority of those in terms of the Bermudians are Black Bermudians. I do not know the exact figures, but if you live here long enough and you start seeing the same thing happen again over and over again in terms of racial disparity. I doubt if I am going to be called out on this one. And we know that, as I mentioned before, the number of people who are without health insurance. It is just phenomenal. Pre- pandemic, 5,400- odd persons —pre- pandemic, 2019 numbers —were w ithout health insurance and roughly 5,000 of those were Black Bermudian. And that figure includes children. We have 46 persons doing life—all of them are Black men, except for . . . and we know the recent case, but I am saying pre that decision. Over 91 per cent of our inmates are Black Bermudian—or Black . There are some Black inmates there as well, foreigners, but they are a small minority. But I think you get the point. So, we are not here to replicate what existed before. That certainly was not good for 55 per cent of the population, except for a small minority, I might add. We are not here to replicate that. It is sad that we needed this crisis to begin to think about how we can reengineer our economy and more importantly our relation to each other. Yo u see, we are about wanting to realise what for others has been a nasty talking point about a One Bermuda. We are going to do the hard work to create that One Bermuda, and many of those who were throwing that in our face . . . oh, they are not going to lik e the methods, the solutions, the public policies which we know are required to achieve that goal. We have always believed in that. As I said two weeks ago, Mr. Speaker (I am winding up), we know that for us to even consider independence that this has to be a precursor to achieving that, to getting our people ready. There has to be an authentic one shared sacrifice (and I have talked about that, I am not going to go down that road again, in terms of wealthy joining us in this project), but there also must be a commonality. And the stories we tell about ourselves help to foster that. That is how you create a One Bermuda. It is not about us being superior to anybody else. It is about us being included in ways that has never occurred in this country, but in wa ys that are long, long overdue. 4390 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Thank you, Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Mr. Commissiong. Does any other Member wish to speak? Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerDeputy Speaker? Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Yes, y es.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay, the Deputy Speaker. SYSTEMIC RACISM IN BERMUDA Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, Mr. Speaker . Mr. Speaker, it is difficult to follow MP Rolfe Commissiong. But let me say that . . . and I must give this lady, whose name I a m about to call …
Okay, the Deputy Speaker.
SYSTEMIC RACISM IN BERMUDA
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, Mr. Speaker . Mr. Speaker, it is difficult to follow MP Rolfe Commissiong. But let me say that . . . and I must give this lady, whose name I a m about to call . . . I must congratulate her for signing her name to a letter 1she wrote to the editor and I guess the complaint was levelled against Colonel Burch and myself. She wrote, “. . . 25 years later, and [they] still [blame] many of our ills on our colonial status. ” Well, Mr. Speaker, I wanted [to] if I can, read an excerpt from a letter to the editor that Dr. Eva Hodgson wrote. She said it is really incredible that she could write (she is not talking about Ms. Connell, she is talking about Moni ca Jones) racism is taught and then go on to point out that it is racism for Black s to characterise white people as evil and white devils, et cetera. Dr. Hodgson goes on to write, she says, 2“Why do people want to pretend that the racial disparity between the races does not exist, as if our history never existed . . .?” And she says, “We will never correct what we refuse to acknowledge.” Well, I am sure Ms. Connell writes based on her experience. I do not think she has ever exper ienced what Black folks had to endure in Bermuda because of the racist policies approved by Government House. Mr. Speaker, when I think about the people who cannot travel freely, Bermudians, white and Black , because of a drug conviction (whether the cig arette, or a spliff, as the y call it, or a seed), I would guarantee that 90 per cent of the people who exper ience this problem are Black . Consequently, that is why over 90 per cent of our prison population is Black . Does that mean that white folks do not commit crime? I do not think so. That is the system that is designed in this country. When you think about the . . . if you are going to Supreme Court for a trial, and when it comes to jury selection . . . a young fellow, Denbrook, wrote a piece in the paper, I think just last week. And
1 Royal Gazette , 27 June 2020 2 Royal Gazette , 25 July 2017 he said (and I am paraphrasing) that the defendant can only object to three jurors while the prosecution . . . I think they have got about 40. Consequently, they get the jury they want. So you will find a young, let us say, Black male or Black female being tried. It is not uncommon to have nine white jurors and three Black s. Not u ncommon. When I think about —
Hon. Michael J. Scott: Point of information to my friend, the Deputy Speaker, if he will take it, Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSay that again. Hon. Michael J. Scott: Point of information to the Deputy.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay, we will take your point of information. POINT OF INFORMATION Hon. Michael J. Scott: Thank you, Mr. Speaker . The prosecution have unlimited challenges —not four, but unlimited. Thank you, Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, cousin Michael. That even makes it worse. Unlimited! So, they get the jury they want and if you . . . for a Black person it is like, it is fighting off the ropes. It is almost like . . . …
Thank you.
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, cousin Michael. That even makes it worse. Unlimited! So, they get the jury they want and if you . . . for a Black person it is like, it is fighting off the ropes. It is almost like . . . well, it is like Reverend Monk when he went to court with an all -white jury. There was no way that he could have been found not guilty — regardless of the charge— because the narrative that a lot of white folks have of Black folks is ne gative. When you read what Terry Tucker and, I think it is William S. Zuill, wrote about Tucker’s Town, their narrative of Black folks is terrible. They should take all of the books (if they have got any in the schools) wri ting history particularly about Tucker’s Town of Terry Tucker and William S. Zuill . . . take them out of there, because their narrative of us is negative, Mr. Speaker . Now, Mr. Speaker, when I think about the governors that have been appointed in this country, not one governor —not one of them —has come to this country and insisted on any law that is specifically [beneficial] to Black people. Not one. None of them had a history of fighting for Black equality. If you look at the history, their actions demonstrate the opposite. Mr. Speaker, their performance in this country is a disgrace to the Royal Family. Mr. Speaker, when we see the difference in the way Black folks are treated in this country, I can recall reading— and I still have them —from the blo ggers (I call them bloggers as I am not savvy in that).
Bermuda House of Assembly But these folks wrote some negative comments about the Honourable Dr. Brown and Ottiwell Simmons. These comments are not even worth repeating, but they were so brazen that they put their names and their picture. These are white young chi ldren —I call them children. They are not children today. I am sure they are back in Bermuda working in high- paying jobs and so on. But why would they put their names and pictures? Because they felt very confident that nothing would happen to them because of white privilege. And nothing did happen to them. I can assure you that they were not even i nvestigated by the police because those types of comments written by Black folks of the same age would have been investigated or would have had a visit from the p olice. And that is why Government House conti nues to keep their knee on Dr. Brown’s neck. And I am asking them to take them off, Mr. Speaker . Government House has done nothing to address our historical racial injustices. Nothing! I am cal ling upon them, t hey should take the lead to eradicate these injustices, not continue to perpetuate them, Mr. Speaker . One thing I do know is that our Government , our Attorney General, is looking at some law reform. I know one of the items there is about jury selection. And I welcome that. When we can get bloggers and others criticising the competency of Dr. Weldon . . . it is shameful what they are doing. A young, intelligent, down -to-earth Black woman, a young Black woman, a lecturer in (I believe) Oxford University in t he UK. And because the tests are coming in negative, they ques-tion the competency of Dr. Weldon. If she was a young white woman doing the same thing, I think she would have probably been in the June Honours List for a Queen’s award. All this nonsense mus t stop in this country if we are to move forward, Mr. Speaker . The actions of prosecuting and persecuting Black folks must end, and Government House must take the lead to see . . . because, as you see in the United States and other parts of the world, and even in England . . . in fact in the FA [Football Association] if you are broadcasting a game there are certain terms they cannot use in r espect of Black Lives Matter. And they are pulling down monuments of people that really do not have a good history, r eally are not heroes, but they are displayed all over around this world. We probably have some here. We have got some people named as heroes in this country and they do not even fit the definition of a hero in this country or anywhere else. These are some of the things that we have to change. And if we are going to have the heroes, let us have a real hero like Ottie Simmons or Dr. Ball or Dr. Gordon. Those are heroes, not some of those that they have on display in Bermuda. Most of those folks have not sacr ificed their life like Ottie Simmons has, like Dr. Gordon has, like Dr. Barbara Ball has, like Dame Lois Browne- Evans has. None of them! And they display them every Heritage Day as heroes. They are not heroes in the real sense of the definition of what a hero is. Mr. Speaker, with those comments, thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Deputy. Does any other Member wish to speak? Does any Honourable Member wish to speak?
Mr. Speaker .
The SpeakerMs. Furber t, MP Furbert, yes — Ms. Furbert, you have the floor. SOCIAL MEDIA COMMENTS REGARDING DR. CARIKA WELDON
Mrs. Tinee FurbertOkay, great. Thank you, Mr. Speaker . I just want to start off by echoing the sent iments of Deputy Speaker Burgess in regard to Dr . Carika Weldon, and comments that were questioning our lab. I just want to say to Dr. Carika Weldon and also all the other …
Okay, great. Thank you, Mr. Speaker . I just want to start off by echoing the sent iments of Deputy Speaker Burgess in regard to Dr . Carika Weldon, and comments that were questioning our lab. I just want to say to Dr. Carika Weldon and also all the other doctors that are out there helping during this COVID -19 time that we appreciate you and appreciate you for helping to take care of t he people who are unhealthy and bringing them back to wellness and to a healthy state. There is a quote by Maya Angelou that says, “I come as one, but stand for 10,000.” To all those naysayers out there in regard to the work that the lab that Dr. Carika W eldon operates . . . I want you to know that there are many more supporters out there that you have, many more supporters out there than the actual naysayers. So keep continuing to do what you are doing and hopefully one day you will stand as one of our national heroes in years to come—or not even years [to come], because I would consider her to be a national hero now. So, I just wanted to start with that just to let Dr. Carika Weldon know that we are supportive of her. We have to be supportive of all of our people who are doing great and wondrous things for the betterment of our country. And we must hold a high expectation for each of our people whether they meet high standards, whether they meet mediocre standards, we must —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMP? Are you okay ? It sounded like we lost you, but you are back now. Continue.
Mrs. Tinee FurbertOkay. So, I just wanted to say, I was just saying that we support Dr. Carika Weldon and many other Bermudians. We have to continue to support them and lift them up and create higher expectations for them so 4392 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of …
Okay. So, I just wanted to say, I was just saying that we support Dr. Carika Weldon and many other Bermudians. We have to continue to support them and lift them up and create higher expectations for them so 4392 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly they can continue to do well for the betterment of our country. It is our hope, I am hoping that one day Bermuda will be used as an example when we are having to deal with such health crises like we have now, that Bermu da would be that lead in how we have handled such a crisis as COVID -19. So, just some encouragement for Dr. Carika Weldon and, you know, I was just saying that she is a national hero in my eyes.
ASSISTING BERMUDA’S VULNERABLE
Mrs. Tinee FurbertMr. Speaker, I just want to move on to an article, and this was actually in yesterday’s paper, if you will allow me to read from. This was the article that the 3Royal Gazette did on Dismont with [INAU DIBLE ]. And in this article, she says that [INAUDIBLE] “for …
Mr. Speaker, I just want to move on to an article, and this was actually in yesterday’s paper, if you will allow me to read from. This was the article that the 3Royal Gazette did on Dismont with [INAU DIBLE ]. And in this article, she says that [INAUDIBLE] “for serv ices—they are traumatised people.” She goes on to say that, “ We need to find ways to bring them in, [and] find ways to make them feel comfortable so they can say they need help.” That is very interesting to me, Mr. Speaker . Not interesting in that I do not believe it, because I do believe that people are not coming in to get help because partly we probably, I do not know, maybe we are too busy, maybe we do not want to admit that we need help. But going through trauma in itself, som etimes you just want to be alone, you do not want to have to listen to anyone that could possibly help you. There are many services out there, Mr. Speaker . In the article it makes reference to the Centre Against Abuse. It makes references to the Women’s Resource Centre and the Coalition for the Protection of Children. But I am hoping that our people know that there are many services that we have out there and just to name a few, we have the EAP [Employee A ssistance Programme] that are part of our employment programmes, there is Big Brothers Big Sisters, Child and Family Services, Child and Adolescent [Services]. We have our private psychologists. We have our school staff, our teachers, our principals, our counsellors. We have our sports clubs and our dance schools that create a family of support for our children and our families. And we have families. Now, I know sometimes we feel that our fam ilies may not be as supportive to us as we would like. But in the end, it is people who help us to get through trauma. And so if the iss ue is getting people to come in . . . I know in these times it is difficult to go out to people because right now we are in COVID -19 and we have to take all sorts of precautions. But we do now have the option for online services, which are actually being c overed through insurance companies. We also still have our telephone which could be used as a source of communication, an outreach to people.
3 Royal Gazette , 2 July 2020 We have our helping agencies that have done a tr emendous job throughout this COVID -19 pandemic. So, there is sup port. And sometimes we just have to say, Help me ! We have to be brave enough to surrender and brave enough to be vulnerable to get help. And I know sometimes that can be difficult for people. So, I just want to uplift our helping agencies that are out there which are assisting persons. Maybe we need more hotlines. You know, maybe people do not want to expose [themselves] or be vulnerable or show vulnerabilities to other people because they do not want to be judged. So maybe we need more anonymous hotlines so that people can talk to people and they can be advised or guided with some help. Mr. Speaker, I am not going to take up too much time, but I do want to speak to another article that was recent in the newspaper and this article was contributed by Ms. Da niella Jade Low. Currently Daniella Jade Lowe is living in the UK. I do not think she would mind me sharing because she shared publicly that she has a spinal cord injury and she had to leave Bermuda to be able to reach a level of independence, to be able t o go to school. She felt as though she could not get that here in Bermuda. Daniella is looking for employment. She has a degree that would put her in the direction of journal-ism. And she is also looking to start an accessibility consulting agency where hopefully she can bring that skill here to Bermuda. I bring this up because it is interesting that we are still at a place where persons with disabilities still feel as though they have to leave our shores and go overseas to be able to get support, to be ab le to get opportunity, because there is legislation out there that is supportive of them where they are not going to feel as much injustice or discrimination. So I just continue to support and urge us to consider legislation that would support persons with disabilities here in Be rmuda. As quickly as we have been able to come up with COVID legislation, I think . . . you know, we talk about injustices. This is still a group that is left out. I also want to make a plea and a call for funding agencies, if the re are funding agencies out there that are still giving scholarships. Right now, Bermuda Government is the only source that is providing a scholarship or funding particularly for students with exceptionalities. And when you have students coming for-ward who have hopes and dreams to be able to get a college education or further their education and they cannot qualify for a particular scholarship which is based on merit, but they still have the drive and they still have the ambition, and they would not even be considered because maybe their grades are not up to par but that does not mean that they are still [not] va luable and that does not mean that they are still not smart.
Bermuda House of Assembly So, it is a plea of mine that people consider persons with learning challenges, learning disabilities to be able to provide them with opportunities to be able to further their education, and that it not remain just something that Government is providing for. More and more we know about our students who exper ience ADHD, ADD, learning disabi lities such as dy slexia and dyscalculia, and b ecause they have not been given the proper supports, they then go into a workforce in which employers are not supporting them. And so they are finding that they have to leave our country because they cannot sur vive without being employed. And our employers are not being understanding or helpful by providing simple modific ations or accommodations to allow them to work. And they are just being labelled as someone who is dumb when really, if we provided them with proper supports, we would actually find out how capable and smart they are. I am making this plea for our people, and particularly for our males who feel as though they do not have a foot in the door with opportunities. We hear that some boys would say, y ou know, I am hands on; I just like to do things with my hands . It is hard to be in a classroom where I am expected to conform and I can’t read. I can ’t, you know, I don ’t understand what is before me. I can ’t read so I just shut down and I don’t participate because I am having difficulty with reading. Or, I will be the class clown to make ever ybody laugh at [my] distraction. Or display some sort of behaviour in the classroom as an avoidance tactic to get away from their schoolwork. We have so far to go, Mr. Speaker, as it r elates to our students with learning disabilities. And there are many [teachers], particularly in our school system, who are doing a great and wonderful job. And kudos to them, because I know it can be hard work trying to teach many stu dents with many different types of learning styles and many types of personal ities. But if it was easy, Mr. Speaker, I think it would be quite boring. I think teaching and being around people would be quite boring and that is that specialness that we have in each and every one of us which creates our personalities and it creates part of our culture. I have a note down here and it says, What are our opportunities? And I believe that people are constantly looking for opportunities, and not difficult ones. Opportunities create value. They allow people to feel as though they belong without judgment. And so I am hopeful, I am very hopeful, Mr. Speaker, that we will continue along our trajectory of giving people hope, providing our people with opportunity all to make our Bermuda a better place for Bermudians who come in many different shapes, sizes, and intellectual abilities. And with that I will end. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Furbert. Does any other Member wish to speak? Mr. Christ opher Famous: Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Christopher FamousI am in s upport of my Ro bin Hood colleague, that we must provide support for all people in all shapes, sizes, and intellectual abilities.
Mr. Christopher FamousMr. Speaker, the first topic I want to speak on is a topic by a gentleman named Cyril Packwood. [Do] you remember him, Mr. Speaker? There is a post in 4The Bermudian magazine. The title is “The Origins of African- Bermudians” by Cyril Packwood. May I read a slight paragraph, …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGo right ahead, sir. ORIGINS OF THE AFRICAN- BERMUDIANS
Mr. Christopher Famous“It is not possible to write of the origins of the African- Bermudians in B ermuda without considering the important impact slavery had on the Island’s ethnic composition. While the first Afr ican-Bermudians were not slaves, but indentured servants, it was slavery which caused the great influx which ultimately would …
“It is not possible to write of the origins of the African- Bermudians in B ermuda without considering the important impact slavery had on the Island’s ethnic composition. While the first Afr ican-Bermudians were not slaves, but indentured servants, it was slavery which caused the great influx which ultimately would shape the ethni c population of the Island. Taken as a captive with only the possibility of surviving an unspeakably miserable voyage to an unknown and threatening destination, classification of the slave as an immigrant is undoubtedly question able. It is true that many B ermudian slaves did not come directly from Africa, but from an intermediary
4 June 4, 2020 4394 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly destination such as the West Indies. Their ethnic origin, however, was still Africa, . . . .” I say that in the context that as we are speaking more about the true origin of Black Bermuda, let us keep in context that while for generations they have been trying to tell us that we should have not hing to do with the West Indies, or the Caribbean as they say now, that is where 99 per cent of Black Bermudians (whether you came before or after Emanc ipation) came from —the West Indies.
HISTORY OF FRIENDLY SOCIETIES IN BERMUDA
Mr. Christopher FamousMr. Speaker, let me move on to the next subject: Friendly Societies. The Friendly Societies played a significant part in the history of Bermu da. In days of racial segregation, they were a focal point for Black Bermudians as they served as places of social activity and provided forums for …
Mr. Speaker, let me move on to the next subject: Friendly Societies. The Friendly Societies played a significant part in the history of Bermu da. In days of racial segregation, they were a focal point for Black Bermudians as they served as places of social activity and provided forums for me mbers to develop leadership and political skills. May I repeat that, Mr. Speaker?
Mr. Christopher FamousThe Friendly Societies served as places of social activity and provided f orums for members to develop leadership and political skills. The 19th century saw the beginning of the free Black societies and lodges such as Young Men’s Friendly Institution and other lodges which had branches in several parishes, and …
The Friendly Societies served as places of social activity and provided f orums for members to develop leadership and political skills. The 19th century saw the beginning of the free Black societies and lodges such as Young Men’s Friendly Institution and other lodges which had branches in several parishes, and [these] filled social needs such as schools, health care, supportive bus inesses, and organised gift clubs. I bring that into context, sir, that whilst we talk abo ut the Employment Act earlier (I am not going to debate that), we need to provide a safety net for our people. But when slavery ended, we had no safety net for our people. We only had each other. And we only had the Friendly Soci eties. Out of these Friend ly Societies, Mr. Speaker, we built schools, we built churches, we built communi-ties. And I say this in the context that now that we are facing a lot of economic crises, we cannot sit here and say, Well, which charity is going to give us money? Our ancestors, who came from the West Indies, who were not slaves, did not have any white charities hel ping them. They had each other. That is what we have to do now, Mr. Speaker. We have to help each other.
BLACK LIVES MATTER —REPARATIONS
Mr. Christopher FamousMr. Speaker, I am going to move on. Now that there is global consciousness about Black lives do matter, or as Honourable Rolfe Commissiong said, Black Lives Mattering, there is a consciousness about a word called “reparations,” Mr. Speaker. Do you know what that means? Well, that means . . …
Mr. Speaker, I am going to move on. Now that there is global consciousness about Black lives do matter, or as Honourable Rolfe Commissiong said, Black Lives Mattering, there is a consciousness about a word called “reparations,” Mr. Speaker. Do you know what that means? Well, that means . . . and I am going to quote something, Mr. Speaker, from www.reuters.com . “‘It is not enough to say sorry, ’ said Hilary Beckles, chairman of the CARICOM Reparations Commission which was set up by Caribbean countries ’” (our brothers and sisters) “‘ to seek reparations from former colonial powers such as the United Kingdom, France and Portugal. “‘We are not asking for anything as ” simple “as handing out cheques to people on street corners, ’ Beckles told Reuters . . .. ‘The issue of money is secondary, but in this instance the moral discharge of one's duty does require in a market economy that you contribute towards development. ’” Mr. Speaker, we in Bermuda and our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean, we were there because of slavery. Plain and simple. Now that there is a rec koning of what Black lives matter, we cannot sit there and say, Well, we are just going to accept Aunt J emima’s name getting changed or Uncle Ben’s name getting changed. No! No, no, no, no. Those who profited off of our labour, have to pay, one way or the other, Mr. Speaker. So, you know what, Mr. Speaker? There is a radio show every Thursday, [from] 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm. And next week we will be discussing Frien dly Societ ies and Mary Prince because people have to know the true origin of Cup Match and the true origin of our own Bermudian heroine who helped to mobilise abolition, [the] abolition of slavery. Two weeks from then, on the 23rd of July, Sir Hilary Beckles, chairm an of the CARICOM Reparations Commission, will be on that same show. He will be helping to educate Bermudians about the drive for CARICOM to get what we deserve. We are not looking for “sorry’s.” We are not looking for a little statue coming down. We want what is owed to us. Mr. Speaker, I listened passionately to MP Rolfe Commissiong. I listened passionately to Deputy Speaker Burgess, aka, the Bishop. I listened passio nately to MP Tinee [Furbert]. And all of them spoke about things in different manners. MP Tinee talked about access for all. The Bishop, Deputy Speaker, spoke about true heroes. MP Rolfe spoke about Black lives mattering. We cannot just let this be a window in our time, Mr. Speaker. We, like our forefathers in the Friendly Societies, have to make something matter out of all of this. We have to re- educate ourselves about our origins. We have to re- educate our children about their origins. And, no, our origins did not start with slavery. We have to re- educate Europe and the United Kingdom that i s sending a Black woman down here that, no, we are not bowing down to appeas ement. You cannot just send a Black woman down here and think the natives are just going to be calm now. No. We want what belongs to us. So, Mr. Speaker, I will be speaking more about this as the weeks and months go by.
Bermuda House of Assembly MEN —MAINTAINING OUR HEALTH
Mr. Christopher FamousMr. Speaker, I will end on this note. A few weeks ago I was challenged to a push- up challenge. At first, I did not want to do it. I was like, Why should I do a pus h-up challenge? But then I did it and I was able to …
Mr. Speaker, I will end on this note. A few weeks ago I was challenged to a push- up challenge. At first, I did not want to do it. I was like, Why should I do a pus h-up challenge? But then I did it and I was able to coerce MP Sylvan Ric hards to do it as well, 25 push- ups each day. So, I upped the game—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerSounds like you are trying to get ready for your cricket team. They might need the help.
Mr. Christop her FamousOh, yes. You are . . . you are getting . . . you are stealing my punchline! So one day I upped it to 30, the next day he upped it to 35. And there was a little competition going on, it was friendly competition. Now, as you know, …
Oh, yes. You are . . . you are getting . . . you are stealing my punchline! So one day I upped it to 30, the next day he upped it to 35. And there was a little competition going on, it was friendly competition. Now, as you know, Mr. Speaker, MP Sylvan Richards and I, we ain’t on the same side. We ain’t on the same side politically and we ain’t on the same side at Cup Match. But what we are on the same side of is maintaining our health. I say this to every man listening to me, Black , white, St . David’s Island, the Portuguese, around the world. We, as men, are guilty of neglecting our health. We do not get our check -ups. We are too proud to get our prostate checked. We eat all sorts of things that we should not eat. (Not you, Mr. Speaker, becaus e somehow you stay the same size you have been . . . since you were born.) But I am serious, Mr. Speaker, as men, all of us, we need to take a page out of Bishop Burgess’s book, take a page out of MP Michael Scott’s book, take a page out of even Sylvan Ri chards’s book, even MP Dunkley. We have to stay fit. It makes no sense for us up here [to be] arguing about this, that and the other if we are neglecting our own health. If we refuse to go to the doctor, or if we do not follow up and go to the required specialists, we are doing ourselves a di sservice. We are doing our children a disservice. We are doing our country a disservice. So I am going to end on this note. I am going to challenge each one of my parliamentary brothers to ask yourself, Can I do 25 pus h-ups? If you cannot do 25 push- ups, you need to start. Start with 5, start with 10, but I want every one of my parliamentary brothers to get a hold of their health. With that, Mr. Speaker, I wish you good night from the western side of my house which is i n the eastern side of Devonshire. Thank you.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Famous. That was a good note to end on, encouraging us all to be more healthy. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Mr. Speaker. I would like to—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, who else would like to speak at this time? Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I would like to speak from the western side of Devonshire, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes, you have the floor. Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I do not have my Cup Match mask on because I am sitting in my house, so I do not need to have it on. But you know, Mr. Speaker, I am with you all the way on this one.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAll right. MEN —MAINTAINING OUR HEALTH Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I am happy to follow the blue-and-blue guy from just over the hill in Devonshire here, and certainly I want to piggy -back a little bit on what he said about taking care of our health before I get into …
All right.
MEN —MAINTAINING OUR HEALTH
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I am happy to follow the blue-and-blue guy from just over the hill in Devonshire here, and certainly I want to piggy -back a little bit on what he said about taking care of our health before I get into two other issues that I want to speak about. Mr. Speaker, it is interesting that in life often we need shocks to make us pay attention t o the reality around us. As we are young, growing up, we feel we can accomplish anything, we can do anything, we feel we are invincible. We see it now on the roads in the way a lot of our fellow Bermudians drive on the roads. They feel that if they come of f a bike they can just pop up and run off and get back on the bike and they are not going to be injured in anyway. But the older we get the more reality slips into us and makes us under-stand that our bodies are not invincible; that we all have issues. We all need to maintain our bodies. We all need to do what we can to keep ourselves in reasonable health. We all need to have annual check -ups on a regular basis, especially when you get to be the age of 35. You know, Mr. Speaker, like many colleagues in the House I was always very active when I was young. I played football, cricket . . . every sport. In fact, I tell people all the time, I would have never go tten through school if they did not have sports, because my parents always told me that, If you don’t d o your schoolwork, you are not going to play your sports. So that made me really knuckle down and commit to doing the schoolwork so that I could go play sports and do the interschool sports or play football and cricket down one end of the Island to the oth er. But I certainly had a shock when I was younger because my father died at the relatively young age of 40. Our family, my brother and two si sters, we were all still young children at the time, and I saw my father as a solid rock. I saw him as physically fit. He exercised, he played a lot of sports, but he smoked, Mr. Speaker. And the cigarettes actually contributed to his death by having a stroke. And from that time on, I got that most unfortunate sharp shock that nobody is invincible. And when my hero w as taken 4396 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly from me at that young age, I knuckled down more to say, in the first instance, I want to stay in shape. In the second instance, I want to live longer than he did. And in the third instance, I want to live longer than my grandfather who died at 62. So, so far so good, b ecause I just turned the 62 the other day and I am still going. But, you know, MP Famous talks about challenging each other to stay fit. To keep your body in good shape we do need to have challenges because life can be mundane at times. For example, when we were locked down for the whole period of time, many people got into bad habits. We could not exercise like we wanted to, and that was an unfortunate opportunity where people’s health suffered a little bit. And so now it is great to see people challenging people, other men challenging men with the 25- push- up challenge and things like that. I hope that we can continue to do it because [maintaining our] health is an everyday thing that we should do. You know, at least five days a week we should do some exercise. And if we do that I think we will find that our lives will be more productive, more fruitful, and certainly we can help in our own way to reduce our health care costs, which are quite expensive if we have a number of issues to d eal with. So I applaud the Honourable Member for bringing up those comments. You know, trying to stay healthy is a lif etime experience you must do and you must commit to it every day.
SOCIAL MEDIA COMMENTS REGARDING DR. CARIKA WELDON
Hon. Michael H. Dunk ley: Now, Mr. Speaker, let me speak for a few moments on the social media posts which the Premier alluded to last night during the press conference, and colleagues have alluded to t oday during the motion to adjourn. I have not seen the post so I do not kno w what the Premier or colleagues are referring to, but I was quite surprised last night when I tuned into the press conference and heard such a vehement support over a social media post that was out there. Mr. Speaker, let me say right up front in my remarks that I have not seen these in any way. But there is no way any individual should attack som ebody else, personally or on social media. And one of the things that really aggravates me about social m edia . . . and it is an outlet that everyone is on, to some extent, whether it is Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, many of the different ones, people are on them. It is a way for many people to post things that totally cross the line. Now, it is one thing to have a debate thing back and forth, to make a post, as k ques tions, be critical of somebody but not to be personal. There is no problem with that; you see some good discussions all the time on various social media portals where you have those good discussions. But when people cross the line and get personal, or damning information that is not correct, or post pi ctures that should not be posted because they relate to injuries of people, we need to say enough is enough, Mr. Speaker. For example, there was a post going around earlier this week in regard to the hor rific accident involving the two Regiment officers (I think it was on Monday night of this week), showing the damage to the car and things like that. Those types of posts are unacceptable in every way because, clearly, those types of posts come on very qui ckly after an incident or an accident. They come on very quickly before friends, and more importantly, families, even know what took place. And those types of posts send the shudder of fear through people who wonder what is happening to their loved ones. T hey are unaccept able, Mr. Speaker. Posts such as one I saw a couple of weeks ago, right after a road traffic fatality, where there was a post of the individual still there in front of the vehicle before the ambulance had even got there, which was circulat ing. Those are unacceptable, Mr. Speaker. And we should call people out over that. In fact, now is the time I think we actually could enact some legislation to make those types of things against the law because they make difficult si tuations, they make horrific situations, they make tragic situations even more unbearable for families and friends who are impacted by it, Mr. Speaker. So I use the comments tonight about the s ocial media posts (which I did not see) to reflect on people crossing the line. And if people crossed the line on the posts tonight about Dr. Weldon, well, then it is right for the Premier to bring it up. And it is right for colleagues to bring it up and question it, but if people are asking questions, then those questions should be answered, Mr. Speaker. I think that sometimes, Mr. Speaker, what people get confused by and ask questions about is when they see a very strong defence of certain individuals, but for other people when something horrific happens to them in life and or something unfortunate happens to them in life and very little is said. For ex-ample, the dismissal of Tawanna Wedderburn, from the Bermuda Health Council months ago, ruining that life, very little was said about that, Mr. Speaker. But that is another person, a professional person in Bermuda who has respect. Why wasn’t there an outcry in the community about that, Mr. Speaker? I just ask the question. So, if it is good for the goose over here, it is good for the gander on the other side, Mr. Speaker. Everyone must be supported and stood up for. And so, I say that so we can reflect and we can hold the same level of standard all the way around. Now, Mr. Speaker, the comments by the Ho nourable Premier and by people in support of Dr. Wel-don, who I never have had the pleasure of meeting,
B ermuda House of Assembly but from what I know she has a great résumé. She is very energetic. She has come at a difficult time and helped our country with the team down there. So I applaud the effort and the initiative. But one of the things that when I started to think about what the post could have been about, Mr. Speaker, it led me back to a question period we had in the House in the middle of May (over six weeks ago now, Mr. Speaker) where I asked questions about COVID -19 costs. I asked questions about the total cost of what the Government spent to deal with COVID -19, in PPE, in equipment, everything like that, Mr. Speaker. And at that time, it was clear that while the Minister of F inance gave some answers, and the Minister of Health tried to give more answers, that they were at sixes and sevens about it, because the Minister of Health had to retract what she said because she was cor-rected by the Minister of Finance. And the Premier was then able to answer some questions and at that time made the statement, Mr. Speaker, and you can go to Hansard and check it out, the Premier made the statement that in the very near future the Minister of Health would come to the Honourable House and give a full overview of all COVID -19 costs, because questions were being asked. Now, here we are, six weeks later and it has not happened. And that is one reason why people ask questions on social media, because they did not get answers originally from what they had to say. Now, Mr. Speaker, you know, it is very clear that the Government has done a commendable job of containing the virus when it hit Bermuda. I mean, I think everyone had their estimate of how we would be impacted, how many positive tests we would have, how would it impact our community. And I think for all intents and purposes, Mr. Speaker, what most people estimated would take place was at a higher level to what we actually experienced and where we are t oday. And so we have done a commendable job be-cause we shut down the border. But it was also very clear. . . and this is not a fault of Government, Mr. Speaker. But it was also very clear that because of the mad rush and the crush to get PPE and testing equipment which we could not get it in Bermuda as quickly as we needed to get it in Bermuda, all the while the Government in the early stages was saying we were doing aggressive testing when we were not, in fact, doing it. Now we are very aggressive. And I think we are all proud of that, Mr. Speaker. And so I raise these comments tonight to r eflect back on a commitment that Government gave about COVID -19 costs, and I look forward to the Premier and the Minister of Health coming to the House in one of the remaining [sittings] that we have for this session of Parliament to give a full overview of the costs so that the questions can be cleared up. Hopefully people can get all their questions answered and we can stay away from becoming personal about issues and have a better understanding. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Dunkley. Does any other Member wish to speak? [ Inaudible interjections]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerAhh, MP Lister. How are you this evening? [ Crosstalk; Feedback] SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA & GLOBAL STUDIES
Mr. Dennis Lister III.Good evening to you and to my fellow MPs and to the listening audience. [ Crosstalk; Feedback]
Mr. Dennis Lister III[I NAUDIBLE] today the Education Minister’s statement regarding the Social Studies Curriculum in Public Schools –respecting Bermuda & Global Studies . I wholeheartedly support this and I endorse the Minister and his team for reintroducing and emphasising Bermudian, African and Caribbean studies. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Member Atherden questioned the Minister …
[I NAUDIBLE] today the Education Minister’s statement regarding the Social Studies Curriculum in Public Schools –respecting Bermuda & Global Studies . I wholeheartedly support this and I endorse the Minister and his team for reintroducing and emphasising Bermudian, African and Caribbean studies. Mr. Speaker, Honourable Member Atherden questioned the Minister [about] his statement by asking, What about Anglo- Saxon and Portuguese history? Mr. Speaker, I actually took offence to that question. Asking that question, Mr. Speaker, is equiv alent to sa ying all lives matter during this time of Black Lives Matter. And I say that, Mr. Speaker, because we know all lives matter, but [not] all innocent lives are getting killed by police officers and who are getting away with it on video. Mr. Speaker, all live s are not getting treated like that. And the same with history, Mr. Speaker, Anglo- Saxon and Portuguese history does matter. As a matter of fact, all history does matter. But, Mr. Speaker, in Bermuda, Anglo- Saxon and Portuguese history is at least taught. But we know is what we do not know about Bermudian, African and Caribbean history, Mr. Speaker. As Bermudians, we can sit and we can look at Bermuda and see remnants of Anglo- Saxon history. We have the hospital, “King Edward.” We have restaurants, King Henry [VIII]. Mr. Speaker, even most of our locations are named after Anglo- Saxon persons — St. George’s, Somerset, Smith’s Parish. Every parish 4398 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report B ermuda House of Assembly is named after an Anglo- Saxon, Mr. Speaker. So, yes, we do understand that Anglo- Saxon and Portuguese history matter in Bermuda. But, Mr. Speaker, we have forgotten about Black and Bermudian history. I just want, before I go on, to paraphrase the comment also made by Member Atherden when she said that Portuguese is in fact the official language of Bermuda. I stand to correct, that it is not. Bermuda’s official language is only English. Portuguese is not an official language, Mr. Speaker. So, yes, Mr. Speaker, all lives matter, all history matters. But Black Lives Matter now because of what we see going on and Bermudian and African history matters now, Mr. Speaker. Again, in Bermuda . . . and, Mr. Speaker, I must declare my interest. I did go to a private school, so I cannot say what was taught in public school. But in private school we learned world history, world geog-raphy, we learned American history, American geo graphy. So we learned about everything but Bermudian history; or it was very limited, Mr. Speaker. But most people, and myself especially as I am a history buff —history, geography those were my favourite subjects in school. I try to learn as much as I can and still, to this day, I read. And that, Mr. Speaker, is how I actually found most of my history, African hi story, even Bermudian history, on my own, by reading. We did not learn it in school. And even, Mr. Speaker, up until maybe three years ago, I did not know who Mary Prince was. I had heard about Sally Basset but I did not know about Mary Prince. So we were not taught this in school, Mr. Speaker. So, again, Mr. Speaker, with these brief comments, I wholeheartedly support what the Minister and the Ministry of Education is doing by introducing and emphasising Bermudian, African and Caribbean studies. Because as they say, Mr. Speaker, to know where you are going you have to know where you come from. Mr. Speaker, the reason why we see a lot going on today with Black on Black violence and just the deterioration of the Black community as a whole, is because we are not taught where we came from. We are not taught that we were once kings and queens in Africa. Earli er today the Minister of Education mentioned being taught on Mansa Musa. Mr. Speaker, maybe 10, 15 years ago when doing research I came across who Mansa Musa was. And I came to find out that he was actually the richest man to ever live in the history of our planet. He was an African king from the Songhai Mali empire which even to this day we make reference to when people coined the phrase, Timbuktu. Timbuktu is a historical, actual place in Africa which, during its heyday, was the Mecca of its time—univers ities, co lleges, learned people, science. So Timbuktu was a leader of the world. So Mansa Musa was the ruler of Timbuktu and that empire, Mr. Speaker. It even goes on to say that upon conversion to the religion of Islam, Mansa Musa made a trek to Mecca. He travelled through Egypt. And upon landing in Egypt, his caravan which consisted of thousands of persons, thousands of pounds of supplies, and gold . . . the amount of gold that was introduced to the Egyptian market on that trip crashed the gold market because there was so much gold. They had never seen gold like that before, Mr. Speaker. So, again, we have to know where we come from to know where we are going, and as kings and queens in Africa—and there are many, we just are not taught in history. So, again, I support and wholehear tedly endorse this initiative by the Minister of Education so that we as Black Bermudians . . . and not just Black Bermudians, because again as a Black man you learn about European history, world history .So now it is time for ev eryone —Black , white and Portuguese—to learn about Bermudian and African heritage and hist ory. And as for the Portuguese, yes, we do understand that they have their own carved -out niche from the rest of us. So I also encourage and implore the Minister and the Ministry to introduce some Port uguese history for our Portuguese citizens here in Bermuda. Again, we must not leave out anybody. But we have to understand that right now Black studies, Bermudian studies, African studies are important to learn so that we do not forget who we are. So, again, those are my comments. Thank you for the opportunity to speak, Mr. Speaker. And for all who are listening, have a good evening. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMs. Atherden, would you like to speak now? Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Yes, please.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYou have the microphone. SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA & GLOBAL STUDIES Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, I prefaced my question this morning by indicating to the Minister that I was pleased that in the school system there was going to be the exploration of all the …
You have the microphone. SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA & GLOBAL STUDIES Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, I prefaced my question this morning by indicating to the Minister that I was pleased that in the school system there was going to be the exploration of all the things that were important to us as Black individuals. I also referenced the fact that the Minister had indicated that it was g oing to be transformative for all students. The reason I asked the question was not because I was trying to say, Is this the only thing that you are doing? I wanted to get fleshed out what else
Bermuda House of Assembly was being done so that every body else who is on the Island, everybody else who is out there would be aware of what our children were learning in school. Because as someone said earlier, when we were much older, maybe perhaps we learned everything about Anglo- Saxon. We did not learn anything about what happened with Black people who came to the Island. We did not learn anything about slave trade, et cetera. But if we do not start getting to a situation where we try and make sure that every Bermudian understands the contribution that each group has made to the Island and starts to respect what we all have to give, and have a mutual respect, I am really worried that we are not going to grow as a country. Therefore, when I asked some of these questions it was not because I was trying to ne gate the emphasis that was being done. I wanted to be sure that when we started to move and do more about what our legacy is, what our heritage is with respect to being Black , that we do not negate the fact that right now there is a growing population of people who are mixed. There is a growing population of people who are Portuguese. And therefore, if we do not start to understand that each group has been there and been for each other . . . I know lots of people who are older who talk about when they were living in certain areas that Black s and whites got along very well with each other because what they had in common was the fact that they were both struggling. They were struggling and that is what they had in common. Therefore, they were not looking at someone to sort of say, Well, you are white and I am Black and therefore there is this need for us to be at each other’s throat. Because they realised that they were all in it together, and in Bermuda we are all in this together. So I was really concerned t hat the—
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint of order — POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
Mr. Rolfe CommissiongThe Member is misleading the House and misleading the country. The Member full well knows that all of the re levant statistics note that our personal relationships indicate that Black s are socioeconomically marginalised in this country. All of the stats indicate that. Is she going to say that this …
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMember. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerContinue. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: I am going to continue. The Member had opportunity to say whatever he wanted. I have my opportunity now. And what I am saying is the fact that if we do not start recogni sing the contributions that each ethic group, each group that comes …
Continue. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: I am going to continue. The Member had opportunity to say whatever he wanted. I have my opportunity now. And what I am saying is the fact that if we do not start recogni sing the contributions that each ethic group, each group that comes to the Island can make, and if we do not [stop] pitting each other against each other, [most] times for very much divisive reasons, then I fear that the cou ntry is not going to be able —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI take your point of order. Point of order? [Pause]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMr. Swan, would you like to put your point of order? POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanThe Honourable Member is misleading the House by mispresenting the problem at hand. The Black community has been ruled for centuries in this country and the playing field is unlevel. The narrative that the Honourable Member is trying to portray is like people are being divisive by only looking to …
The Honourable Member is misleading the House by mispresenting the problem at hand. The Black community has been ruled for centuries in this country and the playing field is unlevel. The narrative that the Honourable Member is trying to portray is like people are being divisive by only looking to level the playing field. In order for the playing field to be levelled, things have to be done to rectify cent uries of wrongdoings —and some even very recent, Mr. Speaker. It is a false and a very dangerous narrative that the Honourable Member is advancing.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Member. MP Atherden. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So when I asked the question, and I did ask the question whether the Minister would at least say what was being done in schools, was just so that this type of information could be gotten out …
Thank you, Member. MP Atherden.
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So when I asked the question, and I did ask the question whether the Minister would at least say what was being done in schools, was just so that this type of information could be gotten out there. Because as I recognise and I know someone indicated that Portuguese was not the official language, well, when I went . . . and I cannot remember which website I went on. I saw that in terms of the official language it said English and Portuguese. And therefore, that is —
Mr. Rolfe CommissiongMr. Speaker, point of order. Mr. Speaker, the Member full well knows that it was I who made that comment —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint of order. POINT OF ORDER [Misleading] 4400 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Mr. Rolfe Commissiong: The Member is misleading the House. She full well knows that it was myself, Rolfe Commissiong, who made that retort to her claim. And she is old enough …
Point of order.
POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
4400 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly Mr. Rolfe Commissiong: The Member is misleading the House. She full well knows that it was myself, Rolfe Commissiong, who made that retort to her claim. And she is old enough to know and been in politics long enough to know that there are no of ficial languages in Bermuda, including English. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerOkay. Continue, Member. The point was made. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This in terms of languages that people are normally trying to use, I would think that there has been a recognition that in terms of predominant lan-guage, English and Portuguese are two of the la …
Okay. Continue, Member. The point was made. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This in terms of languages that people are normally trying to use, I would think that there has been a recognition that in terms of predominant lan-guage, English and Portuguese are two of the la nguages that are out there and that people feel that they want to be able to learn those to be able to communicate with each other. I am not going to go down that path as it relates to the language. I am going to really stick to the concern that I was raising.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerLet’s accept the point that they are used, but the terminology of “official” is what is being questioned today an d there is no “official” piece attached to that. “Official” is the word that is being questioned. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: And, Mr. Speaker, I can only go on the …
Let’s accept the point that they are used, but the terminology of “official” is what is being questioned today an d there is no “official” piece attached to that. “Official” is the word that is being questioned.
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: And, Mr. Speaker, I can only go on the basis of the reference, the website that I went on that said it. Now, obviously, on some we bsite it says it and therefore I do not know from whence they got their reference. But I am not going to waste my minutes going further into that discussion. Okay? So, what I am trying to say is the fact that especially when we are starting to talk about what we are going to do in Primary 1, Primary 3 and Primary 4, et cetera, and learning about who they are individually and collectively, I am hoping . . . and I cannot get into all that must be done to try and deal with, as I say, some of the reparations and other things. I am just hoping that there will be the opportunity when the teachers are teaching to talk about the ethic groups that are on the Island and the contributions that they make and an opportunity for people to be able to see what they have in c ommon and what each has brought to the Island. Then we talked about the migration, et cetera. That was when I found it was quite interesting because in terms of the migration, that to me obviously is where we are talking about the slave trade. We are talking about what has happened in Bermuda. But then also, some people perhaps might look and sort of say, Okay, that is how come we got Portuguese on the Island. And technically, I guess, that is how we got the Island [colonised] in the very first instance. But it is unfortunate that there would be a feeling that I was trying to say that Black lives do not matter, because that is not what I was saying. I was trying to clarify whether . . . based on the Minister’s stat ement, talking about the curriculum, and how he had highlighted these other things, I just wanted to be sure that somewhere in the curriculum there was an opportunity (if you will) to talk about everybody in Bermuda who is making a contribution so that as we go forward we will have more opportuni ty to have mutual understanding of the needs, mutual understanding of the concerns, because sometimes in terms of whether you are going to have a roof over your head, whether you are going to have a pay cheque, whether you are going to have a proper health system, those things cut across racial lines. They have nothing to do whether you are Black , white, or whatever. Lots of people in each one of these ethic groups are out there hurting. They are out there worried about where their pay cheque is going to b e. They are worried about all the things that are affecting them. So I wanted to just —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerPoint of order. POINT OF ORDER [Misleading]
Mr. Rolfe CommissiongThe Member is misleading the Hous e again. What she is saying is not evidenced based. The racial disparities are clear on almost every area of Bermuda life. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. Continue, Member. Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will cont inue. You know, many times in the House we are talking about disparities, and we talk about opportunities. Every time I look, and even now when I see the Government what they are doing, my …
Thank you. Continue, Member.
Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will cont inue. You know, many times in the House we are talking about disparities, and we talk about opportunities. Every time I look, and even now when I see the Government what they are doing, my concern is to make sure that the Government is going to give o pportunities for Bermudians to be able to get out there and have job opportunities. I understand that they are going to have to make choices and that Bermudians come ahead of anybody else as it relates to having an opportunity. And if I turn over and I say this for a moment, and perhaps some of the people in the hearing of my voice will say, I recognise that sometimes, yes, people have been discriminated against. And sometimes being a woman, you have doubly been discriminated against. So, discrimination happens to lots of people as it relates to not being given opportunities. And I applaud when I see different companies out there starting to say, Okay, we must do more to help those people who have been underprivileged or who have
Bermuda House of Assembly not had enough opportunities, b ecause I believe it is important to have what I call real opportunity. It is not good enough to have something that is out there to say that it sounds really great that, you know, someone puts together a marketing something or whatever else. We are only going to be judged by what real initiatives we come up with. We are only going to be judged by what things we do to try and improve the lot of people. I know MP Commissiong, and MP Famous, that, yes, there are lots of things that happened in the past. Therefore, those things have been looked at and will continue to be looked at. But for me, I look at it and say that one of the most important things that has to be is that we make sure that it never happens again in the future. We have to do things to try and make sure we learn some lessons about opportunities. We learn some lessons about people not being treated fairly. We learn some lessons about why things are done in a certain way. And when there was talk about some of the things that happened, whether it be in the judicial system or whatever else, looking at things that have negatively impacted our Black community is i mportant. It is important to do these things to make sure that they never happen again. Similarly, it is important to make sure that things that have happened to women never happen again. It is important that any group that has had negative things happen to them because people do not respect the fact that they are human beings and ther efore should be properly taken account and be given opportunities to be able to do the things to the best of their ability is wrong and therefore I believe that we have to do something about it. I am sorry that my asking those [questions] would make someone feel that I was indicating that what was happening was not proper. I was just trying to make sure that we were covering all of the bases so that as we go forward we will try and make sure that everybody in Bermuda has a role to play and therefore if Bermuda is going to get anywhere ever ybody has to be able to c ontribute to their maximum. We cannot have people out there not having opportunities to their maximum. We cannot have peo-ple out there [not] being able to contribute because this Island does not have enough people, and we need everybody we can have making it count so that Bermuda can turn around and survive. And those are the reasons why I felt that I needed to at least respond to some of the indications that felt that I was not understanding why we had to deal with things which happened to the Black peopl e in the community. I am Black . And we also have to deal with making sure that people do not think that there was some sort of intent to turn around when I wanted to make sure that we did something for all of Bermuda and all of Bermudians and we move Berm udians collectively forward. Thank you, very much, Mr. Speaker. The Speaker: Thank you, MP. Does any other Member wish to speak?
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: Mr. Speaker, yes, sir.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerYes. You can have the floor. Hon. Patricia J. Gordo n-Pamplin: Thank you. WORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin : [INAUDI BLE] Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to speak to a couple of things today one of which was, and we thank the Minister of Labour for …
Yes. You can have the floor.
Hon. Patricia J. Gordo n-Pamplin: Thank you.
WORK PERMIT RENEWALS DENIED
Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin : [INAUDI BLE] Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to speak to a couple of things today one of which was, and we thank the Minister of Labour for giving the comprehensive listing thi s mor ning in response to parliamentary questions about the people whose work permits were not renewed. B ecause the idea of my colleagues asking the question was to ensure that Bermudians were made aware of opportunities that were out there and the numbers of positions that might be available for which they can avail themselves of opportunities especially in these difficult times through COVID -19 and the resulting unemployment that may occur. One of the things that I did not get the opportunity to ask the Mi nister, and I ought to have in terms of asking a question that I had this morning was, To the extent that we have applicants that were turned down, for which there are no local applications that . . . is it . . . that we might be creating a major challenge in terms of a business’s ability to continue. I was advised of a particular company where there was one particular position that had been rejected, and a Bermudian had actually applied. So the company was absolutely ecstatic that they did not have the iss ues of having to have a work permit holder fulfil that position, that they were able to bring somebody on. And notwithstanding that their standards were set in terms of what was required of the successful applicant for that position they had chosen, you know, the Bermudian who had applied. Well lo and behold, Mr. Speaker, once that Bermudian had applied that Bermudian decided that they did not want wish to do the trade test that was a prerequisite of ensuring that the position was effectively filled. I wil l not say the specific position, but I have been made aware of what it is, and I can tell you without fear of contradiction that we were speaking about a position that requires . . . it certainly requires a high degree of competence. So while the company decided that they would bring the Bermudian on board, the Bermudian then turned down the job. So, the renewal was not had, the Bermudian has now elected not to take the position and now the company is left wanting. That is going to impact its business delivery of services. I think that we just need to make sure that when we do have these situations that occur, it is very 4402 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly important for us to ensure that Bermudians are not just being given the opportunities, but that we also show that we are worthy of those c onsiderations. B ecause going forward, Mr. Speaker, when you look at the numbers of . . . you know, there are some pos itions that are . . . you know, there are far more people than in other positions where these people’s permits have not been renewed. That gives an ideal opportunity. And I think that as, certainly as an Opposition we have looked at those positions and we were wanting to know that . . . you know, this is a perfect opportunity for Bermudians to get in there in these particular areas and to be able to make themselves, to get those positions and not have to play second fiddle to a guest worker. So I think that it is also important on us, the impetus or the responsibility falls on us as Bermudi-ans to make sure that when that call comes for us, Mr . Speaker, that we do undergo the necessary tests, that we do undergo the requirements of competency and let us not have an attitude or approach that, I don’t have to do this test, if that is a prerequisite, if it has been determined from the advertisement that this has been required. I would never condone an employer putting conditions in place after an advertisement has been had and they say, Yes, I will hire this person, and that person, for whatever reason . . . if the employer decides to put in a diff erent criterion for that person reaching a level of competency that would be totally unacceptable. But if those conditions are part of the advertisement, then I believe that everybody who applies for that position should be able to fulfil the nec-essary cri teria by the employers. So I am hoping that we are not missing an opportunity as Bermudians, you know, to put emplo yers in a situation where they start to think that they are not getting sufficient ––or not getting a quality of employee or applicant to be able to fulfil their standards and whatever they require based on the advertis ements that they have placed, and then make the determination that this isn’t worth it, and therefore they end up closing down a business and somewhere along the way some other B ermudian ends up being disadvantaged. So that is my concern in that respect.
ARGUS INSURANCE, ISLAND HEALTH SERVICES AND FAMILY PRACTICE GROUP MERGER Hon. Patricia J. Gordon -Pamplin: The other thing I wanted to speak about, Mr. Speaker, was, two days or so ago there was a public announcement that Argus Insurance Company had acquired two medical practices. Mr. Speaker, while there was perhaps nothing illegal concerning it, they obviously found a way to be able to do the things that they were required to do in terms of revamping their business model, it is quite apparent I think to the general public that this was something that was new, it was a different approach, and therefore it is, in my opinion . . . I felt that some kind of public statement needed to be made. So I went yesterday with a request for the Minister to come back and say something about this very large and interesting and different development in the health care field. Well, lo and behold, Mr. Speaker, the Minister in referring to this in t he press conference last night, effectively alluded to the fact that this was never . . . that her Ministry . . . that she had not been engaged in this process that had taken place. Of course, the watchdog for health care in Bermuda is the Bermuda Health Council. So, I looked again. What has the [Bermuda] Health Council done? And what I determined from the news report from the day before was that the Bermuda Health Council was unaware. Now, Mr. Speaker, I say all that to say that I recognise that business es will do the things that they feel they need to do, but when such a major change is made and there seems to be, in my estimation–– and there may be a different description, there may be a different reason–– but in my estimation it appears to me that there has been a total disregard and disr espect for the processes that we have and the people who would be in charge of those processes. I cannot believe that a company would have the temerity to have such a major reshuffle of things and not have the decency to discuss it with the Minister. That, to my mind, Mr. Speaker, is inexcusable. And I believe that we have to start to demand a different level of respect, a different level of engagement, and something that would say that even if these things are going to ha ppen, that at least, at the very least, the Minister should be made aware. Mr. Speaker, I do not . . . I mean, we have differences from a political perspective. But I also believe that we have a responsibility to look out for the decency and the propriet y of the process and the pr otocols that should be put in place. And I think that when we see these kinds of things happening, then what will happen is that we will probably find situations in which people will look for loopholes and they will walk down that path with total disregard for the Government and for the authorities that are vested in the Government to make sure that everybody is looked out for. Mr. Speaker, my concern is whether there was a conflict. Obviously, you know, my phone started ringing off the hook. Is there a conflict of interest? I do not know, because there was no information that had been given to the public at the point that the announcement had been made for the merger. So we do not know if there has been a conflict of interest. W e do not know whether the merger is going to create better outcomes, better patient outcomes as a result. We do not know whether in fact having an insurance compa-ny who is paying the bills, having under its thumb the
Bermuda House of Assembly provider of the bills, it might create efficiencies. I do not know. If it does create efficiencies in the health care system for better patient outcomes, I can accept that. But, Mr. Speaker, I will find it extraordinarily difficult to believe that as the person paying the bills you are not going to put your thumb on the person who is provi ding the service to make sure that your bottom line is better than it might otherwise have been. So this is my concern, Mr. Speaker. It just seemed to me to be blatant disregard and disrespect for the authorit y of the Ministry that is responsible for that particular profession. And I would like to be pro ven wrong, Mr. Speaker. I would like for somebody to say that maybe the Minister misspoke. Maybe the Minister was in fact engaged in the process. Maybe the Mini ster did do something. Maybe the Health Council did know something. But there is no r eason for me to disbelieve the assertions made by the Mini ster or by the CEO of the Health Council. So I then have to [ask] the question, Why is something like this happening in this environment in which there seems to be no level of accountability, just because it is not illegal for it to happen. There are some things, Mr. Speaker, that you can do because you can (because the rules do not say you cannot). But there are oth er things where decency of approach needs to be taken, in my estimation, which embrace the intent and the propriety of the decisions that are being made. I think in this instance, from what we have seen thus far, it seems as though this had been missed out . And I would certainly like to have some kind of statement coming from the Ministry as soon as there has been an opportunity to be able to delve into and get to the bottom of how these negotiations have been carried out. It would seem to me, Mr. Speaker, that this is not something that happened overnight. This is not something that perhaps would have happened since COVID -19. This would have been something that pr esumably was in the making for some significant period of time. And if we in this Honourable H ouse, Mr. Speaker, do not stand up and support and [show] concern for the people of Bermuda and the quality of their health care . . . and I hope through this that ma ybe that quality will get better. I do not know. But in the absence of information we are left to rife speculation. And I do not believe that that is the right way to go, Mr. Speaker. I believe that the people of Bermuda and certainly the Minister of the Government are owed a better degree of courtesy and decency in the communi-cation of these intentions so that there is nothing sini ster being appended to the companies that have been involved in this conglomerate. [Will] any existing patient, Mr. Speaker, because they have this particular insurance company, be made to use that insurance company’ s conglomerate for their future health care? What does that then do to other doctors and other doctor/patient relationships? There are lots of questions that need to be answered, Mr. Speaker. And I am afraid that we just do not have those answers. I know that when companies are publicly traded there are things that obviously would have to be held close to their chest in terms of not having insider trading information, what is this decision going to do for the value of the stocks of the company, and all tha t sort of thing. But I still think that the Ministers of the Government have the ability and the responsibility to operate with information that they receive confidentia lly, to deal with it in a confidential manner but also to be informative to the people that we represent so that there is no concern in terms of what is happening in respect of their health care. So those are my concerns, Mr. Speaker, just to say that at some point in the near future I certainly hope that there is a reasonable explanation t hat is being given to the people of Bermuda and that the necessary respect for authority is not just done, but is shown to be done. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP. Does any other Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerGood evening. SOCIAL MEDIA COMMENTS REGARDING DR. CARIKA WELDON
Mr. Neville S. TyrrellMr. Speaker, I intend to be very brief inasmuch as the subject matter that I want to talk about has been talked about, especially by a few of my colleagues —certai nly Deputy Burgess and the Honourable Tinee Furbert, and lastly I believe the Honourable Michael Dunkley, spoke to the …
Mr. Speaker, I intend to be very brief inasmuch as the subject matter that I want to talk about has been talked about, especially by a few of my colleagues —certai nly Deputy Burgess and the Honourable Tinee Furbert, and lastly I believe the Honourable Michael Dunkley, spoke to the matter. However, I just could not let the opportunity go by without once again, because I spoke before on this matter. And I will try a nd temper the irritation in my voice because I am a little bit annoyed about having to hear this again. Mr. Speaker, I refer to the recent and conti nued questioning of the qualifications of our very own Dr. Carika Weldon. The Premier did address the matter at the most recent press conference and dealt with it very adequately. And my colleagues, as I said, have already spoken on it very adequately. But, Mr. Speak4404 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly er, when I heard and read these previous comments, I put it down to a lack of knowledge of who Dr. Weldon was. You know, not everybody knew her. She had been away for a while. And as I said, I only had the opportunity to meet her last summer when she was home. But I found her . . . in fact, I know her, to be a young educationally gifted Black woman who has taken the time and effort to get herself trained in her field. And I think she should be encouraged because there are very few Black s, certainly Black women that I know of, in that field. So I could not excuse these persons. You know, I could probably excuse these persons for their lack of knowledge because they probably have not done their homework. However, Mr. Speaker, Dr. Weldon has now been home going on over, say, five months, at least, sharing her training and knowledge of the COVID -19 testi ng regime. So she is certainly known now as to who she is. Mr. Speaker, those persons, or maybe even new persons, would have had enough time by now to do their homework and r esearch on Dr. Weldon and possibly her qualifications. So, Mr. Speaker, I am now wondering in my mind, if these new comments are just malicious, or if they are some sort of softened racism, or just plain planting seeds of doubt in people just to cause problems. Mr. Speaker, I am not going to guess what the motive for other people’s minds are, and whatever is at play here. I would just, again, thank Dr. Weldon for choosing to come home. I am sure it was a choice to assist Bermuda in becoming a safe place for us to live and for people to come and visit. I am just going to put it down to h aters will be haters. Dr. Weldon, let me say again, I offer you and your team my appreciation for all that you have done. I have heard nothing but good news. And, again, I encourage you. And let me also at the same time, just again thank all the frontline workers who have been involved during this pandemic that we are all suffering under. So, Mr. Speaker, as I said I will be very brief, because it has already been talked about. I will just leave it right there and I thank you again for the opportunity. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Tyrrell. Does any other Member like to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you. If you can’t, I can get a bi gger one for you next time. How’s that?
Mrs. Renee MingI can barely see it but that is okay, a bigger one —
The SpeakerThe SpeakerI’ll make sure we have a bigger one just so that you won’t have a problem seeing it. ENCOURAGING BLACK WOMEN TO GET INVOLVED
Mrs. Renee MingMr. Speaker, I was just going to kind of ask that you bear with me because I am going to relay some figures to you. And they are figures that, for me, are quite disturbing. I must say, Mr. Speaker, that with the topic of Black Lives Matter being discussed …
Mr. Speaker, I was just going to kind of ask that you bear with me because I am going to relay some figures to you. And they are figures that, for me, are quite disturbing. I must say, Mr. Speaker, that with the topic of Black Lives Matter being discussed in many circles, many arenas, and getting some serious attention, it allowed me to have some conversations with some of my own Black women, because when we talk about Black Liv es Matter, you definitely would want to be talking about Black women. And being a woman, I think that is definitely a conversation that I would like to have. I feel that some of the figures that I will give you, Mr. Speaker, will definitely not make me popular, and so I will apologise in advance for that. I am unapologetically ambitious. I am unapo logetically Black . And I am unapologetically a woman. That means I cannot change, Mr. Speaker. That is just who I am. I am a woman who lives in Bermuda, with a makeup of 53 per cent women. So women are the majority in Bermuda. And in terms of voting popul ation, women are the majority as well, Mr. Speaker. So I look even at you, Mr. Speaker, and I feel like you sit there as Speaker today because I am pretty sure an overwhelming percentage of women went to the polls in your constituency and felt you worthy of this Honourable House. So take time to thank a woman. Mr. Speaker, there are 36 Members of Parliament. So you and I are just the same. There is no disrespect to you or anything like that, but I think that we are all Members of Parliament and we are all elected officials. And, Mr. Speaker, if you analyse each constituency one by one, you will find that in most of them women make up the greater number. So women act ually, when you start looking at stats, are more inclined to vote in elections. I chuckle when I say that because maybe it is something in the air, who knows. But, Mr. Speaker, when I gloat about women I
Bermuda House of Assembly think that it stops right there, because as I start to look at the figures I feel like . . . hmm. So here you go. In our legislature, Mr. Speaker, women make up 27.65 per cent. Women make up only 22 per cent of the number in the House of Assembly. Women make up 45.45 per cent of the number in the Senate. Women make up a mere 16 per cent of the number of PLP Members of Parliament. Women make up 36.36 per cent of the number of the OBA Members of Parliament. Sixty per cent of the women of the PLP Senators are women—so woo hoo! Of the Ministers, 45.71 per cent , inclusive of our Junior Ministers, are women. And women in the PLP only represent seven of the 47 Members of the legislature, which amounts to 14.89 per cent. Mr. Speaker, you might say, Well, why is that important? You would be surprised at the number of women who are actually looking at these numbers and are concerned. And in having a conversation with probably about six women the other day, the first thing they were saying was like, We are underrepresented. And part of why I am talking about women today is because I think that it is time for women, especially Black women, to stand up and take their place. I have had women ask me, What is it that I can do? What can I bring? Because as women we sometimes feel as if we are undervalued, Mr. Speaker, and m aybe not even appreciated for what it is that we bring to the proverbial table. But, Mr. Speaker, I know, and I know that you know, that we bring a lot to the table. And I am not talking about as secretaries or administrative assistants. I am talking about in terms of ideas, in terms of making things happen, in terms of creativity and, not to mention, execution. Mr. Speaker, I do not know about the other women, like, for instance, in the House of Assembly or even around Bermuda, but I would like to see wom en being represented more. And I do not mean just in the House of Assembly. In committees, on boards . . . women that I have had conversations with are thinking about it now. And it is quite topical for them because they are asking themselves, What is it t hat I can do to make a change? How can I make an impact? How can I be involved? My words today would be to encourage them to get out there and get involved. Do not wait for someone to do anything for you because no one is going to do it. You do it for sel f, you do for yourself and where you think that you have talent and can make an impact, I would encourage you to get out there and do it. Mr. Speaker, I read this document this week and it was called “The National Partnership for Wo men and Families,” because I wanted to do some read-ing. And it was sad to note that in terms of hierarchy Black women, especially for our wage, are the lowest on the totem pole for wages . Mr. Speaker, this doc ument is actually an American document, but I can def-initely see the r elevance to Bermuda. It talks about racism, it talks about sexism, it talks about haras sment in the workplace, and some of the things that Black women in particular encounter in their everyday lives, and the fact that we are already not making as much mone y as our male counterparts, and the financial impact that then happens on our families. Mr. Speaker, again, I encourage women. You do not have to sit around in circles and talk about be-ing underrepresented. Get out there and do som ething about it. If you believe you have something to offer in the political sphere, get out there and do something about it. If you believe that in your own community . . . because it does not have to be polit ical. It does not even have to be governmental. But if you believe tha t you have something to offer, and you can make an impact in your community, get out there and do something about it. Because we do not have to sit around in living rooms and have Zoom meetings and stuff and talk about what is not happening for us, it is t ime for us to stand up and make things happen for us. Mr. Speaker, this was not even meant to be a long thing. But I know that a couple of weeks ago I marched here for Black Lives Matter because I believe that my Black life and my children’s Black lives, and your children’s, and everybody’s Black lives ma tter. We marched for the injustices inflicted on people of colour. I marched because of the mistreatment of Black people. Mr. Speaker, today I march and I speak for women—and in particular, Black women—bec ause we do matter. So, Mr. Speaker, I am going to close today with this: I am unapologetically ambitious; I am unapologetically Black ; and I am unapologetically a woman. It is time for us as women to stand up and be r espected. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, MP Ming. Does any other Member wish to speak?
The SpeakerThe SpeakerHonourable Member Swan. SOCIAL STUDIES CURRICULUM IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS —BERMUDA AND GLOBAL STUDIES
Mr. Hubert (Kim) E. SwanYes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am very honoured and privileged to follow my colleague from the East, the Honourable Member from constituency 1, MP Renee Ming. A very capable young person who is providing service in our comm u4406 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of …
Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am very honoured and privileged to follow my colleague from the East, the Honourable Member from constituency 1, MP Renee Ming. A very capable young person who is providing service in our comm u4406 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report
Bermuda H ouse of Assembly nity and we are very grateful for all the work that she does. Today’s discussion, Mr. Speaker, on the m otion to adjourn has centred a bit around that subject that Bermuda has not quite figured out how to grapple with. I think the Honourable Member Ms. Atherden unwittingly stumbled upon it today. Mr. Speaker, the Honourable Member Ms. Atherden speaks to a mindset that would like for us to start from today and work together, hold hands t ogether. And Mr. Speaker I am not going to read the speech, but I am going to refer to probably one of the most famous speeches of this modern era. I am talking about in the last 70 years or so. It is recently modern. I am old enough to reme mber things of such. It is a speech that was given by Emperor Haile Selassie, a speech that was made popular by the Honourable Bob Nesta Marley. And it says, “ Until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, everywhere is war. ” And I am going to just start on that first sentence, Mr. Speaker, because we have in the midst of our world, and we have certainly had in the efforts of the late Dr. Eva Hodgson, in particular in our modern lives in Berm uda, more than enough evidence to suggest that there is a system in place in Bermuda that holds one race superior and another race inferior, economically. And there have been many examples that have borne this out. So when we take the philosophy . . . and philosophy was the third word in that sentence that the Honourable Emperor used. The philosophy which holds . . . the philosophy is thought. And the thinking of people sometimes runs contrary to their actual words and certainly their actions. We have enough empirical evidence to suggest that in Berm uda in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2020 one race reigns superior than another. And I am concerned because the Member who caused this big debate today on this very subject was in charge of culture in this country as a Minister. And so as a consequence that mind- set, that thinking, is what we have to grapple with as we move forward. And I applaud the Education Minister for the stat ement that caused the debate to take place today. B ecause if you want to walk together in this world, you have to realise that the dismantling of the system that holds one race superior to another, needs not only to be eradicated, the mind- set that is permeating and allowing that to exist, needs to be uprooted. And in order to uproot, in order to get this country on a level playing field, there needs to be a lot more done. Earlier this morning I gave congratulations, Mr. Speaker, to the Professional Golfers’ Association of America—led by a woman for the first time in its history —which actively practiced a Caucasian- only rule that impacted Black golf professionals in Berm uda and around the world. So it has taken, as MP Ming suggested, a woman in leadership to be able to look that bear in the face— and I say “bear” —and address it. We in Bermuda have to look that same bear in the face because we have persons who have benefited from the era of segregation and overt racism in Bermuda. We pass laws for good governance that deal with the proceeds of crime. We have all types of legi slation that allow us t o look with a very fine- tooth comb at financial goings -on. “Best practice,” they say. Well, let’s apply that mind- set and philosophy to how we uproot racism. Best practice would have it that there are persons today who are benefiting off of the proceeds of the most vicious crime in the history of the world. That is a fact. And so as a consequence, the origin, the very foundation that people want you to stand on to move forward on, is sinking sand (if I use that as an example), because any foundation has to be solid, and solid as a rock. I teach for a living, Mr. Speaker, and if your foundation is weak then you have nothing to springboard off of. So, persons who want us to sing Kumb aya and move forward, everybody holding hands, wit hout addressing the injust ices which provided the foundation for people to be able to come to Bermuda and enjoy the spoils of a racist system . . . if we do not address that we will be making the same mistake over and over again. And make no mistake, there are peo-ple who hope we do that because they are the benefactors of the system. And so, Mr. Speaker, that in itself is why ed ucation is needed to be able to tell people the truth about this world and how we got there, and not gloss over it. And yes, I relate it to golf because I ha ve had the benefit of Dr. Jeffrey Sammons of New York Uni-versity, a world- class professor who has researched this subject and other subjects related to it as it relates to the African community. And he discovered what a Bermudian had done, Mr. Speaker, in the world. And on that basis only, you cannot celebrate the people who walked through the door of integration and ignored the people who were banging down the door. And I use my trade as an example because I know I can put hand over heart and tell you it i s so. But I am sure that any social psychologist or any hi storian will go back in our more recent history and be able to uncover, as we have today in our midst, Mr. Speaker, the commission that is looking at the way land was handled in this country 100 years ago. I know there are persons in this community who are quite concerned. You only need to look at the electoral configuration of this country to be able to see the racial divisions that exist even in politics today because of the construct of Bermuda, because of the geographical and deliberate segregation of this country, as it relates to property as well. And so, Mr. Speaker, that is why the Honourable Member Ms. Atherden’s comments have been met with a firestorm today. Because the mind- set
Bermuda House of Assembly which is r epresented is harmful as we try to really take Bermuda forward. And it is harmful because when people who are seeing what is happening in [the] Black Lives Matter [movement] around the world, and ask about how it relates to Bermuda, that mind- set would giv e them a false sense of security because it fails to appreciate that we have much work to do if you have had centuries of building up a system that people are benefiting from today. We had a Bill come before this House which relates to Riddell’s Bay. And I will tell you, in the gol fing world you only need to look back to 1922 to see the origins of that whole community, how the Go vernment of the day legislatively gave that community a loan to develop, for them to outwardly segregate against the Black commu nity that lived, played and worked in that area. Outwardly discriminated against them! Where some of the greatest golfers in the world were working as caddies. I know, because I was taught by one of them. And that is the type of mind- set that exists right here in this country, Mr. Speaker, as we look at how lands are held today in this country, as we look at how wealth is passed on in this country, as we look at how people could come to this country from other areas and, if they turn a blind eye and say not hing, they can benefit, and those who dare to say anything can be ostracised or blackballed or whatever terminology you want to list. That is the truth of the matter! You cannot look at Bermuda on some superf icial colour basis and say, Let’s go by Kumbaya, b ecause you know, I have friends from other ethic per-suasions. My family lives that every day. But I worry about every one of them if they were walking around this world today, [if they were] found in the wrong place at the wrong time, only because of the colour of their skin, or the way their hair is, or the way their eyes look, or the way they might talk might associate them particularly to those of us of African descent. So, Mr. Speaker, the words that the Emperor Haile Selassie spoke, “Until the phil osophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, . . . And until there are no longer first -class and second- class citizens of any nation, until the colour of a man’s skin is of no more signific ance than the colour of his eyes. And until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race . . .” those are things that we are dealing with in this country now. And the reason we are still dealing with it is because people, and particularly we Black people, have been convinced to just sing Kumbaya. [That is] why the system continues on, the system which has been put in place which allows racism to be the source of its originator —white supremacy. And until the day when we as a c ollective people can look to say, that is not good enough for my humanity, then we stand a chance. Then we stand a chance. People will take my speech and try to frame it as division, when truth is the only way forward of fixing a problem. And we have ignor ed the truth for so long, Mr. Speaker, until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race . . . “And until that day, the dream of lasting peace” . . . Oh, that’s what people like to talk about —the dream of lasting peace. But it says until that day “the dream of lasting peace, world citizenship, rule of international morality . . .” will be “but a fleeting illusion to be pursued but never [attained] . . . .” You know, that sentence in itself is very r evealing. Whilst it is rev ealing to me as a Black man, it is also revealing to anyone who wants to keep the current system the way it is, because they realise in reading this very thing that, until we can come to terms with that, it will never be attained. And for it to never be at tained, the status quo will benefit those who it has been set up and designed to benefit. In closing, I want to say thank you to people like Dr. Jeffrey Sammons for helping enlighten me on the spirit that has been put within me by those elders who would be about 110 [years old] today to help better understand their experience, and made me delve down into the way in which land has been handled in this country. Let us look at the unequal playing field of economics in this country. And let us unapologetically look to make the lives of the descendants of those who have been trod on and knelt upon better through policies that level the playing field. And in order for the playing field to level up, you ain’t got to pull somebody else down; you have got to collec tively lift those who have been deliberately disenfranchised up. And that is the difference. It is a philosophy, Mr. Speaker. It is a mind- set. And when I see that mind- set being defended, when I see that mind- set being protected, I am going to speak out against it because it is wrong. And that is what is harming Bermuda. I have seen it harm it in my trade. I have seen people lifted up and celebrated who rode on the backs of that. And we have got to go back and make some things right. And make things right for those going forward, those young people in Bermuda. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
The SpeakerThe SpeakerThank you, Honourable Member. Does any other Member wish to speak? Any other Member? No other Member; the House stands a djourned. [Gavel]
The SpeakerThe SpeakerMembers, we stand adjourned until the 17 th of July at 10:00 am. Have yourself a good weekend. [At 6:3 5 pm, the House stood adjourned until 10:00 am, Friday, 17 July 2020.] 4408 3 July 2020 Official Hansard Report Bermuda H ouse of Assembly [This page intentionally left blank.]