March 5, 2018

Thank you, Member .
I recognise the Honourable Minister.
Minister Weeks, you have the floor. I almost
recognised the fellow behind you, but he sat back down. He got up before you. But that is all right. Go
ahead, Minister.

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Good morning to you and to my colleagues.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Ms. Jessica Lewis for winning
the 100 metres and 200 metres in the Snowbird Classic in Daytona Beach, Florida, recently.

[Desk thumping]

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: I would like to associate the
whole House. She also came in second in the 400
metres. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, Jessica was i njured in a training session and is currently recuperating from minor injuries. Mr. Speaker, we wish her a
speedy recovery. Also, Mr. Speaker, while I am on my feet, I
would like to congratulate the Bermuda Cricket Team,
who won the T20 this past weekend down in Argent ina. They won the deciding match against the Cayman
Islands with one ball to spare, Mr. Speaker. As a r esult, Bermuda will now travel to Malaysia in six weeks’
time to compete in the World Cricket League Division
4 Tournament.
Before I take my seat, Mr. Speaker, there is
one other congratulatory remark I would like to make.
A young man, Willie Clemens, a young Bermudian
man, 23 years old, has just signed a contract in Sw eden to play professional soccer.

It was dated January 23
rd this
year.
“Hi, Cole. I believe that all cars were tested for
emission s control . It is my understanding that this
does not affect your vehicle passing the other tests.
So, why are we doing it? We pay for it. And what ha ppens with the information? Is it necessary? Or are we just keeping someone in business? Happy day, Kim.”
Those are the type of bullets I used to get
from Kim on a regular basis. She was always i nvolved. Wherever she was travelling, she kept her [finger ] on the pulse of what was going on in Berm uda. She was a lady who was comfortable in her own
skin. And she would go anywhere, talk to anybody
and just be herself. In fact, the last event she was at,
she got tired. She was walking around the graveyard
with her shoes in her hands. And that was Kim Young. And someone said, Oh, look at your toenails. Kim
Young had six colours on her toenails. Each toenail
was painted differently. That was Kim Young, a v ibrant person, a person who would talk to anybody.
And as the Honourable Member said, don’t cross her ,


Bermuda House of Assembly because she will come after you, but she will forgive
you, too.
She had a passion for young people. She had
a passion for seniors. She had a passion for equality.
And she will be sadly missed by this country. To Ward and the rest of the family, I share m y condolences.
And we have lost a friend. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Tyrrell, Honourable
Member.
I now recognise the Deputy Speaker. Deputy
Speaker, you have the floor.

Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated
with the remarks concerning the Honourable Member
Kim Young, who served in this House.
Also, Mr. Speaker, I would like for this House
to send congratulations to Impact [ Mentoring] Acad emy, a school for boys. And I am sure my cousin , Cole,
would want to be associated with those remarks, and
the whole House.

Crumpler.

Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Chris Crumpler, yes.
The job and the teachers, I mean, they are doing a
magnificent job with the young fellows that they have up there. All I can say is that our country is in good
hands with Impact Academy. Then they had a contest on public speaking. I think it was called The Spoken
Word: Who I Am. And the first prize went to Isa Trott;
second wen t to Masi Wilson; and third went to Steven
Paynter . But it was a very good programme, and I am
certai nly proud of what they are doing at that school.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Deputy.
I now rec ognise the Honourable Minister. Mi nister Wilson, you have the floor.

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would first like to be associated
with the condolences for the family of Kim Young. I
admired her from afar for many years, particularly with respect to her work in the community, as well as her
devotion to the commitment of women and women’s
issues, and raising awareness to that. I would like to
extend my condolences to her family.
I would also like this House to send congrat ulations to Betty Furbert -Woolridge, who just . . . I
would like to associate the whole House with that.

Yes. That would be appropriate, yes.

Hon. Kim N. Wilson: She has just effectively settled,
celebrating her retirement —as she likes to phrase it,
her superannuation. You may recall, Mr. Speaker, that
Reverend Betty Furbert -Woolridge, who is actually the
current pastor of St. Philip AME Church, was the first
female of the Bermuda Annual Conference of AME
Churches, and obviously that was a milestone. And
she should be commended and congratulated. She
has served with great distinction the AME Church in
Bermuda, both here as well as in our conference, as
well as being actively involved in a number of co mmunity activities —government boards, the West End
Ministerial Lions, to name just a few.
She has been a trailblazer in the AME
Church, particularly for females. Some of us, myself
and the Honourable Opposition Leader, as well as the
Honourable Minister Weeks, had an opportunity to
celebrate her superannuation on this past Saturday evening at St. Paul’s AME Church for a packed
house, to which the presiding Bishop of our conference, Bishop Ingram, was present. And it was a very
well . . . occasion , and a good time had by all.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to be associated
with the condolences for the family of Kim Young. I
actually knew Kim Young through her husband, Ward
1366 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Young. I used to provide corporate services to their
companies. And I found Kim to be very warm and very
passionate about all of her causes. When I was elec ted in 2012, she sent me an email, and she congrat ulated me and encouraged me. So, I wish her family peace at this time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Good morning, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, it would be remiss of me if I did
not rise to give condolences to the family of the late Kim Young. Kim Young and I had known each other
for many years. In another life, we were political co lleagues. And I always admired her caring spirit. As a
consequence, on many occasions, she would come
and go out with me, because I always liked to campaign with persons who cared. And there was no
question that she cared about social issues.
I think it is important to appreciate how much
she was associated with the Children Act , which was
1998. But that was near and dear to her heart. Ever yone who knew Kim Young would have a story, because she canvassed. She was very funny. One time
we knocked on the door early one Saturday morning.
And a gentleman came to the door in his pyjamas.
And he and I had a little conversation, and Kim did not
say much. When she left, she said, Did you notice all
of that? I said, I don’t know. What all of that are you
referring to, my good friend?

[Laughter]

Good morning, Mr.
Speaker, and good morning, Bermuda. I have four
congratulations and one condolence.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to give congratul ations to Somersfield Academy, Devonshi re school, M5 class, for their brilliant presentations on black history,
in various forms.
I would like to give congratulations to P3 and
P5 of Elliot School, another Devonshire school, for their presentations on slavery i n Bermuda and what it
means to be a politician.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to give congratulations to the St. Paul’s AME M en’s Day choir. They
sang a song led by a young man, Mr . Sealey. I would
encourage anyone to look up Mr. Sealy on YouTube. I would like to associate a few other m en.
And I would also like to congratulate the Bermuda Festival of the Performing Arts for a play that
was on over the weekend, called The Mountaintop. It
was depicting the last night of Dr. Martin Luther King’s
life on earth. And anyone who was there, and I saw
quite a few there, would understand the complexities
of leadership. Often, leaders are viewed as saints.
And this play showed the person as a human being.
And my one condolence is to the fans of A rsenal Football Club. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

[Inau dible interjections]

Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I would just like to be associated
with the condolences to the family of Kim Young. O bviously, when we serve together in the same political
party, we ha ve very close and intimate relationships .
And the one thing that I can say is that, when I came
into the political arena in 1999, I had tremendous support for my election that was given to me by Kim
Young. Kim, as has been heard, was one who did not hesitate to assist anybody. She would be out on the
campaign trail, knocking on doors. W hatever time of
the day or night you needed her, she was there. She
would invite you into her home. She would give her critique in terms of how you could do things better.
And she certainly exuded the care and concern that she had for social issues in Bermuda.
She will be tremendously missed. Obviously, I
had been away this weekend and had not realised that she had passed. So I was quite shocked to hear
my Honourable Leader make mention of her passing.
But, certainly, to Ward and their family, I would like to offer my sincerest condolences, and know that she
will be tremendously missed. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Good morning.
Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Speaker, of course, I would
like to associate myself with the remarks and the r equest for condolences to be sent to the family of the
late Margaret Kim Young, who, of course, as we
know, served as a Minister in this place. And without
question, I think that we will pay tribute to her work and her service, not only in her personal capacity as
the nurse at KEMH [King Edwards VII Memorial Hospital] but also her contributions to the Human Rights
Commission, Teen Services , and the Bermuda Hospitals Board, amongst many others. And, of course, I
join all Member s of the House in sending our condolences to the Young family at this time.
Regarding issues of congratulations, Mr.
Speaker, of course, I was inside of my office, so I am
not sure if they have been given already. But if not, I
would like to associate myself with those remarks, and
just, of course, say congratulations to our Cricket
Team on their f irst step of climbing back up the ladder
with the ICC Sub- Regional T20 qualifier.

Yes.
Hon. E. David Burt: Absolutely. Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
In addition, Mr. Speaker, I would like to also
extend congratulations to a constituent of mine, and
that would be renowned kite maker Eugene “Kite Master” O’Connor, at the launch of his very f irst book,
called The Art of Kite Making. I was pleased to a ttend
that event on Saturday at Brown & Company, or the
Bookmart, making sure to have purchased a sign ed
copy of his book . And I would encourage all Members
to, of course, purchase and share the b ook so we can
carry on the very important tradition of which we have.

Yes.

Hon. E. David Burt: It was a nice book. It was a fam ily collaboration. And, of course, there were three generations of Eugene O’Connors at the book signing
event.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, as I did not get to do it
on Friday, I would also like to associate myself with the congratulations that were sent out to the M3 Del lwood Middle School drama students as part of the
Stop the Violence campaign and the video that was
produced, which I am sure many Members have seen. I know that those congratulations were made
on Friday, but I just wanted to associate myself with
those, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

As I indicated, before we move on we
are going to have a moment of silence for the Honourable Member who was a former Member of this
House. And I would just like to add my remarks to those that have been expressed already.
Ms. Young sat in this Chamber while I was
here. And we always had pleasantries exchanged back and forth. She was always one who, no matter
whether we sat on the opposite side of an issue, she
was always open to a discussion on different vie wpoints of it.
So, at this moment, I have asked us all to
stand and take a moment of silence for her.

[The House rose and observed a moment of silence. ]

We have one Government Bill, in the
name of the Honourable Premier.

FIRST READING

FINANCIAL SERVICES TAX
AMENDMENT ACT 2018

1368 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I am introducing the following
Bill which, according to secti on 36(3) of the Bermuda
Constitution, requires the Governor’s recommendation, so that it may be placed on the Order Paper for the next day of meeting: the Financial Services Tax
Amendment Act 2018.

We now move on to the resumption in
Committee of Supply for further consideration of the
Estimates of Expenditure and Revenue for the year
2018/19.
Honourable Premier, would you like to move
us into C ommittee?

Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now
resume in Committee of Supply to consider the Est imates of Revenue and Expenditure for 2018/19.

Thank you.
And for the listening audience, today is the
fourth day of the Budget Debate. We have two Mini stries that are up for debate this morning. The [debate
on the] Ministry of Sports has a two -hour duration.
And once that is completed, we will be doing the Mi nistry of Economic Development and Tourism, and
there is a six -hour allotment for that debate.
With that said, would the Chairman take the
Chair? Honourable Member Ming, you have the floor.

House in Committee at 10:43 am

[Mrs. Renee Ming, Chairman]

COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY

ESTIMATES OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE
FOR THE YEAR 2018/19
[Continuation thereof]

Good morning. Good morning, Honourable Members and the listening audience. We are
now in Committee of Supply for further consideration
of the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the
year 2018/19. Heads 71 and 20, which represent
Sports, will be debated.
I call on the Minister in charge to proceed.
Minister, you have the floor.

MINISTRY OF SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
AND SPORT S

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Good morning, Madam
Chairman.
I move that the following Heads , Head 71,
Ministry of Social Development and Sports Headquarters; and Head 20, Youth, Sport and Recreation, be
now taken under consideration.
Madam Chai rman, I am pleased to present
the financial year 2018/19 Estimates of Revenue and
Expenditure for the Ministry of Social Development
and Sports. First, I will briefly discuss the Ministry as a
whole, fol lowed by information for Head 71, the Mini stry Headquarters, and Head 20, the Department of
Youth, Sport and Recreation.
Madam Chai rman, before I go on, when do
we finish?

You are welcome.

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the Mi nistry’s total budget estimate for financial year 2018/19
is $86,325,000, which represents an overall decrease
of $1,899,000, or 2 per cent, compared with the orig inal estimate of $88,224,000 for financial year
2017/18, as shown on page B -238 of the Approved
Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the fiscal
year 2018/19, otherwise known as the Estimates
Book.
Madam Chairman, page B -238 also shows a
revenue estimate for the Ministry of $839,000 for f inancial year 2018/19. This represents a decrease of
$63,000, or 7 per cent, compared with the original estimate of $902,000 for fiscal year 2017/18. This will be
explained later in my presentation.
The breakdown of the Ministry’s financial year
2018/19 Current Account Estimate by head is as follows: Head 71, Ministry Headquarters, is $2.519 mi llion. Head 20, Youth, Sport and Recreation, is $9.654
million.

HEAD 71 —MINISTRY HEADQUARTERS

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, first I will
discuss the current account expenditure for Head 71,
Ministry Headquarters. The financial year 2018/19
estimates of expenditure and revenue for Head 71,
the Ministry Headquarters, is found on pages B -239 to
B-242 of the Estimates Book.
Minis try Headquarters is responsible for the
budget of two business units, the first being 81000, Administration, which consists mainly of salaries, adBermuda House of Assembly ministration , and grant expenditure; and the second
being 81020, the Mirrors Programme. Madam Chairman, the Mi nistry Headquarters embraces the Mini stry’s overall vision to strengthen the social fabric of our
community, and supports the mission to provide social and cultural support services to the community in order to safeguard our heritage, maintain and improve
our quality of life, develop and protect our youth and
families, and sustain efforts to reduce alcohol and
drug misuse.
Madam Chairman, the Ministry Headquarters
provides policy guidance to ensure good fiscal control and service delivery across all departm ents within the
Ministry. The Ministry Headquarters supports the Mi nistry’s core values —integrity, commitment to excellence in service, accountability, respect , and empowerment . The acronym, Madam Chairman, that I will
use from here on is ICARE, for short.
Page B -239 shows that the total budget est imate for the Ministry Headquarters for fiscal year
2018/19 is $2,519,000. Split between business units
81000, Administration; and 81020, the Mirrors Pr ogramme, the total budget estimate for financial year
2018/19 represents an increase of $102,000, more
than the revised estimate for financial year 2017/18 of
$2,457,000. The Ministry Headquarters Administr ation, business unit 81000, shows an increase in the budget estimate for financial year 2018/19 of $69,000,
compared with the revised budget estimate for financial year 2017/18 of $1,484,000. That is shown on
page B -239, Madam Chairman.
Part of this increase is due to the addition of
$25,000 to the Ministry Headquarters budget to facil itate special grants to external bodies that are not pr ovided for elsewhere across the Ministry. A further
$4,000 increase represents minor increases spread
across various object codes for administrative purposes, based on the needs and past trends of Ministry
Headquarters.
Madam Chair man, it is important to note that,
although there appears to be an additional $40,000
difference, this is actually the result of the Ministry
Headquarters budget being revised in mid- year
2017/18 from the original budget of $1,524,000, to a
revised budget of $1,484,000, due to the reallocation
of $40,000 from Ministry Headquarters to Head 20,
the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation, in
order to assist with a shortfall in funding for sponsorship of the Bermuda Invitational Permit Meet orga nised by Berm uda National Athletic Association.
Madam Chairman, as shown on page B -239,
the fiscal year 2018/19 budget estimate for business
unit 81020, the Mirrors Programme, is $966,000, representing a $33,000 increase compared with the orig inal budget for fiscal yea r 2017/18. This increase in
funding is necessary to allow the Mirrors Programme
to offset a reduction of in- kind services from private
sector partners whom the Mirrors Programme had come to rely on to assist them in operating the community residential programme.
Madam Chairman, in order to provide some
context for the budgetary figures shown in the Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimates for the Ministry Headquarters, on page B -240, I will first d escribe the activities that will be undertaken in re lation
to the funding for business unit 81020, the Mirrors Programme.

Business Unit 81020—Mirrors Programme

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: The Mirrors Programme will
hold one intensive residential cycle for 14- to-18-yearold participants. This is the community programme
operated as a SuperCamp Senior Forum, and pr ovides the opportunity for volunteer training sessions.
Mirrors will also hold three Parent Workshops during
fiscal year 2018/19. These have proven to be very
successful and well attended. Five middle sc hool
workshops and two SuperCamp Junior Forums will
also be held during the year, reflecting an increasing demand for the Mirrors SuperCamp at the middle
school level. This affords the opportunity for the Mi rrors Programme to have a preventative focus for middle school students.
The SuperCamp curriculum has allowed for
an increase in student service per year. With up to
135 students being potentially serviced through the
three SuperCamps, one Senior Forum and two Junior
Forums are contemplated for the 2018 /19 fiscal year.
Additionally, the Mirrors Programme will continue the
fourth Cunningham Restoration Community Service
project and will host our second Bermuda community -
themed art competition for young students.
Madam Chairman, training in the SuperCamp
curriculum is a self -study process and requires real -
time delivery to be fluent in the components of the
programme. Two Mirrors staff members have reached level 1 of training within their first year. I would like to
congratulate Ms. Jeanene Todd and Ms. Ni kola Pour
[PHONETIC] for their determination to take this on and reach the first level of certification.
During the upcoming year, further steps will
be made towards increasing the capacity of local Mi rrors staff to deliver a quantum learning network S uperCamp curriculum. Four trainers will participate in
overseas programmes in June 2018 in order to reach
the level of delivery necessary for staff to become certified as facilitators.
The Mirrors Programme celebrated its 10
th
anniversary in 2017 with a host of successful events,
in partnership with the Mirrors Alumni and Friends
Association charity.
Madam Chairman, Mirrors launched an initi ative to contribute to the restoration of Fort Cunningham and have spearheaded three cl eanup activities to
date on Paget Island. The focus of these efforts is to
engage young people in an ongoing community ser1370 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly vice project and to increase usage of the Island by
young adults and the broader public. I would like to
thank Outward Bound; the Department of Youth, Sport
and Recreation; the Department of Parks; the National
Museum of Bermuda; Bermuda National Trust; Keep Bermuda Beautiful; Aspen Reed; XL Catlin; and youth
participants and volunteers for their support in the
2017 cleanup efforts.
Madam Chairman, Mirrors served a total of
450 youth in fiscal year 2017/18, in part by hosting
two SuperCamp Junior Forums, one SuperCamp Sen-ior Forum, and several workshops for middle school
students. Additionally, 144 parents attended the Parent Workshops, and 128 volunteers completed trai ning and volunteer roles to support programming.
Madam Chairman, the performance measures
for the Mirrors Programme are outlined on pages B -
241 and B -242 of the Estimates Book. The Mirrors
vision has proven to be impactful , as many Mirrors
participants have demonstrated increased self -
esteem, self -confidence, and self -accountability. Additionally, they have developed healthy relationships
with adults, collectively resulting in promising ou tcomes of increased academic attainment, emplo yment, and lawfulness.
Mr. Chairman, the proven results demonstrate
that the Mirrors Programme plays a key role in pr omoting personal responsibility, healthy relationships,
and positive contributions to society. It is clear that
continuous work is required to address the ongoing
risk that impacts our youth, and Mirrors will continue
its focus to remove obstacles that prevent success
and support youth to achieve their highest potential.
Madam Chairman, the Mirrors Programme
continues to undertak e data- driven decision- making
and performance quality improvement. The Quantum
Learning Network curriculum has demonstrated consistent results, generating positive impacts on the
lives of both youth and adults, whether through Parent
Workshops or as youth participants or volunteers under the community programme.
I will now discuss the combined subjective
analysis of current account estimates for business
units 81000 and 81020 —i.e., the Ministry Headquarters, as found on page B -240.
Salaries. Madam Chairman, salary -related
expenses show a decrease of $69,000, on page B -
240, due to a post for a project officer not being funded for fiscal year 2018/19.
Training. Madam Chairman, for the financial
year 2018/19 training budget, the estimate for Ministry
Headquarters, has been reduced from the revised
fiscal year 2017/18 of $283,000 to $142,000. You can
see that on page B -240. The reason for this decrease
is due to a reallocation of about $100,000 to Profes-sional Services and about $40,000 to Rentals assoc iated w ith the Mirrors Programme.
Travel. Madam Chairman, travel expenditure
is budgeted at $80,000 in fiscal year 2018/19, which is a slight increase of $3,000 of the revised estimate of
fiscal year 2017/18.
Communications, Advertising, and Prom otions. Madam Chairman, the Communications, Advertising , and Promotions budget estimates have declined due to a transfer of some funds to the Depar tment of Communications for fiscal year 2018/19. A dvertising and Promotion is budgeted at $13,000, whilst
Communications is budgeted at $23,000 in fiscal year
2018/19.
Professional Services. Madam Chairman,
Professional Services are budgeted at $454,000 for
fiscal year 2018/19, an apparent increase of $234,000
over the revised estimate of $220,000 for fiscal year
2017/18. Par t of this increase is actually due to the
reallocation of $169,000 from the Mirror s Training
Budget to better reflect the nature of the expenditures, which are related to local contractors and services for
the administration of the Mirrors programme. In ad dition, approximately $65,000 has been allocated to account for professional services required by Ministry
Headquarters to progress Throne Speech initiatives.
Rentals. Madam Chairman, $41,000 is the
budget allocation for rentals in fiscal year 2018/19.
This represents a reallocation of about $40,000 from
the training budget to better reflect venue costs related to programming, training for the Mirrors programme.
Repair and Maintenance. The budget alloc ation for repair and maintenance has been reduced
from $28,000 in fiscal year 2017/18 to $19,000 in fiscal year 2018/19. This represents a decrease of
$9,000.
Materials and Supplies, Madam Chairman.
The budget allocated for materials and supplies is
$33,000 in fiscal year 2018/19, which represents a
decreas e of $15,000 compared with the revised
budget for fiscal year 2017/18. This decrease, Madam
Chairman, reflects the Ministry Headquarters’ ongoing
efforts to reduce operating expenses.
Grants and Contributions . Madam Chairman,
the budget estimate for grant s and contributions in
Ministry Headquarters in financial year 2018/19 is
$78,000. This level of funding represents an increase
of $66,000 over the revised budget of $10,000 for f inancial year 2017/18. This will give the Minister of
Social Development and Sports a little bit more flex ibility to make small, discretionary grants to external
organisations as the need arises.
Madam Chairman, the number of full -time
equivalent positions for 2018/19 remains at 18 at Mi nistry Headquarters, including the Mirrors programme,
which has 6, as shown on page B -240.
Madam Chairman, this concludes my presentation for fiscal year 2018/19 budget allocations for
Head 72, the Ministry Headquarters. Before I move on, Madam Chairman, I would like to thank all of the
workers who work at Headquarters for the job well
done over this last year.


Bermuda House of Assembly HEAD 20 —DEPARTMENT OF YOUTH,
SPORT AND RECREATION

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Moving on now, Madam
Chairman, to Head 20, the Department of Youth,
Sport and Recreation.
Madam Chairman, I will now present the fiscal
year 2018/19 Estimates of Expenditure and Revenue
for Head 20, the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation, which can be found on pages B -243 through
B-248 of the Estimates Book.
Madam Chairman, the mission of the Depar tment of Youth, Sport and Recreation is to advance
amateur sport, recreation and youth development for
all—from leisure activity to athletic excellence, and to
strengthen the significant contribution that these initi atives make towards the enhancement of the quality of
life for the total community.
Madam Chairman, the budget allocation for
nine programmes under the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation in financial year 2018/19 is
$9,654,000. You can see that on page B-245. This is
an increase of $ 226,000 , or 2 per cent , in comparison
to the revised budget estimate of $9, 428,000 for fiscal
year 2017/18. As I explained previously under my
presentation for Head 71, the revised estimate of $9.42 million for Head 20 reflects an increase of $40,000 over the ori ginal estimate of $9,388,000, in
accordance with a reallocation of funds from Ministry Headquarters to Head 20, to assist with a shortfall in
funding for sponsorship of the Bermuda Invitational
Permit Meet organised by the Bermuda National At hletic Associa tion.
Madam Chairman, I will now discuss the individual programmes under Head 20.

Programme 2001— Administration and Sports

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, page B -
244 shows that the budget allocation for business unit
30045, General Administration, for fiscal year 2018/19
is $1,513,000. This represents an increase of
$33,000, or 2 per cent, over the revised budget of fi scal year 2017/18. This increase reflects the additional
funds required for the Department of Youth, Sport and
Recreation to occupy the entire third floor of the Craig
Appin House, due to the possibility of the Parliamentary Registry relocating.
Madam Chairman, the allocated funds provide
for the administration and operations of the Depar tment of Youth, Sport and Recreation Headquart ers,
which is located in the Craig Appin House, situated at
8 Wesley Street, Hamilton. In addition, the Administr ation Section provides administrative support for the
additional eight programmes within the department,
and is responsible for monitoring departmental spend-ing to ensure that policies and procedures are adhered to in achieving efficiency and effectiveness.
Programme 2002— Sports Development

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the department provides for its Sports Development Pr ogramme thr ough business unit 30055, Sports Pr ogrammes. The fiscal year 2017/18 budget allocation
for business unit 30055 is $1,798,000, an increase of
$89,000, or 5 per cent, compared to the revised
budget estimate for fiscal year 2017/18. That can be
seen on page B -244. This allocation includes an i ncrease in grants funding for the National Sports Go verning Bodies (or NSGBs, as they are known), and operational costs involved with facilitating major
events during the fiscal year, such as the Sports Hall
of Fame cerem ony and the Annual Sports Awards.
Madam Chairman, included in business unit
30055 is a grant of $650,000 to the Bermuda Sport Anti-Doping Authority (BSADA). Funding for this
agency, which takes its legislative mandate from the
Anti-Doping in Sport Act 2011 and operates under the
global framework of the World Anti -Doping Agency
(WADA), is one of the most important financial items
within the Sports Development Section. The Bermuda
Sport Anti -Doping Authority is the National Anti -
Doping Organisation (NADO) for Bermuda. Without
the functional presence of this organisation in Berm uda, it would simply mean that Bermuda would not be able to participate in any international sporting events abroad or host any international sporting events loca lly.
Madam Chairman, under the strict control of
the Sports Development Section, the department con-tinues to ensure that funds used by the National
Sports Governing Bodies are for the development of
sport in Bermuda for our senior and junior athletes.
Business unit 30055 also provides for a grant
to the Bermuda Football Association (BFA) for
$300,000, and $25,000 for the department’s Summer
Swimming programme (as seen on page C -19). An
additional $173,000 in operating costs is covered under this business unit.
Madam Chairman, during fiscal year 2018/19,
the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation i ntends to continue focusing on all aspects of sporting
development. Development of athletes at senior and junior levels, in addition to providing education to local
coaches through a new partnership with an overseas
agency, Positive Coaching Alliance, are key aspects
of business unit 30055. There is an increase of
$58,000 in providing grant funding to the NSGBs. This
is vital for the continued development of sports Island-wide, as wit hout this support, many athletes and
sporting programmes will suffer.
The department will also continue to work with
[other] government agencies to maintain the depar tment’s sporting and recreational facilities that fall un-der the department’s remit.
Madam Chairman, in November 2017, the
department, in conjunction with the Association of N a1372 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly tional Sports Governing Bodies (ANSGB) held a mini -
conference to keep the NSGBs informed of upcoming
department initiatives and policies. The formation of
the ANSGB, to act as a unified voice for issues that
relate to NSGBs collectively and to advocate for sports, has had a positive impact on a broader level
and has provided input and strategic direction on the
national sports recognition policy. Additionally,
ANSGB have provided leadership and support to all
local sport partners and have advocated on behalf of
all NSGBs on matters relating to Government, spon-sorship, and the community.

Programme 2003— Sports Incentives and Awards

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, there is
no change in the budget allocation for business unit
30030, Athletic Awards, which remains at $150,000
(you can see that on page B -244), in support of the
Elite Athletes Assistance Fund and the National Junior
Sponsorship Fund. These funds will cont inue to support, encourage, and provide incentives to our senior
and junior athletes to strive for excellence in their personal development.
Madam Chairman, the Elite Athletes Assi stance Fund of $100,000 (see page C -19) is managed
by the Bermuda Olympic As sociation, which pr escribes the requirements for athletes to receive funding, having met a local A, B, or C standard in their development.

Programme 2004— Sports Facilities Management

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the department carries out Spor ts Facilities Management
across five business units, with allocations for fiscal year 2018/19 totalling $1,528,000, as shown on page
B-244. The increase is $25,000, or 2 per cent, compared to the revised estimate for fiscal year 2017/18. This increase will allow the department to ensure that
our facilities operate at optimum levels, given that
Loyal Hill Playground now comes under the respons ibility of our department. (See page B -244.)
Madam Chairman, the budget estimate for
business unit 30060, Sports Faci lities Administration,
includes funding that is designated for the operation
and maintenance of the National Sports Centre of
$800,000 for fiscal year 2018/19, which is consistent
with fiscal year 2017/18. This funding also provides for
the maintenance of parks under the department’s r emit, namely, WMC Preece Softball Park (business unit 30075), WER Joell Tennis Stadium (business unit 30080), MotorSport Park (business unit 30090), and
Sports Community Fields (business unit 30390).
The WMC Preece Softball St adium, 30075,
provides for two full -time employees to maintain the
grounds and includes funding for materials, supplies,
and electricity. The WER Joell Tennis Stadium, bus iness unit 30080, includes estimates for four full -time and two part -time employees, together with oper ational expenditure.

Programme 2005—Youth Development

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the all ocated budget for fiscal year 2018/19 of $473,000 is for the two business units under the Youth Development
Programme. Youth Development Administration,
business unit 30210, has a budget allocation of
$273,000 for fiscal year 2018/19, an increase of $9,000, or 3 per cent, from the revised budget for fi scal year 2017/18. This allocation covers salaries and
administrative overhead.
Madam Chairman, offering opportunities in
youth development plays a vital part in empowering
Bermuda’s youth. The department will strengthen its outreach via numerous community partnerships as
part of its continued focus on developing youth
through sport and recreation. The launch of the N ational Youth Policy (NYP) will be a platform that pr ovides direction, opportunity, and a voice for our youth
to be heard while developing and shaping themselves,
as well as the country. The intent of the National
Youth Policy is to implement initiatives to engage and
empower our youth, and the Department of Youth,
Sport and Recreation is committed to working collectively with youth organisations, charities, non- profits,
and the public sector in fiscal year 2018/19 to make
the Nati onal Youth Policy a reality.
Madam Chairman, page 244 shows that bus iness unit 30350, Youth Grants, has an allocated
budget of $200,000 for fiscal year 2018/19, which is
equal to that of fiscal year 2017/18. The Youth Grant
funding will be allocated to ass ist youth organisations
whose mandate or mission directly or indirectly focuses on benefiting the lives of Bermuda’s young people.

Programme 2006—Community Centres

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the
budget allocation is for the three community c entres
under the department’s remit, the Centre in Hamilton
(business unit 30120), St. George’s Community Centre (business unit 30130), and Sandys Community Centre (business unit 30146). This allocation has
been set at $1,379,000 in fiscal year 2018/19. See
page B -244. This is the same amount allocated in fi scal year 2017/18. The Community Centres’ full -time
equivalent count is 19 for fiscal year 2018/19. The
staff support programming is to engage families, sen-iors, adults, and children, and to ensure that comm unities embrace the philosophy of the department’s
mission.
Madam Chairman, the three community ce ntres provide safe, structured programmes with trained staff and an opportunity to build positive and long-lasting relationships. The community centres pr ovide
immense opportunities for residents of all ages to exBermuda House of Assembly perience positive recreational activities. The community centres have recently come online with the After -
School Programme to provide the same calibre of
service to communities on both ends of the Island.

Programme 2007—Camping

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the
Youth, Sport and Recreation Department’s Camping
Programme has a budget allocation of $923,000 for
fiscal year 2018/19. Although the budget shown r eflects a decrease of $112,000 for the rental of Mess ina House, this is an administrative error, which will be
corrected by reallocation of funds within the Ministry in
the new fiscal year. See page B -244.
Madam Chairman, the allocated budget for
the Camping Programme provides for the s taffing,
operation, and administration of five camping facilities.
In fiscal year 2018/19, the camping programme i ncludes a total of 10 full -time employees, who maintain
the facilities and the marine vessels. Madam Chai rman, the camping facilities under th e remit of the D epartment of Youth, Sport and Recreation are as follows:
(1) Darrell’s Island is the largest facility, with
14 rustic campsites that accommodate 30 campers at each site. There is also an additional building that can accommodate an additiona l 30 campers. (2) Messina
House is situated at Boaz Island, Sandys, and is the only land- based campsite. This site can accommodate
a maximum of 34 campers. (3) Paget Island is located
in St. George’s harbour and has the largest building,
or single campsite, accommodating a maximum of 95 campers. (4) Ports Island is the oldest camping facil ity, which houses a building that accommodates a
maximum of 45 campers. (5) White’s Island is used
sporadically for overnight tent camping. It is primarily
used for basic swimming instruction by the Bermuda
Amateur Swimming Association, and rowing instruction by the Bermuda Rowing Association.
Just a minute, Madam Chairman.

[Pause]

Programme 2008— School Age Activities

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the
budget allocation for the School Age Activities pr ogramme has decreased from 2017/18 by $5,000, or 1 per cent, to $853,000 in fiscal year 2018/19. See
page B -244. Although there is a slight decrease in
funding, this will not impact the department’s goal to help pr omote and support leisure and recreational
activities.
Madam Chairman, this programme supports
approximately 800 school -aged children and is pr ovided at various pre- schools, primary schools, and
middle schools throughout the Island. Approximately 170 part -time employees, which consist of 80 per cent university, college, and high school students, conduct
this programme, and are supervised by qualified
teachers. There is also a special needs programme
that provides one- on-one care for children who have
special needs. For the purposes of inclusion of all st udents, the special needs camp is incorporated in the school -aged camps.
Madam Chairman, also included in pr ogramme 2008 are three pre- school age camps, which
were created specifically for the transition of c hildren
from pre -school into primary school. These camps are
very successful.
Also included under this programme for fiscal
year 2018/19 is an allocated budget for specialty
camps for middle school -age children. There is a decrease of $18,000, or 100 per cent, that was allocated for business unit 30185, Teen Camp Service, in fiscal year 2017/18. These funds have been amalgamated
into the renamed business unit 30180, Summer Day
Camp, for the fiscal year 2018/19. This change
streamlines the flow of informati on for management
reporting purposes. This programme supports up to
100 middle school children, and focuses on the social
and unique development of students of this age. This
funding provides for staff, materials, visits to bus inesses and community helping services, supplies and
equipment which help to develop the whole child.

Programme 2009— After -School Programmes

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, the After -
School Programmes operated by the Department of
Youth, Sport and Recreation provide for staf fing,
communications, materials, and supplies for nine pr ogrammes at Government Primary Schools. The budget allocation for business unit 30125 for fiscal year
2018/19 is $1,037,000, which is an increase of
$187,000, or 22 per cent, compared to fiscal year
2017/18. See page B -245. This increase in funding
demonstrates the Government’s commitment to continue to provide quality After -School Programmes for
primary school -aged children to ensure a safe and
structured recreational environment.
The programme supports a maximum of 400
primary school -aged children across nine schools and
employs approximately 26 teachers and caregivers in fiscal year 2018/19, and you can see that on page B -
246.
Madam Chairman, the budget allocation for
Grants and Contributions for f iscal year 2018/19 is
$2,775,000, which is an increase of $18,000 in the
Sports Grant allocation, in comparison with the r evised budget allocation for fiscal year 2017/18. See
page C -19. This allocation will be dispersed as follows:
Category —Sports Development :
• Bermuda Football Association, the grant amount of $300,000;
1374 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly • the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation Swimming programme, $25,000;
• contribution to sports development, to be all ocated among 34 National Sports Governing
Bodies (NSGBs), which includes $650,000 for
Bermuda Sport Anti -Doping Authority (BS ADA), $1.3 million;
• The subtotal for Sports Development , $1.625
million.
Category —Sports incentives and awards pr ogrammes:
• Elite Athlete fund, $100,000;
• contribution to sports development, $50,000;
• subtotal, Sports Incentives and Awards pr ogramme, $150,000.
Category —Sports facilities management:
• National Stadium trustees, $800,000;
• voluntary youth organisations, youth grants,
$200,000;
• a grand total of $2.775 million.

[Inaudible interject ion]
Hon. Michael A. Weeks: A total of $79,280 has been
allocated for capital acquisitions in fiscal year
2018/19. You will see that on page C -13. There are no
funds allocated for capital development for the department in fiscal year 2018/19.
Madam Chai rman, I now turn to the Subjective Analysis of current account estimates for Head
20, found on page B -245 of the Estimates Book.

Subjective Analysis

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Salaries, Madam Chairman.
The budget allocated for salaries is $2,868,000 for fiscal year 2018/19. See page B -245. This represents
an increase of $62,000, or 2 per cent, compared to fiscal year 2017/18 and is a direct result of adding one
additional administrative assistant for the Camping
Unit.
Wages. Madam Chairman, in fiscal year
2018/19, the allocated budget for wages is
$2,406,000. See page B -245. This is an increase of
$198,000, or 9 per cent, compared to the original all ocated budget for fiscal year 2017/18. This increase in expenditure is primarily to ensure that wages for the
staff associated with the After -School Programme are
sufficient to enable the programme to continue to pr ovide quality after -school programming.
Other Personnel Costs. Madam Chairman,
the budget allocation is $62,000 for other personnel
costs in fiscal year 2018/19, a decrease of $34,000, or
35 per cent, from fiscal year 2017/18.
Training. Madam Chairman, in fiscal year
2018/19, $6,000 has been allocated to training, compared to the revised budget estimate of $4,000 in fi scal year 2017/18. The Youth, Sport and Recreation
Department’s succession plan has prioritised courses for its employees, which will result in cost savings of
$2,000. In- house expertise and resources will be further utilised in order for employees to maintain high
levels of professionalism.
Transport. Madam Chairman, the budget all ocation for transport in fiscal year 2018/19 is $7,000, which is consistent with the revised budget estimate
for fiscal year 2017/18.
Travel. Madam Chairman, $39,000 is alloca ted for travel in fiscal year 2018/19; this is an increase
of $5,000, or 15 per cent, compared to the revised
budget estimate of $34,000 in fiscal year 2017/18.
The Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation i ncreased the expenditure for travel in order to facilitate
staff participation in relev ant courses or conferences
offered overseas that are deemed necessary to fur-ther strengthen and develop staff capabilities and competencies which will benefit both their professional
growth and the department.
Communications. Madam Chairman, the all ocation for communications has been decreased by
$9,000, or 9 per cent, compared to the revised est imate for fiscal year 2017/18. The department has consolidated all phones under one plan with a more
cost-effective rate. As a result, the budget allocation
for fis cal year 2018/19 is $87,000.
Advertising and Promotion. Madam Chairman,
the budget allocation for advertising and promotion is
$20,000 for fiscal year 2018/19. This is a decrease of
$8,000, or 29 per cent, in comparison with the revised
estimate for fiscal year 2017/18. In fiscal year
2018/19, the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation will maximise the use of free advertising and pr omotions through the use of social media such as F acebook, Twitter, et cetera. Also, the department will
encourage the use of its website, which can also be
accessed via the government portal, at
www.youthandsport.bm
.
Professional Services. Madam Chairman,
$219,000 has been allocated to professional services for fiscal year 2018/19; this is an increase of $56,000,
or 35 per cent, compared to the fiscal year 2017/18
revised budget estimate of $162,000. Aligned with this increase, the D epartment of Youth, Sport and Recreation will outsource services and vendors in order to offer our clients a comprehensive range of recreation-al experiences.
Rentals. Madam Chairman, the budget alloc ation for rentals is $390,000 for fiscal year 2018/19, which is a decrease of $67,000, or 15 per cent, from
the revised fiscal year 2017/18 estimate.
Repair and Maintenance. Madam Chairman,
the allocation for repair and maintenance is $219,000
for fiscal year 2018/19, compared to the fiscal year
2017/18 revised budget estimate of $212,000. This
increase of $7,000, or 3 per cent, is required because of the frequent repairs to grounds and ageing facilities
that come under the Youth, Sport and Recreation D epartment’s purview.


Bermuda House of Assembly Insurance. Madam Chairman, in fiscal y ear
2018/19, [the sum of] $29,000 has been allocated to
cover insurance costs. This is an increase of $11,000,
or 61 per cent, over the original budget allocation of
$18,000 in fiscal year 2017/18. This increase is due to the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation ha ving to replace a 20- year-old dump truck with a new
vehicle, resulting in the department having to account for increased insurance costs for fiscal year 2018/19.
Energy. Madam Chairman, there is no change
in the budget allocation for energy i n fiscal year
2018/19, which remains at $224,000, the same
amount allocated in fiscal year 2017/18. That can be
seen on page B -245. In fiscal year 2018/19, the department will continue to encourage staff to assist in
conserving the energy, by turning off l ights, shutting
down equipment when not in use, et cetera, which will assist in reducing energy costs.
Clothing, Uniforms, and Laundry. Madam
Chairman, $18,000 is the budget allocation for clot hing, uniforms, and laundry for fiscal year 2018/19, which is a small increase of $1,000 compared to the
allocation for fiscal year 2017/18.
Materials and Supplies. Madam Chairman, as
shown on page B -245, the budget allocation is
$207,000 for materials and supplies in fiscal year 2018/19. This allocation is a decreas e of $33,000, or
14 per cent, compared to fiscal year 2017/18 revised
budget estimate of $240,000. The Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation will consolidate materials
and supplies required for each section, in an effort to
achieve cost savings.
Equipm ent (Major/Minor Capital). Madam
Chairman, the allocated budget for equipment in fiscal year 2018/19 is $24,000, which is a 14 per cent i ncrease over the revised budget for fiscal year
2017/18. The Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation requires this increase to maintain its ageing
equipment.
Other Expenses. Madam Chairman, $55,000
is allocated to other expenses in fiscal year 2018/19,
compared to the revised estimate for fiscal year
2017/18 of $41,000. This expenditure captures bank charges and commiss ion fees, together with external
costs incurred during the provision of services across all business units.
Grants and Contributions. Madam Chai rman—stay with me.

[Pause]

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Grants and Contributions.
Madam Chairman, the allocated bu dget for fiscal year
2018/19 is $2,775,000 for grants and contributions,
which is an increase of $18,000, compared to the r evised estimate of $2,757,000 in fiscal year 2017/18.
That can be seen on page B -245. The increase is due
to an increase in sports gr ants, as previously di scussed, under business unit 30055. Youth, Sport and Recreation —Revenue

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Madam Chairman, as
shown on page B -246, it is anticipated that the rev enue for the Department of Youth, Sport and Recre ation will be $641,000 for fiscal year 2018/19, which is
an increase of $20,000, or 3 per cent, compared to
fiscal year 2017/18. Revenue was estimated based on
trends from programme registration, sale of after -
school vouchers, as well as income from the rental of boats and equipment.
Full-time Equivalents. Madam Chairman, the
full-time equivalent count for fiscal year 2018/19
stands at 96, which is an increase of 1 employee in comparison to fiscal year 2017/18. That can be seen
on page B -246. This increase in full -time equivalents
was required in order to facilitate effective operations
of the Camping Section [Programme 2007] by the addition of one administrative assistant, as previously
explained.
Madam Chairman, the full -time equivalent
count for all other programmes —i.e., Programme
2001, Administration and Sports; Programme 2004,
Sports Facilities Management; Programme 2005,
Youth Development; Programme 2006, Community
Centres; Programme 2008, School -Age Activities; and
Programme 2009, After -School Programme—remains
unchanged from fiscal year 2017/18.
Madam Chairman, I would like to take this
opportunity to thank all of the dedicated staff of the
Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation for the
work that they do in advancing amateur sport, recrea-tion and youth development for all, which enhances
the quality of life for residents of Bermuda. Also, it is
important for me to recognise the significant contributions made by our sportsmen and sportswomen in the
pivotal role that they play in inspiring our youth to
achieve thei r true potential.
Madam Chairman, this concludes my presentation on fiscal year 2018/19 budgetary allocation for Head 20, the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation. Thank you, Madam Chairman.

Thank you very much, Minister.
We currently have 54 minutes left with regard
to these heads. And we are currently debating Head
71, which is the Ministry of Social Development and
Sport; and Head 20, which is Youth, Sport and Recr eation.
Just as a note here, real quickly, we can act ually go straight through with this. I think there has
been some agreement that we can go straight through
until 12:44 with regard to this so that when we come
back after lunch, we will start with the afternoon session.
Minister, I hope you are fine with that.

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Fine.

1376 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The Chairman: Okay. Great.
So, would any other Member wish to speak to
the Heads 71 and 20?
I recognise the Member from constitue ncy [31], Mr. Ben Smith.

Good morning, Madam Chairman.
Starting with Head 71, I would like to state
that I think that the addition of funding to the Mirrors
Programme is an important initiative. The Mirrors Pr ogramme is doing great things for our community, and
to show the continued support of that programme, I
think, is an important step with all of the issues that
we have in the Island. And with the support that is being given with this specific programme, I think it is i mportant. And the added money shows that the Go vernment is also in agreement that we should be mov-ing in that direction.
Moving on to Head 20, starting with Sports
Programme, 30055, I would like to . . . sorry. Page B -
244. I would like to state that I know that the current Minister of Sport was once the Shadow Minister of
Sport and made some very specific comm ents about
the importance of sport to Bermuda. And I would like
to echo the comments that he made, specifically in
2015 when he talked about the reduction in the budget towards sport. I think that, as somebody who has been working in sport for the last 20 years, I know
specifically that you can change lives. Coaches have an opportunity to stand up in front of young people
and give them guidance towards moving in a positive
direction. There are a lot of initiatives within the D epartment of Youth and Sport that are extremely i mportant to the future of Bermuda.
To continue to have a lack of funding in this
particular Ministry is, in my opinion, as was stated by
the then- Shadow Minister, a travesty. We cannot continue to have a lack of funding towards our youth. We
spend a lot of money on our police. We spend a lot of
money on our prisons. We need to spend an equal
amount of money for youth and sport so that we can
prevent some of those issues happening later on. I
think that both sides need to really realise th at there
should be a concerted effort and focus on trying to
give financial support and any other support that can
be given to—

—that can be given to Youth and
Sport. So, specifically talking on the programmes, there is Government grant money given to the Natio nal Sports Governing Bodies, the NSGBs. One of the
issues is that, yes, I agree that the Anti -Doping Ass ociation, BSADA, is an important part of sport. But
when they have such a large number on the budget line, you have to start to wonder, are we producing enough athletes to match that number? When we are
not giving the funding to our athletes, but we are gi ving a lot of money to drug test those athletes, it seems
that we are missing the boat. There are way too many
athletes who need this help.
An example is, we currently have a world
champion. That world champion grew up in Bermuda,
trained in Bermuda and worked hard, aspi red to be a
world champion and reached that goal. The question
is, without the support of her parents, would she have
made it to that world championship level? We tend to get to the point at the end where we want to put our
arms around somebody and say, Look at what you’ve
accomplished! But are we willing to do the things that
it takes for us to help that person in the early stages
when they actually need our help? If she was a young
public school girl who had those same aspirations, with—

Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Point of order, Madam
Chairman. Exactly what is —

So, I stated it at the beginning that I
was looking under the grants that are given to National Sports Governing Bodies.
Back to where I was. Specifically, if she had
been a public school girl who had the same aspir ations, same world championship pedigree, as a


Bermuda House of Assembly youngster, would she have had the ability to reach
those lofty goals with the amount of support that is
actually available? The reason I ask this question is
because, when you look at the amount of money that
is given to the National Sports Governing Bodies, I question, how much are the National Sports Gover ning Bodies actually asking for? What are they reques ting? What is that total number? So that we have an idea of the difference between what they are reques ting and what we are actually providing them.
Because, as we all know, Bermuda is an expensive place. Training in Bermuda is an expensive
thing to do, it does not matter the sport. So we need to
find a way to support these athletes so that they can
reach their goals, because they are the example for
our young people. They are the example for the people behind—

Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Point of order, Madam
Chairman.

I guess what I am trying to say is, if
there are 35 National Governing Bodies and you have
to split that pie up that the Member just referred to, that is not a big increase.
I am not saying there is not an increase. I am
saying that it is not enough. In 2015, the now -Minister
said it. The r eduction in this Ministry is a travesty , because we continue to not support our young people.
So I understand it is a small increase. But a small i ncrease is not really moving us in the direction that we need if our children are important to us.

[Inaudible interjections ]

Moving on to cost centre 30060,
Sports Facilities. I believe this is mostly the National
Sports Centre. So there is a number of $800,000 that
has been provided to the trustees of the National Sports Centre. My question is, what is the actual cost of running the National Sports Centre? And what revenue comes in from the National Sports Centre? I ask
this question specifically because I would like to know
how many of our public school kids actually are utili sing this facility. And I can be more specific. From the swimming standpoint, I know that the pool facility, there is one public school that uses the facility on a
one-week basis once a year, after fundraising for a
year to utilise it. Twenty square miles surrounded by
water . . . I know, obviously, with my background, I
might be biased, but I think that we have a population that should know how to swim. I am pretty sure that there might even be Members here who are not
strong swimmers. We really need to put a focus on it.
And one of the reasons for having that new facility
was that we would give access to it to our public
school kids.
If we are spending this money on that facility
and they are not getting the access that they need,
then what is the way forward for us? So it would be
interesting to know (1) how much that facility is cos ting, (2) how many kids . . . is there a way for us to
know the number of children, specifically from the
public schools, who have access to the facility; and
(3) how they are using it? Because, through speaking
with other National Sports Governing Bodies, I know that there are issues with most of the sports that have to use it. Going back to the grant that goes to the
sports, how many of our sports are taking their entire
grant and paying it to the National Sports Centre in
order to pay the rent?
So the money that we think that we are giving
to them to actually use for programmes for pr ogress,
we are actually just paying rent. So we are taking from
one hand and giving it to the other hand. So, looking
at that kind of issue, I just think that it is important that
we understand, what are the programmes and how
can we utilise that facility better?
Specifically, on the National Sports Centre
again, I can speak from personal interactions. Renting the facility is costly. So, we tried to have an overseas —we do have an overseas training camp, where
we take the young people outside of the Island to give
them exposure to a different environment, to set goals for them and to try to give them different aspects of
sport and motivation and looking at how they can de dicate themselves to reach higher goals. We tried to
bring that same training camp home. When we looked
at the cost, it actually made more sense for us to get
on a plane and take the team overseas.
I bring this up because, for renting that same
facility, we bring in teams from overseas who actually get their funding, they get the cost of us ing that centre
supplemented by the Bermuda Tourism Authority. So,
1378 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly here our young people do not get the access, because they have to pay. But we bring in people from
overseas, and we pay [for them].

[Inaudible interjections ]

My issue is not about what happened
in the past. I am actually here to talk about what we
are going to do in the future. The difference is this: there are multiple people here from the department. I
would like to thank them for the hard work that they
put in, and I know that these people have been wai ting for a long time to actually get some funding so
they can help these kids. So, the more that we make
excuses and we squabble and argue about it, instead
of actually trying to figure out a way that we can support our athletes so that we have role models for the
next generation, I think that should be our focus. And
that is a move forward. Because that is what Bermuda is looking for. They want us to get here and figure out
how we can do things better .
So, I am looking at these numbers. I am
thankful that there are some increases, that there are some ways for us to inch forward. But I am saying that
we need to figure out a way to support our young people at a higher level than this. If we do not, we w ill
then continue to spend money on police, more money on prisons. This is an opportunity for us to figure out
how we can support our young people so that our f uture will be better. Thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chairman. And thank you to the Minister, and cer-tainly to the staff of the department for the work that
they have put in for this department. Obviously, as the Minister has indicated, this is a crucial Ministry, and I
think the Minister’s reverberating words for the period
during which he was actually the Minister before, and the Shadow Minister, w ere that sports and its ability to
bring our community together is the glue that holds us
together. So I want to support that sentiment.
I just have a few questions that I would like to
ask respecting items in the Budget. And let me start
with page B -244, for programme 2004, and business
unit 30075, which is the WMC Preece Softball Park.
There is an increase of $16,000 in the budget this
year over last. And I am going to speak to the revised
budget because that was basically the premise on which the Minist er had given his presentation, and it
agrees with what is in the Budget Book. So I am going to speak to the revised budgets for 2017/18, as op-posed to the originals. But concerning that $16,000
increase of 12 per cent, the question is, is there i ncluded in that figure any development or rectification
of the lighting at the stadium? I know that the Minister
indicated that there were going to be enhancements. We have had an uptick of the money.
But the challenge and the question that I have
had is the status and the state of the lights at the park.
And it would be just useful to know whether there is
any indication as to whether those are going to be
enhanced.
Under programme 30080, which is the WER
Joell Tennis Stadium, there are $386,000 that have
been all ocated, which is no difference to what had
been allocated before. But there have been questions,
and it would probably come under capital develo pment as opposed to maybe just here. But there have
been questions as to the possibility for including an
additi onal court which would help the stadium to be
able to accommodate overseas tournaments. Certai nly, the WTF, the World Tennis Federation, have expressed an interest in bringing one of their many tour-naments to Bermuda.
And you will remember, Madam Chairman,
that we used to have the XL Tennis [Open], which, obviously, went away because of the ITF [International Tennis Federation] and the ATF [Asian Tennis Fe deration]. But if we could possibly have that consider ation being built into the forward planning for t he stadium, it would be absolutely ideal. The property is there,
and there are, in fact, donors who are interested in
being able to help to donate and help to raise funds for that. So, I think, if we can, probably, work in coordination with the Government going forward to be able
to enhance the facility, then I think that this would help
in terms of the development for our athletes.
The Minister, under 30390, mentioned the
Sports Community Field. I think he specifically mentioned that the Loyal Hill field now comes under Parks, I think he said. So . . .

[Inaudible interjection]

Oh. All right. So
that is probably part of the $9,000 for Sports Comm unity Fields that has . . . okay, I did not quite understand. I thought he sa id it went out of there and went
into Parks. It is has come out of Parks and come into
the Ministry; that is fine. No problem there.
The Minister also said, again on page B -244,
for programme 2006, on Community Centres, there is effectively a flat expendi ture with respect to community centres between last year and this. But the Minister
indicated in his brief that the community centres had
embraced the after -school programmes. So, if they
have embraced more programmes and there is no more money included in the budget, as $1,379,000,
the question is, how does this dovetail with pr ogramme 2009, which is specific to after -school pr oBermuda House of Assembly grammes and in which there is $1,037,000 allocated?
This can be seen on page B -245, at the top of that
page, for business unit 301 25.
So I am just curious. If we are incorporating
an element of after -school programme with the community centres, are we effectively double- counting
somewhere? Or how are we segregating what is be-ing allocated to community programmes and to after -
school programmes, if the community centres are not
embracing an element of the after -school pr ogrammes? I just need to understand where that differential might lie. So if the Minister can respond to that, I
would be appreciative.
There was another comment that t he Minister
made, again on page B -244, programme 2007, in
which we have a total allocation for the camping mi nistry of $923,000, or a decrease of $112,000. The si gnificant portion of the decrease relates to business unit 30155, which is Camping at Messina House. And
there is a decrease from $250,000 down to $76,000.
The Minister in his brief indicated that the $174,000 decrease was the result of an administrative error that
will be corrected. If the Minister can give us some i ndication as to what comprised that administrative error
that would have caused a decrease of $174,000, as
he did not go into the detail as to what was the admi nistrative error. That is a significant portion of the
budget, which helped to actually drive it down to an
11 per cent decreas e in the overall allocation to that
particular budget.
I did have a question on programme 2008,
which was business unit 30185, the Teen Camp Services. The Minister had indicated that, even though there is a $5,000 decrease, there was no overall
change in the services being provided. But I think the
Minister indicated that there was a merger between
business units 30180 and 30185 so that the $5,000
decrease is effectively de minimis, and I think that
they will attain some kind of efficiencies by having
those two merged together. So, I accept that explan ation.
The other question that I have, as we go to
page B -245 . . . (Sorry. I had one other question here.
Okay, I can always go back to it.) On page B -245, under the Subjective Analysis, I have a question, b ecause the first line of Salaries, $2,806,000, which was originally allocated, original and revised, from
2017/18, has gone up by $62,000 in 2018/19, to
$2,868,000. It says here that there is a 2 per cent i ncrease. My question is that the Minister had indi cated
earlier that there was a 2.5 per cent governmental
approach towards increasing salaries, which was gi ven across the board. And the question is that, if we
had an original salary amount of $2,806,000, then
2.5 per cent on 2,806,000, by itself, would c ome out to
$70,000. So, if we have only got $62,000 worth of i ncrease, the question begs, where is the difference that is allowing for the 2.5 per cent increase that has been offered across the board? And why does that number
not tie?
Now, I also look at wages, and I just wonder
whether there is any spill -over between wages and
salaries, from the perspective that, if we had a 2.5 per
cent increase on the wages on an original budget of
$2,208,000, that would give us only $55,000. So when
we see that there i s $198,000— I think he did indicate
that there was going to be one additional staff me mber. So, if the Minister could give us some kind of
breakdown between what is the additional salary and wherein is the 2.5 per cent increase being picked up,
as it were, between that which is deemed to be a
2.5 per cent increase on salaries, where that number
does not tie to the wages in which there is an add itional person coming on board, plus the 2.5 per cent
increase in salaries? If we could have a breakdown
between those two numbers, then that would make
more sense here.
On Advertising and Promotion, again under
Subjective Analysis, there is a decrease of $8,000.
And I just want to applaud the Ministry for taking the stance of utilising what is free, social media and t he
like, in order to get their message out. I think it is very
important, it is critical, to be able to utilise free services and to do so very effectively.
I would also like to mention, on the Travel line,
the Minister mentioned there is a budget of $39,000, an increase of $5,000, which is not particularly earthshattering. But he indicated that this was set aside for
overseas conferences for staff members to be able to
remain on the cutting edge of those things which are important to the Ministry. And what I wanted to just
ask, the question was whether included in this is likely
to be any ministerial travel relating to supporting at hletes in overseas events. Because you know that, on
an annual basis, there is CARIFTA [Caribbean Free
Trade Association]. There are all sorts of other events.
And in an Olympic year, the next one would be 2020, so it would be outside of this. But, certainly, CARIFTA
and any other international games would fall within
this next period of time, and whether there has been
any allow ance for that, the $39,000 with a $5,000 i ncrease.
The higher insurance makes sense if they are
going to buy a new truck. So that makes sense. So I
do not have any issue with that.
But under Other Expenses, the Minister indicated that there were $55,000 al located to other expenses, a $14,000 increase, in which he said that the
significant contributing factor to that increase was for bank charges and commission fees. Now, I am very
confused as to what —I am not confused. But I am
interested in finding out what bank charges do we
have that could generate that level of increase in the
budget for $14,000, the increase for bank charges and
commission fees? If we can get some kind of indic ation, just in general, what could cause that level of
expenditure, I would b e curious to know that.
1380 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly I have another question, and that is with r espect to . . . (Please just give me one second.) On
page C -19, where we have allocated for grants, where
we have indicated the allocation of the grants. And I
am going to be a little bit, perhaps, biased in this r espect, because you would normally expect to hear me
speaking of tennis because that is my prowess. But I
am going to ask the question in terms of the grants
estimates for 2018/19 that are being allocated on
page C -19, under Youth, Sport and Recreation, the
head number 6886, for the Bermuda Swimming Ass ociation for $25,000.
Now, I think that it is known information that
the Swimming Association has produced perhaps
some of the most incredible results on the internation-al stage. If w e exclude the Triathlon, because you
know, that is sort of a separate discipline, but if we look at what the Swimming Association has been able
to do in terms of bringing back medals for Bermuda,
and notwithstanding the comment made by my ho nourable colleague, Ben Smith, in terms of the deve lopment of athletes, but the allocation of $25,000 to
the Swimming Association, hopefully, I was hoping by
now we would be able to look at how we can enhance
that budget to be able to give them a little bit more.
We have had that same budget of $25,000 for the
Swimming Association, as we can see on page C -19,
for the actual 2016/17, 2017/18, revised estimate for 2017/18 and for 2018/19. It has not changed.
But the results are coming through fast and
furiously, and they ar e showing an incredible success
rate. And, on the one hand, one might say, Well, if they’re being successful, then the money has got to
be enough. But the question begs, if there were a better allocation, would there be even better results? We
have the abi lity to hit the Olympic podium in our
swimming prowess that we have with our young people. And I think that, to be able to put the money into
the sport, into the development, has got to be one of
the most powerful things that we can do in order to
show wha t we are doing for our young athletes.
I have another question, and that is on page
C-13, when it came to Capital Acquisitions. The Mini ster, in his brief, indicated that there was nothing in r espect of capital acquisitions, unless I misheard; I
wrote it down as he said it. However, on page C -13,
for capital acquisitions, there is a total of $79,000,
which comprises a photocopier for $15,000; floodlights (and that actually might answer the questi on for
the other one, the floodlights) for $33,000; furniture and equipment of $10,000; replacement parts and
equipment of $21,000, for a total of $79,000 as the total of Youth, Sport and Recreation. And that is coming under programmes 76019, 76346, 76412, 76450,
that make up $79,000.
But the Minister, in his presentation, indicated
that there was no capital acquisition. So I am just a
little bit curious as to the difference between what he indicated in his brief and what he is showing in the
Budget Book.
Okay. The Minister also indicated, if I go back.
I did say I had another question. I just needed to flip
over here. Under programme 2008, which would have been on page B -244, programme 2008 . . . sorry, so rry. That is the wrong question. Business unit 30180
. . . If you will give me just one second to check my
notes here.

[Pause]

Okay. The Summer Day Camp programme has effectively gotten an
extra $13,000 this year, and I think the Minister ind icated that it was going to ac commodate an extra part -
time person to be able to deal with those pr ogrammes. And I just think that it is a good thing to be
able to continue the offering of the summer day camp
to our young people. The question is, is there any aspect of that Summer Day C amp programme, which
has always been a vexatious issue, of providing for
young people who are physically challenged? And is
that being embraced in the programme as part of the
$853,000?

Thank you, Madam Chairman.
I am just curious whether there is any part of
that Summer Day Camp programme that is accommodating what we are providing for our physically
challenged young people, or if that is coming into a
separate head under a different Ministry. Because that has always been a bit of a vexatious issue in terms of
how we deal with it and what age is appropriate for young people to age- out of the programme. It is not
something that is new. It i s just a question that I have
as to how we are addressing that, going forward.
I just did want to also make a comment with
respect to the Mirrors Programme and the increase of funding for Mirrors Programme and, basically, to ap-plaud the work that is being done. I think that it is us eful work that is being done by the Mirrors Programme.
But I wonder if the Minister could . . . and I do not
think I heard it. If we could know how many cohorts
there were over the course of the past year and how
many we are ant icipating over the course of the next
year, so that we could have an idea of how this pr ogramme is reaching our young people. How many
people have participated? The Minister may have, and
I do apologise if he included it in his brief, but I did not
have it scribbled down in terms of what that actually
entails.
Okay. The grants of $2,775,000 that are appearing on page C -19, the Minister did give a breakBermuda House of Assembly down of the contribution to Sports Development of the
$1,650,000. The Elite Athlete Assistance Programme,
if we look back, some of these programmes, the
amounts have been static over time, over the last, you
know, from 2016/17, the actual, all the way through to the estimates for 2018/19. And I am going to just pi ggyback a bit on the comments that were made by my
honourable colleague, Ben Smith, in terms of how we are able to ensure that there is sufficient funding going
in at the front end for our athletes. I can understand,
certainly, over the course of the last few years, a part of which I actually had responsibility for this Ministry,
and recognise the tightness of the budgetary process,
because there was no money available. But what we
see now is that, with additional funding being infused into the economy, whether we could not have looked
at how we could ameliorate the amounts that have
actually been allocated just so that our athletes can
have a better shot at their development.
The National Stadium trustees, obviously, to
be able to run a facility of that magnitude entails a
significant outlay. And I do know that there are several
corporate partners who are willing to continue to co ntribute, to help to minimise the amount that Gover nment actually has to dig into its pocket to put into that
facility. And I can only encourage those particular pr ivate companies to continue that level of assistance.
Because without it, I think our level of sport will find
great difficulty in enhancing the quality, the output,
and the availability to our young people.
There is a $300,000 grant included in the
grant money to th e BFA [Bermuda Football Associ ation], and the $650,000 grant for the BSADA. I think that Members who have heard me speak on this particular topic . . . historically, I have a significant cha llenge with the balance of where we are putting money
when we look at the administrative expenses for
BSADA versus the testing output. Now, I am not going
to say for one second that BSADA is not important.
We would be unable to enter international compet itions if we did not have an adequate BSADA regime.
So I am not disputing the necessity for a grant to
BSADA.
But when we look at the grants to BSADA as
against the overall grants and contributions for the Ministry with, I think the Minister indicated 34 National Sports Governing Bodies, and a miniscule amount
being allocated to the sport that is bringing the best
result, I just question the allocation. And this is not
something that the Minister will have heard for the first
time, and it is not something that is new. It is som ething to query, how we can have a better balance in
terms of what is put out and what we are getting back.
When you are spending more money in your admi nistration than you are providing the services that are
intended to be provided by the grant that we are offer-ing to any particular administrative bod y, we just have
to make sure that we have the most efficient use of the public funds. And that just is my query there. The Minister also indicated (and I did not write
down the page; I apologise) that he was going to out-source services. It was a $56,000 a llocation. This
would have been under Professional Services on page B -245 under the Subjective Analysis. And the
Minister indicated that they were going to be outsour cing services. I wonder if the Minister could just give us
some indication as to which ser vices he referred to in
terms of what is going to be outsourced. There was an
initial Professional Services of 2017/18—sorry, a r evised, of $162,000 that is now going up to $218,000, a
$56,000 increase, or 35 per cent increase of the
budget. And the questi on begs, what services are b eing outsourced in that respect?
I think, if the Minister can perhaps maybe
have the opportunity to respond to some of those
questions, or have other Members speak, then there may be one or two other questions that I would like to
ask, once that is finished. I just do not want to monopolise the entire rest of the time.
Thank you, Madam Chairman.

Thank you, Madam Chairman.
I am very conscious of the time, and I am very
sure that the Minister is capable of answering the
questions that have been put to him. Some of them
are very self -explanatory anyway.
But just as a general comment on Heads 71
and 20, I just want to refer the Honourable Members to the mission statement of both Heads 71 and 20. If
you will allow me to just read a portion, Madam
Chairman.

Their job is to safeguard our
heritage, maintain and improve our quality of life,
preservation of family life and the advancement of our
children and youth. And if I could just quickly turn to
the mission statement of Youth, Sport and Recreation,
towards the enhance ment of the quality of life for the
total community, to improve operational processes .
Now, I have said all of that, Madam Chairman, to assure the Honourable Members over on the other side
that I applaud the Minister for being able to hold onto
what he has got i n terms of this Ministry. I am sure
there could have been a lot more blood spilled when it
came to the allocation of expenses.
I can assure the Honourable Members that we
have our interests in the youth in terms of improving our youth and sports. So, I think that we just have to
kind of applaud what we have got at this point in time. So, I am just actually happy that the Minister is being
able to hang on to what he has been given, and I can
1382 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly assure you that he is going to use it, I think, to the
best benefi t of the country at large.
Thank you very much, Madam Chairman.

Thank you, Member.
Would any other Member wish to speak? Any
other questions at this time? I will call on the Minister to respond. We have
approximately 13 minutes left. And w e are going until
12:44. And then we will break for lunch.
Minister.
Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Madam Chai rman. I am going to try my best to answer all of the
questions that were put to me.
I would like to start off by saying that the Ho nourable Member who spoke first, from constituency 31, when he made mention that while I was Shadow, I always said that more money should be put in
development rather than in enforcement, I still have
that stance. And this is why, overall, we tried to i ncrease our budget where we can.
In answer to the Honourable Member from
constituency 23, who asked about the softball pitch, I
think that was about the lighting. I think you found the
answer, that we have . . . Okay. [It is] allocated.
Another question was, why no increase in
funding for community centres regarding after -school
programmes? The answer is that community centres
are the school programmes catering to middle school
children. That is why there is no increase in funding
for Community and Culture.
Another question by the Honourable Member
from constituency 31, the answer to his question in reference to the funding for NSC [National Sports
Centre], the annual operating cost for NSC is in excess of $1.5 million.
Another question that was asked by the
Member from constituency 23, are special needs chi ldren serviced by the Department of Youth, Sport and
Recreation camps? The answer to that is that special
needs camp is now part of all school -aged camps. So,
special needs persons are included in all school -aged
camps. And you can find that on page 25 of my brief.
So I did mention that as I made my presentation.
Okay? Okay.
Another question, I am not sure which Member asked it. But it says, why only $25,000 for BASA
[Bermuda Amateur Swimming Association]? The
$25,000 is for the Department of Youth, Sport and
Recreation, it is their summer swimming programme,
not directly for BASA. It is just for the summer pr ogramme.
Another question was regarding outsourced
services under Professional Services. The answer to that is to pay for minibus services to transport our
children for summer day camp and after -school pr ogrammes. And just for clarity, the Honourable Member
from constituency 23 asked, why did the Minister say
no capital acquisitions ? I actually said, no capi tal development , not no capital acquisitions.
Another question from the Member from constituency 23 was, how many cohorts were there last
year, and how many students were serviced last
year? The number of cohorts held by Mirrors last year
was three. And t he total serviced last year was 450
children. The total service to date is an impressive 2,534.
Those are basically the questions that I have
answered. Madam Chairman, thank you.

Thank you, Madam Chairman.
Madam Chairman, the Minister had mentioned in his brief that he spoke to the launch of the
National Youth Policy, indicating that, to implement
that initiative, the youth w ill be working with charities
and non- profits. I wonder if the Minister could just give
us some indication as to where we are on the launch of the National Youth Policy and what the primary f ocus is of that particular programme.

Yes, thank you,
Madam Chairman.
I just wanted to remind the Minister that I was
also expecting a response in terms of the inadequacy
of the allocation on salaries under the Subjective
Analysis, because 2.5 per cent of what was initially
allocated in $2,806[,000] does not tie with the amount that we have got in total, albeit under wages it seems that it might have been included as part of that. So I
just wanted to see if we could get a breakdown between the additiona l 2.5 per cent government award
between salaries and wages, notwithstanding that
wages does have an extra person in it. So I just wondered if we can get an answer for that.

Yes, Madam Chairman.
I just wanted to weigh in for just a half -second
there on business unit 30125 on page B -245, After -
School Programmes. Certainly, I just want to encour-age the Minister to look favourably at these pr ogrammes because they are very important. They pr ovide tremendous outreach into the community and
provide opportunit ies for us to further connect with our
young people. And I have seen many young people
benefit from after -school programmes. I think right
now our young OJ Pitcher, who most people know as a cricketer but also serves as a golfer, learned and
developed his golf with many other St. David’s chi ldren down there with an after -school programme.
Thank you.

Thank you, Member.
Minister, you have approximately four minutes
to answer the questions.
Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Thank you, Madam Chai rman.
First of all, I would like to answer the question
from the Member from constituency 31 when he
asked about the allocation of funding. I know it has
always been a question, Madam Chairman, as to the amount of funds that are overseen by the BSADA, as
in comparison to what the actual NSGBs are recei ving. I want to say, Madam Chairman, that I also qu eried that. And I realised that it is important. It is i mportant. Especially when we want to compete overseas in overseas competitions, then by all means we
have to abide by those regulations. So, as we go, hopefully, we will see an increase in different sporting
bodies. But as it stands now, the role of BSADA is
very, very important for what we intend to and try to
achieve as Bermuda and Bermudian athletes.
Madam Chairman, another question was
about the National Youth Policy. This National Youth Policy has been in place for a while now. So there is
no actual funding allocated to the National Youth Pol icy itself. But it is just an ongoing developmental pol icy. Yes?
Was there another question, Madam?

[Inaudible interjection]

Hon. Michael A. Weeks: Salaries? I will try to look at
this.

The amount that
was allocated in the Subjective Analysis of $2,806,000
as against $2,868,000 comes to $62,000. When you
put a 2.5 per cent increase on just the $2,806,000, we
would have gotten at least $70,000. So I was just wondering about that different ial. But it might be that
he will not have time to answer it, because I think we have probably run out of time.

It has been moved that Heads 71 and
20 be approved.
Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
Agreed to.

[Desk thumping]
[Motion carried: The Ministry of Social Development
and Sports : Head 71 Headquarters, and Head 20 D e1384 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly partment of Youth, Sport and Recreation, were approved and stand part of the Estimates of Revenue
and Expenditure for the year 2018/19.]

Hon. E. David Burt: Thank you, Madam Chairman.
Madam Chairman, I move that the House do
now adjourn until 2:15 pm.

Good afternoon. Honourable Members, we are now in Committee of Supply for further
consideration of the Estimates of Revenue and E xpenditure for the year 2018/19.
Head 95 is now to be debated. I call on the
Minister in charge to proceed. Minister, you have the
floor.

MINISTRY OF ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Thank you, Madam
Chairman.
I move [that] the following Head 95, the Mini stry of Economic Development and Tourism Headquarters, be now taken under consideration.

HEAD 95 —MINISTRY HEADQUARTERS

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Madam Chairman, it
gives me great pleasure to present the budget for
Head 95, Ministry Headquarters for the Ministry of
Economic Development and Tourism, found on pages
B-332 to B -335 of the Estimates of Revenue and E xpenditure for the year 2018/19.
Madam Chairman, the Ministry has been all ocated a budget of $38,035,000 as seen on page B -
332. This is up $2,976,000, or 8 per cent from the
previous year’s original budget of $35,059,000. The
revised budget for the fiscal year 2017/18 was
$34,929,000. There are 13 full -time employees within
the Ministry.
Madam Chairman, of the $38,035,000 all ocated to the Ministry of Economic Development and
Tourism, $36,030,000 has been allocated to grants, leaving the remaining $2,005,000 split betwee n
Headquarters, the Business Development Unit [BDU],
and the Hotel Inspectors (which were previously under
the Ministry of Tourism, Transport, and Municipalities).
Madam Chairman, the Bermuda Tourism A uthority, the Bermuda Economic Development Corpor ation, and the Bermuda Business Development Agency
have all received additional grant funding of $1 million.
This has been partially offset by a reduction in the
contractual marketing commitments to the World Tr iathlon Association and JetBlue. In total, this commi tment has been reduced by $634,000 as found on page C -21.
Madam Chairman, the Ministry’s mission is to
facilitate the creation of jobs and economic growth. The Ministry, working with stakeholders, seeks to enhance Bermuda’s appeal as a place to do business and as a destination for businesses seeking to rel ocate from their current jurisdictions.
Madam Chairman, the Ministry of Economic
Development and Tourism also allocates a grant to
the Bermuda Business Development Agency in su pport of the public/private partnership that exists b etween the Ministry and the Agency; allocates a grant
to BEDC to support small and medium -sized local
businesses and entrepreneurs; provides a grant to the
BTA in support of promoting Bermuda as a tourist
destination; policy direction and management of the
Bermuda D evelopment Unit; and provides oversight
for Bermuda’s Casino Gaming Commission.
The Ministry Headquarters is staffed with a
permanent secretary, a comptroller, an executive sec-retary, one policy analyst, a receptionist, and account-ing support.
Madam Chairman, the budget for the Mini stry’s Headquarters is set out under four cost centres.
They are:
• Policy and Administration;
• Business Development Unit;
• Hotel Inspectors; and
• Grants.

Policy and Administration

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: The department has been
allocated a budget of $1,229,000 as seen on page B -
333. This is up $155,000, or 14 per cent from the pr evious year’s original budget of $1,074,000. The r evised budget for 2017/18 was $944,000. There are six
full-time employees within the Ministry Headquarters.
Madam Chairman, the budget in the Admi nistration section primarily covers salaries and general
operating expenses. This increase can be attributed
mainly for a provision relating to the Bermuda Event
Authority, [and] $233,000 has been set aside for thi s
eventuality. It is imperative that the Ministry sets money aside so that the Government’s Throne Speech
pledge can be met to develop a body that will create, attract, and manage international calibre events. The


Bermuda House of Assembly Ministry Headquarters has cut back on over seas co nsultants and legal costs to facilitate this. Also, in rel ation to headcount, the department has reduced employees by one.

Business Development Unit

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Madam Chairman, the
department has been allocated a budget of $544,000
as seen on page B -333. This is down $192,000, or
26 per cent from the previous year’s original budget of
$736,000. There was no change from the original budget to the revised budget.
There are four full -time employees in the department —I am referring to the B usiness Development Unit, cost centre 9502, 105020. The decrease of $192,000 for 2018/19 is a result of streamlining the
budget to help achieve savings for the Government.
The BDU is still, however, positioned to achieve its
targets as each of its staff positions has been funded.
Madam Chairman, the $736,000 allocated last
year went towards helping the Unit achieve its mandate. Aside from salaries, the expense under this cost
centre includes consulting services and general operating expenses.
Madam Chairman, the core functions of the
Business Development Unit are focused on activities
related to international business. These include: coordinating with the BDA; legislative reform; monitoring
and reporting on economic activities both in Bermuda
and abroad; pro viding concierge services to new
businesses; and facilitating potential development opportunities.
Madam Chairman, the concierge services of
the BDU complement those of the BDA as the two
entities partner together to ensure that new busines ses are provided assistance with both Government -
related issues and private sector service partners.
Specifically, the BDU provides assistance with a wide
range of matters that include: facilitating meetings with
Government officials; advising on applicable policies
and i nitiatives aimed at attracting and sustaining international businesses; providing guidance on immigr ation strategies; and ensuring expedited processing of
regulatory applications.
Madam Chairman, in fiscal year 2017/18 the
BDU played an important role in t he jurisdiction’s efforts to ensure compliance with international stan dards for transparency and beneficial ownership. This
project is directly linked to the National Anti -Money
Laundering Committee’s efforts to prepare the juri sdiction for the upcoming 20 18 assessment by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force. This periodic assessment is intended to ascertain whether Bermuda’s
legal and regulatory framework is consistent with i nternational standards and whether the implementation
of that framework is ef fective. As part of the prepar ation, the BDU served as the team lead on a legislative reform project governing access to the beneficial ownership information for Bermudian entities. The
resulting legislation is intended to bring Bermuda into
compliance wit h international standards and to i mprove transparency within legal entities. This legisl ation is part of Bermuda’s overall effort to deter and prevent the misuse of legal persons and arrang ements for illegal activities.
Amendments have now been made to the
Companies Act and LLC Act, with corresponding
changes drafted for the Limited Partnership Act, E xempted Partnerships Act, and the Partnership Act as
appropriate. To ensure there is sufficient understanding of the new requirements and to aid in compliance
efforts, the BDU also prepared draft public guidance
notes for the review by the Ministry of Finance, inclu ding the Registrar of Companies, the National Anti -
Money Laundering Committee, the Bermuda Mon etary Authority, and the Attorney General’s Chambers.
This document will be finalised and distributed to the
public sector stakeholders prior to the conclusion of this current fiscal year.
Madam Chairman, more recently the BDU
team has worked diligently to assist in the creation of a legislative framework to establish and grow FinTech
in Bermuda. This includes appropriately regulating
sales of digital assets, including virtual currencies, and
the facilitation of sales of digital assets as a third party by Bermuda businesses.
Madam Chairman, in the upcoming year the
BDU will develop consequential amendments to further integrate the Bermuda LLC into the Segregated
Accounts Companies Act 2000. The BDU will facilitate the establishment of a new corporate product, Incorporated Segregated Accounts Companies (ISAC).
The BDU will further facilitate legislative amendments for the implementation of a long- term superyacht pol icy.
Finally, the emergence of distributed ledger
technology has resulted in new global markets for
digital assets, financial inclusion, efficient payment
processing, enhanced data protection, and immutable
records, which enables full auditing of digital transactions. As the world continues to embrace the use of
blockchain technology in new and innovative ways,
Bermuda will position itself as a market leader with a
regulatory framework that combines legal certainty
with innovation encouragement.

Hotel Inspectors

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: For cost centre 9503,
105080, Hotel Inspectors, found on pages B -333 and
B-334, this section has b een allocated a budget of
$232,000 as seen on page B -333. The budget and
revised budget for 2017/18 as per the Budget Book is nil as it was within another Ministry. However, the actual budget for the prior year is the same for 2018/19, i.e., no change. There are three full -time employees
within this section.
1386 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Madam Chairman, the Regulation and Policy/
Hotel Administration section, which houses two hotel
inspectors and one administrative assistant, was
moved from the former Ministry of Tourism, Transport
and Municipalities to the Ministry of Economic Devel-opment and Tourism. T he budget for this section has
remained the same in 2018/19 as it was in 2017/18.
Madam Chairman, this section is responsible
for the hotel licensing and inspection process and
consists of a team that works to ensure that all l icensed hotel properties mai ntain the appropriate
standards. It is also charged with overseeing the hotel concessions process, as per the Hotels Concession
Act 2000, from the application stage of a new hotel
development and/or major renovation through to the issuance of opening date certificates which certify that
the planned redevelopment is complete and the relief
may commence. The Regulation and Policy section
also oversees the time- sharing administration and the
hotel bed and unit inventory tracking.
Madam Chairman, the Tourism I nvestment
Act 2017 which became operative on November 10,
2017 is intended to replace the Hotels Concession Act
2000 and stimulate more tourism development opportunities by direct local and foreign investment. The Act
applies to the full spectrum of Bermuda’s tourism
product including: new hotels, refurbished hotels, new restaurants, existing restaurants, and tourism attractions. This new legislation provides a streamlined pr ocess for administering relief for both the Government
and investor alike—more red carpet, less red tape —
which should make Bermuda more competitive in the
international investment space.
Madam Chairman, the Government seeks to
develop a light -touch regulatory framework specific to
vacation rental properties in Bermuda, thereby enabling visitors to choose a vacation rental property for
on-Island stays and to do so with confidence. The
regulatory framework is under review and being co nsidered in consultation with stakeholders as we work
on the 2018 National Tourism Plan. The regulation of
vacation rental properties will fall under the remit of
the Regulation and Policy section.
Madam Chairman, one will note that as stated
on page B -334 of the Budget Book of the $1,403,000
estimated revenues, $750,000 is expected to be r eceived from the new vacation rental fee. The other
fees remain as per 2017/18 when this department was
contained within the Ministry of Transport and Regul atory Affairs.

Grants

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Moving to cost centre
9503, 10503, Grants, found on pages B -333 and C -
21, this area has been allocated a budget of
$36,030,000 as seen on page B -333. This is up
$30,341,000, or 533 per cent from the previous year’s original and revised budget of $5,689,000. Madam Chairman, this cost centre is made up
grants for the BEDC, BDA, BTA, the BCGC, and marketing agreements with the World Triathlon Associ ation and JetBlue. In previous years the BCGC, the BTA, and both marketing agreements were admini stered by a different Ministry. Therefore, for budget
comparison it is necessary to tak e into account all of
these areas. In doing so, the budget for 2017/18 will
be $33,664,000 [which is] an increase of $2,366,000
on the previous year. This includes [the] increase of
$1 million to the BDA, BEDC, and the BTA being partially offset by the red uction of $619,000 to the WTA,
and $15,000 to JetBlue as further contractual marketing agreements.

Bermuda Economic Development Corporation

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Madam Chairman, I will
now provide the budget for the Bermuda Economic Development Corpor ation found on page C -21 of the
Budget Book.
Madam Chairman, the BEDC’s activities are
guided by its three- year strategic plan for the period
2017 through 2020. The organisation’s mission is to
inspire, inform, support and grow new and existing
Bermuda businesses through education, guidance, data provision, advocacy, networking and financing.
Madam Chairman, the BEDC is Bermuda’s
source of free confidential business advice with a si ngular focus to actively assist the development of a
strong, well -managed, and prosperous local business
sector in Bermuda. The BEDC is currently responsible
for overseeing the operations of the Economic E mpowerment Zones, for providing financial support and technical advice to small and medium -sized busines ses, for managing the operations of outside vendor
markets, and, most recently, for managing vendors
and issuing vending licences.
Madam Chairman, the total current expenditure is estimated to be $2,994,000 for 2018/19 and represents an increase of $1,098,000, or approx imately 58 per cent higher than the budget of 2017/18.
Madam Chairman, for 2017/18 the BEDC r eceived $1,564,000 as a grant from the Ministry of
Economic Development and Tourism. For fiscal year 2018/19 this grant will increase by $1 million, increasing the grant to $2,564,000. Representing an increase
of 64 per cent, this increase will enable the BEDC to
deliver on the Government’s key objectives leading to
assisting local entrepreneurs and to advance innov ative programmes to grow Bermuda’s entrepreneurial
ecosy stem. The change in the grants is due primarily
to the introduction of the following four areas.
Firstly, Madam Chairman, $500,000 of the i ncreased Government grant will enable BEDC to i ncrease its capitalisation from $1 million to $1,500,000 allowing the Corporation to expand both its direct
lending capacity and increase its guarantee percen tage amount for bank loans. Direct loans will be in the


Bermuda House of Assembly form of increased types of microloans, some focused
on growing specific industries, others for general start -
up purposes, and others to assist businesses in addressing past debt that often keeps our Island’s small
and medium -sized businesses from moving forward
and progressing. The increased grant will also be
used in supporting six innovative businesses selected
to participate in the BEDC’s first physical incubator
accelerator, a pilot programme called “Enterprise
Bermuda.” These entrepreneurs were successful during BEDC’s Rocket Pitch competition held in Novem-ber during Global Entrepreneurship Week [GEW]
2017 and part of the winnings was to be incubated.
These start -ups will be housed in BEDC’s physical
premises for nine months and will receive intensive
support and mentorship.
Secondly, Madam Chairman, $150,000 of the
increased grant will allow BEDC to increase its capitalisation further to a total of $1,000,650 allowing the
Corporation to provide direct loan funding and, as needed, loan guarantees to assist the Island’s sport clubs in growing their services and improving their
physical plants. BEDC has already begun to work with
the clubs on business planning, fiscal management,
and leveraging their prime locations and physical assets. By law, Madam Chairman, the BEDC can leverage its capitalisation by providing up to 50 per cent of
its capital for direct lending and up to six times its capital for loan guarantees. In the 2018/19 fiscal year, as
a direct result of the increased grant funding the
BEDC will receive, the Corporation will be able to lend
up to a total of $825,000 directly to the Island’s small
and medium -sized businesses, as well as provide
loan guarantees up to a maximum of $9,900,000 to
financial institutions and other entities.
Thirdly, Madam Chairman, $250,000 of the
increased grant will assist the BEDC in engaging the
skilled and experienced human resources it needs to
advance the new and innovative loan and guarantee
programmes as outlined above, as well as implementing an expanded economic development remit
through promoting the establishment and growth of
economic empowerment tools like “cooperativ e ec onomics.” As a priority for this Government, the Berm uda Economic Development Corporation will establish a new Economic and Cooperative Development Unit (ECDU) as outlined in the 2017 Throne Speech. To
lead this unit the BEDC has appointed Mr. William
Spriggs as Bermuda’s first Director of Economic and
Cooperative Development. The Economic and Coo perative Development Unit will be tasked with researc hing, creating legislation (as needed), engaging the public, educating the public, and developing products ,
services, and programmes for entrepreneurs with the
primary goal of increasing access to capital for entr epreneurs, and facilitating the growth and development
of Bermuda’s micro, small, and medium -sized bus inesses. Finally, Madam Chairman, $100,000 of t he increased grant will be used in direct spending to i mplement various economic and cooperative development initiatives.
Madam Chairman, the total current expenditure is estimated to be in line with the revenue gener-ated, whereas in previous years there has been a
slight surplus.
Madam Chairman, for all it achieves the
BEDC currently has 10 substantive full -time posts with
three of those posts currently vacant. We anticipate
these posts will be filled by March 31, 2018 and two
additional posts will be established this fiscal year to
create the ne w Economic and Cooperative Development Unit. We anticipate that these posts will be filled
in the second quarter of this fiscal year.
Madam Chairman, for the fiscal year 2017/18
up until December 31, 2017, the BEDC managed a guaranteed portfolio supporting 42 businesses, consisting of 22 loan guarantees and 20 microloans. The total value for the 42 guarantees and loans at the end
of 2017 was $1,242,000 which supported $4,238,000 in bank and direct loans.
It is expected that there will be zero payouts
on cal led loans in 2017/18, an improvement over fi scal year 2016/17 where there had been five payouts
to the banks.
In 2017, BEDC officers taught an eight -week
Entrepreneurship 101 Course which prepared entr epreneurs to develop a business plan and start a bus iness in Bermuda. [There were] 23 people who gradu-ated from the Entrepreneurship 101 Course in 2017.
Madam Chairman, BEDC surpassed its entrepreneurship advocacy awareness and education target for 2017 when it held or participated in 119
seminars or events, r esulting in outreach to over
11,000 entrepreneurs and budding entrepreneurs. Of this total, 20 events involved young people and youth
entrepreneurs with over 870 young people being i mpacted.
Madam Chairman, to grow Bermuda’s entr epreneurial ecosystem the B EDC partners with international organisations to give entrepreneurs access to
overseas opportunities. In this regard, BEDC once
again held Global Entrepreneurship Week activities throughout the month of November 2017. BEDC,
along with its partners and sponsors, held 29 events
over the month aimed at engaging, inspiring, connec ting, and mentoring entrepreneurship. Key highlights
included:
• The Rocket Pitch competition. Ten finalists
pitched their business ideas to a panel of
judges for the chance to win part of the
$25,000 cash pot.
• Women’s Entrepreneurship Day. Three
events took place highlighting the important
role women entrepreneurs play in Bermuda. BEDC was supported by HSBC, Butterfield
Bank, and the US Consulate.
1388 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly • Small Business Awards. Madam Chairman,
BEDC hosted its first annual Small Business
Awards during GEW 2017. The Small Bus iness Awards was conceived to celebrate the
accomplishments and the great work that
small business owners around the Island are
engaged in. Congratulations to all the winners at that event.
• Entrepreneurship Education Awards. Madam
Chairman, for the fourth year BEDC hosted its
annual Entrepreneurship Education Awards, celebrating those entrepreneurs who succes sfully completed BEDC’s multi -week courses in
2017. Sixty -six entrepreneurs attended.
Madam Chairman, BEDC has an active pr ogramme for supporting our Island’s micro -
entrepreneurs, whether that be through supporting individual vendors or broader vendor markets. [There were] 128 vending licences issued in 2017, a 91 per
cent increase over vending licences issued in 2016.
This number looks to increase further in 2018.
In 2018/19, the Bermuda Economic Development Corporation will enhance its products and services to provide further opportunities for Bermuda’s local micro, small, and medium -sized businesses with
the goal of facilitating economic growth and empowerment in this sector.
Policy changes are as follows:
1. Increased capitalisation. Madam Chairman,
BEDC’s capitalisation will increase to a total of
$1,650,000 empowering the Corporation to provide
loan funding up to a total of $825,000 directly to the Island’s small and medium -sized businesses, as well
as provide loan guarantees up to a maximum of $9,900,000 to financial institutions and other entities.
2. Increase guarantee per centages up to 65 per
cent. Madam Chairman, BEDC will increase its max imum guarantee percentage from 50 per cent up to 65
per cent to a maximum guarantee amount of
$200,000 to reduce the difficult collateral gap exper ienced by many entrepreneurs.
3. The introduction of innovative economic development tools. Madam Chairman, one of the new
economic development tools that the BEDC will be
implementing first within the 2018/19 fiscal year is
“cooperatives.” Madam Chairman, cooperatives are
autonomous associations of persons united voluntarily
to meet their common economic, social, and cultural
needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and
democratically controlled enterprise. They are bus inesses owned and run by and for their members.
Whether the members are the customers, employees,
or residents, they have an equal say in what the bus iness does and a share in the profits. Cooperative
economics harness the power and energy of a co mmunity to create economic and financial advantages
for their participants. The cos ts of entry are lower than
a traditional business start -up because the costs are
shared amongst the members of the cooperative. In this regard we see the opportunity for many entrepr eneurs to take advantage of the cooperative fram ework.
Madam Chairman, it is time for Bermudians to
work towards economic empowerment and self -
determination. And while not everyone seeks or desires to become an entrepreneur, this Government is
committed to breaking down barriers where it can,
supporting entrepreneurs where it can, and cultivating
an environment where businesses of all sizes have
the opportunity to succeed.
Madam Chairman, if a business is incorp orated as a company —limited or LLC —there is a legal
requirement for registering and annually reporting. Not so with sole proprietors. To overcome this gap the
BEDC intends to introduce legislation making registr ation a requirement and the Corporation will issue business licences to the sole proprietors. This new
requirement will help the Corporation to, for example;
better understand how many small and medium -sized
businesses truly exist, when they close, and what new
businesses form. This will help in the shaping of policy to benefit entrepreneurs and in the enhancement of
services offered at the BEDC. Being a BEDC regi stered business will also bring benefits such as: access
to preferential rates and terms as negotiated by the BEDC; negotiated discount support services and
products; and deposit insurance on commercial bank accounts, to name a few.
Madam Chairman, the BEDC’s key strategic
objectives within its new three- year strategic plan are
as follows:
• attract and retain more growth clients;
• increase visibility to enhance awareness and strengthen relationships;
• increase the number of and skill sets of entr epreneurs;
• establish partnerships within certain industries
to incentivise growth;
• inform and reduce misconceptions about
starting and funding businesses;
• streamline bureaucracy associated with bus iness creation;
• refine business register and data production;
• consider systems and programmes for staff
members to be effective and relevant;
• establish a viable financial plan to sustain the
Corporation;
• diversify and grow the Corporation’s revenue streams; and
• to increase ease of access to financing for entrepreneurship.
Madam Chairman, for too long, too many entrepreneurs have experienced too many obstacles
and too many headaches as they seek to do for self,
create businesses and jobs for themselves, and ot hers. For too long, too many of our young people have
been pointed towards employment and away from


Bermuda House of Assembly ownership. It is the belief of this Government that
more Bermudians must understand the opportunities
available to create our own businesses, have the tools
to create those businesses, and have barriers towards
the creation of those businesses eliminated. The BEDC is a key vehicle for the delivery of change in
those areas for Bermudians.

Bermuda Business Development Agency

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Now, moving on to the
Bermuda Business Development Agency, page C -21.
Madam Chairman, for 2018/19 a grant of
$5,125,000 is budgeted for the Bermuda Business
Development Agency (BDA). This is, as previously stated, an increase of $1 million on the prior year, or
24 per cent. Honourable Member s may recall that the
BDA was initially created under the last PLP Admi nistration and continued under the former Government.
As a successful and stable public/private partnership,
the BDA creates and implements marketing and bus iness development strategies to stimulate growth, with
job retentio n and creation in the Bermuda economy.
The Agency has been driving business deve lopment missions both at home and abroad to provide a platform for a collaborative “Team Bermuda” approach whereby industry professionals, the regulator, and Government represe ntatives present a united
front to referrals of business to the Island.
Madam Chairman, throughout the last fiscal
year the BDA progressed its work against the bac kdrop of US tax reform, the threat of border adjustment tax, an affiliate reinsurance tax, continuing breaks of negotiations, EU non- cooperative jurisdiction deliber ations, and the theft of Appleby data. The Agency
made distinct progress in InsurTech, distributed ledger
technologies, and cryptocurrencies. The BDA pr ogressed the concept of an inter national arbitration
centre, encouraged new start -ups, international expansions, and relocations, with several of their earliest
concierge clients settling in Bermuda and expanding
their operations.
Madam Chairman, the Agency continues to
focus on busines s development plans that delineate
our markets and generate specific targets, different iate the Island from our rivals, and educate prospects
and referrers of business.
Each of the BDA’s core pillars implement action plans that hone in on market and product penetr ation and development as well as diversification. As
shown by the BDA London Forum in late November
2017, where over 20 different companies supported the Bermuda roadshow, the BDA deliberately finds
areas of synergy to promote Bermuda’s services and
capabilities across industry sectors. This strategy was
pushed in 2017 by proactively combining asset man-agement and ILS.
The Agency continues to develop cross -sector
messaging and product development for health care risk solutions, long- term life insurance, and the ever
more topical cyber risk. A significant push for the Agency is the promotion of the Island as a hub for di gital currency and commercialisation of InsurTech. Alongside the Government the BDA is working to es-tablish Bermuda as a centre of excellence for compl iance work, digital ID, and RegTech/KYC streamlining.
Madam Chairman, the BDA has engaged
Price Waterhouse Cooper [PwC] to identify, analyse,
and articulate metrics and return on investment. Their
research will provide data on the direct and indirect economic impact of the BDA’s activities. This includes
job retention and creation as well as statistics on new
company incorporations. As part of this project PwC
are undertaking a stakeholder survey to provide a
baseline for future reporti ng, as well as feedback
mechanisms to measure and report on stakeholder
satisfaction as a hard metric.
Madam Chairman, through 2017 the BDA carried out strategic business development meetings,
roadshows, attended key conferences, and provided
business concierge service for prospective clients in
the areas of technology and e- commerce, trust and
private client, insurance, asset management, biomed,
aircraft, and shipping.
New geographic markets explored included
Latin America, regional US, Hong Kong, Singapore,
and Canada. The Agency was an invaluable resource providing proactive advocacy and emergency r esponse when Island’s reputation found itself under
attack.
Madam Chairman, the increase in long- term
life insurers on the Island has been the result of continued advocacy by the Bermuda International Long -
term Insurers and Reinsurers (BILTIR) in collaboration with the BMA to maintain and promote an environment conducive to growth. Bermuda’s dominance in
ILS has not been by accident, but through hard work,
continually pounding on the road, and collegial teaming with ILS Bermuda and the BMA.
Our health care insurance market is mining
new markets and attracting new buyers to the Island because of the breaking down of silos and having the
BDA pull everyone toget her. We are seeing this continue with the work currently being undertaken on
cyber risk, blockchain, cryptocurrency, and streamlined regulation procedures.
Madam Chairman, the BDA’s goals include:
job growth in international business and the profes-sional s ervices sector; contributing to the economy
via, for example, growth in international business formation or on- Island spend from conferences; creating
viable new business platforms, such as, for example,
FinTech, cryptocurrency, life sciences, IP, holding,
yacht services and compliant services with new Bermuda entities forming; enhance Bermuda’s reputation
and differentiate from other negatively perceived of fshore jurisdictions.
1390 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Madam Chairman, the BDA has refined its
segmentation of its business development focus into
five key sectors. These sectors are:
1. Asset Management;
2. Risk Solutions;
3. High-net-worth Services;
4. Emerging Technology; and
5. Economic Diversification.
Each sector is led by dedicated business development managers who, along with industry focus group representatives, create and shape business development plans.
Madam Chairman, Honourable Member s will
note it is proposed to grant an extra $1 million to the BDA to continue their work. The majority of this extra funding will go towards economic diversi fication and
the development of an effective FinTech ecosystem. To progress FinTech and to allow investment in the
appropriate platforms a dedicated budget of $450,000
has been allocated.
A budget of $400,000 in the Economic Diversification pillar will allow the BDA to more effectively
pursue: extra geographic strategies as well as new
product development; greater utility of our maritime
industries, including the shipping register; and the establishment of technology incubator accelerators.
For the other pillars, the renamed “High- networth Services” pillar will focus on presenting the Bermuda value proposition, real estate, investment
opportunities, family office services, yacht and private
aircraft registration and services to an ultra- high- networth ind ividual’s demographic.
In 2018, the BDA will further progress adv ocacy work in the United States and engage appropr iate resources to enhance business messaging in the
UK and Europe. An investment in the Risk Solutions pillar allows the Agency to attract ev en more conferences to Bermuda and increase commitment to the
ILS market, particularly pushing ILS, life insurance,
and captive products in China. The Agency will signif icantly enhance its promotion of health care and cyber
risk solutions, as well as retur n to productive captive
roadshows in Canada, Latin America, and the regional
US.
Madam Chairman, the BDA is committed to
providing exemplary, effective, and efficient services to the Government, private sector, and people of
Bermuda. Expanding their budget will provide greater
returns to the country.

Bermuda Tourism Authority
Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Madam Chairman, moving on to the Bermuda Tourism Authority, presently
under the Ministry of Economic Development and
Tourism found on page C -21 of the Budget Book and
governed by the Bermuda Tourism Act 2014.
Madam Chairman, the Bermuda Tourism A uthority was established to promote Bermuda as a des-tination and a catalyst of economic development, and
to ensure the social and economic enhancement of
Bermudians through the expansion of tourism.
In 2018/19, the BTA’s available resource to
deliver on these objectives will increase by $1 million, representing a 4 per cent grant increase from $25 mi llion to $26 million in 2018/19.
Madam Chairman, $500,000 of the addi tional
funds will be ring- fenced as matching funds for marketing partnerships to open up new opportunities for Bermuda. These initiatives may be geographic, tar-geted at a specific visitor segment or event opportun ities. The availability of funds will give the BTA credibi lity as they pursue tourism business development on behalf of Bermuda. The funds will not be spent unless
high return on investment [ROI] opportunities are co nverted, and a separate accounting of these funds will
be given to Government.
Madam Chairman, another 40 per cent of the
additional funding or $400,000 will be ring- fenced for
an initiative to ensure that Bermudians are ready and prepared for the employment opportunities coming in the Island’s tourism sector. This initiative, in partnership with the Bermuda Hospitality Institute, Workforce
Development, and Bermuda’s hoteliers will deliver a
thorough future needs assessment and gap analysis
across skilled, unskilled, and management emplo yment in our hotels and a pathway for preparing Bermudians to seize those opportunities. Tourism growth
and success must include Bermudians at every level
of our tourism industry and provide not just emplo yment opportunities, but career pathways as well.
Madam Chairman, the remaining $100,000
will be used to support entrepreneurial participation in
the BTA’s Beach Economy Vision. The Beach Economy Vision for improved business services and env ironmentally conscious economic activity in a limited number of our National Parks has enjoyed broad buy -
in from sta keholders, but limited progress in impl ementation. This funding will be used specifically to get this initiative up and running.
Madam Chairman, tourism represents Bermuda’s best opportunity to create inclusive economic growth that benefits Bermudian homeowners, wor kers, and entrepreneurs. As a result of discussions with
the Ministry of Economic Development and Tourism
and prudent fiscal management, the BTA will redeploy
an additional $1 million of its existing funding in a new
way that both parties ha ve agreed is in the best interests of the country. One million dollars, previously al-located to America’s Cup related sponsorship and marketing, will be diverted in the next budget year to
integrated marketing campaigns or “market blitzes”
designed to generate in- year demand for Bermuda as
a destination. These blitzes will be complemented by
matching funds from marketing partnerships to open
up new opportunities for Bermuda.
Madam Chairman, the majority of the inves tment will be concentrated where Bermuda has seen


Bermuda House of Assembly the largest increase in air capacity, namely, New York
and Boston. These actions, Madam Chairman, increased marketing of the destination, workforce development, and entrepreneurial empowerment on the
beach will be to the benefit of small business owners,
hotel workers, vacation rental property owners, and
others across the Island.
Madam Chairman, of the $26 million budget
for Tourism in 2018/19, $22,400,000 of the grant will be used for sales and marketing activities, including
the newly allocated funds, 84 per cent of the total
Government grant allocation. Sales and marketing
activities include: advertising; promotions; partner
marketing with airlines and online travels agents;
group sales activities; and travel industry outreach. Of the grant, $3,100,000 will be used for product and experience development, consisting of grants to entr epreneurs and other experienced developers, on- Island
visitor events, promotions and activations costs.
All of the remaining operational costs, excluding the new mone y allocated for the Beach Vision and
Job Readiness programmes, will be funded directly by the tourism fees that visitors pay when they arrive by
air and stay in a licensed hotel. In 2018 that direct i ncome to the BTA is expected to total $7,900,000
which i s flat when compared with 2017. These oper ational costs include: BTA staff salaries and benefits, a
grant to the Bermuda Hospitality Institute, Visitors’
Services Centres, property and IT costs, National
Training Standards Programme and Certified Tourism
Investor Programme, research and business intell igence, group sales, business development, and i nvestor concierge services.
Excluding non- recurring expenditures on the
National Tourism Plan 2018 and the re- launch of the
Business Service Centres, the BTA exp ects expend iture to be in line with revenue from grants and direct
income in 2018.
Madam Chairman, at year end 2017, leisure
air business spending was up 51 per cent when compared to year end 2015. Meanwhile leisure air visitor
arrivals were up 30 per cent at year end 2017 when
compared to the same period in 2015. This represents
measurable growth in leisure air visitor arrivals and
leisure air spending.
Madam Chairman, those two performance i ndicators are the ones the BTA focuses on the most
closely becaus e of the positive impact air arrivals
have on the overall Bermudian economy. A steadily
improving air visitor spending number is essential to
the industry’s development because air visitors spend
on average at least 10 times more than cruise pas-sengers when they visit Bermuda.
Madam Chairman, the total estimated amount
directly injected into the Island’s economy by visitors in 2017 was $431 million, which represents a 20 per
cent increase over the previous year. Overall, our
tourism industry contributes 23 per cent of total Go vernment revenue, 5 per cent of our gross domestic product, and 8 per cent of total jobs. Given this contr ibution, it is encouraging to see the tourism industry
moving in a positive direction because, whether you
are a part of the tour ism economy or not, a good performance by this key pillar of our economy stands to
benefit all Bermudians.
Here is how some of the key performance i ndicators finished at the end of 2017 when compared to the year before:
• Air and leisure spending, up 22.5 per cent;
• Cruise spending, up 7.6 per cent;
• Leisure air arrivals, up 11 per cent;
• Hotel occupancy, up 9.2 per cent.
Further, Madam Chairman, the number of vis itors under 45 years old continue to power the tourism
industry resurgence. About 83 per cent of the growth
in leisure air arrivals in 2017 was from visitors under
the age of 45. The number of visitors who chose vac ation rentals when they travelled to Bermuda surged 133 per cent in 2017 versus 2016 according to Airbnb
data shared with the Bermuda Tourism Authority. With
all vacation rentals factored into the equation, 10 per
cent of total visitors chose to stay in vacation rentals
last year.
Madam Chairman, year-end hotel occupancy
passed the 60 per cent mark for the first time since
2007. The hotel sector otherwise experienced a
strong growth year with occupancy climbing
9 percentage points to 63 per cent for the year. While
the Bermuda hotel sector as a whole requires further
growth to reach sustainable profitability levels, Madam
Chairman, the performance in 2017 was the best in a
decade. On the revenue side performance was even
more impressive for local hotels with revenue per
available room going up to 19.5 per cent and the a verage daily rate moving 9 per cent higher.
Madam Chairman, for 2018 the Bermuda
Tourism Authority’s goal is to ensure many of these
growth -enabling trends are maintained. One of the
challenges to matching last year’s performance will be
the availability of hotel inventory in the first quarter of 2018. Six local properties have a large portion, or i ndeed its full hotel inventory, off -line for renovation. It
represents about 12 per cent of the country’s total hotel capacity in the first quarter. The good news is that
the property upgrades are exactly what the industry
needs. Our product will be more attractive to travellers
post-refurbishment. Gencom, for example, is investing
$25 million in its property at Rosewood Bermuda. The
bad news is that the reduction in inventory will make
keeping pace with 2017 a challenge.
Overall, growing h otel inventory has been a
struggle for Bermuda over the past few decades and
the Government expects to see growth in hotel inven-tory in 2018. When the work is completed on the current projects, Bermuda is expected to have 240 more
hotel rooms to complement a growing vacation rental
inventory which surged more than 90 per cent in 2017.
1392 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The BTA will not only concentrate on direct
key performance indicators in 2018, it has also committed to the following strategic objectives:
• Leading and funding the development of a
National Tourism Plan in 2018, embraced by
industry, Government, and the community for
growing economic impact, employment, job readiness, and entrepreneurial opportunities.
• Continued emphasis on targeting and activa ting key visitor targets in feeder markets through integrated partnerships, retail prom otions in the shoulder and winter months, and
better brand engagement.
• Differentiating the four seasons of Bermuda to
better define, communicate, and promote
Bermuda’s seasonal strengths to different
business segments to grow visitation outside
of the peak summer months.
• Reinvigorating its B2B sales and sports strategy to focus on high return on investment verticals (or sub- verticals) and opportunities.
• Improving the visitor experience and up-selling vis itors through the re- launch of Bus iness Service Centres in Hamilton and Doc kyard.
Madam Chairman, in summary, Tourism pr ovides jobs for Bermudians. It provides taxes that fund the schools educating our children and the maint enance of the roads we all drive on. Tourism helps to
provide air routes important to international commerce
and inspires high quality amenities and recreation that
improve the quality of life for all of us who love Bermuda and call our Island home. A $26 million grant to the BTA, an inc rease over last year’s budget, and a
commitment to re- strategise on previous spending
meets the Government’s commitment to maintain the
momentum of the country’s tourism comeback.
Madam Chairman, turning to the expenditure
figures on page B -334. As mentioned, spending will
increase substantially due to the increase in grants.
All other costs only increased by $95,000. This is pr edominantly made up as follows:
• A $97,000 increase within salaries due to the
transfer of the hotel inspector team into the
Ministry, offset by savings within Headquarters.
• A $37,000 increase in professional services.
The Ministry has set aside money for the
Bermuda Event Authority totalling $233,000.
This has been offset by a reduction in other
projects requiring professional services.
• A $39,000 increase in travel costs to allow the
Ministry to cover new requirements associated with the partnership with the BTA and the
Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission. This has been partially offset by the removal of the
insurance cost of $100, 000 related to the
America’s Cup. Madam Chairman, the headcount, as found
on page B -334, shows an increase within the Mini stry’s Headquarters from 11 to 13, an increase of two posts. However, in reality this is not an increase as
three hotel inspectors hav e joined the Ministry from
another Ministry. Therefore, the Ministry has actually
reduced its headcount by one to assist the Ministry in
providing additional grant funding to stimulate further
economic growth.
Madam Chairman, before I conclude my r emarks o n the Headquarters for the Ministry of Ec onomic Development and Tourism, I would like to thank
the technical officers who assisted in the preparation
of this brief and I would like to single out particularly
the hard- working men and women at the BTA, the
BDA, the BEDC, and the BCGC —they are doing phenomenal work for the people of this country, and we look forward to even bigger and greater things in the
years ahead.
Thank you, Madam Chairman.

Thank you , Madam Chairman.
I would like to thank the Minister for his
presentation and I am going start from back to front
with Tourism first. So I am going to start with . . . (hold
on a minute), [page] C -21, line 6835, the Tourism A uthority Grant.
First of all I would like to thank Kevin Dallas
and the BTA for all of their hard work and their efforts
over this past year. The numbers are phenomenal. I
actually attended the end- of-year presentation at the
Belmont a couple of weeks ago. I have attended a lot of the BTA presentations and I love going because I
love to see just the marketing ads that they do be-cause they are so phenomenal. I was in Las Vegas in
December attending a sports business and entertai nment conference and they had a reception the night before the main conference.
And so there was a group of us, Glenn Jones
was there, and they had a bunch of TV screens, you know, it was a sports bar so they had a bunch of TV
screens that were placed all around and I looked
around and I started seeing all of these Bermuda ads and I was like, Why are these Bermuda ads here?
And it was, Come to Bermuda . . . and just, you know,
interviewing different people and I did not realise that the BTA had sponsored an event, they had some
Bermuda drinks there, but they have been really good
in promoting and marketing the jurisdiction, so kudos
to Kevin Dallas and his team for doing that.
I am pleased to see t hat they have increased
the grant for Tourism. You know, the things that they did with $25 million were amazing, so with even more
money I expect them to do even greater things. Our


Bermuda House of Assembly product has experienced continued growth, I think,
since 2014/15, which is exciting. Tourism is one of the
fastest growing economic sectors in the world.
The year 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism Development, and
I think that the BTA has done a good job in sustaining
our tourism product and i n encouraging people to
come to Bermuda to spend their money here and to
connect with us.
So Minister Shawn Crockwell, our departed
colleague, was instrumental in the establishment of the BTA, and the BTA is basically the enshrined legi slation of the Nati onal Tourism Plan. So it is a collaborative effort, although people will not acknowledge that. I would also like to thank the Minister for his i nclusive and collaborative approach. He has been very
open and communicative with me and has given me a
lot of i nformation, so I like the way that we work today,
so thank you Minister, I appreciate that. Whether people know it or not, we actually are on the same team,
and that is “Team Bermuda.”
Now I have some questions that I would like
to ask and I want to start with the cruise ships. I note
that the Transportation Planning team works with the
BTA to develop the cruise ship strategy. Is that team
still in place and can you tell me what the year’s strategy is for 2018 for cruise ships?
In 2016, we had 139 cruise ship calls and that
generated 397,880 visitors and they spent $44,500,000. Do we know what the numbers were for
2017? I know we anticipated having 408,000 visitors,
did we reach that mark?
One of the Throne Speech initiatives under
the OBA in 2016 was to extend the cruise ship season to December 2017. So there was supposed to be an
additional seven cruise ships that came to Bermuda
and that number is anticipated to grow, did we meet
that number for 2017? And what is the expected number for 2018?
We also had 26 calls in the City of Hamilton in
2017 and we also had 16 calls in St. George’s with
two of those calls visiting Hamilton and St. George’s in
the same week. What is the anticipated number of calls in both Hamilton and St. George’s for 2018?
Last year the Norwegian Cruise Lines commi tted to 12 calls using Regent Seven Seas and Oceania
cruise brands. What is the anticipated number of calls
and what are they committed to for 2018, if they have
made a commitment?
Now, in 2017, Bermuda enjoyed additional
relations with other cruise lines and there were occ asional calls made to Bermuda in 2017. Will there be additional calls outside of the existing relationships
that Bermuda has in 2018?
We also had, for the first time, eight cruise
calls from eight differ ent cruise lines. And if you will
allow me I will read them. The MS Norwegian Epic on
April 4
th, Le Sol éal on April 6th, Le Ponant on
April 17th, Le Boreal on April 22nd, MS Ocean Dream on June 17th, MS Aurora on September 17th, MS V iking Sea on October 16th, and MS Viking Sky on O ctober 31st. Will those ships be returning? And, if not
those ships, will any other ships be coming to Berm uda?
I know that the BTA has been working to develop a relationship with premium luxury cruise lines. How is that working relationship going? How is that
developing? What additional premium cruise lines will
be coming to Bermuda in 2018, if any?
I also would like to know, for the cruise ships
that berth in Hamilton . . . sorry, there is a passenger
tax paid to the Government for ships not berthed in
Hamilton, and the ones in St. George’s pay a cabin
tax, can you tell me what the projected revenue for that would be for 2018?
It was anticipated that in 2017/18 we would
increase the number of cruise ship calls to Bermuda
from 1 39 to 163. Is there a projected number for
2018? And if there is, what would that be and what
would the projected number of visitors anticipated be, based on an increase in numbers?
Madam Chairman, one of the things that is
important for Bermuda to keep up with is its compet ition, and the budget that we have has to reflect that
we are able to do so. So I want to know whether or
not with the increase in funding that we have, will that allow us to be competitive with other jurisdictions?
We also are . . . my understanding is that the
BTA is also trying to fill the gap of hotel occupancy
between the months of November and March. What
things are being developed to increase visitor arrivals
over those dates?
And I know that the BTA’s focus has been on
leisure air arrivals, but are we doing anything to attract
people to come to Bermuda on private jets? Do the
numbers that we have in the year -end report reflect
only leisure air arrivals, or are private jets included in
that? And if not, is there going to be a marketing strategy that will include private jets?
I think it is wonderful news that the number of
arrivals have increased and the air growth is in all age
areas. It is nice to see that people 45 and under are coming to Bermuda and Bermuda is no longer the
nostalgia tourist jurisdiction. It is not the place where
your grandparents go; it is where young people want to come.
Madam Chairman, the mission of the BTA is
to increase income earned by the Island through tour-ism and ensure the industry is economicall y, socially
and environmentally sustainable. From time to time people do change their mission statements. Does that remain the mission statement of the BTA?

[Inaudible interjection]

Okay, thank you.
In 2016/17, the BTA consisted of 38 full-time
employees. I think there were some redundancies
1394 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly from the New York Office earlier this year. Can you
give me the total number of employees between New
York and Bermuda?
I know that the goal is, at some point, for the
BTA to be independent of Gov ernment funding. Is
there a glide path for that goal? And how far along is the BTA in achieving it?
Do they think they will be able to achieve it?
Notwithstanding that, I do think that the money that the Government gives to the BTA is money well spent.
And one of the things that I like about the BTA is that
they are very transparent, they are very communic ative. I am always getting emails from them about
things that they are doing, functions they are having,
and just providing information about their statis tics
and how well they are doing. So I appreciate that.
One of things that the BTA did in 2017 was to
promote the beach economy. So they had local ente rtainment at three beach locations. Is that going to be
continued? And will there be additional beaches? Is it
just going to be three, or are they going to be adding
other beaches?
I was out on Saturday night and I just want to
give a plug for local entertainment. I went to The
Grand, and the Wall Street Band was there. It was put
on by, I think, the Depart ment of Community and Cu ltural Affairs. And they were outstanding! And they
have a full band, Graham Maule was there playing his
trumpet, and Max Maybury was there playing his saxophone, and somebody else . . . I mean it was a full
band. They had singers and everything . And they
played from nine to eleven. So kudos to that Ministry. I hope that we can see more local entertainment during the year. I think this is only going to be for the month
of March, but we have so much talent here and we
need to utilise it and display it.
One of the things that the BTA wants to do
with its marketing is increase total future visitor spen ding. And I would like to know how they anticipate doing that.
The other thing is that the BTA has expanded
its National Service Standards. They identified five service principles and standards for implementation in 2017. I would like to know what those are.
There was a Certified Waiter/Server Pr ogramme that was supposed to start in 2017. Did that start? How many waiters started? And what w as the
result of that programme? Is it something that is going
to continue?
There were also 400 BTA certified Tourism
Ambassadors. Do we still have that number? Is there
any recruitment plan in process, and what are we do-ing about it?
The BTA also put on a neighbourhood beaut ification project, which I am in total agreement with because I believe that it promotes community spirit, it gets people out, and it gets them together. That was
done in three neighbourhoods. Will that be continued?
Will other neighbourhoods be added to that pr o-gramme? And, if so, when will that start? If not, why
will it not start?
And I would like to also know about the Internal Rotational Development Programme. What is it?
Who is involved in it? How many people are involved in it?
And if I could also have information about the
total quality management measurement; there was a follow -up study completed and it was planned to be
repeated every six months. What is the status of that? Has it been repeated? Is it ongoing? And will it conti nue?
One of the things that has kind of deterred . . .
well, I guess not deterred . . . hindered us as a juri sdiction, is group travel. I know that that was one of the
things that the BTA was working on. And in 2016 I
know that there was an increase in group travel. Can you tell me what the increase was for 2017, if any,
and what is anticipated for 2018?
I would also like to know what we are planning
on doing for sports tourism. I think that is an area that
we could really grow and develop. One of the things
that I think we should do is have a friendly match with
Liverpool.

[Inaudible interjections and laughter ]

Okay. And I wanted to know what
the status of that self -assessment is. Thank you.
Now, the goals for the BTA in 2017 were,
among other things, building a unique and competitive
positioning, reducing seasonality, increasing visitor
expenditure, creating jobs and building pride. Are
those goals the same? Have they changed? Have
they added new goals? And if they have, what are
they?
And then I would like to know what t he plan is
. . . I asked this question already, but just what is the
plan for the BTA to be financially independent?
Are all the hotels paid up with their BTA fees?


Bermuda House of Assembly And how are we gathering data that relates to
how new visitors learned about Bermuda and what
made them choose Bermuda? And is that data compilation actually going on? If it is, what are the results?
One of the other things that we need to do . . .
I know that we have not really debated it in the House, but the America’s Cup was a great event . I know that
there will be people that beg to differ, but I think that it
was a good event. I enjoyed it. One of the things that
we want to do is leverage on that event. And the i mpact that America’s Cup had on our GDP was $336.4
million.
There were 745 yachts that visited Bermuda,
over 134 were superyachts. Have we implemented a plan that will attract those superyachts back to Ber-muda? And if so, what is the plan? It is anticipated
that legacy tourism from America’s Cup will be $90.8
million. How are we leveraging that and what things
are we putting in place? Do we have any repeat
America’s Cup visitors? And if we do not, why not?
And what are we doing to attract them back to Bermuda?

[Inaudible interjection]

One of the objectives for the
product in 2017 for the Product and Experience Div ision was to introduce initiatives to expand the range
and depth of local culinary experiences and then, a lso, to improve Bermuda’s experiential offerings related to food culture and help drive economic benefit for
relevant service providers.
I know in February in Florida they have the
South Beach Food & Wine Festival, and they have
celebrity chefs come host dinners. They have all kinds
of workshops. They have something called Barry’s Bootcamp and Bites, which is a morning exercise pr ogramme. And then, after the exercise programme, you
have a bunch of different healthy foods. Are we antic ipating . . . can we do something like that? I think that
. . . and they are putting on . . . this is their 16
th annual
event and it just continues to grow and grow and
grow. I think that we have a jurisdiction that could . . .
you know, it may not be on the same scale, but it is
somet hing that we can do.
The other thing is that in Virginia there is
something called “Taste of the Town.” That is another
kind of foodie- type of thing, and it is also themebased. So this year they are having it in March. And
March Madness ties into basketball, so when people
come they wear the jersey of their favourite team to
support their team. I mean, these are things that we can do. We can do it locally and we can get people to
come here. The other thing is that I practice yoga. The
other day I was onl ine because I was looking for a
yoga retreat. So there is a —

[Inaudible interjection]

And do yoga. So there is one i n
Costa Rica. And it is offered from May 20
th to May
27th, and I thought that is something that we could do
here. I mean, I do yoga at a studio, but it is something
that . . . there are a lot of black professional women
that do yoga. There are not many of us that do it in
concentration, so that is something that we can do.
And the other thing that we need to look at, I
believe, is just attracting professional black women to
Bermuda. There are a number of websites and, if you
will allow me, I will introduce you to some of the blogs
and the websites where black women are passing on
information to other black women about jurisdictions
to travel.
There is one called Nomadness Travel Tribe.
It is a place to get the real deal when asking about
things for travell ers of colour, particularly women. Will
Drink For Travel, which is a blogging site; International
Travel Chick; Brown Girls Fly; Urban Travel Girl; and
Sisters Will Travel. I mean, these are people that we
can target to bring to Bermuda. Why not? You know,
in 2017 Essence listed the top 10 spots for black
women to travel to, and if you will allow me to read them for 2017 . . .

[Inaudible interjection and laughter ]

Okay.
1. Cuba;
2. Trinidad and Tobago;
3. Italy;
4. Tokyo;
5. Amsterdam;
6. Martha’s Viney ard;
7. New Orleans;
8. Toronto;
9. Massachusetts;
10. Iceland;
11. South Africa; and
12. Grenada.

And those countries were . . . they did a calendar, so in January you should go to Cuba; February
Trinidad and Tobago; [et cetera].
And then in 2018 theGrio has listed the top 10
spots and starting from 10 and going down:
10. Ghana;
9. Italy;
1396 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report
B ermuda House of Assembly 8. Thailand;
7. Barbados;
6. Germany;
5.South Africa;
4. France;3. England;
2.Iceland; and
1.Brazil.
Now in both of those listings Italy, Iceland,
and South Africa were repeated, but Bermuda is not on that list. Why is it not on that list? We should be on that list. Black professional women travel, black pr ofessional women want to spend money. And you know this is an area that we need to be looking into.
There is an organisation called WIT (Women
in Travel) and they have a summit. Their summit is going to be in Quebec in May. And if you will allow me: “WITS is the gathering of the soul sisterhood I
have been searching for. Never before have I been
surrounded by such a likeminded, creative, suppor tive, and fiercely brave tribe of women.”
Women will travel, and women are looking for
support in their travel experiences. They want to know
the places to go, they want to know the places where
they can enjoy themselves and have an adventure. So I think that that is something that we need to look into.
And the next market that we really need to
look into . . . I do not know how we are going to do this
with the Domestic Partnership Act, but the LGBT
community . . . now I am not a supporter of same- sex
marriage. I am not. However, what people do with
their lives and their time in their own houses is their business. But at the end of the day the LGBT comm unity spends money, and they spend big money. They spend so much money that there actually is a han dbook of LGBT Tourism and Hospitality, which is a guide for business practice to tell you how to attract LGBT dollars to your jurisdiction. And I think that that is something that we actually need to look into.
You know, I understand that we are a Chri stian society and people have issues with it. But at the end of the day people want to come to Bermuda. And if they want to spend their money in Bermuda, their money does not have a gender.
[
Inaudible interjection]

Pardon me?
So I think that we need to do something to
ensure that we promote that, to make people feel that they are welcome.
You know, in Indianapolis they lost 14 conventions representing $60 million in revenue because
of their stance on LGBT. In North Carolina they lost $3.6 billion in business because of the transgender bathrooms that they did not want to have. The global value of LGBT travel is over $211 billion —billion with
a “B” not an “M.” So this is an area that we need to kind of get with the programme on and make them
feel welcome.
The United Nations has put out a guide. It is
the United Nations World Tourism Organisation Guide on LGBT Travel —
[
Inaudible interjection]

So I think this is an area that we
actually need to pursue and investigate.
You know, we can generate a lot of revenue
from it, but we need to make people feel welcome.
And if that is the type of jurisdiction that we want to be
then we need to do something about it to make sure
that people want to come to Bermuda.
One of the things that I would like to know is
. . . one of the objectives of the BTA is to build year -
round demand. I would like to know how they intend to
do that. I know that we have got the different groups —
the Go For It! families, the Dream Trippers, the A dventure Seekers —but we need to expand that to
some of the areas and some of people that I have
suggested.
The Minister, who was the Shadow Minister
last year, was concerned, I think during the Budget,
about the composition of the Board of the BTA. Now that he is the Minister, I want to know whether or not he believes that the Board is more reflective of the forward vision, and if he is happy with the Board. And does he think that the Board reflects the people that
we are trying to attract to Bermuda,
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Point of order, Madam
Chairman.

Yes.
Member, would you mind taking your seat?
Your point of order?
POINT OF ORDER
Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: I certainly want t o follow t he Honourable Member, bu t I just want t o know
what he ad or b usiness unit s he is t alking about. I r eally want to follow her because I think she is very interesting.

The BTA has an experience i nvestment programme. Would you be able to provide
me with information about how many investment opportunities have met, exceeded, or underperformed
based on the BTA’s standards?
There is the Bring it Home Programme. Is that
still in existence? And if it is, can you give me some
information on what the impact of it has been? How
many people are participating in it? What impact has
that had on group travel?
There is also the National Service Standards.
How many businesses have signed up for this pr ogramme since it was launched? And if they have not
signed up, are there any specific efforts in getting
businesses to sign up for it?
I note in his brief the Minister talked about
vacation rentals and talked about doing some light
regulation. And I would like to know what that regul ation would be; would it be a form of tax or a l icence
fee? And how much would the licence fee be? And in addition to the licence fee, would there be any add itional requirements that would have to be met by
those that have vacation rentals?
I think that is all that I have for . . . oh, sorry,
no, it is not. Madam Chai rman, I note that the Minister
in his brief, allocated $500,000 of additional funds that
are going to be ring- fenced as matching funds for
marketing partnerships to open up new opportunities
for Bermuda. Where are those marketing partnershi ps
going to be established? And what event opportunities are going to be created by those marketing partnerships? I think it is fantastic that they are going to have
these partnerships. I think that anything that promotes
Bermuda as a jurisdiction and incr eases the world’s
knowledge about Bermuda is a good thing.
The Minister also talked about ring- fencing an
additional $400,000 for an initiative to ensure that Bermudians are ready and prepared for employment
opportunities. I would like to hear more about those
initiatives, and I would like to know what employment
opportunities they are talking about. Are there specific
opportunities that they are targeting? If so, what are
they?
I also note that the partnership with BHI (Bermuda Hospitality Institute), Workforce Development
and the hoteliers had an event, I think last week. And I
would like to congratulate Shawnette Somner, an ed-ucation training officer at the prisons, who was a facil itator of the theory part of the hotel training scheme. And that scheme had 25 Bermudians trained as chambermaids and housemen. And that was part of
the new public/private partnership. So, I applaud the
BTA in moving forward in trying to get Bermudians to
have jobs. And I believe that the people who have
participated in this pr ogramme are people that were
on financial assistance.
The other thing that I would like to talk about
is the Beach Economy Vision. Now, I have been to St. Kitts and Cayman and Jamaica. And those places
have an aisle along the beach where they have got
restaurants and all kinds of things where you actually
can get a flavour of the jurisdiction. And I am just
wondering if that is something that we can do in Bermuda, or whether or not the people, like BEST, and
other ecologists would prevent that from happeni ng.

[Inaudible interjection]

Yeah, yeah, but it is so cool,
though, because when you go to those places you
really actually get a flavour.
I know when I travel I actually like to go where
the locals go. I do not want to go where the tourists go. So you get a feel for the food and the culture and
the nightlife and all those kind of things. Hopefully, we
can do something . . . maybe not on the same scale.
But something that would allow people to have the local feel.
There is an anticipated marketing blitz. I
would like to know what that will entail and who the
marketing blitz is going to target. I think, again, that it
is a good thing that we are actually going to b e going
out to people and selling Bermuda. I think it is i mportant.
I note that the majority of investment that the
BTA is focusing on is going to be New York and Boston. At one point the Minister made a comment about
expanding beyond that and possibly going out into
Asia. Are there any plans to expand our marketing to those areas in that region? Is so, what are they? And
in addition to Asia, are there any other areas that we
would like to target?
I see that we are going to have a challenge
with hotel capacity. It is wonderful that hotels are being renovated to be able to accommodate the new guests that are coming. Would it be possible, or is it
possible, for the Airbnb and vacation rentals to take
up the slack where the hotels are not going to be able
to accommodate people?
And I think that is it for the BTA for me.
Now I would like to talk about Head 95 and
7000, the BEDC Educational Grant.
Oh, I am sorry; I have one more question on
Tourism. The World Triathlon Association [WTA], page C -21, line item 7095. I note that there is a pa yment of $2,266,000. Are there any other payments? What is the total commitment that is expected of Gov-ernment for the WTA?
1398 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Okay, page B -333, line item 9501, Policy and
Administration. Madam Chai rman, I note from the Mi nister’s brief that the Ministry has cut back on overseas
consultants and legal costs to set up a body that will
create, attract, and manage international calibre events. How many employees are going to be r equired to staff this? Where will the Bermuda Event
Authority be located?
There has also been a decrease of $192,000
as a result of streamlining the budget to help achieve
savings for Government . . . sorry, cost centre 9502,
Business Development, page B -333. There has been
a decrease for 2018/19. But it is believed that the
BDU will still be able to meet its targets.
You have talked about the infrastructure, but
what is going to be the actual business? How many
events have been planned? How many events have
been held? And what is in the pipeline?
And then there is an amount of $736,000 that
was allocated towards helping the Unit to achieve its mandate. What was its mandate? And the expenses under this cost centre included consulting services
and general operating expenses. What types of consulting were required? And how long did the consultancy go on? I recognise that if you do, you will always
need some outside expertise for things, but just to
have an idea of what it cost us.
I note that the BDU works with the BDA and
that everybody is working furiously towards the 2018 assessment by the Caribbean Financial Action Task
Force. This assessment has everybody nervous. We
want to make sure that we make a good impression
and that we pass it because it is critical for the juri sdiction to be able to do so. So I am happy for any le gislation that is passed that allows us to be competitive
as a jurisdiction. I do think that the amendments to the
Beneficial Ownership Register did not go far enough. I
think that they could have gone farther to make us
more competitive with other jurisdictions. And when
that legislation was debated I did ask for certain changes to be considered. And I hope that, in time,
those changes will be considered.
I also like that the Ministry of Finance provides
us guidance notes for all of the new legislation that
comes out. We look forward to the guidance notes on
the changes that are going to made for the Limited Partnership Act and the Exempted Partnership Act.
Now, the BDU is working to establish a
framework for FinTech, which I presume inc ludes
blockchain, cryptocurrency, and all that kind of thing.
And I do hope that there is going to be a legislative
framework that is going to be robust enough to man-age it. The challenge with bitcoin and those things . . .
and the main feature of them is anonymity, so it leads
to money laundering. And, you know, that is one of the things that we want to be careful of as a jurisdi ction, particularly when we are in the middle of having a
review. The Jersey Financial Services Commission
actually issued a not ice because people were sending
out spam emails issuing ransom notes and threaten-ing people or their family members and they wanted
payment to be in bitcoin. Bitcoin is also used to pur-chase drugs. So I think we have to be careful about
how we are going to develop the legal framework. It
has to be really, really, really robust.
One of the other things that we are looking to
do, or the BDU will work with the industry [on], is developing the incorporated segregated accounts com-pany, which I think actually is a very good idea. Generally a segregated accounts company is a company,
and then you have segregated accounts that allow
each account to ring- fence its assets. But with an i ncorporated segregated accounts company that entity is . . . that segregated account is incorporated in and
of itself. It has its own legal personality, and its assets
are better protected and its liability is limited. So I look
forward to those amendments and a consultation paper setting out what all of the amendments are going
to be.
Madam Chairman, the BEDC currently has 10
full-time posts with three posts that are currently v acant. I would like to know what those posts are. And it is anticipated that those posts are going to be filled by
the end of March, is that target date still r eachable?
Have all the interviews been conducted and is the
staff ready to start?
I also note that they are going to create two
additional posts for the new Economic and Cooper ative Development Unit, and those posts are anticipat-ed to be filled at the end of the second quarter. And I
would like to know what those posts are.
I fully support the BEDC in assisting small
businesses with the guarantee programme that they
have. I would like to know how many total applicants
they had under the guarantee programm e. It is fanta stic that there were zero payouts on loans called in
2017/18. I think that is a good thing.
Congratulations on the Global Entrepreneurship Week and for those that participated and for the BEDC for putting that on. I think that there are a lot of
good ideas and I look forward to seeing the results of
what they are doing for the community.
I agree with the Minister in his brief. It is time
for Bermudians to work toward economic empowerment and self -determination. I think that is important.
But I also think that when we are helping people to get
there we also have to provide them with the soft skills
and the life skills to be able to manage. It is like an ybody can buy a house, but can you keep it? So as we
lead them on the way to financial success and bus iness success, I hope the skills that they require to
help them sustain those efforts are going to be pr ovided.
Madam Chairman, one of the things that the
BEDC is going to do or wants to do is introduce legi slation allowing sole proprietorships to register so that


Bermuda House of Assembly they can get a business licence. Is there going to be a
cost for that business licence? And if so, what is going
to be the cost? And is it going to be a cost that is reasonable for a sole proprietor? And also, are there going to be any other annual requirements? I know for local companies you have to pay your annual Government fee and you also have to file a statutory r eturn or an annual declaration of shareholdings. Is
there going to be any other requirement for sole pr oprietorships in regard to this? I note the plans for the upcoming fiscal year
and one of the things was —well, there are several
things, but —to attract and retain more growth clients.
How many clients do you have right now? And they want to increase the number and skill s ets of entr epreneurs. How many entrepreneurs are there currently? Is there a register of entrepreneurs? Are there any
requirements that they have to meet if they are given
funding from the BEDC? And if so, what are those
requirements?
The BEDC is also ant icipating establishing
partnerships with certain industries to incentivise
growth. What are those industries and what will those
partnerships look like?
I think it is important to establish a viable f inancial plan to sustain the Corporation, particularly
with the guarantees and the loans that they want to give and provide, so what would that financial plan
look like? And when would it be available? And would
it be available to the public?
I would like to know how they anticipate diversifying and growing t he Corporation’s revenue stream,
as well as how they anticipate increasing ease of access to financing entrepreneurship. What are the
things that you anticipate doing so that people can
come to the BEDC to obtain money to establish their
businesses?
I agr ee that more Bermudians must understand the opportunities available and that we have to help them to create the opportunities so that they can
have their own businesses. But, as I said, it is not just
creating the businesses, but it is also being able to
sustain those businesses. And so, again, I would just
like to reiterate that I hope that they are going to have
additional support in terms of budgeting, money management, vendor management, and all the things that come along with running a business.
Now I would like to talk about the BBDA and
that is page C -21, line 6985. I am a fan of the BDA. I
work in the trust industry and the BDA is extremely
supportive of all industries. And it is true that they do
create synergies across all of Bermuda. I was travel-ling with Sean Moran last year to a conference in Si ngapore and we also went to Hong Kong for business
development. And while we were there we went to a
number of law firms and trust companies and one of the questions we kept getting asked was, where is
Bermuda and where has Bermuda been? And so
Bermuda kind of has fallen off the map in terms of being in the forefront of people’s minds. And one of
the things that was mentioned was whether or not the
BDA would be considering establishing a satellite office in Hong Kong with a staffing of a couple of people. I know that Conyers has a presence there and . . .
I cannot remember if it is Jersey or BVI . . . FSC has a
place there. So they are kind of able to triage and
people go there and their work gets recommended to
BVI or to Jersey or the Caymans because they have a
presence there.
So I think it would be advantageous for Bermuda to consider . . . I do not know what the cost
would be of setting up a satellite office, but it would do
well for Bermuda to be able t o have a presence. I
mean marketing is one of those things where you
have to constantly get yourself in front of people because if you do not then they do not remember who you are. And we are a service jurisdiction and in order
for us to have our clients, we have got to get in front of
them and let them know who we are and what we have available and what we can provide as a jurisdi ction.
So, I support the BDA. I support the additional
funding that they have been granted. The company
that I work for also provides a private form of financial
support to them, as well as some of the other trust
companies in the industry, because we recognise the value that they bring to us and the work that they do is phenomenal.
I note that the BDA has engaged Price W aterhouse to identify and provide a survey. And as a
member of the BDA and as a participant in all of the things that they do, it would be interesting to see what
the impact of their activities is. Because they do a r eally good job, they do a lot of work, and it would be
nice to see how their efforts are turning out.
So I support the extra $1 million to the BDA. I
do agree that their work is very positive. They do a
great job in enhancing the jurisdiction.
Overall, Minister, I think that it was a very
good brief. Thank you for your information. I look forward to the answers to the questions that I have raised.
Thank you very much, Madam Chairman.

Yes, thank you, Madam
Chairman.
And I appreciate the opportunity to be able to
participate in this debate on Head 95, which I guess is on page B -333 of the Budget Book.
Let me start by saying that I appreciate the
Minister’s willingness to give us a copy of his brief. It
is nice to know there is reciprocity in these things. I
can remember giving briefs to that particular Minister,
1400 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly when he was Shadow Minister, for a number of years.
But I think it helps to improve the quality of the debate.
The Minister did whip through his brief with
some dispatch. I was . . . I had the sense he was in a
hurry to get somewhere, but maybe he was just daunted by the possibility of six hours of debate. So,
anyway, I do appreciate the favour being returned.
As the Honourable Member said when he i ntroduced the brief, the total grant or allocation to Head 95 is $38 million. And it is an interesting head because of that $38 million some $36 million, as the Mi nister said, actually is allocated to Grants to three or
actually four quangos, and only $2 million is being
allocated to be spent within the Ministry on Admi nistration, the BDU, and hotel inspections. So, in essence, the four quangos are:
• the BTA Grant, which was some $26 million
for the coming year, up a $1 million on $25
million from the previous year;
• the Bermuda Economic Development Corporation, which is also getting a $1 million i ncrease up to $2.56 million;
• the Bermuda Business Development Agency, which is getting an increase of $1 million up to
$5.125 [ million];
• and there is nothing in there for the Gaming
Commission, although it is pretty clear that
this does fall under the Minister of Economic
Development and Tourism; and
• there is also a grant for the World Triathlon
Series of some $2.27 [million], but it was not
clear to me as to whether that is actually being reduced or not, but I will come back to that in a little bit.
So, in essence, most of the discussion, I think,
this afternoon is going to be actually on the grants
themselves and the agencies or quangos behind the
various grants. And so I am going to focus a good part
of my time on page B -333 under the Ministry Head
itself and, particularly, Administration and Grants.
So let me start by making, I guess, a few general comments. And we were told in the Premier’s
Budget Statement that: The Ministry of Economic D evelopment and Tourism is “the engine to drive” the
growth to stimulate the economy and create economic
growth and “will receive $38 million, an increase of $3 million, to support increased inv estment in BEDC,
BDA, and BTA” as we have said.
Now, having been in the position to some degree before, and I think the other thing I probably
should mention at this point is it is very difficult to
compare the actual increases this year compared to previous years because the Economic Development
and Tourism Ministry has lost parts to Transport and
Regulatory Affairs, and also to National Security as
well. So comparing apples and apples is very difficult here in terms of increases. So I am going to actually
keep my comments on what is actually being allocat-ed as opposed to differences from year to year be-cause it is difficult unless you actually get into the
quangos themselves.
So, the Ministry of Economic Development
and Tourism has, from my perspective, a very big r esponsibility. And one of the issues that I was looking
for, both in terms of the Minister’s brief and in terms of
what is under the Ministry and the responsibilities, is
the degree to which there is coordination because,
Madam Chairman, as you w ill know and I think most
of us in this House will know, Government tends to operate very much on a silo basis. And I think one of the things that is really important here is that if you are
going to drive economic development and, particularly, tourism fr om a country perspective, you need to
make sure that you have got a coordinated effort. The
previous One Bermuda Alliance Government did that
in a number of ways and I may comment on those, but it is a little challenging for me to sort of really understand here who is driving some of these issues related
to economic development.
And what do I mean by that? Well, formerly
Economic Development actually had the Registrar of
Companies and as a consequence had the Companies Act under it. That is now under Financ e. And a lot
of the international business competitive issues, like
trusts, partnerships, Companies Act, LLC Act, and
others are now under Finance, but on the other hand,
this is very much a core part of the competitiveness with which we need to address international business.
So, one of the issues here, I think, in terms of simply
putting money in this Ministry, is also to ask, from a
responsibility perspective, to what degree is this the Ministry that is going to have to coordinate some of
these issues? A nd I do not actually see a lot of ev idence of that. So that actually concerned me. Certai nly the quangos have responsibilities, particularly the
BDA and the BEDC, but I was concerned about . . .
who is really sort of driving this? In spite of what the
Budg et Statement may say, it was not clear to me that
that is what is happening here.
Let me give you an example. One of the
prom ises or one of the proposals, I should say, in the
Progressive Labour Party’s Government platform and
certainly, I think, in the Throne Speech, was the creation of a technology hub at Southside. Now, there is
absolutely no mention of a technology hub at
Southside under this. We had a little bit of a hint back
in November of last year; there was a request for i nformation that was sent out. And then there was a small headline, I think, on page 3 of the Royal Gazette
back in January and it said “Original tech- hub plan is
changed.” So, one of the questions I have is, [the tech
hub] seemed to be a big part of the platform, is the
tech hub now the incubator within the BEDC? Or is
the tech hub that was originally proposed part of the
incentive under the Bermuda Business Development
Agency, as sort of one of their goals and the allocation of funding? These are the kinds of questions that I
think are important. When you have grand proposals


Bermuda House of Assembly you have got to be able to execute and carry them
through and it is not entirely clear to me how that is
going to be done, or even whether the tech hub is
now, as they say, a dead duck or not.
There are some interesting examples out
there, more broadly. Obviously, one thinks of the Cayman Enterprise City, which has, in some respects,
been quite successful over a number of years. The
issue that Cayman Enterprise City had, or at least the
Government had in Caym an, was the fact that they
had to give so many incentives away to get the bus iness there that there was some question as to what the actual value was. It clearly increased the popul ation. It clearly increased people spending some money there. But the degree to which incentives had to be given was really significant. And I think those are
some of the questions here.
So I would be interested to know, when the
Honourable Member gets a chance to answer questions, and I suspect he is going to have a lot of time to
answer questions, what exactly the tech hub . . .
where that stands. Has that mutated, been transmogrified as Calvin & Hobbes would say? What is the st atus of the tech hub?
Another example here, and I have to say I
was very interested to see the degree to which cry ptocurrencies, blockchain, FinTech appeared in this particular brief, because all we have heard for the last
six months has been cryptocurrencies, ICOs, and
blockchain in the Ministry of National Security. And
the only expertise I think they ha ve in there is information and communications technologies, which was
the old e- commerce department, and had a fair
amount to do, at least with the former Government,
with cybersecurity. So, is there coordination here?
Because it looks like some of the money is actually
coming in this Ministry and how does that relate to the Ministry of National Security and, I guess, who’s on
first here? And maybe the Minister will say, It’s all
good, we talk to each other, it’s moving forward.
The challenge, again, is thi s issue of coordination and being able to drive these things forward.
And I say that because I think, you know, Government
is wonderful when it works, but it can be a huge i mpediment when it does not. And the silo effect and the issue of coordination and c ommunication can be pretty important.
I think it is also key there because, obviously,
and I will get to that in a few minutes, but there is money which is being almost specifically allocated to
FinTech and the development of such in the BDA
(Bermuda Business Development Agency) grant. And that is good because they have actually been working
on this for a number of years now. I know that Stafford
Lowe, who was involved with the tech company R3,
and John Narraway who I think is now involved, have both been q uite interested and quite active from a
BDA perspective in trying to advance this. So, I think in many respects I actually am more comfortable with it being in this Ministry because of some of the issues
that are involved than suddenly popping up in National
Security. And I do not mean that in any way as derogatory to the Minister who is responsible for National
Security, I just think there are a lot more pieces and roots to this which make sense here.
Another question I would like to ask at this
point, bef ore I forget, is, the Minister is also respons ible under the Bermuda Economic Development Act
for the Incentives for Job Makers, which makes him
responsible for that. We have heard nothing about Incentives for Job Makers. That certainly, at least as
we dis covered in our time, was a very important component of giving, particularly, some of the folk in international business a comfort level that they were able
to stay here. We all know what happened in the 2009–
2012 era. A lot of those senior members of the i nternational business community, for whatever reason,
left Bermuda. And when a senior guy goes, particularly a CEO or Senior Vice President, they take people
with them. So, the question I have for the Minister is,
where are we with respect to Incentives for Job Mak-ers? Are there still essentially grants . . . or should I
say, permission being given, under that Act to senior
executives? It would be interesting to know how many
actually were given in this past year as well.
The other area which, I think, was almost absent but popped up this morning, was the issue of the Gaming Commission. There was an allocation, obv iously last year, of $1.6 million. There is nothing in
here this year for the Gaming Commission, so I am
assuming that the Gaming Commission now feels that it has sufficient funds from its licence fees and other
things to sustain itself, but it would be interesting to
know how they are managing in terms of their budget.
And I say that because this morning the Minister did
provide a statement on an update on the regulations.
Frankly, on this side of the House, we think those are
well overdue, but those regulations are important in terms of advancing gaming in Bermuda. They are also
important in terms of licence fees for applications and
for regulatin g those licences and taking us to a stage
where there is actually a licensed gaming facility. So,
unless those things get moved along and I did not get
a sense, apart from there was some urgency in the Minister’s Statement this morning, I did not get a
sense of what the actual timing was. So if the Minister
could give us a clear indication of when those regul ations, which we felt were amply prepared last July,
when those new regulations are coming to the House
so that they can be moved forward, that would be us eful as well.
There is a provision, I note under here, under
the Revenue section, on the next page B -334, for
Cruise Ship Casino Licences. And it is good to see
that we are still getting some revenue out of that.
Another area which, again, comes back to this
issue in some respects of coordination and what is really falling under the responsibility of this Ministry, is
1402 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly the Bermuda Infrastructure Fund. Now, the Minister of
Finance, the Premier, has spoken on this on a number
of occasions, but clearly it seems to me that the Bermuda Infrastructure Fund is directly related to ec onomic development, and I would be interested to know whether the Minister is involved with the Berm uda Infrastructure Fund in terms of how that fund looks
for projects and infrastr ucture to invest in, or whether
this is something which is under the silo of the Ministry
of Finance.
When the Infrastructure Fund was being considered by the former One Bermuda Alliance Go vernment there was a lot of discussion back and forth
with Economic Development in terms of what some of
those projects might be. In fact, at one point it was
considered that the possibility of using the utilities
scale photovoltaic solar farm at the Finger could be
under that, there were other projects within Energy.
So, again, a question for the Minister: how does this fit
into the broader issue of economic development? And
what is the relationship with his Ministry?
So, I will leave that particular sort of thought,
question on the table as how is Government really coordinating some of these issues? Because those of
us who have been in Government understand very
clearly that unless there is coordination, unless there
is really good communication across ministries and departments, many of these projects really do not
move forward. And I am not suggesting this is som ething that the current Government would like to do, the
former Government dealt with this by setting up a
Cabinet subcommittee on Economic Development.
But I would be interested to know what the Minister’s appro ach to this is, what role his Ministry is playing.
And I say that not to be critical but just because having been there, done that, I think it is an important
question for the Minister to answer, quite frankly.
I am going to shift now and start to talk about
one of the departments under the Headquarters, and
that is the BDU (Business Development Unit).
So, what we do know from the Budget Book,
and that is line item 105020, is that in this particular year the allocation is now $544,000 and that is a drop in funding of some 26 per cent. The same headcount.
I would be curious to know how that much was carved off with the same headcount. The Minister refers to some “streamlining” and I say this because I think the
Business Development Unit is a very important part of
this Ministry. It is actually part of the Ministry which is
able to sort of move projects along and get things
done, and a lot of its core functions are related to i nternational business.
I touched upon the importance of keeping our
legislative fram ework up to speed. The BDU, at least
historically, has been an integral part of that particular
process. But without the Companies Act under this Minister and without having sort of coordination on
issues like trusts, partnerships, and other things, that
could be more difficult. So I would be interested to know how that is going to work in terms of the Bus iness Development Unit because legislative reform is key here, and I think, as the Minister may have mentioned and most Honourable Member s know, the
Busin ess Development Unit has actually . . . its dire ctor sitting on the board, or at least he used to, I as-sume it is still the case, sitting on the board of the
Bermuda Business Development Agency. It is the —
the Minister confirms that is the case —it is the on ly
Government member on the Bermuda Business D evelopment Agency Board so it is a really critical tie- in
to the Ministry of Economic Development and it is a
good communication stream back and forth because,
obviously as we know, one of the responsibilities of
the BDU is to, in fact, provide part of the concierge
service to new companies coming in. And the part of
the concierge service that the BDU provides is this issue of making sure they run interference for new
companies with respect to Government depar tments—it could be Immigration, it could be Planning,
it could be any number of areas —but it is critical b ecause sometimes working your way as a new company in Bermuda, particularly a new international bus iness, through the Government . . . I will just say b ureaucracy, for lack of a better word, can be quite daunting. And so the BDU has traditionally worked
arm in arm with the Bermuda Business Development
Agency who provide a concierge service with more external issues, like law firms, could be banking, it
could be schools, it could be any number of things to
really make life easier for a new business coming
here. And frankly, as the mission statement says for this Ministry, that is part of what this is all about, bas ically making Bermuda more attractive so that more businesses come and make Bermuda their home.
So, I think that part is fairly key and I guess I
am still wondering where we lost . . . how much was
it? About $192,000 from the BDU.
The BDU sounds like it is spending a lot of
time on the issue of com pliance. We have, as I think
Honourable Member s have said, the CFATF coming
in this year. There has been a lot of work on beneficial ownership that stretches back to the former Gover nment as well. But I do think it is important from a com-petitive perspecti ve to make sure it is not all spent on
compliance. I know compliance is pretty critical at this
particular time, particularly making sure that our legi slation is essentially up to speed, but I do think . . . and
a good example of that was the work that was done
previously in essentially establishing the Limited Li ability Company legislation that went through in 2016,
from my perspective, a really important new tool that exists in Bermuda for both local and international
business. And I see some of the work that is being
done is to try and further integrate that into other legi slation here as well.
I do not know whether it is going to fall under
the BDU or not. My honourable colleague, Leah Scott,
mentioned it. But certainly, back in the spring of 2017


Bermuda House of Assembly there was a lot of interest, and I think it still exists, in
getting ISAC, or Incorporated Segregated Accounts
Company legislation, done. I have not seen anything
yet. I do not know how close we are to getting a piece
of legislation actually tabled. But there was some u rgency going back nine months, almost a year now. So
I am hoping that we see something in that particular
area. Obviously, segregated accounts legislation has
been important, but the issue of actually being able to
have legislation which allows for their incorporation is
pretty critical and I think certainly something which the
captive industry is looking for.
I mentioned last Friday that there is another
sector which is quite interested, or could be quite i nterested in this, and that is the space and satellite sec-tor, with the advent of condoSats and that sort of
thing, the ability to be able to have under an econom ically efficient platform, which is what a segregated accounts company is, the ability to be able to have
separate incorporated compani es, or perhaps different
businesses sharing a satellite, or sharing a launch. All
of that is something that I think, as I said to the Mini ster on Friday, is something that would really benefit by the introduction of ISAC legislation.
So, I think those ar e the main things that I
wanted to comment on in the BDU. It is a little unclear to me whether it has suddenly become a bit of a ser-vice department for a lot of other ministries, or not. But
I do think this fundamental issue of making sure that
they are al so focused to a large degree on competiveness and making sure that our legislation is up
to date is pretty key, even though it sounds like some
of that responsibility shifted to other ministries at this particular point.
I am going to shift gears now, Madam Chai rman, to some of the quangos that fall under the r esponsibility of the Ministry of Economic Development and Tourism. I am going to focus mostly on the quangos that relate to Economic Development, and I will
come back to the Tourism one, perhaps a li ttle bit la ter. But I am going to start with the Bermuda Economic
Development Corporation.
I have to say that I was certainly very i mpressed in the last year or so at the degree to which
they were in the community and working with small
business, particularly in supporting entrepreneurship and new businesses in the lead- up to the America’s
Cup. Now, I know the words “America’s Cup” has only
come up once in the Minister’s Statement. I can guarantee you it is going to come up a few more times in
my remarks this afternoon. But I do think that the
Bermuda Economic Development Corporation does —

[Inaudible interjection]

The Minister interjects it
was actually three times. But I have to say that the
BEDC did a very nice job and they are getting an a d-ditional million dollars. So I would actually like to
comment on a couple of areas related to the BEDC.
The grant is going up from $1.56 million last
year to $2.56 million. The Minister set out ways in
which that additional million would be actually alloca ted. And I think that is important in terms of how the
Bermuda Economic Development Corporation actually
functions. I was curious as to where that extra million
dollars were going and the Minister has essentially
said that half of it, that is, $500,000, is actually going
towards increasing the base capital, and there are some additional pieces of capitalisation, but the base
capital of the BEDC, which will take it from [$]1 million.
And the last time the base capital was increased was
in 1996. And I know the Junior Minister of Finance is
keen to say that he was the last Minister to increase
that. But there is a reason for that . I think he is in constituency 6 . . . is that right?

[Inaudible interjection]

That is true as well?
Thank you.
So why focus on this issue of the available
capital? I think it is important because one of the reasons the capit al has not been increased either under
the former Progressive Labour Party Government or under the former One Bermuda Alliance Government is because the actual utilisation of that capital has
come nowhere near the $1 million. In order to understand the nee d for capital, you have to understand
that the way that the Bermuda Economic Development Corporation works is that essentially they can
use six times their capital to guarantee loans. So, in
essence, up to this point that $1 million in capital that
existed from 1996 up to I guess whenever it gets i ncreased, which will be when this budget is passed, allowed them to guarantee up to $6 million in their part
of loans, which is . . . sorry. The guarantee could be
covered by up to $6 million because of that $1 mi llion
in capital they had.
Now, the last time I looked at this, which was
back at the end of the last budget period, there were
some . . . a little over $2 million in loan guarantees
outstanding, which essentially back a little over $4
million, almost $5 million in loans. That $2 million in
guarantees was only 34 per cent of the BEDC’s cap ital. In other words, they were using only a third of their capital to guarantee those loans.
So, simply adding additional money,
$500,000, does not address the issue of why is that capital not being utilised to a greater degree than it
has already been? In fact, I think the Minister gave
some numbers which suggested that the actual guarantees are now below $1 million as well. So, while
there has been a lot of discussion about increasing
the capital, the fact of the matter is from 1996 until
now there has been absolutely no need for it, because
1404 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly the BEDC has not come anywhere near actually using
the available capital that it has.
What we are doing is going from essential ly
$1 million up to $1.5 million. But then there is an add itional amount of $150,000, which is also being put in
there. So, I think as the Minister netted it out, the cap ital will rise to $1.65 million, and he noted that will allow $825,000 of direct loans and up to $9.9 million in
guarantees on loans. Now, I think the issue really is, Why is this
capital not being used more? And I think it is an interesting, a really interesting question. I do not know
whether it is because the issue relates to the process,
whether it sort of relates to the difficulty of getting that
guarantee in place or not. Somebody suggested that it is so hard to open a bank account these days that this
may have something to do with it as well. It takes six
to nine months, sometimes, to get a bank account
opened. You cannot put a loan into your own bank
account, it has to be segregated. So there are a lot of
questions here as to why that has not been used, and why, all of a sudden, increasing the capital is going to
make a big difference. I think there is more . . . as
people like to say, I think there is a more fundamental
issue here.
Frankly, I think for most people if they can
avoid getting involved with a government process they
probably do so. So, if there is money that might be
available from family, or essentially a house that can
collateralised, or whatever else, that is the way they
need to go. So I think there needs to be a more car eful look at what actually is going on here in terms of
the obstacles as to why this money is not being used more directly.
The BEDC actually in the last couple of years
came up with the microloan programme which was
actually a much more expedited way to do it. They
were actually loaning the money directly to themselves, because it was fully collat eralised. And that
was the fast approach. I think the turnaround time on that was probably about three days or so. But these
were small loans, so there was not a lot of risk there.
But it sounds as though some additional capital will go into direct loans and with direct loans it is not a 1- to-6
ratio. It is essentially a 1- to-2 ratio. So that means that
up to $825,000 can be done in direct loans. It will be interesting to see whether that makes a difference or
not. But, clearly, the BEDC in a direct loan, i f it is not a
microloan, is taking on more risk. So it will be interes ting to see whether the issue of non- performing loans
becomes a greater problem or not.
One of the things that I was interested in is
the issue of where we stand in terms of the number of
businesses on the BEDC register. About a year ago it
was a little over 5,700 small businesses, which are
those that effectively are below . . . let’s see, their annual gross payroll is not above $500,000 and annual
sales revenue is less than $1 million. And then there
were another 82 medium -sized business on the regi s-ter. I think the BEDC struggled for some time with
everybody else out there because to be a small bus iness, a limited liability company, is one thing, but
there are a lot of sole proprietor s out there. I do not
know whether the Minister can venture a guess as to
how many there are, but it would be interesting to
know whether the BEDC has actually done some
market research on this. They probably have some
sense of how many people have come in as limited
liability companies, or LTDs, as opposed to sole pr oprietors. But the issue of requiring their registration on a mandatory basis will certainly provide the BEDC and
government with more data on these companies. But I
suspect it is also going to be resisted to some degree
by sole proprietors. I do not think that is something
that they would be keen on doing. They probably want
to keep government out of their business as much as possible and I think if there are fees and other things
attached ther e is going to be, I suspect, some r esistance there. But it will provide additional data. But I suspect it could be a while to get that done. It is going
to require some education as well.
Talk about microloans. Those have been re asonably successful. One of the other things that was
introduced to BEDC’s responsibility in the last couple
of years was vending licences. There were I think
about 68 in 2016, if I remember correctly. That has
almost doubled this year to 128. Again, it would be useful to know whet her those are mostly small retail
operations (I guess for the most part they are) and
maybe how some of those break down. But clearly,
providing a little bit more order there and assistance to those vendors is sort of a good thing.
The BEDC does, I think , a very nice job in
terms of outreach with respect to education pr ogrammes. The StreetWise MBA with Bermuda College, the Ice House Entrepreneurship Programme,
and the Entrepreneurship 101 were, I think, very well
received by the community. They also ran a small
construction business incubator, I think back in 2016.
We will eventually know whether that is continued or
not. I think they had more than 90 people go through
that. I think it helped an awful lot of small businesses,
particularly as they came up t o America’s Cup in
some of the construction pieces, subcontracting that
was available there.
The Minister mentioned that there were I think
119 seminars with outreach to 11,000 entrepreneurs during 2017. I was surprised to see that those are exactly the same numbers as 2016, so I was not sure
whether somebody simply transcribed the numbers
from that year or whether they were exactly the same
numbers. But of those, 870 youth participated which,
obviously, is a very important thing with some of the
Rocket P itch and technology leadership stuff that has
also been done.
I would like to drill down a little bit on the pilot
physical incubator accelerator. My sense is that this is
a good thing. I think one of the challenges that the


Bermuda House of Assembly BEDC sometimes has in terms of advising people is
making sure that there is a lot of communication going
back and forth with them and the advice is being pr ovided as they actually evolve as a business. So, to have six . . . and I think they were chosen from the
Rocket Pitch programme . . . actually located in phys ical premises there, is actually a positive direction. As I
said, I was curious as to whether this is where the
tech hub migrated to, or whether this is a different
programme at —

[Inaudible interjection]

Different programme?
Yes. So, the Minister confirms that it is a di fferent programme.
I think the other question I have here is there
was a KPMG report that was commissioned in 2016. I
think one of the key recommendations coming out of
that was thi s issue of a focused incubator programme.
So I am guessing this is probably a continuation of
that particular programme as well. They were looking
at the overall loan guarantee programme, and I would
be interested to know . . . I never saw the results of
that particular study, but I think we should know
whether there were any insights, as we said, on the lack of uptake of government loan guarantees as a consequence of that as well.
Additional money, according to the Minister,
was put in as capital for loa n guarantees to sports
clubs. I think it will be interesting to see how that
evolves. That has traditionally been sort of a difficult
area as well in terms of loans and money provided to sports clubs. I do not know whether that is going to be
backed by banks or not, but I think there is probably
going to be a fair amount of discussion required to get
banks to feel comfortable in extending loans there,
given the history in some of those areas.
And finally, the issue of cooperative economics. The Minister noted they were setting up an Ec onomic and Cooperative Development Unit in ECDU
staffed by two people. The idea here as noted was
apparently to research and create legislation to su pport the development of social enterprises to spur s ocial entrepreneurship. It is not exactly clear how this
will evolve. I think there are certainly some examples that are in existence right now. I think of the BIU credit
programme. It is a cooperative. In many respects the
old BIU Co- op was a cooperative as well. It went into
difficulties. I had a quick look into this area and it is a
certain sort of small sub- set, with economists looking
at it. Apparently there are two types of cooperatives.
There are those that are sort of selling clubs, and a
good example would be a farmers’ cooperative, where
farmers ban together to reduce administrative costs
and then they set up a facility to be able to sell, maybe on a Saturday morning, or something of that sort, a
farmers’ market. But there is cooperation in terms of
the organisation and the development. There may be cooperation in terms of setting prices, things of that
sort. There may be further cooperation as to educ ation, things like that.
Then the other part of this cooperative bus iness is the issue of what are buying clubs, where
people band together and, because there are more of
them, they actually have a sort of cooperative to act ually purchase goods and services.
One of the areas that was certainly looked at
a number of years ago was the issue with respect to
taxi drivers, for example, who were trying to get, what
I will call, a better deal with respect to insurance because . . . and I declare my interest. But a better deal
with respect to insurance. And the idea was that if
they could cooperate it would be a larger pool and
they could spread that risk out over larger areas. I do
not think it got very far. But I think it is an interesting
area. And certainly there are cooperatives in other
places. But we will have to see how that evolves. It
certainly sounds like it has union bac king behind it, so
maybe that is why this is on the priority list as well.
[Mr. N. H. Cole Simons, Chairman]

Mr. Chairman, I notice a
change of regime here. I am going to shift now to another quango, which is the Bermuda Business Deve lopment Agency, otherwise known as the BDA. Again,
that has a grant on page C -21, and also listed on
page B -33.
The BDA, I think as Honourable Members
know, is a public/private partnership. It is essentially driven for the most part by the pr ivate sector which
actually is a very good thing, and very much fits into the development of Bermuda’s international business
sector where there was an awful lot of push by those
who were actually at the call phase in terms of setting
up legislation, marketing and things of that sort. But
the BDA started I think in May of 2013 and has a 12 member board, I assume that is still the same, of
which one member, as I mentioned, is a government
representative, and I think that is still the Director of
the Business Development Unit, Lydia Dickens.
I was interested to get the Minister’s take on
the increase in the funding. In essence, the funding is going to go from $4.125 million up to $5.125 million,
an additional $1 million in additional funding. Now, it
was a li ttle unclear to me whether this is contingent or
not. And the reason I say that is because in the Bud get Statement the Minister of Finance said that if we
are to be successful (that is, with the BDA), and if it is a true partnership, government seems to be footing
the bill and industry is not playing its part. So, the
Budget Statement says, “If we are to be successful,
industry must match the Government’s commitment to
the BDA. Collectively we must do more to market and
sell Bermuda overseas . . .” So, the Budget Statement
says “ . . .Government has earmarked an additional $1
1406 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly million, which will be used to match private- sector
contributions to the BDA.”
It sounds as though that has now changed to
some degree and that an additional $1 million has
now been allocated, of which $450,000 was allocated to FinTech development, and $400,000 to economic
diversification. I guess another $50,000 was going
somewhere else. But the question for the Minister is,
Is this additional million, as it is now allocated, conti ngent on being matched by the private sector or not?
Or has the thinking changed that the entire million will simply be allocated, but it will be ring- fenced accor ding to certain development areas?
So, that is a question that I have here, b ecause I think the rec ord so far suggests that the BDA
has done reasonably well. They have managed to
grow the private sector contribution over the last few
years. I think the goal last year was $500,000, that is
half a million dollars. So if that has to be matched,
then half of this one million is not going to come
through. So some clarification from the Minister on whether we have now changed an approach on this or
not would be very useful.
The BDA has worked very hard to implement
marketing and business development strategies over
the last few years. And I think they have managed to
do a much better job of coordinating both our comm unication and marketing to all of the different sectors of
business than has previously been there. One of the
issues with respect to . . . there i s not only a monetary
contribution, as I said, I think they are going to get a
half a million dollars. But there is also very much an
in-kind contribution. A lot of the lawyers and other
people, the trust and the insurance and risk management areas, actual ly take a fair amount of their time to
go and make presentations to meet with potential cl ients to sell Bermuda. So it is not just a question of
money input. It is also a question of actual time and
effort. And, as we know, most of these individuals are
pretty expensive on an hourly basis. So I think it is
quite a large contribution. I think it has led to a lot of
success in areas like, particularly, insurance linked
securities, which have grown dramatically since 2013, and certainly in the trust area which continues to grow
as well.
I guess one of the questions that I have is,
usually there is some accounting for the number of
new companies which the BDA has helped to establish, I would be interested to know whether there is a
count for that in 2017 or not. In 2016 it was about 17
new companies. I am curious as to whether that num-ber is growing or not.
There were also quite a few new funds that
were established in 2016. I would be interested to
know the total number of funds that were established
with the he lp of the Bermuda Business Development
Agency in 2017.
Private equity was an area that was being targeted, certainly with the advent of the new Limited Liability Company Act private equity is very used to
that particular vehicle in the United States and ot her
places. I am curious as to whether there has been
good growth there or not.
The $450,000 that was earmarked for
FinTech was sort of interesting. And then there is an-other $400,000 for economic diversification which
sounded like it was mostly shipping and also a tech
incubator. So, I guess part of the question I have is,
How does this tech incubator relate to the tech inc ubator we heard about with the Bermuda Economic
Development Corporation? Is this tech incubator sort of for exempt companies, or intern ational business
type of tech? Or is it for local entrepreneurs as well?
Some sort of clarification as to whether there is a di fferent target market for this tech incubator would be useful to know. And is this tech incubator essentially something that the Minister hopes will then lead to a
tech hub at Southside?
It would be useful to know what the connections are here, and where this tech incubator may go.
Is this something that the BDA will actually set up on their premises? Are they going to lease space for the
$450,000? Because incubators often have expenses
that they help new businesses with. And that can be
expensive as well. Will they actually be hiring people
to assist with this tech incubator? And where will that
money come from? A lot of questions here.
The last tech incubator we had actually goes
back to the . . . it was an insurance company which
essentially is still in business, but it was back in . . .
this would be the late 1990s. It lasted for a couple of years and was based here, but it did not . . . it was not
terribly successful over a period of time. So, that is kind of a question, a little bit more detail on how this is
actually going to work.
There is a very important issue here as well in
terms of what I will call the value proposition. One of
the real challenges for Bermuda with respect to attracting FinTech and other businesses here is the cost
of doing business. There was also a challenge in
terms of the fact that our intellectual property legisl ation from a software perspective is a number of years
behind other places. That needs to be dealt with. We
do not have a lot of people who are actually know ledgeable in the FinTech area in Bermuda right now,
which means that you are going to probably have to
bring a number of them in.
I have said before that there are questions as
to why they would want to be here, as opposed to at
another site, like in the Boston, Cambridge area, or out in Palo Alto or Menlo Park. There are a lot of i ssues related to the critical mass around universities.
So there are some questions here, but I guess there is
money that needs to be spent to actually sort of do
that.
We have heard that there is the prospect of a
cryptocurrency exchange, as has been mooted here. I do not know whether that is something that the BerBermuda House of Assembly muda Business Development Agency is working on or
not, or whether that is under National Security. But,
certainly, that is an area that will, I think, raise some
eyebrows if it is actually an exchange which is being
suggested, given our CFATF [Caribbean Financial
Action Task Force] review this year, given the risks
involved with money laundering, exchanges —

I am getting an interjection, “come on.” It is a very, very clear risk. I would be
interested to know where the BMA stands on it.
One of the other areas which has not been
mentioned at all, but I think is important, is this issue
of the introduction of foreign law firms, whether that
comes under the Ministry of Economic Development
or not is sort of an interesting question. The BDA was
very interested in helping to facilitate foreign law firms
being set up here. Obviously there are issues with
respect to 60/40 and the Bar Council on that, but it all seemed, to those of us in Government, t hat since a lot
of the local law firms compete with foreign law firms in other places, it was only fair that foreign law firms be
allowed to register here.
The former Government was looking at it to
try to provide at least some protection to the middle
and smaller size local firms to try and make sure that
foreign law firms did what they were saying they were
going to do, which was bring more business here, as
opposed to cannibalising existing business. But that
was sort of an interesting challenge that certainly
needed to be addressed. So, the question for the Mi nister on that is, Is that part of the goal for this coming
year?
I think the other area which has been mentioned, but is pretty important, is the Bermuda Bus iness Development Agency has done a lot of work in attracting new conferences here. They have been a
great boost to tourism in areas like captives, and certainly insurance linked securities . They have done a
lot to highlight Bermuda. I think particularly wi th respect to getting new markets like Hong Kong and Latin America and Canada, they have done quite a bit
there. I think those are still the focus for the Bermuda
Business Development Agency. I notice that China is also on the list now as a focus as well.
The Far East is certainly an area that foreign
law firms can help with. They have, particularly the ones who are interested in setting up here, have a
significant presence certainly in the Far East, Japan
and Hong Kong and Singapore.
I think those were the main points that I wanted to make under the Bermuda Business Development Agency.
Mr. Chairman, I am going to shift a little bit. I
would like to move on to Tourism and focus on a cou-ple of areas in this particular grant, which is, again, on page C -21 under the BTA [Bermuda Tourism Author ity].
The comment that came through in the Budget Statement was that Government will ensure that a
greater proportion of the $26 million that is being all ocated this year is spent on marketing and product development. So I was curious, and sort of went back
and looked. And last year for the 2017/18 budget, the
BTA had allocated $24.75 million, almost $25 million
on sales and marketing and product and experience
development. And this year we are told that of the $26 million, $25.5 million, which is another million, is going
to be spent on sales and marketing and product exp erience and development. I was curious as to whether
there is, from the Government’s perspective, much of
a difference there in terms of a greater proportion being spent there.
The BTA is essentially budgeting a much
higher number coming out of the hotel occupancy.
Last year it was $6.8 million. I think this year it is well
over [$]7 [million]. So I think the idea is that this will go
more towards staf f cost, rent, professional fees, trai ning, tourism appreciation, and that sort of thing.
Before I get into my substantive comments, I
think it is appropriate to recognise the former Chai rman of the Bermuda Tourism Authority, David Do dwell, who made an ex traordinary contribution over
quite a few years. He was the chairman since the i nception, worked very closely with Shawn Crockwell. I
think David has been a real contributor to the tourism
sector over many, many years, both in his personal
capacity with The Reefs, but also in the amount of time and effort he has spent to put Bermuda at the
forefront from a BTA and tourism perspective.
The Minister commented on what I would like
to refer to as the OBA Renaissance of Tourism which
was fuelled by the 2017 America’s Cup. I think there
are some extraordinary numbers there which come
out of the last couple of years. The Minister comment-ed on some of those numbers. The Government’s
own National Economic Report said, “The Bermuda
tourism industry enjoyed a remarkable two years of
expansion recording monthly year -over-year growth
for 23 of the past 24 months in leisure air arrivals.” Some $431 million in visitor spending was recorded, over a 20 per cent increase. And I think as the Honourable Members have heard befor e, in 2017 the total
number of visitors reached over 692,000— the highest
number in recorded history. Hotel occupancy rates, as the Minister noted,
actually averaged 63 per cent in 2017. That was a
9.2 per cent increase over 2016 and the best performance in a decade. Revenue per room, or RevPAR
also increased substantially. And air capacity also i ncreased in the last . . . well, in 2016 anyway.
But I think it is fair to say that that the National
Economic Report stated, “The 35th America’s Cup in 2017 pl ayed a critical role in driving demand and
higher visitor spending for the hotel sector . . .”
1408 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The extraordinary thing was that a huge part
of that, almost more than four -fifths of that increase
actually came from visitors under 45. And Bermuda
also enjoy ed extraordinary consumer awareness last
year and in 2016. We were on some of the best list of
trade publications in the last two years.
I think it is worth mentioning again, but the
visibility, the global visibility obtained by the America’s Cup, AC35, w as extraordinary. The media coverage
that was gained was equivalent to something over $80 million if the Government were to purchase it on its own. And the media numbers were, I think, absolutely
remarkable. Some 452 million viewers across the
world, broadcast in 163 countries by 31 broadcasters,
over 22,000 news articles in 76 countries; 51 million people watched dedicated coverage of the qualifiers,
the challenger series, and the finals.
The independent report which was done by
PwC actually said that sp ending post the America’s
Cup was conservatively estimated to add another $76
million, which, depending on what kind of ratios you use, could be as high as $229 million in additional
spending over the next few years. So the current Pr ogressive Labour Party Government has a very strong
base. And I should say the BTA has a very strong base upon which to build from the America’s Cup.
And I think it also extends clearly to the number of new hotel infrastructure projects that were cat alysed by the America’s Cup . I think we noted a little bit
earlier that some $537 million of new construction pr ojects have been started. Hospitality jobs increased last year by 141.
The key challenge I believe, Mr. Chairman, for
the new Government, will be sustaining the America’s
Cup and the OBA tourism renaissance.
The Minister has talked about this, but I would
like to touch on a couple of specific areas. The budget
this year obviously has money for the World Triathlon
Series. This came about directly as a consequence of
hostin g the America’s Cup. We were approached by
the World Triathlon, by the Ironman Group, and World
Triathlon Association because of the huge credibility
that Bermuda had in actually putting on the World S eries Event in 2015, and I think that really got this pr ocess moving.
That extends to 2016 when a formal letter was
sent to the International Triathlon Union [asking] to
participate in the bidding process. And then in D ecember 2016 the International Triathlon Union awar ded Bermuda three World Series events. And this year
and in April 2019/20 the ability to be able to build on
Flora Duffy’s remarkable success, clearly was part of this. But I think it also comes down to, this is a good
way to leverage some of the credibility that we gained
from hosting the Americ a’s Cup.
I think if things go well, we also have the possibility of hosting the finals if we are chosen in 2021 by the International Triathlon Union. And I think the overall issue here was that, again, we would get huge ex-posure. I think the WTS, the World Triathlon Series,
are broadcast to about 160 countries. And I think the idea was that this will also produce a large investment
as well.
Of course a question is, What else can be
done here? I know the BTA is interested in sports tourism. I think this is a huge market. I remember
speaking to Philipp Schmidt who was essentially the
individual driving the World Triathlon Series here. And
a fellow called Christian Tutsky [PHONETIC ] was ori ginally the director of the Ironman project. There are a
lot of swimmin g, cycling, and running races that would
work very well with Bermuda in the slow season.
Bermudians do not go in the water in January and
February. But for a lot of other people the water here
is quite warm at that time of the year. So I think this
whole area would do a lot to attract the right kind of demographic in terms of people generally who are
involved in . . . who have good net worth. They spend
money. And they travel a lot. So I think this is a huge opportunity here if it is pursued.
Let me speak about another area related to
the America’s Cup as well. One of the reasons that the additional spending per visitor went up appreciably
in the last year or so, and there was a huge increase
in visitor expenditure, was because of the superyachts
business that we had, and actually the yachting bus iness as well. The PwC report basically indicated that
there was more than $20 million added to the econ omy as a consequence of the superyachts. That was a
little over $14 million in direct spending which was
more th an double that which was actually spent in
San Francisco.
I know the Bermuda Tourism Authority is very
keen to get the superyacht legislation done. The Mi nister did mention that it is being worked on, I think by
the BDU. But so far we have seen nothing. A nd this
worries me because we have lost a little bit of momen-tum here. Superyachts spend an average of $200,000 per visit in Bermuda. There was a large opportunity
last fall and I think this spring with superyachts because of the devastation in the Caribbean. So it is r eally important to get this done.
I think most Honourable Members will know
the circuit for superyachts is Mediterranean in the
summertime and Caribbean in the wintertime. They
sort of go back and forth. To state the obvious, Bermuda could we ll be on the way and a lot of them will
stop off here for bunkering, that is, re- fueling. And
there is a voucher system that needs to be in place
there as well. But I think this is an area, particularly, that can be used to extend the use of Cross Island,
the facilities on the south arm out there which we put
in place in the lead- up to the America’s Cup with r espect to utilities. And I think it is a good way to essentially start to develop more of a maritime service bus iness here. And Cross Island would obv iously be a
good possibility to do that. There are a lot of other people that service yachts. But this is, I think, a big


Bermuda House of Assembly opportunity, and one which, as a consequence of the
America’s Cup, brought a lot of captains and others to
Bermuda who had not been here before. So it is
something that really needs to be moved ahead with
some urgency.
Vacation rentals. My colleague, Leah Scott,
and the Minister also mentioned that rather remark ably some 10 per cent of visitors in 2017 used vacation rentals. The former O ne Bermuda Alliance Gover nment had worked out an MOU with Airbnb. I think the America’s Cup had a lot to essentially stimulate that particular business, which in many respects is empowering for Bermudians who want to lease out
apartments using Airbnb. Ther e is a nice revenue line
item of over three quarters of a million dollars in the
budget this year as a consequence of that.
One of the issues that I think was being
looked at back then was the issue of regulation, because if . . . I think it is either four or six, if you have
more than four or six rooms, then you are considered
a hotel. I think the former Government was actually working with the BTA to see whether the legislation
needed to be changed to up that to 10 so that Berm udians could fall underneath that 10- room category and
would not be subject to the full gamut of hotel regul ations. That was something that I think was moving
along. It would be interesting to know from the Mini ster what exactly is envisioned there, whether there is a
broader legislative framework required, or whether it is
simply a question of adjusting the hotel legislation.
Bermuda Event Authority. We were told in the
Throne Speech that the ACBDA was going to be transformed into the Bermuda Event Authority. The budget sets aside, I think it is $233,000 to establish a
Bermuda Event Authority. And I think there were
some concerns here, one of which is that it is taking
some time to have this get some traction. That is not
to say that the Bermuda Tourism Authority has not, in
many resp ects, operated as a Bermuda Event A uthority in their own right. Clearly the World Triathlon
Series are sort of being operated in some respects
like the Bermuda Event Authority.
The concern I have is that there is an enormous amount of experience and contacts that the
ACBDA had in terms of being able to host and facil itate an event as large as the America’s Cup. There is
a lot of valuable experience that I am afraid could well
be lost if some of the people who were involved in that
are not made to feel sort of a little more welcome, and
I think it is hard to replicate that. So I would be inter-ested to know exactly how the Minister is going to
pursue the Event Authority. Is it going to be sort of a quango in its own right? Is it going to be a fixture under the Bermuda Tourism Authority? Will it be part of
the Bermuda Tourism Authority?
How is that going to work, because one of the
benefits of the America’s Cup was to create this crit ical mass of, I will call it, this intellectual capital which
was involved in hosting that event. It was considerable to say the least. Over 16 different committees and
everything from health and safety to telecoms. You
obviously had in the ACBDA a small but very lean
group that actually facilitated and helped to work with
the ACEA to manage the event. But that is something
that I think would be actually a shame to lose. So I
would urge the Minister, if this is going to be I think a
credible body, to try and use some of the experience
and some of that intellectual capital that is ac tually out
there.
It was also mentioned earlier about water taxis. I am curious as to whether water taxis are still an
issue or not. In the Progressive Labour Party platform
medical tourism was also raised. We heard nothing
about medical tourism. I am curi ous as to whether that
is still an idea which is something that the Minister is likely to try and take forward. All I will say is that the area is a complicated one. I have some experience
with what happened in Cayman, with Cayman Health
City. I would just say that in expensive jurisdictions
like Cayman and Bermuda, these things have some
challenges in terms of getting some traction. It is one thing if you are Costa Rica or Thailand where you
have very low cost of services. It is another thing entirely when you are an expensive jurisdiction like Bermuda or Cayman, where the Cayman Health City is
actually now focused almost entirely on providing local
services there, as opposed to services, which was the original plan, to, I will say, for wealthy Americans to
come and get critical surgery done, whether it be cardiac or orthopaedic or cancer treatment.
Mr. Chairman, that basically represents the
comments that I would like to make. I have asked a lot
of questions which I hope the Minister will take some
time to answer. The economic development area is a
very important one for Bermuda and as I said at the
beginning, I think it is one that requires good coordination. I have not seen significant evidence of that, so
far. But suffice it to say that we will be watching with great interest on this side to see how things develop.
Thank you.

Yes, Mr. Chairman, and
good afternoon.
First of all I want to declare my interest as I
[have been] but just a lowly servant in the hospitality
industry for the majority of my life, proudly. It is a very important part. And I would like to start off speaking
on Head 95, on C -333, and go right to tourism as it
relates to the Bermuda Tourism Authority.
I just have to say, Mr. Chairman, that I applaud the Government and the current Minister for
working in this industry, of which he is well aware,
having worked in it himself, both in his younger years
1410 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly and in more recent years. I know just as we look at
the concern that he raised with regard to increasing
the [number of] beds that are in the Parish of St.
George’s, in particular, the opportunity to grow th e
[number of] beds at least by 100 is well in train. And
we all know the history of that property, save and except for a recession that came and took the wind from
out of the sails of many developments in this country,
we find they are actually seeing some development
taking place.
Albeit very close to the shoreline for some of
the environmental agencies, but nonetheless, the development is taking place. And I want to commend the
Minister himself for keeping myself and colleagues
and others abreast, and th ank the developer there for
being willing to share with us how they progress.
And, Mr. Chairman, you would be aware that
in addition to the relocation of the road down there on
Barry Road, more up on the hillside to accommodate
future development of the s pa and the majority of
work that is very visible down there, what used to be
the 16th fairway of St. George’s Golf Club, is taking
place.
As it relates to tourism, let me say in this development stage of a tourism product, it is important for us to ensure that Bermudians and our people are
indeed being employed and receiving opportunities. As an area MP I will always do my part to try to remind those in positions of authority that this, indeed, is very
important for the future development of Bermuda.
Mr. Chairman, as we look at this head in
which [we see] the allocation in C -21 of the $26 million
tourism grant, we note the Tourism Authority has any
number of areas that need to be concentrated on. And in his brief the Minister . . . as I mentioned with regard
to [increasing] hotel beds, I believe even the Shadow
Minister who spoke first, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition mentioned Airbnb.
Let me just say for a long time I personally
have had a soft spot in my heart when it came to . . .
long before Airbnb, we had the traditional Bermuda
guesthouses, up and down the gold coast in partic ular, in that great area you are familiar with. They were
the template for Bermuda and many other jurisdictions
around the world who came and looked and got that.
And dare I say that Airbnb does present an opportunity for us on many fronts, Mr. Chairman. On many
fronts Airbnb presents an opportunity. It presents an
opportunity for Bermudians who find themselves land
rich, but cash poor.
Through the recession period even some of
those found their land richness reduced somewhat, as happens in many other jurisdictions when persons
who have properties see their children grow up and
they become empty -nesters.
I believe, given certain current circumstances,
the opportunity for us t o encourage Bermudian entr epreneurs in that sphere, utilising their properties,
which are all strategically located . . . there is nowhere in this country where a property is not strategically
located. I do not think there is any jurisdiction in the
world that I can think of, somewhat even smaller i slands like Jersey, and the like, small jurisdictions that might be equally as sophisticated could say that no
matter where you are, you are within a mile of the
ocean. And if you are within a mile of the ocean, you
are within a mile of the ocean on both sides, because
you are smack in the middle, and that is very unique.
So the senior who may own a property, Mr.
Chairman, and really is at wit’s end as to how they are
going to survive, I believe that our caring Go vernment
will look at this as an opportunity to empower our
people.
The current Economic Development and
Tourism Minister is very versed on economic empowerment, which falls under this jurisdiction. And I certainly feel that there are great synergies that will be
applied in this area. I know in his constituency, as I
take liberty to speak only because it is my family
community, areas like Scaur and the like pose very significant opportunities, as does exist in Mullet Bay
and the like for Bermudians who may have that
apartment, who may be finding it not as easy to rent,
to be encouraged to move into this area.
I know, Mr. Chairman, the recent experience
with the election and all the campaigning that took
place, I noticed that a number of Bermudians had
moved into the Airbnb market. I would hasten to say
that I would not be advocating for it to be overly regulated, to keep it such that we can move into that area
and realise some cash flow and provide the Bermuda
charm that makes the Bermuda experience far more
special than just coming to an island with sand.
Mr. Chairman, as I speak to this area of C -21,
the $26 million that has been granted for the Tourism
Authority, I encourage the Tourism Authority and all
those responsible to remember, notwithstanding if
they might be Bermudian or not, that Bermuda’s bi ggest asset will always be our people. And that is a resource and a product that needs to be nurtured. I
applaud the Minister and his colleagues for moving
into this area to, even as recently as during this b udget period, capitalise on the need to increase more
Bermudians in areas such as housekeeping and wai ting.
Only just last week I participated, very sadly
and unfortunately, in the funeral of my younger brot her. And, Mr. Chairman, I would say that this young
man . . . my mom, and our family buried him in his
uniform, in his Fairmont Southampton uniform.
I do not mind saying that he is not so uncommon as a person who was very happy and comfort able in their station of life as a waiter, raising their fam ily, doing the things they love, but able to make a li ving. And there is something to be said about that, what that brings. Because with that comes a people
who will go the extra mile for that visitor, who would
tell that visitor, or that potential visitor, Oh, you stayed


Bermuda House of Assembly at The Reefs? You need to come to my hotel. And my
hotel is the place that I may have worked at for 20
years. I can understand and have empathy and a ppreciate that type of mind- set, because I have often
felt the same way for the former Belmont Manor and the Castle Harbour, places that I worked in.
But usually, when a person takes on that type
of persona it is not because of the building that is there, although those of us who relate to the Fairmont
Princess would associate it with a more grandi ose
facility. Usually it is the people that make up those
properties.
So you can be assured, Mr. Chairman, that in
the advocacy for tourism that will come to support the Minister, our human product will always from this side feature first and foremost in t he development of our
people. And I applaud and encourage more such pr ogrammes to be taken on right across the board as it
relates to what I saw taking place, recently publicised
with regard to the Fairmont and the housekeeping. I
am aware that there is work ongoing to encourage more people as busboys.
We talk about entrepreneurship in the hospitality industry and, Mr. Chairman, as I reflect on the
hospitality industry, I cannot help but look at the persons who are entrepreneurs in the hospitality industry
as it relates to food service. I think a Member that spoke earlier alluded to how popular culinary arts
have become throughout the world. We only have to
look around at persons who own very large restaurant
facilities. They may have chains of restaurants and
the like, they might be from different parts of the
world. But many of them came here not speaking much English. They came here as waiters; we know
them.
I think the opportunity for us is to look at that
example and be able to project down the road to be
able to encourage the young people who have a passion for culinary arts and other trades within the hosp itality industry to venture into entrepreneurial opport unities if that is their aptitude or desire. But, Mr. Chai rman, we certainly need to see more B ermudians participating in that experience, particularly if we know
that the Bermuda experience means a great deal to
those who come to the Island. I know that I am not
speaking from a position of from what I have read. I
can attest that I am speaking from a position of experience. As I said, I declared a great interest in this
hospitality industry.
Mr. Chairman, I know that persons have applauded the America’s Cup opposite. But let me just
say and remind persons, as a professional athlete by trade, that I am one who supports professional sports
marketing. But we cannot underscore the fact that
Bermuda taxpayers’ dollars were what funded that in
the first place. And to expect a Government to conti nue on at that level, funding projects at that amount is
unrea listic. There are those of us who have seen sports
marketing events that have helped our awareness
across the board. It helped our awareness where i ndeed we had to go to fish for our tourism product. I am just old enough now to have been around for much of the Bermuda Goodwill [Golf] Tournament, Mr. Chai rman. I know that the . . . and I speak of marketing as it
relates to golf, which has been a very successful plank in Bermuda’s tourism product. I declare my i nterest. I am a private contractor connected to probably
the finest . . . one of the . . . I consider it one of the
finest public golf courses in the world, Port Royal Golf
Course, which was enhanced to host the PGA Grand
Slam of Golf, which it did so for six years, having pr eviously been at the very f ine Mid Ocean Club. Two of
the finest courses you will find anywhere in the world.
They are two of my favourites, both of them,
equally. I tell people that. They ask me which one do I
like. They are two different facilities. One is private that opens its doors on a few days to visitors, and the
other one is public, which meets a much- needed part,
it is open to all. And for that we have others that complement that in our product, but we have two that can
hold their own in the world if the resources are put to
keeping and maintaining them at that level. It is i mportant, Mr. Chairman, that we do so.
The Minister speaks to the increase in beds.
That is needed. And we all know that tourism products
do not just happen overnight. We have the Caroline
Bay, the current Opposition would thump its chest for
Caroline Bay, but we have to look as far back as a
vision by a former Premier, Mr. W. Alexander Scott, for his involvement to see how long it t akes to get to
those particular points. But today, as Caroline Bay materialises and with the residences there that will
attract million -dollar owners, and the hotel that is under construction, I can see the crane from the first tee at Port Royal, and I can see the structure as I come
up around Black Bay, just as I pass Jews Bay and
look over in that direction, Mr. Chairman. I know that
is well under way.
As well, I can see the road being cut to Middle
Road in Southampton right across from the Pompano [Beac h Club] gate, which has prompted the Pompano
facility to upgrade their entrance, and hopefully, as I
have alluded to and suggested to those persons at
Port Royal, with two hotel properties and people going
there, it is important to have that entrance of th e second hole equally [upgraded] to accommodate that. It
means clearing out some trees, beautifying the second hole. Why? Because it shows people that we are certainly in the business, and that is marketing in i tself, as tours that come on the cruise ships , drive by,
or people that are taking a tour can look, they will see the gates, they will be encouraged to maybe go there
and take a look, or go left and have lunch . . . or come
up the hill to Port Royal. That is what is taking place,
and I know that the Minister is very much abreast of
1412 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly that and in favour of that type of development taking
place.
But let us not have that taking place in the a bsence of national training of our people in this i mportant area of hospitality. I am sure that there are
those who will be looking from afar to capitalise, but
let us take the opportunity to look from within to par tner, to make sure that our people see the opportun ities. And let it be an opportunity for our people —those
who have made the great exodus —for them to come
home and take up and participate in some of the
growth that is taking place there.
As we look at events that we have in Bermuda
that have a greater national and international presence, sporting events, the World Triathlon. As I d eclared, I am a professiona l athlete by trade, and if we
have an athlete of world- class stature I am very much
supportive of piggy -backing and partnering with those
athletes to see how we can best work together across
the board. Persons like Shaun Goater, for instance, as
an example; persons like Nihki Wells; in addition to Ms. Flora Duffy, in addition to Tyler Butterfield.
I can recall when, I believe it was Endurance
(I could be wrong) sponsored the squash at the gy mnasium over at the Bermuda High School. I remember
as a Senator w riting to the international body and
making the case publicly for the top Bermuda squash
player who had a world ranking, If you are going to
bring a top event to Bermuda, and I have a world- rank
player, include him. And young Mr. Kyme was a part
of the tournament.
We need to not look past our local talent who
have international connections. We need to engage
them and remember them and utilise them because,
no disrespect to somebody who comes from a foreign
[country], as I use the young, the late Eldon Swan, my
brother as an example. When he told that nurse,
come to my hotel, stay at my hotel, and she thought
that he owned the hotel, and he then corrected her as
he was but a few months away from his own death,
No, I am on the sixth floor. I serve the VIPs. Th at is
what you also get when you embrace the Bermudians
who have been involved in these types of sporting events and already have connections internationally.
And I declare my interest, Mr. Chairman. I am
amongst those persons. Do not let us go to our grave not able to be a part of the turnaround because . . . in
our hearts there is something that when we look in the
eyes of a tourist they will be encouraged to come because they will see the love that we have for the place
we are trying to encourage them t o visit.
So as persons trumpet the $100 million, or the
$70 million, or whatever million you want to put a
number on, that this came from the public purse, let
us not forget that there are other events that you can
take that type of money and spread it f urther down the
line to encourage, to ensure that [it] is continuing on.
I will just pause, Mr. Chairman, as I speak
about C -21, this $26 million, to pay kudos. Just last week, the great one has come back from injury. Not
the injury of Ben Hogan, but cert ainly a modern- day
injury in itself; Tiger Woods is back. Love him or hate
him, everybody in the industry is on their hands and
knees hoping he [is] successful.

Yes. And, you know,
there is no line item for that. There is just one line
item, but certainly marketing of an important event.
And I was about to highlight, Mr. Chairman,
that when Tiger Woods was playing down at the Honda Classic in West Palm Beach, Florida, an area I am very familiar with having been to c ollege there, and all
the people who were focused on him globally, did you
notice if you looked at the ads that were featured
there? That did not just happen yesterday. Bermuda
has had a presence there. Dundonald Street has had
a presence there. Goslings Limited has had a pres-ence there with the Bear Trap and you would see
Bermuda’s Dark ’n Stormy ads.
As I speak on this head, I would encourage
the Minister, as he is looking, that we have Bermudians and Bermudian entrepreneurs who are out there
in the right places. Because if we contend that the
opportunity to market our Island does exist in golf, and
in tennis, and in those leisure sports, and if we contend that November to March is a time which presents us with some opportunity, Mr. Chairman, let us not
underscore what a Bermuda business may be doing and where they may be pitching.
I know that when Dr. Brown looked at bringing
the Grand Slam to Bermuda and the vision, many of us in the industry knew that he was hopeful that Tiger
Woods would have come to our shores because they
. . . and I had to . . . as you look at how marketing
takes place, and what impact that would have, if he were still to come to Bermuda, Mr. Chairman . . . in
1995 a purse on the PGA tour was $1.5 million, and
first place was $270, 000. Tiger Woods came out in
1995, 1996. By the year 2000, the purse was [3,000,000] and first place was $540,000, a half -amillion dollars. That is the impact of this young man.
That was where I believe, Dr. Brown and others were
hopeful, Tiger Woods’ pr esence would have accompanied the Grand Slam of Golf.
Others did come, but no one has the global
presence of a Tiger. And not too many sports have
the global awareness of a Tiger. And as much in the
yachting community and the superyachting communiBermuda House of Assembly ty, as i mportant as the America’s Cup would be, the
global reach does not rival that of what a Tiger Woods
brings, brought, or still can bring to the table. And it is
what it is, Mr. Chairman, when you look at our size,
our limited size, in our 21 square miles. We have but
limited resources that we must balance.
Mr. Chairman, the tourism numbers that have
been touted, certainly one cannot underscore the cruise component of that. I know from wearing anot her hat at one time, much criticism was levelled at building docks and the like in Dockyard. But hindsight being 20/20 as we look now, Mr. Chairman, and I am
sure the Minister would agree, whilst we all are looking to grow tourism, especially with leisure air arrivals,
having the cruise terminals that can accommodate ships in Bermuda today that are of greater size than
what was able to come to Bermuda 10, 12 years ago,
has made a tremendous difference to our country.
Yes, Mr. Chairman, . . . I am just looking over
my notes. I will yield, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Honourable Member from
constituency 2, the Honourable Kim Swan.
Is there anyone else that would like to speak
to Head 95, Economic Development and Tourism?
I recognise the Honourable Member Michael
Dunkley from constituency [10].

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you for reminding us what heads we
are speaking to. I enjoyed the presentation by the
Honourable Member from constituency 2.
Let me start out my comments by saying that
we all have to work together. We hear this all the time. But, for the record, I think it is important to say we all
have to work together, because when you look at
Economic Development and Tourism, it is not going to
get any easier. And why do I say that?

[Inaudible interjection]

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I am glad the Honourable
Member from constituency 6 is paying attention.
First, Mr. Chairman, tourism has changed
throughout the world over the past 20 years. It used to
be that 30 or 40 years ago people in the northeast, they looked 1,000 miles away or 1,500 miles away for
a weekend getaway, and Bermuda was their favourite
place. And they stuck to it. But now you can go online,
you can book a flight, you can get a cheap flight to
take you just about anywhere in the world. And you
want to make sure that when you go to these other
places you are going to get what you expect and you
are going to get the weather that you expect.
Unfortunately, Bermuda’s weather is a bit iffy
from perhaps Christmastime right through to the end
of March, as we see today. So tourism and the competition in tourism is much stronger than we have ever seen before. And that is not going to change, so we
have to be at the top of our game.
In addition, businesses can be anywhere they
want to be in the world. They do not have to be in a certain place. They can be any place they want to be in the world because with the advent of the increased
technology and the ease of technology, people can
set up a shop anywhere they want to be and they can
operate out of those places and they go to the places
where they have the least resistance.
And finally, Mr. Chairman, business is tough
nowadays, because consumers are demanding, whether you are a consumer of an edible product or a
durable product or if you are selling goods or service,
business is tough. The competition is there and the
global expansion has hit a little bit of a bump because
the world is a smaller place and everyone is compet-ing on a global scale. Just look at . . . 20 years ago
most people think that the Ameri can economy would
remain the number -one in the world for many, many,
many years to come, and now the Chinese and the Indian economy are growing like crazy. So compet ition is tough. And when you factor in the fact that ev ery jurisdiction has increasing over sight, it is difficult to
make some progress.
And so, having said all of that, Mr. Chairman,
you can be assured that colleagues on this side will work with the Government wherever we can to make sure that they are successful because we are all in
this together and it is tough to move forward. We
know! We were sitting in those benches just a few
months ago and we realised how hard it was to move this country forward. We faced headwinds not only
from what was taking place within the business env ironment, but we faced headwinds from the Opposition
benches too much, and a lot of it was not called for.
Mr. Chairman, you will not see that from the One
Bermuda Alliance over here because we want to
move forward together to make progress, and we know how tough it is.
Now, having said that, Mr. Chairman, I want to
congratulate those in the Ministry, certainly the PS, Mr. Randy Rochester, and his team for the work that
they have done. I have always found them to be very
professional, on top of the case, and a joy to work with. And I am sure the current Minister is having the
same reaction in working with them. And that is good
for Bermuda, because here we have a Ministry that
stays on top of things, gets things done, has a lot of
energy. And that is good for people to k now that we
have strong people within the civil service.
In addition, it has been clear that the BTA and
the BDA are certainly very aggressive in what they do.
I think one of the real successes of the former Government was the setting up of the Bermuda Tourism
Authority. We know, Mr. Chairman, that when that
Authority was first created, perhaps, probably for the first two years, at least for the first two years, Members of the [then- ]Opposition took great pleasure in
1414 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly banging what they said was a lack of progress with
the BTA in those days. We faced it almost every Fr iday we came to the House. And as we [have] seen,
that foundation was set.
That foundation was laid and now we are
starting to see some of the success from that work. But we cannot stop here. These are very, very good
numbers, which the Minister talked about earlier, that
were rolled out at the press conference a couple of
weeks ago that my colleagues and I had the opportunity to go see. Who would have thought, Mr. Chai rman, that a year ago we would be talking about 2017
numbers where hotel occupancy had broken that
60 per cent barrier, again, and was up at 63 per cent?
Who would have thought that we would have seen
vacation arrivals at that level, and spending the type
of money, translating into success throughout our
economy? Who would have thought, Mr. Chairman,
that the vacation rentals would now be 10 per cent of
the industry? That is a significant number.

[Inaudible interjection]
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: The Honourable Member
Mr. Furbert interpolates from that side that he did. But
he said a lot of things and most of them were just like
wind today, they blow in and blow out.
But, Mr. Chairman, we have seen startling
progress within tourism in Bermuda and it is because the foundation was lai d to give the experts in the BTA
the ability and the opportunity to do what they have to
do. We took the politics out of tourism and we need to
continue to do that.
And I am pleased to see that the Honourable
Minister has supported the BTA. He has been on road
trips with the BTA. He has been supporting it, as we
learned last Friday in the House, with the Minister’s
Statement about the blitz in the northeast and the first
tranche of it to New York and others will take place. I
found it interesting that when we did a similar thing a
couple of years ago Members on that side (who were
on this side) were critical of it.
But we have to get out there and we have to
sell ourselves. Because while we love Bermuda, while
we talk about Bermuda, while we gladly talk about all
the great things we have, if you just go 700 miles to our west you will quickly find out that even in New
York City, where we have five flights a day coming in
during the peak of the season, that many people do
not know where Bermuda is. They get us mixed up
with the Bahamas, and many other places. So we continually have to sell ourselves because people can go the other way.
So let’s get out of the way as politicians. Support [the BTA], be there to provide some information for the road shows, suppor t the BTA in what they can
do. But let’s continue to keep the politics out of it and
we will see our numbers continue to rise.
[Inaudible interjection] Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: And the BTA has been
very successful. I hear the Honourable Member interpolate, Are you serious? Yes, I am serious.
[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, I am serious.

[Gavel]

Mr. Dunkley has the floor. All others
may have their opportunity to speak. Quiet please.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, I fully support the work that the
BTA has done. I recall last year [during] the Budget
Debate there was a lot of conversation about provi ding the BTA with more resources to get things done. And I am pleased to see that with the budget that they were provided [with] last year, we still see tremendous
improvement in numbers. And I am pleased to see
that with the increase of $1 million to the BTA, the
Minister and the team have held to some pretty tight guidelines on the delivery of those funds and what
they are going to be used for. I look forward to hearing
some feedback as we go through the year and at the
end of the year, on the deliverables in regard to the
extra money which the Minister outlined today.
I think it is quite interesting that Bermuda has
been put on the map in many ways. One of the things,
Mr. Chairman, that I would not say I was surprised to
see, but I am comforted to see, is the strength of the
BTA in social media, and how they have used various
arms of social media to put the Bermuda name and
the Bermuda experiences out there. I think that this is still an area where we can capitalise on greatly.
I applaud the BTA for doing that, because that
is where people are going to get their information.
People can access it quickly. People can access as
much as they want, as det ailed as they want. But they
get the information and it is available 24 hours a day.
And I think that is one of the reasons why we have
seen a significant rise is because the BTA is focused
in on social media. Bermuda has been put back on
the map.
My hon ourable colleague, Dr. Gibbons, in his
very thorough presentation, talked about the Amer ica’s Cup and the success we have seen from the
America’s Cup. Now, Mr. Chairman, I am not going to
go back and go over those numbers because they
certainly are very st artling. But what I do think is i mportant is, just to put the mark on it again, that it is
critical that as we move forward we build on the leg acy of the America’s Cup. While we can talk about the
success of the time we had through the America’s
Cup, and w hen it ended, the real success will be going forward to capitalise on the America’s Cup and
many of the legacy opportunities we have.
One of them, which the Honourable Member
Dr. Gibbons talked about, was the superyachts visit ations we had, and the opport unity for them to come
back again. There is a lot of ground work that has
been done. We have the facilities here. Many people
have provided information on legislation changes that we have seen, and we have had the benefit of having
some of the best superyachts in the world being here
for a period during the America’s Cup, seeing what Bermuda is like, and being keen on coming back. And
that is some repeat business that I think that if we tidy
up some of the loose ends, and I know the BTA is
very keen to do i t, I think we can continue to see some
success.
Those superyachts have spent a lot of money
on the Island. They can cruise all over the world, but
certainly when they came here they saw first -hand
that it is a very worthwhile place for them to come.
And we should take advantage of that. They can go
anywhere. And they will go anywhere, if we do not
continue to lure them here, Mr. Chairman. The legacy
of the America’s Cup is there for us to build on. And I
do not think we should let it slip away.
There has been a lot of talk, Mr. Chairman, in
this debate so far about hotel accommodation and the
availability of beds. I realise that the first quarter of this year we have seen many places close for renov ations, and I am pleased to see that Gencom/Rosewood is c losed for a $25 million uplift there.
They should be open by the end of the month. That is the last I have heard on it. This is the time to do it, Mr. Chairman, because now we are in our winter season,
and I still think that there is plenty of availability of
beds in the Island for those who do want to come
here.
One of the challenges I was speaking about to
my honourable colleague, the Deputy Opposition Leader, a few moments ago is, because our season is
pretty much defined from April to November, we have
those shoulder months that are always hard for us to
get the occupancy that we require to be successful. Because people can travel anywhere in the world, we
are going to have to work harder on those shoulder
months and we are going to have to work harder t o fill
the Aprils and the Mays and the Novembers as well.
And that makes it critical that we have the best of f acilities. And I am pleased to see that from one end of
the Island to the other most places have renovated
and upped their game.
We have new product on the ground, such as
Caroline Bay and St. Regis, the Azores should open
up some facilities as we go through the summer. Ev eryone has upgraded their product to be at the top of their game, so when people go online and see what we have to offer, they know we have a first -class f acility from one end of the Island to the other. So, these
extra beds, I think, are good for what we need to do.
And it is exciting to see that the vacation rentals are now 10 per cent of our business, but I think
there is so much more that we can do in there. I am
pleased to see that the Government is focused in on
this. It is something we agree on with them 100 per
cent. I think there is still a tremendous uplift that can
take place in our community because, as we know,
after the America’s Cup there are dozens, perhaps
hundreds, of apartments that are for rent. If we can
stimulate our people to understand more about the
vacation rental business, I think not only can we get
1416 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly more visitors to come because . . . let’s face it, Mr.
Chairman. A lot of the people who come for a vacation
rental want a different side of tourism. They do not
want to stay in a hotel or a guesthouse. They want to
have more of a Bermudian flair, Bermudian appetite. And so they love to come and stay at somebody’s
apartment or somebody’s guesthouse and sample the
real Bermudian lifestyle. And so I think there is a tr emendous opportunity for us there to increase our
numbers by capitalising on that.
And the exciting thing about that, Mr. Chai rman, is that it em powers Bermudians. It empowers
Bermudians across the board. It goes in with a lot of
the advertising that the BTA is doing at the present
time, which I really love. Fantastic! The Faces of Tour-ism [campaign]. We have an opportunity now to expand the Faces of Tourism because Bermudians can
sell Bermuda and we can sell ourselves. So let’s ex-pand the Faces of Tourism. Let’s work to get the v acation rentals into more and more Bermudian homes.
Because there are a lot of empty places out there that
I think we can put on the market and have people
come in.
That leads me to the next point that I want to
make, Mr. Chairman, in regard to the airline industry.
We are blessed to have pretty decent airline
service from most large airports on the eastern sea-board, as w ell as Canada and the United Kingdom.
But one of the challenges that I think all of us in this honourable place are well aware of, Mr. Chairman, is
that the airline industry is more and more competitive
now than it ever was before. Now, because of that
competition, and because of the ability for the airline
industry to take a plane off one route and move it to
another route, we have a higher bar to meet here in
Bermuda. If we do not meet those expectations, that
flight can be removed at the drop of a hat.
And we found that out, Mr. Chairman, when
we were the Government. We worked hard to have
United increase their services. It was a popular flight
from the Newark area. And we went with the former
Minister of Tourism (the now deceased Honourable
Member Crockw ell), to Chicago. And we worked with
them to have that flight carry on for a year. And they
did. And then all of a sudden it stopped a year after
that because it did not meet their expectations. They could fill that flight more by sending it further south.
And I think we have to admit that we face those challenges because, yes, we can fill planes from May to
October pretty well; but it is hard to fill planes in Jan uary, February, and March.
And I think we have to work much closer with
our airlines to make s ure that they continue to get
enough of the load factor in there. If you look at some
of the markets that we are blessed to be served with
now, Toronto, for example . . . I have to believe that it
is a strain at times for both Air Canada and WestJet to
be coming out of that same market. But we need to
have those planes coming in. We need to have the competition to keep the prices down. Because one of
the things that we struggle with, Mr. Chairman, is . . . I
think it is in the DNA of the airline industry that Bermuda is a first -class destination. So no matter what,
the price point for an economy ticket, and a first class
ticket, can be higher than normal. And we have got to
break that DNA.
We have to get t hem to understand, Yes, at
times you can charge those prices . But come on . . .
With Easter coming up in a couple of weeks it cannot
be $800 for an economy ticket out of Boston. It cannot
be $800 for an economy ticket out of Boston, or Atlanta, or Miami.

You are getting old. You are forgetting details.

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I agree with you on that.
She was in college and wanted to come for a weekend. She booked a flight. She got a good ticket; it was
a little more expensive than I wanted. She booked a
ticket.

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: And here is the other
problem.
[Laughter and inaudible interjections ]
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: My cousin said I could
handle it. But he does not know my chequebook .

[Gavel]

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: But here is the other problem. Not only are the ticket prices too high at times,
they overbook. So my daughter got to the airport and
there were 20 people overbooked on the plane.


Bermuda House of Assembly Now, when you have that type of experience,
you are not likely to go to that destination again. And
so there is a lot of work that we have to do.
So we will support the initiatives of the Government to make sure that the airlines are more un-derstanding and more reasonable in the ticket prices
that they charge throughout the year. Because I know
a lot of our friends and neighbours in the Caribbean
get much better prices in the off season than we do.
We have the occasional seat sales, which are
good. Bermudi ans take advantage of them and vis itors take advantage of them here. But I can tell you
now, if you go on and do a search and you want to
come down here for Good Friday, you are going to
pay a lot for an economy ticket to come to Bermuda. We need to hold t hem accountable for that, because
while they make it in the summer time and charge whatever they want . . . and I know the Miami route
does well all year round. We need to allow them to
work with us in the winter time which will help us put
more people in our beds, but it will also allow more
Bermudians to come home for the holidays or to tra vel, and that is key.
And, you know, it is easier said than done. But
I think if we work on it together, get them to understand the model we are facing, we can be in a better
position going forward, because the airline industry is
fleeting. The airline industry will be on a route one day
and all of a sudden they will say, You know what? I nstead of flying to "X" . . . I see why that load factor is pretty tight on this j et, let's put a route there and see
what happens. Then all of a sudden the routes just
cave. The routes just cave in.
And with the price of fuel fluctuating all over
the place, it is difficult for them to make money at
times, with the level of the competi tion. Remember,
there are still a lot of jets that are parked in the deserts in the middle of America, because there has
been so much in the industry. Anytime one of the ai rlines starts to ride a little bit of a wave of popularity in business, they drop more routes in. And while the
competition is good, it also hurts us in a way that has
real repercussions here in Bermuda.

Excuse me, Honourable Member.
Can you tell me what page you are speaking to,
please?

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: I am speaking to the head
number right here—

[Laughter]

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: It is page B -333. And I am
talking in regard to Business Development . . . sorry,
Grants. It is the $36 million . . . I have to get closer
with my glasses. It is 105030. You got that?

I am on B -333.

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Okay. Thank you.
So we are fairly well served by the airlines,
but I know the Minister is going to find that he is going
to have to continue to devote some time to them. And
when they are on those trips promoting Bermuda it is
good to stop in and speak to our friends at JetBlue, at
Delta, at American, and all the airlines that service
Bermuda. And also try to look for some other opport unities, because I think with a new route coming out of
Fort Lauderdale, it could give some more competition
to Miami, and I think there is an opportunity to bring
some more people to Bermuda through some of those
changes.
Mr. Chairman, earlier today I know the Honourable Minister delivered a Statement to the House in regard to gaming. I appreciate the update in gaming
regulations. I tend to see it from a slightly different
approach. While I do appreciate the update, as the
Minister did mention, those regulations were almost ready to go before the last election. Now they still sit in Chambers for some continued review —

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Point of order, Mr. Chai rman.

Honourable Member, take your seat.
Your point of order?

POINT OF ORDER
[Misleading]

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: The Honourable Member,
perhaps inadvertently, is misleading the House. I have
stated in this Chamber repeatedl y the issue was that
when we were ready , the Attorney General’s Chambers did not believe they were suitable for tabling.
That is the issue that has been longstanding. That is the issue that got resolved under the new leadership
at the Gaming Commission.

Thank you.
Honourable Member Dunkley.
Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: Yes, thank you, Mr.
Chairman, and I picked that up loud and clear in his Statement. I am aware that in r egard to gaming, there
was always a great deal of strong conversation back
and forth between Chambers and the Bermuda Cas ino Gaming Commission. I am sure that continues.
And so it will be interesting to see once those regul ations are tabled in this House w hat the differences are
1418 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly as we go forward. I think it is important that we conti nue to try to move this forward as expeditiously as possible, but at the same time to make sure that we do it
in an appropriate way.
I would appreciate an update from the Ho nourable Minister when he wraps up on any future
changes or additions to staffing at the Bermuda Cas ino Gaming Commission. I was certainly a supporter of
the former CEO at the Commission, if that is the right
title. I thought he brought a great deal of experti se. I
know the Opposition at that time was continually
against some of the initiatives that were taking place.
But I thought that the gentleman who left a few
months ago certainly brought a high degree of pedigree to the table and had Bermuda’s best interest at heart. And I would like to know how we are going to fill
out the Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission. I have
been made aware of the changes to the board itself, but I would like to see if there is going to be anymore
boots on the ground with the experti se in gaming to
help us more forward.
Let’s face it, unless we get it right the licence
that was issued and future licences will be in jeopardy.
We all know that banking is a serious challenge, as far
as casino gaming is concerned. We still have to cross
that hurdle. And we will be in a better position to cross
that hurdle once the regulations are there for ever yone to see and once we have the footprint that allows
it to take place. But it has been seven months now,
and we have seen very little progress in that regard.
So while I appreciate the Minister’s Statement
today, we still have not seen much movement, and I look forward for the regulations to continue to be drafted and the three stages to be tabled here in the
House so that we can get that very important initiative
going forward. Because I do believe that while there
are people who are a bit negative about gaming, I do
believe that it offers an opportunity to Bermuda, and it
offers another experience. And that is something that
the BTA has been very strong on, Mr. Chairman, is
promoting the experiences that you can find in Bermuda. And that is what people want nowadays.
With the strength we have seen in the BTA
and more younger people coming to the Island, they
are on the go, they are active, they want to look at
what experiences you can offer them, and I think gaming allows another experience after a great day, whatever you do in Bermuda, allows you another exper ience to take hold of in Bermuda. Plus, it offers opportunities for Bermudians. Not a s ignificant number of
jobs, but I am sure in the context of Bermuda, a cou-ple of hundred jobs in gaming is very important for all of us.
The Honourable Member from constituency 2
talked a great deal about Bermudians being involved in tourism. I think that is key, because I have had the
pleasure, Mr. Chairman, of visiting some other juri sdictions. I was recently in the Bahamas (last Oct ober/November) and I was impressed by the Baham i-ans throughout the industry in all areas of the industry.
I was impressed to see some of the training initiatives
they had. I went to a restaurant and they had two new
people who were starting in the restaurant and they
glowed with enthusiasm about it. We need to get more Bermudians involved in the industry because not only
does i t help all throughout Bermuda in the opportun ities for Bermudians, but it helps sell the product. You
would much rather come to Bermuda and have a
Bermudian there with you, helping you through your
vacation experience, or your business experience than a no n-Bermudian, who typically do a good job.
But Bermudians also need to know that once we get
involved in the industry it takes commitment.
Our tourism industry is not a nine- to-five job. It
is not a job where you can know that, All right. I am
front desk manager at “XYZ” hotel. I am going to work Monday to Friday, nine to five. It is a weekend commitment. It is an after -hours commitment. It is co mmitment when functions get real busy, so Bermudians
need to understand that the commitment there is deep
but als o, Mr. Chairman, once you make that commi tment, you get involved in the industry, many doors,
many different avenues will open up for you. Opport unities will arise in many ways, Mr. Chairman, and you
know that.
You have got a great deal of experience; you
have seen it. Opportunities will arise with the people. you bump into. Opportunities will arise with the work
that you do and the example that you set. I think it can
be a very productive career, but we have to get over
the mind- set that we want to work a nine- to-five job.
That is why I hear many employers in the hotel industry finding it hard to get Bermudians, because they
just say, Bermudians do not want to work on the
weekend or after hours. And the restaurant industry is
one way . . . it is another hospitality industry like that.
We have got to get people to know that it takes a
commitment, and then it will be very rewarding for all people going forward.
The Honourable Member from constituency 2
also talked about sports tours. And that comes into the s ame head that I am dealing with, Mr. Chairman. It
is interesting, if you look at what is taking place in our part of the world over the past couple of weeks, the PGA Tour started a new golf tournament in Mexico
City, two years ago. I watched it very closel y, Mr.
Chairman, because Mexico City is a huge territory. So
they have a lot more money that they can throw at
things, but the PGA Tour was somewhat reticent
about going to Mexico because not only is golf not that popular there, but there were security concerns
and a lot of other things they had to do.
A friend of mine is actually the site manager
for that tournament so I have had a little bit of insight on it. What happened this year was interesting. They
had pretty much all the top players in the world pl aying in Mexico, other than Tiger, who is playing next
week and the week after that. The viewership of the


Bermuda House of Assembly tournament has been off the chain in its second year.
And it advertised Mexico and golf, and their hospitality
industry. They committed an outstanding amount of
money to go there. That is one of the challenges that
we face in Bermuda, because we have to sort through the myriad of opportunities we face. And I know the
BTA has that challenge. I am sure the Minister sees a
lot of that stuff come through his doorstep. How do
you decide value for money on a proposition that pe ople are giving you for a small place like Bermuda?
If you look at another thing that is buzzing
through social media now, and I know they wanted to
come to Bermuda the last couple of years, it is Sports
Illustrated with their swimsuit issue. They are in the
Bahamas and Aruba. Kate Upton is doing the Bahamas and she has knocked it off the chain. There are
great opportunities for us out there. Because what has
happened recently, Mr. Chai rman, they have seen the
success of the America’s Cup. It went off without a
hitch. Not only did they see the success but it went
through to 130, 140, 150 countries, whatever it is, 452 million people saw it. I was in Italy this past summer in
Milan. And people saw my Bermuda hat and they
mentioned the America’s Cup. So the reach of what
we are doing and the success of what we are doing
will provide opportunities to come to our doorstep.
You know, when I first heard that the new
Government wanted to set up a Bermuda Event A uthority, I thought, Okay, that’s interesting, because we
saw it with the America’s Cup Authority. We thought,
Okay, that’s nice. And so I am more interested if,
when the Honourable Minister when he has an opportunity to reply, he can put a little bit more meat on the
bone. How will that $233,000 that has been allocated
for that Bermuda Event Authority be used this year
coming up?
I am sure there are many people that knock
on the doors of the BTA every day and the Minister is going to hear about these things and what they can do
for Bermuda. But you have to get value for money.
We had the Grand Slam of Golf that I am sure for five
or six years was good value for money. But in the last
couple of years it was not attracting . . . my personal
feeling was that it was not attracting the people that
we wanted to get to Bermuda. And so we are going to
spend our money wisely, and you know, the BTA budget is about $26 million for this year. Of course,
they would like more. Other countries probably s pend
a lot more on it. I think the BTA so far has been very
prudent with the money they spend. We have got
some value for money for that. We have seen the
tourism numbers continue to grow.
Now, I would not expect the numbers to continue to grow at that le vel for the next year because
we had the bump with the America’s Cup. I think we can still get it to grow, but we still need to find some events that continue to put Bermuda on the radar because if you slip off the radar, someone else is going
to fill that spot. We had the America’s Cup. The Triat h-lon, I think, is going to be great because Bermudians
naturally are involved in the sport and we have the
world champion in the ladies division in Flora Duffy.
So I would like to know how that Event A uthority is going to be set up. What is going to be their
focus for this year? And what are the main drivers for
sports tourism, or events tourism that we are going to
have? Because we failed on some of them in the past,
as well. But once they are gone, they are gone. You
do not realise the value on your investment and you have to move on to something else.
But we cannot compete with Mexico. We cannot compete with some of these other jurisdictions,
but we found that we can compete when we are smart
and we all buy into it. So I look forward to how that
$233,000 is going to be allocated this year. There has to be a plan around it. The Minister talked about it briefly but there wasn’t much else that was said about
that.
So, Mr. Chairman, I finished up talking about
experi ences. I think we are on the right track with the
BTA. The BDA has also . . . I do not want to sit down
without just talking briefly on the BDA.
I had the opportunity to work very closely with
them. I know they are also very aggressive in promoting Bermuda. They have a good team over there. I
think that it will continue to be rough; it will continue to be rough promoting Bermuda because everyone is in the same business. They want to bring people to their
shores. They always have the best product to offer
you. I believe that if we continue to sell the strengths
of Bermuda, which is our jurisdiction, our people, the
legislative framework we have, the reputation we
have, I think we are going to be in a good position to
move forward.

[Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr., Chairman]

Hon. Michael H. Dunkley: As the Chairmen change, I
think it is a fact of life, Mr. Chairman, that we will have
the eyes of the world on us, trying to get us to do di fferent things, whether it is compliance, whether it is
different oversight, it is a fact of life and we have to
deal with it.
I think the approach has to be that we are g oing to have to be judicious in what we do because
there are some things we are going to have to tell
people we are just not doing that. We stand by what
we believe is right and we can go forward. There are
other things we are going to have to say, You know
what? We will do it. We need a little bit of time to do it.
But if we try to conform to everything everyone wants,
we have to understand that (1) we could not afford it;
but (2), most importantly, it is something they want us
to do but it does not necessarily make it right.
And so, while we have some assessments
that are taking place in this year, certainly we support
the Government in it. W e put the foundation in place ;
we have to be able to continue to talk about our mes1420 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly sage and be proud of what we have to do. We should
not shy away from the reputation that we have in
Bermuda and the strength of what we do. We have to
understand that, you know, up to now we tax a little bit
different than other areas. And if we make some changes, we have to talk about that as well. So, unfortunately, a significant amount of resources are going
to have to be spent defending and promoting Berm uda in those areas. I do not thi nk that is going to
change in the near future.
And then, with the current President of the
United States, I think we will continue to see changes
in the way that they want to do business that might
impact us in Bermuda. So I am pleased to see that the
BDA is very aggressive in what they do. They have a
strong team. And the Government is working very
closely with them now, as we go forward. So, in ec onomic development, there is opportunity. But it is go-ing to be tough moving forward. I think, Mr. Chairman,
the Government can count on us to support them in
every way possible to try to diminish the headwind.
Mr. Chairman, I have already thanked all of
the people involved in the Ministry and at the BTA and the BDA and the BEDC for the great work that they
have done. The last thing I will say is a word of advice. And it came to me just because of the winds we
have today. A lot of the winds that we create in life are from our own doing. And so, as we try to continue to
build an economic model that works for Bermuda, that
helps Bermuda and helps our people, we need to stay
away from creating headwinds that we have made
ourselves. We need to shy away from those, and we
need to go in and attack the opportunities that we face and keep the headwinds away from where we have to
go. There is opportunity. We have to be wise about
facing it. And the challenges that we have to face, we
have to face them together. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Honourable Member.
Any further speakers?
The Chair recognises the Leader of the O pposition, Ms. Atherden. You have the floor, Ms.
Atherden.

Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I think, Mr. Chairman, we have all been trying
to indicate our support for tourism and economic de-velopment because we know that it is important for
Bermuda’s growth.
I just have a few questions and observations. I
tried to go through . . . and I am pleased that the Mi nister did allow us to see some of his brief. But I am
just trying to . . . I did not see this, on page B -334. If
the Minister could just perhaps indicate . . . I know that
there is a new line item in terms of revenues, Cruise Ship Casino Licences. And I just wonder if the Mini ster could explain what that entails. Because, as I say,
it is a new line item. With re spect to page B -335, I think what I was
struck by was the fact that there are so few performance measures. I do not know whether that is because a lot of the money is actually given out in terms
of grants. But even though it is given out in terms of grants , there still is the opportunity for a few performance measures so that the public can get an understanding of the money and how it is has been spent.
And I am not saying that you go into great depth, but
there could be an opportunity. And I am just going
back and looking at page B -335. And I am looking at
the Minister rather than the Junior Minister. I am looking at the Minister himself.
On business unit . . . this is talking about hotel
inspectors. And there is an indication that . . . and I
am looking at the last one, Produce a summary report
of hotel complaints for the calendar year by June of
the following year. And it said, Successfully met. But,
to me, what would be more interesting would be the
number of hotel complaints, because hotel complaints, a nd the numbers, whether they are going up
or down is a better indicator of whether we have a
problem, rather than the fact that a report is just being
met.
And similarly, with respect to Acknowledge
hotel complaints within 24 hours. And you will find that
as we go through one of my things to share this year
in terms of performance measures is . . . do they say
anything that lets us know either Money well spent or
You’re producing the output. And if they do not do
that, then my feeling is, sometimes these m easures
should just not be produced, because they need to be
meaningful.
And then we go on to page C -21, which was
talking about the BEDC operational grants. And I
know that that went from $155,000 in 2016/17 . . . and
obviously, we, the former Government , moved it up to
$1,564,000. And the current Government has moved
it up another $1 million. So in two years it has moved up for $2 million. What I would be interested in (and I
know my colleague asked some questions) is whether
we have achieved what we wan ted, which was to
have this money there so that more people could be
out taking advantage of the grants and taking advantage of the loans.
Now, I have been out, and I have seen some
of the people from the BEDC coming out and telling
people about the grant s, encouraging them to take
advantage of it. So I do believe that they are out there.
They are out there trying to sell their product. But I am
just not certain as to how effective the sales product is. Hopefully, the Minister will tell us about how many
people have actually taken advantage of this extra $1
million, and whether he is anticipating that they will
take advantage of the extra $2 million. I know that he
has indicated, in terms of the extra $1 million, that
there are some six people who will benefit from an entrepreneurs’ programme.


Bermuda House of Assembly But the bottom line is, this is a good product. It
is something that is good, and I just feel that it is one
of those hidden gems, because I do not believe that
enough people are aware that they can go there, and
not only do they loan you the money, but they also actually help you go through the process. They help
small business people to come and understand how
to put together a business plan. And even if they do
not get some loans from them, some of the benefits
that they get from developing business plans are going to be good, if they had to go out into the market.
So, I would like to think that as we go forward these
gems . . . because we all want people to be able to
have a little piece of the rock. We all want people to
be able to have an opportunity to get a new business.
And the other question that I had related to
something that the Minister said. And this was with respect to tourism and with respect to flights. I know
that the Minister mentioned about having to pay some
money to JetBlue. But I just wondered if we have any
sort of arrangements with WestJet? Because I know that just recently WestJet was a big sponsor in the
Grey Goose golf tournament that was down here. And
lots of people are now starting to recognise it as one
of those good flights, where you can get in here at the
end of the day and get out at the end of the day. So it
creates a market for those people who like to work late. And I just wondered what type of progress we
are having with them, from t he point of view of numbers going up or the ability to be able to develop some
more flights.
I think some of the other questions that I had
. . . I think my colleague, Dr. Gibbons, asked some of
those. So I will wait. And if they have been answered,
then I will not stand up any further. But if they have
not been, then I will come back. But, I mean, I do think
that, as we all said, it is important. Tourism is i mportant. Economic development is important. And we
on this side of the House, obviously, will be s upportive
of those things and make any positive suggestions that we think will benefit us.
And I look forward to the Minister’s comments.
Thank you.

Thank you, Honourable Member.
Are there any further speakers?
The Chair recognises the Min ister in charge.

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I think that I am pleased to hear the repeated
refrain of working together and collaborating. But I
think a true relationship of collaboration must come
from a place of truth. And a place of truth . . . unfort unately, the former Premier, you know, tried a bit of
rewriting of history. And I understand. Success has
many fathers, and failure is an orphan. And as you rewrite history you try to end that orphan- hood of fai lure. Mr. Chairman, the significant jump in young
visitors has been attributed many times to the Zika virus, not social media campaigns and things of that
nature. Bermuda has been very blessed. And the success that we have seen after two years of virtually a 48- and then 49- year low in air arrivals, I think that the
BTA have done some good work. But in an enviro nment where the former Premier spoke of the joy of seeing Bahamians working hard and doing all that
they can in their industry, when he oversaw an economy that saw Bermudi an jobs shrink in hospitality, the
rewriting of history is unfortunate.
But, Mr. Chairman, I think that it is important
to really take a moment to understand why it is i mportant that we do indeed work together. And I will tell
you why. I experienced it in Opposition where, when it
came to international business and things of the regulatory framework, there was great collaboration because there was great understanding that it benefited
the country. And that is why, when I was the Shadow
Minister, I did all I could to work with the then- Minister,
and why I am giving an open- door policy to my Sha dow Minister. Because I think it is important, not just that we will not always agree. But I think it is important
to understand some of the background of some dec isions, and also some of the facts, to begin to take the
politics out of tourism that the formation of the BTA, by
itself, did not accomplish.
So, Mr. Chairman, this job is, without a doubt
(to paraphrase the old commercial from the US Marines), the toughest job you’ll ever love. And, Mr.
Chairman, I will just digress for a second, oh so briefly, to talk about the impact that tourism in particular,
and entrepreneurship in particular, had on my life and
on my family. Mr. Chairman, many colleagues may not
be aware, but my great -grandfather was one of the
pioneers in the moped business that became the icon-ic symbol of Bermuda for generations. My great -uncle
was a part -owner in Grotto Bay, and my family, my
cousin still has an interest there.
I spent my childhood working in my parents’
gift shops in Cambridge Beaches at Stonington. And
one of my earliest memories, Mr. Chairman, was b eing carted off with my fellow classmates at West End Primary to St. James Church to see a commercial
show/presentation, Bermuda Is Me, Bermuda Is You.
So, the impact of tourism has been one that has been long, long, long in my life.
Mr. Chairman, we are doing some good work
to progress matters that have been dormant for quite
some time. In relation to the Bermuda Tourism A uthority, we b elieve it was critical that there be better
oversight and better accountability and return on the
investment of the taxpayers’ dollars. We are currently
conducting a human resources audit to make sure
that all of the procedures, hiring, firing, training an d
promotion, are in line with standards that promote the
best of Bermudian talent, giving them the capacity for
them to rise to the top and have a pathway to success
1422 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly so that, one day, we can have complete, as much as
possible, Bermudian leadership in the B ermuda Tourism Authority.
We are also conducting a quality impact assessment on programmes such as the Tourism Experience Investment Programme, to ensure that the obstacles that may be placed, inadvertently, in the path
of entrepreneurs who have not tradit ionally received
grants from government or are not used to working
with government agencies, those obstacles are r emoved. In terms of further removing obstacles, with
the BEDC we will working with small businesses not
just to expand the numbers of eligible vendors for
government services, but also to prepare more to be
in a position to bid on government contracts. And we will be talking more about that a bit later.
I am going to work my way back, because
there were a number —a slew—of questions. I will do
my best to answer all of them. My Honourable Shadow Minister spoke about targeting African American women, as well as the LGBT community. And I agree with her in many aspects. I think that one of the challenges, and the former Premier alluded to this, is that
still, when we travel, and particularly with wearing the
hat of economic development and tourism, to me, the
two go very much hand in hand. Because if I am
meet ing with individuals of high net worth, who have
visited Bermuda but have not looked at potent ial investment opportunities or looked at the benefits of a high-quality regulated jurisdiction like Bermuda, then
we are not quite doing our job yet.
And when I meet with individuals of high net
worth who are neither investing here nor travelling here, and not on their radar in terms of being here,
particularly if they are based out of New York, then we
still have much work to do.
It is interesting because when the Honourable
Member spoke of the African American market, I know that many, many of the people who went to Howard
University with me are individuals of high net worth.
They go to Martha’s Vineyard, but they do not come
here. And that is something that we must change, because we have a product that I believe is second to none. And I believe that if you like Martha’s Vineyard,
you will love it here. But there are efforts, including the blitz that is occurring right now, where we will be visi ting to Washington, DC, as well. But that is an under
under -targeted market. And we are going to be doing
some t hings in that space to address that.
When it comes to the LGBT community, I
think it is important, when it comes to the issue and the controversy surrounding the Domestic Partnership Bill, when you compare Bermuda to many of the destinations in the Caribbe an, Bermuda is far in advance
of many of our competitors. And I think the message
that we will continue to push is that Bermuda is wel-coming to all. I think that the Honourable Member has
it right; Bermuda has to be a place that welcomes all. It has to be a place where all can feel included and a
part of a great experience.
And the BTA . . . we actually have meetings in
New York specifically discussing that matter. And
there will be some initiatives rolled out over the next couple of months that will be continuing to address the
issue. Because the domestic partnership issue . . .
make no mistake. Despite a lot of prep work with the
media and a lot of efforts on social media, there are
still some people who do not understand that Berm uda has now done something that many of our competitors have not done— guaranteed statutory rights
for same -sex couples. And I think that when I have
somebody email me and say, I’m cancelling my trip, and I’m going to Jamaica, then clearly we have a better message to deliver.
Now, in reference to the questions that we
have coming through . . . You will have to excuse me.
I am going to work through these as best I can. I have
a long list of questions. So, in reference to one of the
questions raised about cruise ships, the team that w as
involved with negotiating with the cruise ships is still in
place. And the strategy for going forward is being developed under the Ministry of Transport, by Minister
Roban, as well as . . . let us see what else we have
got . . . the projected passengers for 2018 are
467,000.
There are a number of questions relating to
the November to March, aka, “ shoulder season. ”
There are great efforts being put into sports tourism, attracting groups, retail promotions. And this, I think, is
a critical one. For years, we have billed ourselves as
sand and sun. And we have not differentiated our
seasons so that people understand that if they come
in January to Bermuda, it is a different experience
than if they come in January in other jurisdictions fa rther south.
The BTA is developing a strategy to be able to
push experiences in the shoulder seasons that are not
reliant on selling us as sand, sun and surf. So that is
something that I think is good, during this season in
particular. There was an ext ension of the traditional
market calendar to be able to capitalise and push during the winter months, to take advantage of the fact
that several of our competitors had faced issues with storms and things of that nature. So they have been
very robust in ter ms of being able to push and get our
message out there.
There was a question relating to staffing at the
BTA. The changes are budget neutral. There has
been a realignment of jobs. There are six new pos itions. Four have been changed. And there are two,
net, positions, in terms of restructuring. And as I mentioned, there is a human resources audit going on with
the BTA that going forward we will, working together,
work on getting the best model in terms of staffing for
that body.
Let us see. The waiter programme, there is a
question about that. It actually is still in place. It is beBermuda House of Assembly tween Workforce Development, the Bermuda Hospitality Institute and the Bermuda College. I was questioned about hotel fees. Yes, all of the hotels are up to
date or on a payment pla n to be up to date, at the
present time. Total quality management, benchmar king Bermuda against competitors on peer -reviewed
data, TripAdvisor, Google and Facebook, on quality
experience are measured every six months. The most
recent was in November.
What else do we have here? Okay. There was
a question about the requirements for lending from the Bermuda Economic Development Corporation. The
requirements include having a business plan, cash
flow projections, financial statements, monthly and
quarterly meeti ngs with loan officers, and skin- in-thegame, some funds or sweat equity also show personal
commitment, personal financial statement, and a constant liaising with banks on mutual clients.
At the BEDC, there are three posts vacant.
That is the MSME Director (I will have to get what that stands for); the junior MSME officer; and admin assi stant. And they are on track to fill these positions by
March 31
st. (And I will get the meaning of that acr onym for you.) Two posts are vacant in 2018/19, a pol icy and data analyst —this is at Headquarters. I am
sorry; this is BEDC again, a policy and data analyst,
and an economic and cooperative develop officer. And those are on track to be filled.
BEDC has a register, currently, of 6,077 small
businesses and 83 medium businesses. At present,
as we mentioned, it is a voluntary register and only
requires those who get the products —e.g., financial
assistance, loans, things of that nature. This is a voluntary increase of 311 over 2016, or a 5.4 per cent
increase. In 2017, they i ssued four loan guarantees,
10 microloans, one letter of credit to Customs, one EZ
Customs deferment and 128 vending licences. In fall
of 2018, there will be a rollout of the sole proprietor
register. It is proposed to be $200 in annual renewals for $100. And we are anticipating 500 registrations to
begin with. This is felt to be comparable to the ven ding licence fees.
In 2017, the BEDC met with 568 clients, bus inesses looking for business events, and met targets
of 550 giving staff vacancies. As of January 30, 2018,
fiscal year 2017/18, the BEDC has a portfolio of 28
businesses, 17 loans and 11 microloans. The value of
the guarantees is $1,230,769, supplying $3,145,500 in loans. Twenty -one per cent of the current capacity is
being used. Of the 28 loans, 10 are at Butterfield
Bank, 4 are at HSBC, 4 are at Clarion and 10 are
BEDC direct loans.
Among the revenue generators, looking
ahead for the BEDC, are the sole proprietorship regi ster, the LLC’s local registration, beneficial ownership registration and incr eased product fees. The BEDC
collaborates with the following departments and quangos to develop and deliver programmes and init iatives to grow the economy: the BTA on Rocket Pitch, as bus inesses were advanced; the Mangrove Bay
Redevelopment; tourism business plans with the BDA; on the BDA Tech Startup Weekend; and with the BDU
on LLCs and beneficial ownership.
Okay. I believe I have covered everything. I
will take my seat in case anybody else has anything
else.

Thank you, Mr. Chai rman.
A couple of issues that I was hoping the Mi nister would clarify. I think there are at least three di fferent tech hubs, or incubators, that have been talked
about. Could the Honourable Member distinguish between the tech hub which was originally proposed for
Southside; the Tech Incubator, which is, I think, called
Enterprise Bermuda, which is the six businesses; and
then there is the BDA, which had $450,000 to set up some sort of a FinTech incubator, as well. Perhaps
some discussion as to what the differences are between those.
The other thing that I was trying to get a better
handle on was, in his brief I believe he mentioned that
the World Triathlon Association was going to get, I
think, $619,000 less. Is that less than they asked for,
or less than is in the budget number under page C -21,
which is the $2,266,000? What is the $619,000 less?
Does that number in the budget line include the deduction of $619,000, or is there some other calculation
there?
The interesting thing was, there was a su pplementary, I think, of about $2.8 million. Now, at least
according to what I was just talking about, there is an
additional $2.266 million. The original projections from the WTS [World Triathlon Series] were much closer to
about $2.7 million to $2.8 million for each WTS event. So it sounds like they are almost double the costs that
were projected back in 2016/17.

Minister, do you want to respond?

Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Yes, I do.
In reference to the tech hubs, there are a
number of different hubs that we are looking at. The
Enterprise Zone Hub, however, is unique to the
BEDC, and it relates to the people who participated in
the Rocket Pitch competition.
In reference to the WTA funding, the World
Triathlon Series is $7.5 million over three years, $1.8
million additional if we get the grant filed in four years.
So, the first -year payment, I believe, was an initial
payment. And then, each year it is a slightly r educed
payment. That is why we have the difference in the numbers.
1424 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The other question I forgot to answer for the
Honourable Shadow Minister . . . I am glad to bring it
back, actually. He asked about the Incentives for Job
Makers Act. It is still continuing. However, we have
had some concerns with some of the applications we have received, because it seems to have gone far
afield from the original i ntent. And there are some
things we are looking at in that space to ensure that
the original intent, that this is creating jobs —that it is
an essential person as part of the operation of the business —is properly maintained.

It has been moved that Head 95 be
approved.
Are there any objections to that motion?
No objections.
Agreed to.

[Motion carried: The Ministry of Economic Development, Head 95 Headquarters, was approved and
stands part of the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the year 2018/19.]
Hon. Jamahl S. Simmons: Mr. Chairman, I move that
the Committee rise and report progress, and ask for
leave to sit again.

It has been moved that the Commi ttee rise and report progress and ask for leave to sit again.
Is there any objection to that motion?
No objection.
Agreed to.

[Motion carried: The Committee of Supply agreed to
rise and report progress, and sought leave to sit
again.]

House resumed at 6:29 pm

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

REPORT OF COMMITTEE

ESTIMATES OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE
FOR THE YEAR 2018/19

Good evening, Members.
Are there any objections to the report being
reported back to the House and the request to rise
and report progress?
No objections? Good. We will now move on to the next Order of the
Day. I believe the next order is Order No. 3, in the name of the Minister of Public Works. Minister.

[FORM OF] SALE AND PURCHASE AGREEMENT
BETWEEN TRUSTEES OF SANDYS
SECONDARY MIDDLE SCHOOL AND
GOVERNMENT OF BERMUDA

Mr. Speaker, thank
you and good evening.
I move that consideration be given to the form
of Sale and Purchase Agreement between the Trustees of the Sandys Secondary Middle School and the
Government of Bermuda, regarding all that lot of land
situated off of Broome Street in Sandys Parish and
the islands of Bermuda, together with the appurt enances thereto, and the buildings erected thereon, or
on part thereof, and known as lots 1, 2, 3 and 4, for
the sum of $1 million.
Mr. Speaker, I seek the approval of this
House to the form of Sale and Purchase Agreement
between the Ministry of Public Works and the Trustees of the Sandys Secondary Middle School.
Let me first declare my two interests. I am an
alumnus of Sandys Secondary School.

Mr. Speaker, the Mi nistry of Public Works . . . to purchase from the Trustees of the Sandys Secondary School the unencumbered freehold interest of approximately 2.56 acres of
land forming part of the Sandys Secondary Middle
School and Sandys 360 Sports and Aquatic Centre at
21 Broome Street, Sandys, for $1 million. After explo ring the options and detailed discussions with the par-ties involved, particularly the Sandys Secondary School and Sandys 360, we have agreed that what is
of paramount importance is safeguarding the property
for the students’ curren t and future use.
Mr. Speaker, the Sandys 360 facility operated
from 2009 to 2013. It became apparent that the cost
of operating the Sandys 360 facility exceeded the re venue and donations received to support it. In an effort to keep the facility open, suc cessive Governments of
Bermuda provided grants and other financial contrib utions up until 2013 when the centre ceased oper ations. At that time, the trustees took advice, and it was determined that, to keep the facility open and operating would incur an ann ual shortfall of between


Bermuda House of Assembly $500,000 to $1 million, and funding was not available
to meet this shortfall, going forward.
Mr. Speaker, the centre is owned by the Trustees of the Sandys Secondary Middle School and
comprises a 25- metre indoor pool, basketball c ourt,
hall, gymnasium and gym classrooms. The mission of
the centre was to strive to create healthy and positive
young people, adults, seniors and families through the
community by providing a gathering place and a full
range of programmes in education, sport, aquatics,
health and recreation via a campus -based community
centre. The facility also focuses on community development, serving as a hub for the community.
As background, Mr. Speaker, the trustees
owed some $9.24 million to HSBC Bank of Bermuda
for the construction of the centre and have been un able to service the debt. The bank had initially offered the debt to Government; extension of the Memorandum of a Capital Grant to the trustees; and the offer of
the bank to sell the debt, secured against the land, for
$6 million. All were declined.
Mr. Speaker, the Government considered o ptions in relation to the property and are of the view
that the properly is of such operational significance to
the school that Government should purchase it from
the trustees. The land used to secure the original $9.5
million loan from HSBC Bank of Bermuda to build the centre includes part of the school playing field and
some school buildings. At present, Government owns
the land on which the majority of the school sits, and
the Government will be acquiring the remainder
through this purchase.
The Ministry has entered into negotiations
with both the bank and trustees, and agreed a pur-chase price of $1 million for the unencumbered freehold interest of the property. The bank wi ll accept the
$1 million as full and final settlement of the outstanding debt against the property and have agreed a delay
until the conveyance of the property from the trustees
to Government.
Mr. Speaker, I also would like to acknowledge
the long and pro ud history of the school, which was
founded in 1927 by community members as the first secondary school open to black students living in the
West End. The property was donated by generous
community -minded individuals who wished to ensure
equal access to sec ondary education by black st udents.
Mr. Speaker, I am therefore seeking approval
of the House of the form of Sale and Purchase
Agreement presented here today, subject to any m inor amendments, which may be made for $1 million.
As such, Mr. Speaker, I move that the said form of
Sale and Purchase Agreement be approved and that
a suitable message be sent to His Excellency the
Governor.

Thank you, Minister.
Does any other Member wish to speak? I recognise the Honourable Member Moniz.
Honourable Member, you have the floor.
Hon. Trevor G. Moniz: Thank you. Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
This, I think, is the same deal that was negot iated last year when the OBA Government was still in
power. I do not see the plan attached. I hear the Mi nister when he say s that this is the “ form” that the Sale
and Purchase Agreement will take. It would perhaps
be easier for Members to understand if a plan could be tabled.

[Pause]

Hon. Trevor G. Moniz: So I am asking you, Mr.
Speaker, whether the Minister can be prevailed upon
to table a plan which will show exactly the layout of
the school and which portion is included in this sale
agreement.

Thank you, Minister.
Continue on, Member.

Hon. Trevor G. Moniz: Thank you, thank you.
The Minister wrongly thinks it is just for my
benefit. But, of course, it is for the benefit of the people of Bermuda, who will not have seen the plan.
Now, Mr. Speaker, the Minister indicated that
this is part of a larger agreement where HSBC will be
forgiving the balance of the debt owing. I think the original was $9.5 million. Now I think he said it was
$9.24 million outstanding, still owing to HSBC. So they
will accept this in full and final settlement.
So, this Sale and Purchase Agreement, I
know it does not say in it that it is being sold free from
encumbrances, free from that mortgage. But I pr esume that there is another agreement, that this is part
of a larger deal. So, this is the agreement with the
1426 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly trustees of the Sandys Secondary Middle School, who
are Melvin Bassett, Stanley Lee, Travis Gi lbert and
Valerie Dill. It is an agreement with those persons.
And there is a further agreement with the
Bank of Bermuda with respect to the monies that are
owing to them, to say that they will accept the $1 mi llion in full and final settlement.
This sales agreem ent does not say that it will
be sold free from encumbrances, free from the monies
which are owed to the bank. Perhaps the Minister can
help there, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I am actually glad to see that we are at this
point. It was a bit of a sad story for me to have gone
through the process of w atching Sandys 360, painfully, not be able to meet up to its obligations. And there were many reasons for this here. We had sought, as
an OBA Government, to seek out whatever opportun ity there was.
One of the stumbling blocks that we did come
up against a t the time, unfortunately, was that the
bank was looking for the Government to pretty much
finance the debt. And that was, of course—

[Inaudible interjection]

No, no, no, no. Not at all.
So, the Finance Minister could not see th e
light in that. But I do want to speak, as the Minister has just spoken to, just briefly to the history there.
When I became keenly aware of the details of
how Sandys 360 came about, it is a bit of a sad day
today to know that Government now, no fault of theirs
. . . we are now having to purchase the property for $1
million. So I am hoping that when we were discussing the details of how we move forward with the purchase Sandys 360 members were keen that whoever took
over kept to the mandate that it origin ally started out
with. So, I do not know what those plans are, going
forward, in keeping to the mandate of Sandys 360.
Hopefully, the Minister can speak briefly to that.
But we had given our commitment that we
would do as much as we can and could to stick to the
commitment of the mandate that Sandys 360 started
out with. And I know that in order for them to have even gotten to the point of establishing Sandys 360
people mortgaged their homes and the like to establish this here. So it is important that we do as much as
we can for something so historical to ensure that those who entered into this agreement with great i ntent and good intent, for those who are seeking to ad-vance educationally and the like, which was a real sticking point for them, especially am ongst those in
the West End area . . . many of the blacks who were
there looking to seek further education and a place for
them to safely harbour and go . . . I am hoping that the
Government can continue to stick to that mandate.
So there is no argument on this side. We
know some of the challenges that went on. And again,
you know, people have tried in the past to bring up,
you know, all kinds of things, double payments and
the like. We do not need to be getting into all of that
stuff. This is Sandys 360. They started out trying to do a good job and found themselves in trouble. You
know, people were coming to me at the time, Well,
you know, they’re not giving up their financials, and
the like —completely unnecessary for people to carry
on in that manner when we were seeking out an o pportunity to save that area.
So I am glad to see that the Minister is moving
forward with this here. And I hoping that in some way,
in some form . . . because I do know that there was a
lot of interest in the property itself by t he private sector. I do not know if that still continues today. I am
sure that the Minister is getting a request, probably,
from others, other than the private sector. But there is
use there for the property, and hope that we continue
to ensure that Sandy 360’s mandate is followed up on.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

It astounds me the
lack of collective memory from so recent a time, that
this would have been brought by the former Gover nment.
But be that as it may, I am not a lawyer, Mr.
Speaker. But you will know that I have been back and
forth with you and the Clerk to get the record correct
for those of us who are not lawyers.
This says, and it is printed in bold across the
form, form of a Sale and Purchase Agreement. And
the reason for that, Mr. Speaker, is if you actually look
in it, there are very few details. But this is the form that
the purchase and sale agreement will take. And I give
an undertaking—

Insofar as the plans for
Sandys 360, I also set those out in the statement, that
the mission of the original intent of the Sandys 360
organisation will be carried out insofar as that is possible. But rest assured, Mr. Speaker, that, certainly
from our point of view as a Government, the first priority is for this facility to be made available to the st udents of Sandys Secondary Middle School, part of the condition. The second priority is for it to be made
available to the community of Sandys.
I have had approaches already, particularly
from seniors who quite enjoyed that facility.
Now, let me put down one marker, Mr.
Speaker, because I have also given an indication that
what we will first do is an assessment of the facility
and how it can go f orward so that the Government
does not end up in the same boat as the Sandys 360,
particularly in terms of the running costs for the facil ity.

And so, there is no
guarantee at this stage that there will r emain a pool,
which, as far as I can understand, has been a signif icant drain in terms of financial costs in the operation of the facility. We shall look at that, and we shall come
back and report, as usual, to this House in terms of any actions and decisi ons made, going forward.
With those comments, Mr. Speaker, I again
move (if I can find the right page) . . .

[Pause]

Now I will move on to the next Order.
The next Order is Order No. 4, in the name of the Mi nister of Finance. It is the second reading of the Com-panies and Partnership (Fees) Act 2018. I believe the
Junior Minister will be doing this.
Junior Minister, you have the floor.

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I
am sorry. The Opposition Leader wants something,
Mr. Speaker. What do you want?

[Inaudible interjections ]

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, with the Go vernor’s recommendation, I move that the Bill entitled
Companies and Partnerships (Fees) —

Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, point of order.
POINT OF ORDER

Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: I am raising the issue with
respect to a money bill, and I did not get an answer.

Yes.

BILL

SECOND READING

COMPANIES AND PARTNERSHIPS
(FEES) ACT 2018

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, the Gover nment wishes this Honourable House to give consider-ation to the Bill entitled the Companies and Partnerships (Fees) Act 2018. The Bill provides for a rev e1428 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly nue-raising measure in support of Government’s
2018/19 Budget.
Mr. Speaker, Honourable Members will recall
that in the 2018/19 National Budget, Government announced that fees for most services provided t o res idents and businesses will be increased by 5 per cent.
Mr. Speaker, Government has reviewed company
fees, both incorporation fees and annual fees. While
we recognise that companies can be very sensitive to
the costs of setting up an exempted company, it must
be noted that the last increase in company fees was
10 years ago, 2008.
Since that time, the impact of changing international global standards and the requirements to r emain dynamic as a jurisdiction are such that the Gov-ernment must periodically review its fee structure in
this area to ensure that it is able to meet the financial demands placed on it, while simultaneously providing
the service that it is charged to deliver.
Mr. Speaker, recommendations from the
OECD Tax Information Exchange Agreement fram ework revealed in 2016 and the requirements of the
upcoming CFATF (Caribbean Financial Action Task
Force) AML/ATF (anti -money laundering/anti -terrorism
financing) evaluation has forced the Government to
more proactively demonstrate compliance to regulat ory functions and develop legislation to further
strengthen the regulatory role. This work has been
costly and all -consuming for staff of various gover nment departments. These fee increases will offset the
additional costs being incurred by the Government in
this area and will be used to invest in upgrading current databases, policies and procedures to ensure that the information captured is accurate, timely and
relevant for organisations like the OECD and other
regulatory bodies.
Mr. Speaker, t his proposed Bill will increase
certain fees charged under the Companies Act 1981, the Limited Partnership Act 1883, the Exempted Par tnership Act 1992 and the Overseas Partnerships Act 1995 by 5 per cent in 2018. The Government believes
that a 5 per cent a verage increase reflects a sound
balance between the Government’s need for additional revenue and the ability of companies to absorb. The
highest dollar -value fee increase is $1,647.
Mr. Speaker, it is anticipated that these fee
increases will yield approximately $2 million in add itional revenue. It should be noted that certain permit company fees that were adjusted last fiscal year have
not been amended. Mr. Speaker, the Bill also does a
bit of housekeeping by addressing missed cons equen tials when section 4B of the Partnership Act of
1902 was repealed and replaced by a section 4BA in
2016.
Mr. Speaker, with those introductory remarks,
I now read for the second time the Bill entitled the
Companies and Partnerships (Fees) Act 2018.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Junior Minister.
Does any other Member wish to speak?
We recognise the Honourable Leader of the
Opposition. Honourable Member, you have the floor.

Hon. Jeanne J. Atherden: Mr. Speaker, as the Junior
Minister has indicated, these fees have not been
raised for a long time. And it has been known that the
fees were going to go up. The Finance Minister for etold this in his Budget brief. He did not say the exact amount, but he did indicate that they would be i ncreased. We understand the housekeeping element,
and we do not see any particular area that we wanted
to raise at the current time.

Yes, thank you, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, I just have a question. Towards
the end of his comments, the Honourable Member
talked about company permit fees. And I think we r emember last year when the former Minister of F inance, I will say, appreciably raised certain permit
company fees. And I am curious as to whether there
has been an impact of that or not in terms of people
de-registering from Bermuda. The issue at the time
that I think he was concerned about was, I will just
say, some of the larger tech companies that had a
presence here. Not a physical presence; they were here from a jurisdictional perspective.
And I think, without mentioning names (they
are all household names), there was an issue that we
were being put in t he line of fire for the simple reason
that they were using us purely as a tax hedge. There
was no physical presence here. Obviously, they were
spending company corporate fees on lawyers and
things of that sort. But because of the huge concern,
particularly in the European Union, he felt that perhaps the hassle that we were presented with was suf-ficient to try and raise the fees.
So I am curious as to whether the Junior Mi nister could comment on what impact, if any, that has
had, whether we have seen a dere gistration in some
of these companies who simply have a domicile presence, but not a physical presence, and what the experience has shown. Thank you.

Thank you, Member.
Does any other Member wish to speak?
No other Member.
Minister.



Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Thank you, Mr. Speaker,
and I thank the Honourable Member for asking that
question. I was going to say something later on.
But we have about 250 to 260 permit companies. And really, the fee is not due until March 31st.
That is the last t ime they can pay. But, to date, there
are about six companies that have decided to move
on. Are we expecting more? We will know by
March 31st.

Any objections to moving clauses 1
through 7?
No objection.

Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Chairman, the Bill seeks
to increase certain fees charged under the Companies
Act 1981, the Limited Partnership Act 1883, the E xempted Partnerships Act 1992 and the Overseas
Partnerships Act 1995, and to make minor amendments in consequence of the insertion of section 4BA
of the Partnership Act 1902 by th e Partnerships and
Companies Amendment Act 2016.
Clause 1, Mr. Chairman, is self -explanatory.
Clause 2 repeals and replaces the Fifth
Schedule to the Companies Act to increase the annu-al fees payable under that Act.
Clause 3 amends section 22(3) of the Limited
Partnership Act 1883 to increase the fee payable for
registering or recording certificates and notices under
that Act. Clause 4 repeals and replaces the First
Schedule to the Exempted Partnerships Act 1992 to increase the annual fees payable under that Act.
Clause 5 repeals and replaces the Schedule
to the Overseas Partnerships Act 1995 to increase the annual fees payable under that Act.
Clause 6 amends the specified provisions to
refer to section 4BA of the Partnership Act 1902 (elec-tion of an exis ting partnership to have legal personal ity), consequential on the insertion of section 4BA by section 4 of the Partnerships and Companies Amendment Act 2016.
And finally, clause 7 provides for commenc ement on April 1
st, 2018, except for clause 6, which is
deemed to have come into operation on the 22nd of
June 2016 (the commencement date of the Partnerships and Companies Amendment Act 2016, which
inserted section 4BA into the Partnership Act 1902).

It has been moved that the Bill be
reported to the House as printed (or as amended).
Are there any objections to that motion?
No objections.
The Bill will be reported to the House as printed.

[Gavel]
1430 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly [Motion carried: The Companies and Partnerships
(Fees) Act 2018 was considered by a Committee of
the whole House and passed without amendment .]

House resumed at 7:13 pm

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

REPORT OF COMMITTEE

COMPANIES AND PARTNERSHIPS
(FEES) ACT 2018

Members, are there any objections to
the Companies and Partnerships (Fees) Act 2018 being reported to the House as printed?
No objections; so moved and approved.
The next item is Order No. 5 on the Order
Paper, and it is the second reading of the Motor Car Amendment Act 2018, in the name of the Honourable
Minister of Transport, the Deputy Premier.
Deputy Premier, you have the floor.

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
With the Governor’s recommendation, I move
that the Bill entitled the Motor Car Amendment Act
2018 now be read a second time.

Continue on.

BILL

SECOND READING

MOTOR CAR AMENDMENT ACT 2018

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, the amendment
to the Motor Car Act being considered this evening
makes three changes to the Act. First, a housekeeping amendment to make provisions for a fee to pr escribe for a tractor permit; second, to increase licence
duty for trade plates by 5 per cent; and third, to repeal
the existing Schedules 1A, 1B, 1C and 2, and replace them with revised Schedules 1A, 1B, 1C and 2, which reflect a 5 per cent uplift in the vehicle permits and
licence fees.
It is estimated that the uplift in fees will generate approximately $1.4 million of additional revenue
for government. As it relates to seniors, they will co ntinue to enjoy the benefit of free driver’s licences and 50 per cent of the statutory licence fees.
I am going to repeat that in case anybody is
concerned about these fees affecting our seniors: As it relates to seniors, MP Burgess, —

[Laughter]
Hon. Walter H. Roban: —they will continue to enjoy
the benefit of free driver’s licences and 50 per cent of the statutory vehicle licence fees.

[Inaudible interjection s]

Hon. Walter H. Roban: The last increase by the
Transport Control Department of these fees, Mr.
Speaker, was 2012. With that, I will end my present ation and allow for debate. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Honourable Members, we are now in
Committee of the whole for further consideration of
the Bill entitled the Motor Car Amendment Act 2018
.
Minister, you have the floor.

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I wish to move all cla uses of the Bill, please.



Bermuda House of Assembly The Chairman: Any objections to moving all clauses?
No objections.
Continue, Minister.

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Chairman, the Bill i ncreases and makes provision for a fee to be charged
for a tractor permit and increases the licence duty for
trade plates, and repeals and replaces Schedules 1A,
1B, 1C and 2 of the Act.
Clause 1 is the citation. It is the standard cit ation.
Clause 2 amends section 43(2) of the princ ipal Act to clarify that an applicant who has had a tractor per mit granted is required to pay a fee prescribed
in Schedule 1C.
Clause 3 amends section 59(1)(b) of the pri ncipal Act to increase the licence duty for trade plates
for motor cars from $100 a year to $105, and from $50
a year to $52.50 for motorcycles.
Clause 4 repeals and replaces Schedule 1A
to the principal Act to increase truck permit fees by
5 per cent.
Clause 5 repeals and replaces Schedule 1B
to the principal Act to increase public service vehicle
permit fees by 5 per cent.
Clause 6, Mr. Chairman, repeals and replaces
Schedule 1C to the principal Act to increase trailer
permit fees by 5 per cent.
Clause 7 repeals and replaces Schedule 2 to
the principal Act to increase the licence duties payable
for the specified classes of vehicles by 5 per cent.
[Clause 8 provides for commencement on 1
April 2018.]
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you, Mr. Chai rman.
Mr. Chairman, I just wanted to get the Mini ster’s confirmation that, essentially, this is raising all
fees by 5 per cent straight the way through? The reason I ask is because I was looking at livery minicars, and that licensing has been in place for only nine
months or so mething like that. So I was curious as to
why that is now being increased by 5 per cent as well,
because usually you move it from the two years ago
up to the present day. If the Minister could comment
on that, please. Thank you.

Continue, Mi nister.

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you. A very astute
question from the Shadow Minister, the Honourable
Member from constituency 22. Delivery cars have only been in place for
around nine months. So it made no sense to give
them an uplift when they are not on the two- year c ycle. And the intention is to raise these regularly by the 5 per cent in the normal statutory way, mindful that
these fees have not been raised since 2012.

It has been moved that the Bill be
reported to the House as printed.
Are there any objections to that?
There appear to be no objections. The Bill will
be reported to the House as printed.
[Motion carried: The Motor Car Amendment Act 2018
was considered by a Committee of the whole House
and passed without amendment .]

House resumed at 7:22 pm

1432 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly [Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair]

REPORT OF COMMITTEE

MOTOR CAR AMENDMENT ACT 2018

Members, are there any objections to
the Bill for the Motor Car Amendment Act 2018 being
reported to the House as printed?
No objections; it has been approved.
The next item is Order No. 6 on today’s Order
Paper. And it is the second reading of the Auxiliary
Bicycles Amendment Act 2018, in the name of the Deputy Premier, the Minister of Finance [sic].
Deputy Premier, you have the floor.
Hon. Walter H. Roban: I am sorry; I am Deputy
Premier, Minister of Transport and Regulatory Affairs,

Continue on.

BILL

SECOND READING

AUXILIARY BICYCLES AMENDMENT ACT 2018
Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, the Auxiliary Bicycles Amendment Act 2018 provides for an increase in the annual
licence fee paid for auxiliary cycles and livery cycles.
Historically, Mr. Speaker, vehicle fees have
been increased by 5 per cent every two years, wher eas these fees have not been increased since 2012.
Mr. Speaker, as a private citizen I would pr efer that the Government keep the licence fees where they are, because I have to take money out of my pocket just like everybody else to pay licence fees for my car, or others for their bikes. But as a Minister of
this Government I understand that the Government
has an obligation, Mr. Speaker, to provide services to
the people of this country. As I understand that those services cost money, I know too that those services
cost more to provide this year than they did last year.
The bottom line, Mr. S peaker, is that the
money to provide these services has to come from
somewhere. And some of these sources are with v ehicle fees —motor fees or auxiliary vehicle licence
fees. We are proposing a 5 per cent increase across the board for licence fees of auxili ary cycles and livery
cycles. Therefore, the fee for an auxiliary cycle will be
increased from $58.40 per year to $61.32 per year.
And the livery cycle licence fee will increase from $83.95 to $88.20.
With those introductory words, Mr. Speaker, I
will tak e my seat and leave comments to Honourable
Members. Thank you.

Honourable Members, we are now in
committee of the whole for the further consideration of
the Bill entitled
Auxiliary Bicycles Amendment Act
2018 . Minister, you have the floor.

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, as we discussed earlier, this
Bill is to provide for an increase in the annual fees for
auxiliary cycles and livery cycles. The Bill repeals and
replaces the Schedule of the Auxiliary Bicycles Act
1954. The result is an increase in the annual licence


Bermuda House of Assembly fee for an auxiliary cycle from $58.40 to $61.32. The
annual fee for a livery cycle changes from $83.95 to
$88.20.
Clause 1 is the short tit le and standard cit ation.
Clause 2 of the Bill repeals and replaces the
Schedule to the Auxiliary Bicycles Act 1954.
Clause 3 brings the amendment into operation
on the 1st of April 2018.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Members, are there any objections to
the reporting to the House of the Auxiliary Bicycles
Amendment Act 2018, as printed?
No objections. So moved.
Premier, all other matters are car ried forward.
Third readings now. Yes, third readings.

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, I move that
Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move that the Bill entitled the Companies and Par tnerships (Fees) Act 2018 be now read the third time
by its title only.

[Motion carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.]

BILL

THIRD READING

COMPANIES AND PARTNERSHIPS
(FEES) ACT 2018
Hon. Wayne L. Furbert: Mr. Speaker, the Companies
and Partnerships (Fees) Act 2018. I move that it now
pass.

[NO AUDIO ]
[Motion carried: The Companies and Partnerships
(Fees) Act 2018 was read a third time and passed.]

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21
Hon. Walte r H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I move that
Standing Order 21 be suspended to enable me to move that the Bill entitled the Motor Car Amendment
Act 2018 now be read a third time by its title only.
1434 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The Speaker: No objections to that.
Continue on, Minister.

[Motio n carried: Standing Order 21 suspended.]

BILL

THIRD READING

MOTOR CAR AMENDMENT ACT 2018

Hon. Walter H. Roban: I move that the Bill now be
read a third time by its title only and passed.

No objections; so moved.

[Motion carried: The Motor Car Amendment Act 2018
was read a third time and passed.]

SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDER 21

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Mr. Speaker, I move that O rder 21 be suspended to enable me to move that the
Bill entitled the Auxiliary Bicycles Amendment Act
2018 now be read a third time by its title only.

I recognise the Honourable Minister of
National Security. Honourable Minister, you have the floor.

Hon. Wayne Caines: Mr. Speaker, the Causeway is
open. We are all safe. There is no need to rush home
tonight.

[Laughter]

Hon. Wayne Caines: The country is safe and secure.
In my other capacity, I can definitely say that
there is no need for Mr. Cannonier to run east as yet.

The walls have blown down,
brother.
[Laughter]

PLP 100 JOBS EMPLOYMENT INITIATIVE
Hon. Wayne Caines: Mr. Speaker, today I had the
privilege of going to the Westgate Correctional Facil ity. There was a programme to look at. There was a donation by the Agriculture Exhibition group. They
donated some tools to the Westgate Correctional F acility.
Whilst I was there, I saw some of the best
artwork that I had seen. I looked and I saw some
woodwork. I saw some cups that were drawn. I saw
some swords that were made out of cedar. I saw a
briefcase that I suggested we give to the Premier for
his Budget Brief next year. It was a beautiful briefcase
that was made out of cedar.
I came, and I looked, and I thought. And I
looked at some statistics. There are 191 people who
are, in total, incarcerated in Bermuda, Mr. Speaker.
There are 147 men at Westgate; 27 at the Farm; 7 at
the co- ed facility; and 10 at the Right Living House.
Mr. Speaker, at the Right Living House are
men who are getting their lives turned around and
looking to get some things sorted out. They are in a
specific facility that is therapeutic and allows them to sort their house out, their lives out. [There are] 191
people.
I then looked at it by . . . what are the offences? There are 24 men who are incarcerated for murder. There are 5 for manslaughter. There are over 20


Bermuda House of Assembly men who are there for sexual offences. There are 7
men who are there for attempted murder. And that is
not a breakdown of the 147; those are just the more
serious offences. There is one woman in jail for the
proceeds of crime, and three in prison for importation. One woman is in jail for murder, and one woman i ncarcerated for manslaughter.
There are only four people who are incarcerated who are white. My opposite Member , Mr. Baron,
the last time he spoke to these numbers, he highlight-ed the fact that as a country we have to pay close at-tention to this. I bring this up, Mr. Speaker, because,
as a country, we have to look at ways of reducing
these numbers, reducing recidiv ism, reducing the opportunity for our young men not to feel that they can
find ways to better their lives, be productive.
We have seen the Dr. Mincy reports, and Dr.
Mincy says that one in four black men will not . . . and
Rolfe is not here to accredit hi m for his Dr. Mincy
quotes, his acumen.

[Inaudible interjections ]

He will hear it.
Hon. Wayne Caines: But I am sure one of my colleagues will tell him. One in four black young men will
not graduate from high school. And this Government,
specifically the Minister of Education, is working to reduce those numbers and increase the education
numbers across the Island and across the board.
People stop me on a regular basis. And they
stop my colleagues on a regular basis. And they ask us, Do you have any jobs? They stop us and they pull
us aside on the street, and they say, Listen. My son is
at home. He needs work. Or, My daughter just r eturned from university, and there is no place where
she is employed. A lady stopped me the other day.
She s aid she was employed by the exempt companies. They have downsized, and she is a legal exec utive, and she is home, at 47 years, with a mortgage
and two kids in school. And she has no way to provide
for her family.
People stop me all the time, black, white.
What can I do to help, Mr. Caines? How can I help?
And I believe that oftentimes we have people in our community, whilst they vote in that booth and they do
not declare what their party affiliation is, they have a
desire and a need to help. We look all around our
community and we see what the churches are doing.
We see what the social clubs are doing. But we see
that we have a problem with people finding emplo yment in Bermuda.
Every day I work on the ground floor of Global
House. And on the first floor of Global House is F inancial Assistance. And I watch the steady stream of Bermudians going in there every single day to get
help to pay their bills, help to pay their rent, help to
pay the nursery fees. Today, when I saw the steady stream of people going in there, a lady, when she was
going in, was hesitant to get in the elevator with me because she was embarrassed to press the first floor.
Because everyone knows that when you press the
first floor you are getting off for Financial Assistance. And she ginger ly went up with me to the next floor
because she did not want me to see her get off on the
first floor.
When we got to the third floor, she asked me,
she said, Mr. Caines, I’ve done everything to try to
find a job in Bermuda, and I just can’t find work. Th is
is my last resort, to get financial assistance. But I have
no way to help my family, to keep a roof over their
head, to get food for my children.

Wow.
Hon. Wayne Caines: I was talking in our Ministry.
And I was talking to my colleague, the Honourable Diallo Rabain. And we were mulling this conversation
around in Cabinet, in caucus, in our Central Commi ttee meetings. As a party it is our mandate to find jobs
for Bermudians.
Something that we have noticed when we
were talking to men when we have traversed this I sland from St. George’s to Dockyard, one thing that the
young men who are on the periphery of gang- related
activity, who are teetering on getting involved in gang -
related activity, have said . . . one thing that was the
common thr ead in all of these people was that they
were all struggling to find employment. And because they could not find employment, they find themselves involved in antisocial activity.
Now, no one in this room . . . or no one is going to just find justification or give safe [harbour] to
people who are doing illegal activity or conducting
themselves in less -than- noble avenues. But what we
have to do is understand the reasons why.
We have looked at this thing closely. And, t ogether with the Department of Workforc e Development, we have come up with something called 100
Jobs. 100 Jobs is a very basic concept. You take 100
employers, from no matter what the field is in Berm uda, whether it is law firms, accounting firms, construc-tion firms, tiling firms, housekeeping firms, corner shops, neighbourhood shops, grocery stores, and you
say to all of these people, On this particular instance,
we just want you to provide us with one job— one job.
In other words, as a community, we have to
make the decision that to help the people who are
teetering on gang- related activity we are going to do
something really simple. We do not believe this is going to end all of the problems, and we are going to
continue to work behind the scenes with Workforce
Development and employers in this country. But on
this occasion we are going to ask employers in this
country to hire one person —one person. Digicel, Cell
One, Southampton Princess, all of the accounting
firms, all of the grocery stores, one person.
1436 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly And we believe that hiring 100 people will be
a start to making our country a better place, putting
people back on the road to “Wellville,” allowing people
to get up and hold their head high. No, we do not believe this is a magic bullet. But this is a way for the black middle- class person who is running a small firm,
who says, You know what? I want to make a difference. This is an opportunity to get them to put their
money where their proverbial mouth is. This is where
the law firm who has the opportunity in the mailroom
or some construction worker with an entry -level pos ition.
Mr. Speaker, I went to a restaurant (that shall
remain nameless) last week for breakfast. And there were over 17 people in this restaurant. And not one of
them —not one of them —was Bermudian. I believe
this is an opportuni ty. I believe that this is an oppo rtunity outside of looking at —and we are —Immigration
reform. On this occasion this is an opportunity for us to hire 100 people to make a difference.
I have spoken with my colleague, Minister
Rabain, the Minister of Educati on, who has respons ibility for Workforce Development. And he has agreed
to get all of the names and triage the names, and put
them in different buckets in different categories. And
he is going to see what the skills level is, and he is
going to put them and get them ready and prepared. He already has a database of a lot of names. And he
is going to get all of these names ready. And these
people are all going to get ready.
And on the 26
th of March, from 4:00 pm to
7:00 pm, all of the employers are going to g o to the
Hamilton Seventh- day Adventist Centre from four to
seven. And on that day they are not going to come to have big discussions. On that day . . . they would
have seen the names beforehand and the skill sets
beforehand, all the problems that can help them develop with beforehand. And on that day we want 100
people to walk off of that hill with a job. No talk, no
pontificating, no regrets. On the 26
th of March, 100
jobs to 100 people.
And if we have to do it again two months later,
we will go to a diff erent well. But we will encourage
Bermudians not to do this for any political party, but to do it for each other. One of the mandates that this
Government has is to give Bermudians opportunities.
We believe that these opportunities exist, and we
have to ch allenge the people who live off of the fat of
the land to take an opportunity.
Does this mean that a person might be broken
and you might have to invest in them emotionally?
You might have to mentor them? You might have to
spend a little more time with them? Absolutely! In order for this country to find balance, in order for this
country to find a way out, in order for us to stop giving
men money on the side of the street, watch them
traverse the first floor in Global House getting social assistance . . . we who have, have to make way for
those who do not have. Mr. Speaker, I encourage business persons,
and we are going to be meeting with any employer on March 15
th at the Police Recreation Club, where we
want to meet with all of the employers, Mr. Speaker, and tell them what is going to be required of them and
how they can help us. We have sent out letters to all
of the employers in Bermuda. And on the 15
th of
March, at 6:00 pm at the Police Recreation Club, we
want to meet with the employers.
Mr. Speaker, I believe together that we can
make a change in Bermuda. And this is a most excellent start. We are pleased to partner with the Depar tment of Workforce Development, and in advance, 100
employers in Bermuda, who understand that we are
not perfect, understand that this country is made up of
people who are going to make mistakes. But this is an opportunity to give people a chance. We are not trying
to hire . . . and I do not want to leave anybody with the
miscommunication that we are trying to hire gang
members.
We have a plan for that, as well, because we
believe that they are redeemable. We believe that
they can find a place in our community. Somebody
said, and I will say it again: Nothing stops a bullet like
a job. Nothing stops a bullet like a job. In other w ords,
if we make a pathway clear and help those who need
help. How do we help them? By providing strong op-portunities. And, Mr. Speaker, we, the Progressive
Labour Party, believe that this is a start. The saying is
that I don’t want to give a man a fish. T hat will only
feed him for a day. I want to teach him how to fish,
and he can feed his family for a lifetime.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

[Desk thumping]

Thank you, Minister.
Deputy Premier. We recognise the Deputy
Premier. Deputy Premier, you have the floor.

INCLEMENT WEATHER

Hon. Walter H. Roban: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I wish to just make a very short comment t onight. But it is an appeal. It is an appeal to the citizens
of this country to be careful. We have had a number of days since Friday of some very volatile, unexpected
weather. But reports that I have received say that,
unfortunately . . . And this means that our roads are
particularly dangerous. But I am concerned that cit izens are not taking the care required to ensure that their safety is at the highest level, not only of themselves, or everyone else.
We have had, just over the last few days
alone, nin e collisions. We have had occurrences
where cars have gone off the road, one of which was quite explicitly shown on social media, in St. David’s,
flipped all the way. One on the North Shore, and we have even had about four arrests for impaired driving.


Bermuda House of Assembly One would think that during this sort of weather people would take a little bit more care and, as was said
over the holiday, think before they drink. But I am appealing to the citizens of this country to be careful.
The weather that we are experiencing over
these days, which I believe is going to last up until possibly the end of this week, or certainly a few days,
is unexpected. It is unpredictable. We must be careful.
There needs to be a serious reality check with
everyone in this country about their behav iour on
Bermuda’s roads. Deaths were what we experienced
last year. We are trying to avoid any more deaths that
are avoidable this year.
So, Mr. Speaker, I am appealing for people to
slow down, to be careful. And think before they get
behind the wheel or get on their cycles. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, earlier today
I heard two persons speak something that resonated with me just like, You know, they have a point. But
then I remembered their own actions. So I was like, Hold on a minute. Earlier, the Member from constit uency 9, my MP, spoke about, What is the plan for —

Hon. Trevor G. Moniz: Point of order, Mr. Speaker.
The Honourable Member is reflecting on a
debate. I am afraid he is not allowed to do that. If he wanted to stand up during that debate and have his
say, he could have done that. He is not allowed to
reflect.

What if someone said,
Hey, what’s the plan for this thing? And this thing
costs one dollar. And that one dollar was going to help
multiple people in the community. And they are so
concerned about that one dollar! And you are saying,
Wow, what is the concern? Is the concern about the
dollar? Or is the concern about the people in the
community? But then you reflect, and you say, Whoa!
Less than two years ago, this same person signed off
on $40 being spent for something that does not ben efit the community.

So, I am thinking again. I
am saying, Now, I was in church the other day. And it
resonated with me, Matthew 7:5: Take the plank out of
your eye before you talk about the speck in your
brother’s eye.
Now, let me move on to another “what if.”
What if someone got up and said, You know, Bermudians, they need to be committed. They need to get to
work on time. They need to stop wearing saggy pants.
Can I get a witness in here?

An Ho n. Member: Hear, hear!

[Desk thumping]

They need to show up,
and they need to realise this is how they will move
forward in a specific industry. Now, that is fine. B ecause of this thing called work ethics. Now, I was
working with the spirit . I was going to read off of this
paper. I am not even going to read it, Mr. Speaker.
What if —

1438 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly An Hon. Member: What if?

Would they be considered
an ideal work -ethic person?
They would get fired!
Now, I am thinking to myself the characteris ations that the other person was talking about. They
tried to paint the picture about a certain, I do not know, demographic. The same demographic that, I do
not know, my brother, my cousin is doing his utmost to
employ, to help get employed. Now, what if the people
who are supposed to be setting examples are not
coming to work, and when they do come to work, they
show up for half a day? They do not even call in sick,
Mr. Speaker.

[Inaudible interjections ]

Now, I am looking at a
competitive company, and mass -absenteeism, people
are not in their seats. But one of the people who is
hardly in their seat comes here today and talks about
commitment to work, showing up to work, doing your
work. And again, it r esonates to me, Take the plank out of your eye before you talk about the speck in your brother’s eye.

[Desk thumping]

Now, I must admit, Mr.
Speaker, I am one of those who fell off of the ban dwagon. I grew up in St. Paul’s. And I probably go
Easter, Christmas, Men’s Day. But again, it goes to
this: Teach a child the way, and he shall not depart
from it. So I am going to take my seat, Mr. Speaker.
And I am hoping that the spirit that spoke to me spoke
to others, because we have to s et an example up in
this House. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

[Desk thumping]

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like
to thank the Minister for National Security for his ana lysis and actually his advancement of the 100 Jobs
that he has announced today.
Before I do that, I would like to . . . Hopefully, I
do not sound glib. But I would like to remind Members
in the House, particularly the one who just sat down,
that we had a Bermudian who was in the Olympics for
ice ska ting. So, indeed, it sounds like your theory of
black people and ice not mixing is wrong.
So I will just advance that for those of you
who laughed and hollered about that. Clearly, that thesis is a bit wrong. We are quite proud of her
achievements in the Olympics, and, of course, of her
being Bermudian. So, rather a silly comment.
But anyhow, Mr. Speaker, let me advance on
my point.

[Inaudible interjections ]

Thank you.
The National Security Minister visited the
Westgate facility today, and he reflected on the numbers of those who are incarcerated, not just at Wes tgate, our maximum -security prison, but all throughout
the entire Island, Mr. Speaker. And the numbers are
true. And the numbers are correct, and they are ex-tremely concerning.


Bermuda House of Assembly I made a statement in another place earlier
last year with regard to the need for public safety r eform. And while I completely agree with the advances
and ideas with the 100 Jobs, with the work of the Mi nister for Education with all of these other pockets to
deal with, not just antisocial behaviour, but to deal with more opportunities for those who are on the margins. And that was a specific quote from the Mincy
report —those who are on the walls or on the margins—question mark.
So, Mr. Speaker, I would li ke to advance to
everyone in here a short thesis. And it is this: Those
root-cause issues are absolutely critical to addressing
why people may fall into acquisitive, expressive or
criminal behaviour. However, we have to do more on the front end where it manifests. Public safety reform
is absolutely critical. If you do the root causes properly, if you do them now, if you address those things, if
you hire people, if you get jobs . . . And by the way,
Minister, I will see you, if I am permitted, on the 15
th
and the 26th, because I would like to go, and I would
like to offer some men jobs if I am able to. Certainly, in security, I think that would be an important role.
As I digress. If we get those root causes right,
Mr. Speaker, we are not going to see any maj or difference in the statistics with those incarcerated. Why? Because our system has been designed for it to be
that way. Those 191 people are incarcerated. And five of them are Caucasian, three of them from overseas,
one from Italy. I believe this is from May of last year;
one is from Italy, one is from Latvia and the other from
Canada. Meaning two white Bermudians, males, are
incarcerated in Bermuda, total. If anyone believes that
that is a reflection of crime, if anyone believes that
that is a reflection of offending, then they are grossly
mistaken. And if you cannot point to systemic issues
dating back decades, Mr. Speaker, then you are again
wrong!
Those numbers, the 191 . . . that is down si gnificantly because there have been alternatives to i ncarcerat ion, from 1997, when the Act came out. And
furthermore, technology has impacted recidivism rates
as well, and the numbers of those who are incarcerated. Yet, although the numbers of people incarcer-ated in Bermuda are down significantly, the d emographics and the percentage, and the grotesque percentage of those people of colour inside of our jails
in Bermuda versus the Caucasians has always been
that way, has always been that way.
So when we talk about recidivism, we must
talk about . . . we talk about root causes, we have to
talk about public safety reform. And that is not just implicit bias from police officers, that is not just histor ical criminal justice system and how the courts are set up. We have to look at all of that.
And, of course, the Minister wo uld likely take
the lead on that. I will happily help him. I will happily talk with him. I will happily do whatever I can to address that, as well. Because when you go to Westgate or to co- ed or anywhere and you recognise the gr otesque difference of the de mographics and why that is
continuing, then that is a start. But we cannot continue
to come and sit and talk about, This is a problem and
we need to address it.
Getting 100 people jobs on the 15
th of March
is absolutely critical. I hope that employers come out
in droves and there are more than 100 people. But to
the people who are going through the criminal justice
system, that is not going to systemically change the
inequality that is existing today. It was existing five
years ago. It existed 10 years ago, 20 years ago, and
so on. Whether it was Casemates, whether there were
500 people incarcerated or 191, the percentages were
just about the same, I would hazard a guess. I do not
have statistics from the 1990s.
But, Mr. Speaker, this is a critical, critical
point. I wanted to congratulate the Minister again for
the social engagement, for the social crime reduction
efforts that he, that the Ministry is doing day in and
day out. My complete support, complete suppor t. In
addition, I would invite all Members to think about public safety reform, because this is a conversation
that not just sits with the Ministry for National Security.
It is with Legal Affairs. It is with Immigration. It is with
Education. It is with the entire, entire Government.
So everyone, if we could talk about public
safety reforms, because unless we are reforming and we are addressing the institutional issues, the implicit
bias issues, the criminal justice issues that see 90 per
cent of our entir e population of inmates as black Bermudian, there is a problem. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Honourable Member.
I recognise the Honourable Deputy Speaker.
Honourable Deputy Speaker, you have the
floor.

MISTREATMENT OF BLACK BERMUDIANS

Hon. Derrick V. Burgess, Sr.: Yes, Mr. Speaker.
The Member who just took his seat, I know
this is the second time he has said that, and it is true what he said that is happening in Bermuda. But, Mr. Speaker, a lot of things must change in Bermuda for
the ratio of blacks to whites in prison in Bermuda to
change.
Mr. Speaker, I remember probably last year I
was at a meeting. And this older fellow got up. He was
a security guard at one of the hotels. And he said he
found some young boys, black boys. They were trying
to steal bikes. So he got them and took them to the manager of the hotel. And the manager called the police. Not so long after that, the same situation with
some white boys. Took them to the manager. The
same manager told him to call the parents, Mr.
Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, our history is the problem. And
people are still living and acting the way they acted
1440 5 March 2018 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly many years ago. Mr. Speaker, many of our people,
black people in particular, have gone to the gallows
and were killed, murdered, executed because of what
whites have just said, just accused them of doing
something, and they could not prove their innocence. A lot of them have gone to prison because what they
thought of us is what it is. For example, Mr. Speaker,
when the PLP got in, you would see . . . and you could
check for yourself. In the Auditor’s report they never used the words corruption, fraud, mismanagement,
nothing like that . But since the PLP got in, those
words have been riddled through the Auditor’s reports.
Those are the thoughts that they have of black folks. It
must change, Mr. Speaker!
Mr. Speaker, you know, a lot of our people
have been mistreated in this country, and it contin uously happens. We had some of our same Bermudians, black Bermudians and white Bermudians, go to
World Wars I and II and come back home, particularly
the blacks, and could not get a job, not even a go vernment job. So, Mr. Speaker, the thought in this
country, because many whites in this country —not all
of them —sit down. They go in their office. A nd they
spend their time seeing how they can persecute and
prosecute blacks. That is what they do.
But when it comes to whites, and I can reel off
different things that they have done, whites have done
. . . nothing has happened. Not even a word of acc usation or any type of adjective to describe the actions
of them. But when it comes to blacks, Lock them all
up! And that is the thought of many in this country,
many in position. And, Mr. Speaker, it must stop.
When we are thought of . . . you get black boys go in
a shop —everybody is watching them. Whites go in,
nobody watches them. We are suspected before we
even get to the shop. Oh, it’s two little black boys! I’m
going to watch them! They do not watch white people,
you know.
And that is real! And I am not being racist.
That is factual in this country. And they have got to
stop looking on blacks as if everything we do is wrong,
it is corrupt, it is fraud. They check our bank accounts.
They do all of that, unbeknownst to us. That is what they do, Mr. Speaker. And I tell you, nothing has
changed to the thought of many people, some people
in position in this country —change. Thank you, Mr.
Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.
Does any other Member wish to speak?
I recognise the Honourable Premier.
Honourable Premier.

CLOSING COMMENTS

Hon. E. David Burt: Mr. Speaker, it is a little windy
outside, so I want to make sure that we can get home
at a decent hour. Mr. Speaker, what I would just like to say in
closing is that we are halfway through this Budget
session. And I think it has been a productive session thus far. And it is good to see the Honourable Member
for constituency 25 in his seat today. And it is good to see him offering his help and assistance.
On the issue of which he spoke about when it
comes to law reform . . . whereas the persons on that
side spoke, we acted. And that is what we will conti nue to do in this Progressive Labour Party Gover nment. Their words are cheap. Actions mean som ething. And so we have acted in beginning and co mmencing law reform to bring justice to our criminal justice system. And we will continue to bring reform to
make sure that the structural imbalances inside of our
society are addressed.
The final thing I would like to say, Mr. Speaker, is that I want to echo the comments of the Deputy
Leader, encouraging persons to do their best to slow
down. Get home safe. Of course, Honourable Members, as well, as we are expecting a little bit of high
winds this evening. And, of course, to echo stat ements that were m ade before, as well, pay attention to
the notifications which come out from government.
And if there is not a notification that has come out
from government, there is no need to follow one that
is made up on social media.
The notifications come from gover nment; the
rumours may abound. But there are numerous av enues by which the government gets things through.
And I would ask people to tune in to the official social
media accounts of both the government on all of the multiple channels so that they can be the most up to
date with the correct information.
I hope that Members will get home safe. And I
hope that everyone will be safe this evening. Thank
you, Mr. Speaker.