May 14, 2025

That brings us to the O rders of
the Day, and we will be resuming into the Committee
of Supply for further consideration.
I call on the Minister of Cabinet Office to move
us.
Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Madam Deputy Speaker, I
move that the House now resume in the Committee of Supply to consider the Estimates of Revenue and Ex-penditure for 2025/26.

Good morning, Members.
With it having been moved. Honourable
Member s, we are now in Committee of Supply for further consideration of the Estimates of Revenue and
Expenditure for the year 2025/26.
460 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly We are now doing Public Works and Environment, Heads 36, 53, [sic] 68, 81 and 82. This is a
four-and-a-half-hour debate, starting now.
Minister, you have the floor.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Could you read those
heads again?

We are doing P ublic Works and Environment for H eads 36, 68, 79, 81 and 82 and this is a
four-and-a-half-hour debate.
Minister Adams, you have the floor.

Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you. Thank you and good
morning, Mr. Chair man.
Mr. Chair man, I move the following H eads 36,
the Ministry of Public Works Headquarters ; 68, Parks;
79 Environment and Natural Resources ; 81 Public
Lands and Buildings ; 82 Works and Engineering be
now taken under consideration.

Please proceed.

MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS
AND ENVIRONMENT
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, today I rise to
address this Honourable House on a matter that is fundamental to the very functioning, safety, and future of our country —the work and budget of the Ministry of
Public Works and Environment for the fiscal year
2025/26.
Mr. Chairman, this Ministry does more than
just maintain infrastructure—it underpins the daily lives of every resident and visitor, supports the engine
of our economy, and safeguards the natural beauty
and environmental health of our Island home. It is the
Ministry through which we manage Bermuda’s most
valuable physical and environmental assets and deliver the essential services that keep the country running. The scope of the Ministry’s portfolio is unmatched in breadth and complexity. Allow me to illustrate the scale and significance of the responsibilities
we bear:
• More than 2,000 acres of public land and over
750 government buildings, carefully managed
by the Department of Public Lands and Buildings. These assets hold a combined insured value exceeding $1.5 billion and include eve-rything from schools and clinics to government offices and historical sites.
• A network of over 600 public roads, totalling
approximately 225 kilometres, forming the lifelines of our economy —carrying people,
goods, services, and opportunity to every corner of the Island.
• Over 80 public docks and purpose- built
berths, critical to our maritime economy, enabling the docking of cruise ships, cargo vessels, fishing boats, and private watercraft —
linking Bermuda to the world and supporting jobs in shipping, tourism, and trade.
• Municipal solid waste collection and disposal
for over 60,000 residents and visitors to ensure the cleanliness of our I sland and maintain the health and welfare of our people
through environmentally responsible means.
• Freshwater reservoirs with a combined storage capacity of more than two million gallons,
representing one of the most strategically important and scarce resources we possess.
The Ministry is a guardian of this essential
supply.
• Seventy -five public parks, beaches, school
grounds, and recreational spaces, which we not only maintain for public enjoyment, but also protect for future generations as stewards of our environment and biodiversity.
And, Mr. Chairman, I am proud to note the
Ministry’s growing leadership in sustainability and cli-mate resilience—a responsibility that has become
more urgent with each passing year.
We are actively undertaking:
• Island- wide waste reduction initiatives, including enhanced recycling collection, the expansion of household composting pilots, strategic
upgrades at the Material Recovery Facility,
and ongoing investment in the Tynes Bay
Waste -to-Energy Facility;
• Green energy infrastructure projects, including
the installation of solar PV systems across
multiple government sites, the integration of
energy -efficient lighting and HVAC systems,
and accelerating the uptake of electric vehicles and charging stations;
• Marine and coastal conservation programmes, such as shoreline stabilisation
works, mangrove replanting, and the promotion of best practices in marina and boating operations;
• Climate resilience strategies, along with the
construction of flood defences, sea wall rehabilitation, and investment in sustainable drainage systems;
Mr. Chairman, the Ministry of Public Works
and Environment is a Ministry that touches every life, every day. From the roads we drive, to the schools
our children attend, to the beaches we enjoy, to the


Bermuda House of Assembly rainwater we rely on —this Ministry is woven into the
very fabric of life in Bermuda.
But more than that, it is a Ministry that must
look forward. The challenges of the 21st century —
climate change, rising sea levels, ageing infrastructure, resource scarcity, and changing demographics —
require vision, coordination, and investment. That is
what this budget seeks to enable.

Strategic Investment for Long- Term Impact
Hon. Jache Adams: Infrastructure is not merely
about fixing potholes or maintaining buildings. It is a strategic asset —one that determines how efficiently
our economy functions, how sustainably we manage
our resources, and how prepared we are for the future.
Our investment in infrastructure
• drives economic growth by enabling commerce, improving logistics, and supporting the movement of people and goods;
• supports workforce development, creating
skilled and semi -skilled jobs in construction,
engineering, environmental management, and public services;
• enhances our international competitiveness,
particularly in tourism, by ensuring a clean, functional, and welcoming environment for
visitors;
• promotes equity, by improving access to public services and opportunities for all Bermudians;
• protects the environment, by integrating sustainability into our planning, procurement, and operations; and
• builds resilience, helping us respond effectively to natural disasters, climate threats, and infrastructure failure.
Mr. Chairman, this is why, as outlined on page
B-201, the Ministry has been allocated a 6 per cent
increase in its overall budget for the 2025/26 fiscal
year. This increase is a clear and deliberate signal of
this Government’s strong commitment to investing in
the core infrastructure and environmental systems
that form the foundation of Bermuda’s long- term progress and prosperity.
The Operational Budget, also known as the
Current Account, stands at $84,140,000, supporting
the day -to-day services, personnel, and maintenance
functions essential to the Ministry’s mandate. The
Ministry also anticipates generating $16,286,000 in
revenue over the fiscal year, through fees, service
charges, and other sources.
In addition, the Ministry has been allocated a
Capital Budget totalling $57,327,000. This includes $50,492,000 earmarked for Capital Development Projects, such as major infrastructure upgrades and public works improvements, and $6,835,000 for Capital
Acquisitions, which will fund the purchase of critical equipment and technologies needed to moderni se
service delivery.
This substantial capital investment enables
the Ministry to press forward with long- deferred infrastructure works, address maintenance backlogs, upgrade essential facilities, and implement transformative environmental initiatives that have been in the
planning stages. It reflects not only financial commit-ment , but confidence in the Ministry’s ability to deliver
results for the people of Bermuda.
To support this work, the Ministry’s established staffing level for the fiscal year 2025/26 is 720
full-time equivalents [FTEs] showing a reduction of 43.
It is important to clarify that this reduction does not
represent a loss of jobs or a downsizing of the Ministry’s workforce. Rather, it is the result of a revised and
more accurate approach to position budgeting. In pre-vious years, the reported number of posts included all
positions on the department’s current establishment
list, regardless of whether they were actively filled,
underactive recruitment, or even funded. This ap-proach created a discrepancy between the official
headcount and the actual operational staffing levels.
For fiscal year 2025/26, we have adopted a
more realistic and transparent methodology. The re-vised figures now reflect only those posts that are either currently filled or funded and in the process of being filled through active recruitment. This change
ensures that the staffing figures presented are more
closely aligned with the Ministry’s true operational capacity, providing a clearer picture of workforce resources and enabling better planning and accountability.
Mr. Chairman, while we fully acknowledge
that the Ministry continues to require additional personnel resources to meet the growing demands on
our services, this new approach to position budgeting
represents a responsible step toward greater financial
accuracy and accountability. By aligning the reported staffing numbers with actual, funded positions, we are
better able to manage costs and balance the books,
while still keeping a clear view of where staffing gaps
exist.
At this time, I would like to express my sincere
gratitude to the dedicated team across the Ministry of Public Works and Environment. Your efforts may not
always be visible to the public eye, but their impact is
felt every single day. Your commitment and service
are truly invaluable, and I thank each and every one of you for your continued dedication.
Mr. Chairman, with that said, this budget represents more than a financial allocation. It is a vision
for a stronger, cleaner, more resilient Bermuda —one
where infrastructure serves the people, where development respects the environment, and where government leads by example.
As stewards of both our built environment and
our natural heritage, this Ministry stands ready to
462 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly meet today’s demands while preparing for tomorrow’s
challenges.
With that, I now direct Honourable Members
to Head 36, Ministry of Public Works and Environment
Headquarters, where the detailed financial and operational breakdown is available for review on pages B -
202 through B -206, page C -5 and page C -13.

HEAD 36— MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS AND
ENVIRONMENT HEADQUARTERS
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the overarching
objective of the Ministry Headquarters (Finance and
Administration) is to serve as the central coordinating
and support hub for the entire Ministry. Its primary
function is to provide the essential financial, administrative, human resource, and strategic planning ser-vices that enable the effective operation of all departments under the Ministry’s umbrella.
These include the Department of Public Lands
and Buildings, the Department of Works and Engineering, the Department of Parks, and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources —each of
which delivers a wide range of vital programmes and
public services across the Island. From infrastructure
maintenance and land management, to environmental
protection and recreational space upkeep, the suc-cess of these departments depends heavily on the
efficiency, oversight, and support provided by the Ministry Headquarters.
The Headquarters ensures that departmental
operations are not only properly resourced, but also
aligned with Government policy, regulatory frame-works, and fiscal accountability. It plays a critical role
in budgeting, procurement, inventory management,
performance monitoring, and compliance —helping to
ensure that the Ministry as a whole functions cohe-sively and delivers measurable results for the people
of Bermuda.
Simply put, the Ministry Headquarters provides the backbone of administrative and financial
stability that allows each department to focus on its
core mandate, innovative where necessary, and exe-cute its programmes with integrity and professionalism. Mr. Chairman, the services provided by the Ministry Headquarters are organised into the following five
programmes which are found on page B -203:
1. Head Office Administration, 3601;
2. Accounts, 3610;
3. Purchasing, 3611;
4. Telecommunications, 3612;
5. Central Office Administration, 3613.
The Ministry Headquarters total operational
budget for 2025/26 is $6,620,000 an increase of
$293,000.00 which will be explained later in this
presentation.

Head Office Administration Programme, 3601
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Head Office
Administration Programme 3601 encompasses three core components: the Executive Office, Headquarters
Administration, and Safety and Health. Together,
these units form the strategic and operational nucleus of the Ministry, ensuring coordinated leadership, policy implementation, and workforce safety across all
departments.
Under the direction of the Permanent Secretary, Headquarters Administration provides centralised oversight and management support to the Ministry’s departments. This includes ensuring that the Minister’s strategic policy priorities are executed efficiently
and effectively. Specifically, the unit is responsible for the implementation of the Ministry’s Throne Speech
initiatives, the execution and monitoring of the annual
business plan, oversight of health and safety compli-ance, and the coordination of numerous administrative
projects and special assignments. In essence, it ensures that the Ministry remains aligned with Govern-ment goals while operating in a structured, accountable, and results -driven manner.
Mr. Chairman, a vital component of this programme is the Safety and Health Office, which plays
an essential role in safeguarding the well -being of
Ministry employees and the public alike. During the
2024/25 fiscal year, the Office delivered over 12 safety training sessions, totalling 68 hours of instruction, and attended by more than 100 Ministry staff. These
sessions covered key areas such as workplace hazard awareness, equipment handling, emergency protocols, and site- specific risk mitigation.
In addition to training, the Ministry conducted
a range of safety and health assessments across var-ious operations. These assessments were not only
critical in protecting employees as they carry out essential and, at times, hazardous duties, but also instrumental in mitigating risks to the general public where Ministry activities intersect with public spaces.
As a result of these evaluations, new safety protocols
and procedures have been developed and implemented, strengthening the Ministry’s overall culture of safety and operational responsibilities.
Mr. Chairman, the operational budget for programme 3601, Head Office Administration for the 2025/26 fiscal year is $2,473,000. This represents an
increase of $41,000 over the previous year’s allocation. The primary drivers of this increase are related to pay scale upgrades for staff positions, including upward adjustments such as from PS Grade 20 to PS
Grade 21, and the implementation of findings from the Management Consulting Services job description review process, which resulted in revised compensation
levels to reflect updated job scopes and responsibili-ties.
Mr. Chairman, I also wish to take this opportunity to remind Honourable Members that in February of this year, the Government fulfilled its 2024 commitment to place public sector workers ahead of inflaBermuda House of Assembly tion, while helping to offset the financial burden resulting from six of the eight wage freezes endured by civil servants in previous years. This adjustment is reflect-ed across various Ministry programmes and will be
referenced throughout this presentation to help explain some of the budgetary increases detailed.

Public Works Accounts Programme, 3610

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Accounts
Programme 3610 plays a critical role in the financial
stewardship of the Ministry by delivering a wide range
of core accounting services to all operating departments. These services include accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll processing, capital asset
management, and both financial and non- financial
reporting functions that are essential for transparent
and accountable public administration.
This section is responsible for the preparation
and distribution of both the monthly and weekly pay-roll, ensuring that staff are compensated in a timely and accurate manner. It also oversees the issuance of
vendor cheques and invoices for services rendered by
the Ministry’s operational units. In addition, the Accounts Programme facilitates the collection and recording of all Ministry revenues, including payments
made by online banking, credit card, cash, and cheque —ensuring accurate and secure reconciliation
of funds received for public services.
A key enabler of this programme’s effectiveness is the use of a centralised government accounting system, through which the teams manage the annual budget preparation process and produces month-ly financial management reports for the Ministry and
the Budget Office. These reports serve as vital tools
for informed decision- making, allowing for continuous
monitoring and control of expenditures across both the Current Account and the Ministry’s Capital Development and Capital Acquisition budgets.
Mr. Chairman, for the 2025/26 fiscal year, the
operational budget for Accounts Programme 3610 is
$1,380,000 representing an increase of $119,000
compared to the previous year’s budget. This increase is largely attributed to staff -related adjustments, including the filling of two previously vacant positions —
which, in the last fiscal year, were only budgeted for
half-year funding—as well as the public service salary
increases referenced earlier in this presentation.
This investment in staffing ensures the Ministry maintains the capacity to manage its growing financial responsibilities, enhance internal controls, and
improve service delivery through efficient and timely
financial operations.

Purchasing Programme, 3611

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Purchasing
Programme 3611 provides a critical, centralised sup-port function within the Ministry, offering procurement services, inventory management, warehousing, and
disposal of surplus assets. This programme not only supports the operational needs of the Ministry’s internal departments —such as Works and Engineering,
Parks, Public Lands and Buildings, and Environment
and Natural Resources —but also extends procurement assistance to external government departments when required.
Its role is fundamental to ensuring that materials, supplies, and services are sourced efficiently, economically, and in compliance with Government regulations, while also ensuring accountability in the
management of public resources.
Mr. Chairman, in the upcoming 2025/26 fiscal
year, the Purchasing Section will undertake a strategic
focus on reviewing and strengthening internal controls, operational procedures, and policy frameworks.
Key priorities for the Purchasing Programme
this year include
• the creation and enhancement of supply
chain- related policies, aimed at standardising
procurement practices and improving transparency;
• the updating of operational procedures and end-user guidance documentation to reflect
the centralised model and evolving best practices;
• closer collaboration with the Accountant General’s Department to fully leverage the capabilities of the E1 enterprise system; and
• the refinement of Key Performance Indicators
(KPIs) to monitor performance, track procurement efficiency, and support data- driven
decision -making.
This modernised approach is expected to deliver long- term efficiencies, reduce waste, enhance
accountability, and provide better service delivery across all Ministry departments.
Mr. Chairman, the operational budget for the
Purchasing Programme 3611 for fiscal year 2025/26
is $1,538,000, representing an increase of $69,000 over the previous year’s allocation. As with other pro-gramme areas, this increase is staff -related, reflecting
pay scale upgrades —for example, positions moving
from PS Grade 20 to PS Grade 21—as well as the previously referenced public service salary adjustments introduced earlier this year to help offset prior
wage freezes and ensure compensation keeps pace with inflation.
This additional funding will ensure that the
Ministry is properly resourced to professionalise pro-curement practices, optimise supply chain operations,
and continue to uphold the principles of good governance in the management of public funds and assets.

Telecommunications Programme, 3612
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Telecommunications Programme 3612 plays a vital role in the
464 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Ministry by managing both internal and external communications infrastructure, a responsibility that en-sures the seamless operation of government services, public safety, and national connectivity.
Internally, the programme provides and maintains essential communication tools, including the replacement and servicing of telephone systems and
related equipment, and the management of mobile service contracts for staff across all Ministry departments. These services support day -to-day operations,
facilitate coordination among teams, and enable real -
time response for frontline workers in the field.
Externally, the Programme oversees a portfolio of critical infrastructure in the form of seven government -owned telecommunications towers, strategically located at:
• Somerset Police Station,
• Alton Hill,
• Warwick Camp,
• Police Communications Operations in Prospect,
• The Quarry,
• Fort George,
• And St. David’s Lighthouse.
These towers serve as crucial communications hubs —not only for Government departments,
including emergency and protective services —but
also, in some cases, for third- party providers that support Bermuda’s broader telecommunications network.
Their continued operation is essential for both national
security and the delivery of government services.
Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to also announce
a significant infrastructure project planned for this fiscal year: in collaboration with the Department of Public Lands and Buildings, the Ministry will be constructing a new communications tower in St. David’s. This
will allow for the relocation of all communications
equipment currently mounted on the St. David’s Lighthouse, thereby enabling the commencement of long-overdue restoration work on the Lighthouse itself —a
nationally important cultural and historical landmark. I will speak to the capital funding for this project in more
detail during my remarks on the Capital Acquisitions.
Mr. Chairman, the operational budget for Telecommunications Programme 3612 for the 2025/26
fiscal year is $807,000, reflecting a $26,000 increase over the previous year’s allocation. This increase is
primarily due to higher service charges for Government telephones and mobile usage, consistent with
increased departmental reliance on mobile technology
and external communication systems to support field
and emergency operations.
This budget ensures that both the internal
communications needs of the Ministry and the external infrastructure supporting island- wide public communications are properly maintained, modernised,
and positioned to meet Bermuda’s current and future
needs.

And for the listening audience, we are
on Head 36 of the Ministry of Public Works and Environment with the Minister Jache Adams presenting.
He is currently talking about telecommunications
which is under line item 3612.

Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And
now that I have finished that section, I will move on.

Central Office Administration Programme, 3613

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Central Office
Administration Programme 3613 —formerly known as
the Human Resource Programme— was historically
focused on direct employee services and personnel
management within the Ministry. While many of these
human resource functions, such as recruitment, em-ployee onboarding, and organisational development,
have since been centralised under the Department of
Employee and Organisational Development, the Min-istry continues to play an active and supportive role in
several critical areas.
Specifically, the Ministry retains responsibility
for assisting with recruitment processes, supporting
employee relations, and coordinating training and pro-fessional development opportunities for staff across its
various departments. These responsibilities are essential to maintaining a skilled, engaged, and well -
supported public service workforce—particularly in a
Ministry as operationally diverse and workforceintensive as Public Works and Environment.
Mr. Chairman, the second key component of
this programme is Central Filing, which plays a vital
role in the management of official records for the Min-istry. This includes the secure handling, archiving, and
retrieval of human resource records, Cabinet documents, capital project files, and contracts. Central Filing also ensures the preservation and accessibility of records associated with the Ministry’s legislative responsibilities, ensuring compliance with statutory obligations and supporting transparency and institutional
memory.
The Central Filing function is especially important in the current climate of digital transformation, as the Ministry works to modernise its records man-agement practices while safeguarding the integrity
and confidentiality of both digital and physical records.
These efforts not only support operational efficiency but also uphold the principles of good governance and
accountability.
Mr. Chairman, for the 2025/26 fiscal year, the
Central Office Administration Programme 3613 has
been allocated an operational budget of $422,000,
representing an increase of $38,000 over the current year’s budget. This increase is attributed primarily to
two factors:
• First, the expansion of training and development opportunities for Ministry staff, which


Bermuda House of Assembly supports capacity -building and career progression;
• And second, the salary uplifts resulting from
the Government’s commitment to address
long-standing public service wage freezes, as
referenced in earlier remarks.
This allocation ensures that the Ministry can
continue to support its departments and personnel
effectively, while also maintaining robust administrative systems that are essential to both daily operations
and long- term strategic goals.

Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimates

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now direct Honourable Members to page B -204 of the Estimates
Book, which provides a detailed breakdown of the Ministry’s Current Account Estimates for the 2025/26
fiscal year.
Upon review, you will note a collective increase of $141,000 in salaries and an additional
$108,000 in wages, alongside a $68,000 increase in
the Ministry’s training budget. These increases reflect
this Government’s continued commitment to investing in our public officers —not only by ensuring fair compensation in line with revised pay scales, but also by equipping staff with the professional development opportunities needed to grow, adapt, and lead within an
evolving public service environment.
Mr. Chairman, you will also observe an
$884,000 increase under the Professional Services line item. In this context, professional services refer to
individuals or entities retained to support public officers in the delivery of programmes, projects, and strategic objectives. This includes the hiring of temporary
personnel, summer students, local and international
consultants, and specialist service providers or firms
that possess the technical expertise necessary to
supplement our internal capacity.
Mr. Chairman, regarding the increase of professional services, the Ministry is placing a stronger
emphasis on ensuring that these resources are strategically deployed and accountability -driven. To this
end, we will be monitoring the outcomes and deliverables associated with each engagement. This includes
clearly defined scopes of work, performance bench-marks, and reporting requirements for consultants and
contracted service providers.
By doing so, the Ministry aims to maximise
the return on investment for every dollar spent in this
category —ensuring that these professional services
do not simply fill gaps, but actively contribute to capacity building, project acceleration, and the success-ful execution of key initiatives.
Mr. Chairman, you will further note a
$900,000 reduction under Grants and Contributions. This is not a cut in overall government support, but
rather a realignment of funding responsibilities. Specifically, this amount has been transferred to the Min-istry of Housing and Municipalities, which now has jurisdiction over the Corporation of St. George’s. The associated grant, previously administered under this
Ministry, was operational in nature and pertained to
support for the Corporation when it fell under our re-mit.

Revenue Summary

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, through the Department of Public Lands and Buildings, the Ministry
manages the rental of designated parking spaces
within Government -owned car parks to both public
officers and, where available, members of the general
public. These spaces are offered at a nominal fee.
For the 2025/26 fiscal year, we anticipate this
initiative will generate approximately $16,000 in reve-nue. While not a major source of income, it reflects
the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to optimise the use of
government assets and identify additional revenue streams that help offset operational costs.

Full-Time Equivalents (FTE)
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the budgeted
number of employees for the Ministry Headquarters is
39 as reflected on page B -205, no change from the
previous fiscal year.

Performance Measures
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, as outlined on
page B -206, the Ministry Headquarters has established a number of key performance targets for the 2025/26 fiscal year to ensure continued accountability,
safety, and operational excellence.
Specifically, the Ministry Headquarters will:
• Anticipate the filing of approximately 12 acci-dent reports over the course of the year.
While our ultimate goal is to achieve zero incidents, this projection —given the Ministry’s
large workforce and broad operational remit —
is considered within acceptable safety margins. Importantly, every incident is reviewed
thoroughly, with corrective actions taken to
reduce future risk.
• Conduct four comprehensive safety and
health assessments, each followed by the implementation of corrective measures to improve worksite conditions and reduce hazards.
• Deliver 12 safety and health training sessions
for Ministry employees, reinforcing compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1982 and the Occupational Safety and
Health Regulations 2009, while promoting a
culture of safety and awareness across the
organisation.
466 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly • Continue to meet Government -mandated
deadlines for public officer performance reporting, ensuring that HR evaluations are
conducted in a timely and structured manner.
• Ensure that new employee records are updated within three weeks of the start date, including beneficiary information, training profiles,
and other relevant documentation. This contributes to stronger personnel management
and more efficient service delivery.
• Maintain compliance with Public Access to Information (PATI) requirements by ensuring all
executed contracts are accurately recorded
and published, thereby upholding standards of
transparency and good governance.
• Commence a new series of training sessions
focused on procurement best practices.
These sessions are being reintroduced follow-ing the retirement of a key staff member last
year. With a new team member now on board
and familiarising themselves with internal processes, the Ministry is positioned to strengthen procurement integrity and efficiency mov-ing forward.
Mr. Chairman, these performance measures
reflect the Ministry’s commitment to continuous improvement, legislative compliance, and the effective
stewardship of public resources. They form part of a
broader effort to build capacity, reduce risk, and enhance accountability at all levels of the organisation.

Capital Development
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, turning to page
C-5, I wish to highlight that there are certain cost centres reflected under the Ministry Headquarters which, in practical terms, are managed by other departments
within the broader Ministry.
While the Budget Book identifies five capital
cost centres under the Ministry Headquarters, it is important to clarify that only two of these are directly
overseen by the Headquarters team. The remaining
three are managed by their respective departments
and will be discussed in detail during their individual
budget presentations under the appropriate heads.
Mr. Chairman, focusing now on the capital
projects that are managed directly by the Ministry Headquarters, the 2025/26 Capital Expenditure Plan
includes the following allocations under Capital Development:
• Cost centre 75050— Minor Works: allocated
$300,000; and
• Cost centre 75053— Miscellaneous Small Projects: allocated $280,000
These particular cost centres are typically
used to fund discretionary community -based projects—small but meaningful initiatives that enhance
public infrastructure, improve amenities, or respond to
urgent local needs that fall outside the scope of larger capital programmes. Examples of such works include minor building repairs, accessibility improvements, fencing installations, landscaping upgrades, and enhancements to public -use spaces.
Mr. Chairman, you will also note a decrease in
the allocation for cost centre 75050 compared to the
previous year. As Honourable Members may recall,
during the mid- year budgetary review in 2024, this
cost centre received a one- time increase specifically
to support minor community projects. That additional funding was fully utilised on targeted initiatives, such as landscaping works, fencing upgrades along North
Shore, and other small -scale improvements that addressed community feedback and improved the functionality and safety of public spaces.
While the allocation for 2025/26 returns to its
standard level, these funds continue to play a vital role in giving the Ministry the flexibility to act swiftly on
community priorities and address infrastructure needs
that do not require full -scale capital project planning.

Capital Acquisitions

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the total Capital
Acquisitions Plan for the Ministry of Public Works —
Headquarters for the 2025/26 fiscal year is $878,500,
as outlined on page C -13.
This allocation includes funding for one capital
acquisition that is directly managed by the Ministry
Headquarters:
• Cost centre 76868—Communications Equipment: This allocation will fund the purchase
and installation of [a] new communications
[tower] in St. David’s. As mentioned earlier in
my presentation, this new tower is critical to relocating existing telecommunications infrastructure currently mounted on the St. David’s
Lighthouse, thereby allowing for essential
preservation and renovation works to proceed
at that historically significant site.
Mr. Chairman, while the Estimates reflect
three cost centres under the Ministry Headquarters, I would like to clarify that only the aforementioned cost
centre—related to the communications equipment —is
managed directly by the Headquarters team. The remaining two cost centres fall under the remit of the
Department of Works and Engineering, and their details will be addressed in that department’s specific presentation.
This targeted investment underlines the Ministry’s ongoing efforts to ensure the reliability of our crit-ical communications infrastructure, while also supporting the conservation of Bermuda’s heritage assets.
Mr. Chairman, before concluding, I would like
to take a moment to recognise Ms. Elizabeth Smith,
who retired this past November after more than 20
years of dedicated service to the Ministry’s Purchasing Section.


Bermuda House of Assembly Ms. Smith was a cornerstone of our procurement operations, working diligently behind the scenes
to ensure the Ministry’s needs were met with integrity and a deep knowledge of the processes. Her calm
presence, professionalism, and unwavering commitment earned her the respect and gratitude of colleagues across the Ministry.
She was not only a skilled public officer, but
also a generous team member, always ready to support others and share her institutional knowledge.
On behalf of the Ministry, I extend our heartfelt thanks to Ms. Smith for her exceptional service
and wish her a fulfilling and well -earned retirement.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my presentation
for the Ministry Headquarters, Head 36 and I will now
turn to Head 68, the Department of Parks as found on
pages B -207 through B -213, page C -6 and page C -
13.

All right.

HEAD 68 —DEPARTMENT OF PARKS

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Department
of Parks plays a vital role in the stewardship of Bermuda’s natural and recreational landscapes. It is entrusted with the administration and management of protected areas as outlined in both the Bermuda National Parks Act 1986 and the Bermuda National
Parks Amendment Act 2017.
These Acts categorise protected areas into
three classifications:
• Class A —[Nature] Reserves, which fall under
the responsibility of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (and will be
addressed in my next brief);
• Class B —Amenity Parks, managed by the
Department of Parks; and
• Class C —Recreational Parks, which are overseen by the Department of Sport and Recreation.
Under Class B, the Department of Parks is responsible for 76 amenity parks, which include a broad
range of public spaces, such as playgrounds, historic
forts, landscaped gardens, and the extensive Bermuda Railway Trail, a treasured corridor for walkers, cyclists, and nature enthusiasts.
The department’s mission is clear and impactful: To [develop] and maintain public amenity parks,
beaches, forts, and public school grounds, and to cultivate plants for use in areas under the department’s
remit. To provide safe, aesthetically pleasing, active and passive recreational and educational facilities for
the enjoyment of residents and visitors alike.
Mr. Chairman, in addition to maintaining these
green and cultural spaces, the department also deliv-ers a vital Lifeguard Service at four of Bermuda’s bus-iest public beaches: Horseshoe Bay, John Smith’s
Bay, Clearwater Beach, and Turtle Bay. These lifeguards are professionally trained and ensure the safe-ty of thousands of beachgoers every year.
Beyond parkland and beaches, the Department of Parks also manages a wide- ranging portfolio
of responsibilities that includes the landscape and horticultural maintenance of
• roadside verges and roundabouts;
• public school grounds;
• government health care facilities (clinics, rest
homes);
• post offices and community centres;
• historic and ceremonial sites such as Clifton,
The Laurels, Montpelier, and Government
House.
The department is also responsible for plant
propagation, cultivation, and upkeep at government properties, supporting Bermuda’s biodiversity and
contributing to the aesthetic appeal of public spaces
across the Island.
Mr. Chairman, the work of the Department of
Parks is critical not only to environmental preservation but also to public well -being, tourism, and national
pride. Its contribution to the maintenance and protection of open spaces ensures that Bermuda’s natural
heritage is accessible, safe, and enjoyable for resi-dents and visitors.
As we continue to face the challenges of urban development, climate change, and population
growth, the goal of the department remains unwavering: to develop, conserve, and protect open spaces for
current and future generations.
The value of this department cannot be overstated, and its contributions reach far beyond aesthet-ics—they are foundational to quality of life in Bermuda. With that in mind, I am pleased to state that the Current Account Expenditure estimate allotted to the
Department of Parks for the 2025/26 fiscal year . . .
Mr. Chairman, as seen on page B -208, the
Current Account Expenditure is $11,547,000 which
represents a $1,278,000 increase over the prior year’s
original budget of $10,268,882 and is broken down
into five programmes:
1. Park Services, 6801
2. Lifeguard Service, 6802
3. Park Maintenance, 6803
4. Administration, 6804
5. Forts, 6805

Park Ranger Service, 6801
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the first programme under the Department of Parks is programme
468 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly 6801, Park Ranger Service, associated with cost centre 78000.
The Park Ranger Service is responsible for
enforcing the provisions of the National Parks Act
1986 and the National Parks Regulations 1988.
Rangers patrol Bermuda’s national parks, beaches,
and nature reserves, monitoring the condition of these
areas and the activities taking place within them. Their duties include responding to incidents, ensuring compliance with park regulations, and supporting the safe
and responsible use of public lands.
Rangers also play a key role in managing
special events and functions held within the parks,
liaising closely with community groups, event organisers, and industry partners to ensure smooth operations and minimal environmental impact.
Mr. Chairman, beyond enforcement duties,
the Park Ranger Service is deeply engaged in community outreach and education. On an annual basis,
Rangers support and participate in a range of public
service initiatives, including:
• Charity walks and cycling fundraisers,
• CPR, First Aid, and AED certification courses,
• Guided interpretive tours for schools and
summer camps,
• Organised clean- up campaigns —both scheduled and post -hurricane,
• Collaborative projects with civic and environmental organisations.
The [Park Ranger] Service enjoys strong
working relationships with key stakeholders, including
the Bermuda Police Service—particularly the Community Action Team —as well as Keep Bermuda
Beautiful (KBB), the Friends of the Bermuda Railway
Trail, and the Association of Bermuda International
Companies (ABIC). These partnerships enhance the
department’s ability to enforce regulations and pre-serve the natural beauty of our parks.
However, Mr. Chairman, despite these efforts,
the issue of abandoned vehicles, boats, furniture, and illegal dumping in our parks remains a persistent challenge. The department continues to work proactively
and collaboratively to address these matters and miti-gate their environmental and aesthetic impact.
For the 2025/26 fiscal year, the budget allocation for the Park Ranger Service is $575,000, repre-senting an increase of $77,000 compared to the previous year. This increase is primarily due to the addition of one new full -time [position] within the Ranger
team, as well as the salary scale adjustments previously referenced, reflecting government -wide efforts
to ensure fair compensation for public officers.

Lifeguard Service, 6802

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the second programme under the Department of Parks is programme
6802, Lifeguard Service, which falls under cost centre
78010. This critical service is responsible for enforcing the National Parks Regulations 1988 as they pertain to public beach safety. The Lifeguard Service
provides trained personnel at four public beaches —
Horseshoe Bay, John Smith’s Bay, Clearwater Beach,
and Turtle Bay —and delivers water safety outreach
across the Island.
In addition to their daily responsibilities, lifeguards support community events such as the Bermuda Triathlon, providing essential water safety oversight. They also contribute to the Emergency Measures Organisation (EMO) by offering real -time
surf condition assessments before and after storms and hurricanes. Moreover, their training makes them valuable assets during post -storm recovery efforts,
assisting with tree felling, road clearance, and general restoration work on government properties and beaches.
Mr. Chairman, as I have noted previously, enhanced lifeguard coverage at our beaches is urgently needed— particularly as tourism rebounds and considering recent tragic incidents that have highlighted the vital role these frontline professionals play in protecting lives.
At present, the service is largely seasonal, resulting in gaps in coverage during the off -season,
which leaves our beaches vulnerable. Despite previous budget increases, the department continues to experience challenges in recruiting and retaining qualified lifeguards —an issue compounded by global
shortages in water safety personnel.
To address this, the Government is taking
decisive action. We are
• reviewing the organisational structure of the Lifeguard Service,
• updating job descriptions and compensation packages,
• and collaborating with the Royal National
Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) to elevate training
standards and safety protocols.
In support of this commitment, the 2025/26
budget allocates $1,520,000 to the Lifeguard Service,
an increase of $818,000 over the previous fiscal year.
This enhanced funding will facilitate the recruitment of up to eight full -time consultant lifeguards,
who will be engaged on one- to two -year contracts.
This measure ensures consistent, year -round coverage at our major beaches while longer -term human
resources processes are finalised.
To clarify, the additional funding is not simply
divided among consultants; rather, it supports a comprehensive staffing package that includes
• a consultant pay rate of $30.61 per hour,
• room and board for all eight consultants, in-cluding any Bermudian hires who meet the
criteria,
• health insurance coverage for these frontline
safety personnel,


Bermuda House of Assembly • modest pay scale increases for seasonal lifeguards, aimed at improving retention,
• and an expanded contingency budget to accommodate overtime and emergency deployments during hurricane season and other crises.
Mr. Chairman, this investment reflects the
Government’s clear and unwavering commitment to public safety, workforce stability, and the protection of
our residents and visitors.
I am pleased to report that the department is
in the final stages of securing these qualified individu-als, and I look forward to providing this Honourable
House with a formal update in the near future.

Park Maintenance, 6803

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the third programme within the Department of Parks is programme
6803, Park Maintenance Service, encompassing nine
distinct sub- programmes as detailed on page B -208.
This division employs the majority of the department's
staff and is integral to the day -to-day maintenance of
Bermuda's protected areas.
In accordance with the Bermuda National
Parks Act 1986 and its amendments, the Park
Maintenance Service is responsible for
• landscape maintenance of amenity parks,
beaches, and associated facilities;
• sanitation services across the Bermuda National Parks System;
• horticultural upkeep along roadside verges,
public school grounds, clinics, rest homes,
post offices, and other Government properties, including Clifton, The Laurels, Montpelier,
and Government House.
Additionally, the department's versatile staff
provide vital support to the Emergency Measures Organisation, assisting with recovery efforts following
hurricanes and storms to ensure Bermuda's swift re-turn to normalcy.
As such, the section’s Budget Allocations for
2025/26 are as follows:
• Government House and Camden Programme
[(78015)]: $357,000 (an increase of $64,000),
reflecting staff reassignments and salary scale
adjustments.
• Maintenance and Development Programme
[(78020)]: $1,074,000 (an increase of
$120,000), due to staff movements and salary
scale adjustments.
• Eastern Parks Programme [(78030)]:
$855,000 (a decrease of $148,000), resulting
from staff reassignments.
• Tree Service Programme [(78035)]: $431,000
(a decrease of $108,000), attributed to staff
movements.
• Western Parks Programme [(78040)]:
$1,461,000 (an increase of $48,000), due to staff reassignments and salary scale increases.
• School Grounds Programme [(78045)]: $556,000 (an increase of $21,000), primarily
due to increased material costs.
• Tulo Valley Nursery Programme [(78055)]:
$695,000 (an increase of $276,000), reflecting
staff reassignments and salary scale adjustments.
• Botanical Gardens and Arboretum Pro-gramme [(78065)]: $1,549,000 (a decrease of
$36,000), resulting from staff reassignments.
• Railway Trail Programme [(78100)]: $320,000,
consistent with the previous budget cycle.
This programme requires targeted landscape
management, including the removal of invasive species and the introduction of native and endemic plants.
Mr. Chairman, the department's commitment
to maintaining Bermuda's parks and green spaces is
unwavering. Through strategic staffing and budget
allocations, we continue to ensure that these areas remain safe, accessible, and aesthetically pleasing to
residents and visitors alike.

Administration, 6804
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the fourth programme at the Department of Parks is 6804, Admin-istration and Planning, cost centre 78050.
The Administration and Planning Programme
78050 is the hub of the department where the operational and organisational functions that underpin the
running of the department are conceived and implemented. This section works closely with the superin-tendents as there is collaboration required on many of
the Parks’ initiatives.
The Administration and Planning Teams are
responsible for the issuing permits to lease areas within the amenity parks and forts. The Planning component of this programme is responsible for drafting and developing plans for areas within the national parks, as well as park planning and design, the drafting of park management plans, the issuance of licences, and leases for concession operations in addi-tion to capital project oversight, parks assets analysis
and other key operational activities.
Mr. Chairman, the budget allocation for this
programme is $1,371,000, an increase of $53,000
attributed to salary scale increases.
Mr. Chairman, the Administrative section also
includes the Agricultural Exhibition, cost centre 78110
which has a $236,625 budget an increase of $64,607
to help bring this annual tradition to fruition.

Forts, 6805
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the fifth and final
programme under the Department of Parks is pro470 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly gramme 6805, Forts and Historical Sites, listed under
cost centre 78080.
The Department of Parks is the steward of
Bermuda’s rich cultural and historical legacy, including
the preservation and upkeep of numerous forts and
historical sites. These treasured locations are not only
integral to our heritage but continue to serve as popular venues for both residents and visitors.
Fort St. Catherine, in particular, remains the
most visited fortification and holds special significance as part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Town of St. George’s. Recognised as one of the top
cultural attractions in Bermuda, Fort St. Catherine is
especially appealing to history enthusiasts and continues to generate strong interest for events such as
weddings, guided tours, and educational visits —with
bookings already secured for the 2025/26 fiscal year.
To preserve and promote these important
sites, the department will continue to collaborate with key stakeholders, including the Bermuda Tourism Authority and other local partners, to enhance marketing efforts, to improve accessibility, and ensure proper
maintenance of these historical assets.
In support of these efforts, a total allocation of
$541,000 has been set aside for this programme in the 2025/26 fiscal year —a modest increase of
$23,000 from the previous year. This increase will
fund staff training initiatives and salary scale adjustments, enabling the department to strengthen its capacity to protect and showcase Bermuda’s cultural
heritage.
Before I move on, Mr. Chairman, it would be
remiss of me not to mention Mrs. Francine Trott —a
relative of my honourable colleagues from the eastern
end of the Island and a dedicated public servant
whose career has left an indelible mark on the Department of Parks, particularly within the Forts Section.
Mrs. Trott has served the department with
distinction for over 30 years, bringing not only a
wealth of knowledge and experience, but also a deep
sense of pride and care to her work. Her commitment
to preserving and maintaining some of Bermuda’s most treasured historic sites has been nothing short of
extraordinary.
Throughout her tenure, she played a vital role
in ensuring that our forts —which are symbols of Bermuda’s rich history —remained safe, accessible, and
well cared for, not just for our residents, but also for
the hundreds of visitors who walk their grounds each year.
Beyond her technical contributions, Mrs. Trott
has been a mentor and a source of steady support to her colleagues —always willing to share her
knowledge, offer a helping hand, and take pride in a job well done. Her presence within the department will be missed dearly.
On behalf of the Ministry of Public Works and
Environment, I extend our heartfelt gratitude to Mrs. Francine Trott for her decades of dedicated service. We wish her all the very best in her retirement —may it
be filled with health, happiness, and the same sense
of purpose that she brought to her work each and every day.

Thank you, Minister. And for the listening public we are on the Ministry of Public Works
and Environment. It is a four -and-a-half-hour debate,
five Heads —36, 68, 79, 81 and 82. We have just
completed the second head which is Head 68 and I believe that the Minister is going to go onto Head 79.
Hon. Jache Adams: Not quite, Mr. Chairman .

I was too slow on the last one, too
fast on this one.
Hon. Jache Adams: Yes, yes, yes.
[Laughter]

Hon. Jache Adams: We’ll get it right. We’ll get it right.

Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimates
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now draw Honourable Members’ attention to page B -209, which outlines the Ministry’s Current Account Estimates for the
2025/26 fiscal year in detail.
Upon review, Members will note a collective
increase of $171,000 in salaries and an additional
$306,000 in wages. These adjustments reflect this Government’s ongoing commitment to fair compensa-tion and investment in our public officers, particularly
in recognition of their dedication and the increasingly
complex demands of public service.
Additionally, Mr. Chairman, there is an
$800,000 increase under the Professional Services
line item. As previously discussed, this allocation is
tied directly to the engagement of consultant life-guards, which forms a critical part of our strategy to
strengthen beach safety.
This targeted use of professional services represents not only a strategic response to staffing shortfalls but also a proactive approach to enhancing public
safety during a time of growing tourism and increased beach usage.

Revenue Summary

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the department
anticipates generating $227,000 in revenue during the
2025/26 fiscal year —consistent with the amount collected in the previous year.


Bermuda House of Assembly Full-Time Equivalents (FTE)

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the budgeted
number of employees for the Department of Parks is
132 as reflected on page B -210, a decrease of one
from the previous fiscal year.
As previously noted, the reduction in the reported number of posts does not indicate job losses or
downsizing but rather reflects a more accurate and
transparent budgeting approach. Unlike past years,
the current figures include only filled or actively funded positions, providing a more realistic view of the department’s true staffing levels and supporting better
planning and resource management.

Performance Measures

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, as outlined on
page B -211, the department has set forth a series of
key performance targets for the 2025/26 fiscal year to guide service delivery, ensure legislative compliance, and reinforce our commitment to operational excellence across all programme areas.
For the Park Ranger Service, the department
anticipates the following:
• Issuance of 45 camping permits within our
parklands. This represents a slight increase
over 2024/25, when fewer permits were issued.
• Approximately 460 special permits for largescale events —again, an increase from last
fiscal year, reflecting greater demand for park -
based activities.
• A forecast of 180 incidents reported across
the Parks system. While this number appears
high, I am pleased to note that only 40 inci-dents were recorded in 2024/25, and the projection accounts for expanded reporting and
monitoring.
• Ten interpretive tours are planned for the
year. This is double the five conducted last
year, with the previous reduction largely due
to increased private- sector offerings by local
tour operators.
With respect to the Lifeguard Service:
• Lifeguards are expected to provide coverage at four public beaches, with potential expansion depending on the number of qualified
seasonal applicants.
• While 54 water rescues were performed in the
last fiscal year, we are working to reduce this
figure through enhanced public awareness, increased preventative measures, and better
compliance with safety guidance.
• We will also continue to monitor and respond
to metrics such as preventative actions, minor
and major first aid treatments, with the goal of
minimising risk through proactive engage-ment. For Park Maintenance operations: the department will continue delivering high- quality landscaping, sanitation, and horticultural services across
parks, beaches, school grounds, and other government properties. I am pleased to report that the team consistently met its performance expectations
throughout 2024/25.
Mr. Chairman, these performance indicators
reflect the department’s ongoing efforts to promote
continuous improvement, enhance public safety, and
uphold accountability. They serve as measurable out-comes tied to our broader mission of preserving Bermuda’s natural and recreational assets for the enjoyment and well -being of all.

Capital Developments
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, for the 2025/26
fiscal year, the Department of Parks will undertake several important capital projects that reflect the Gov-ernment’s continued commitment to enhancing Bermuda’s public spaces and infrastructure.
To support this, the department has been allocated $1.2 million under the Park Improvements line
item 75101, as outlined on page C -6. This funding will
be used for a variety of infrastructure upgrades, including:
• repairs to the Kindley Field Boat Ramp at
Stonecrusher Corner, improving access and
safety for the boating community;
• installation of a Temporary Lifeguard Station
at Horseshoe Bay to enhance beach safety
during peak periods;
• repairs to the Tulo Valley Government Plant
Nursery Greenhouse, which supports the
propagation and care of flora used across
public lands;
• renovations to the Cacti House, Exotic House,
and Visitor’s Centre at the Botanical Gardens
to improve visitor experience and preserve
these vital assets; and
• replacement of playground and outdoor exercise equipment at various locations across the
Island to support healthy recreation and public wellness.
Mr. Chairman, I also wish to address the
longstanding issue of the department’s administrative
headquarters. Since 2016, the department has been
operating from a temporary space on the first floor of
Global House in Hamilton, following the deterioration
of its previous facility. This current location, while functional in the interim, is not fit for the operational or
administrative needs of the department.
As such, the Government has allocated
$500,000 (also found on page C -6) to continue the
design and planning of a new purpose- built Headquarters and Maintenance Facility at the Marsh Folly site.
This project represents a strategic investment in the
department’s long- term capacity and will ensure that
472 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly staff are housed in a modern, efficient, and purposedesigned environment that enables them to better serve the public.

Capital Acquisitions

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, under Capital
Acquisitions, cost centre 76474, Vehicles, as outlined
on page C -13, there is a reported allocation for vehicle
purchases.
However, as with previous years, while this
cost centre appears under the Department of Parks, it
is important to clarify that the Department of Works
and Engineering is responsible for managing and executing this line item. As such, further details regarding this allocation will be provided during that presentation.
Mr. Chairman, this now concludes my presentation for the Department of Parks, Head 68, and I will
now turn to Head 79 —Department of Environment
and Natural Resources as found on pages B -214
through B -[221], C -6, C-13 and C -19.

Thank you, Minister. For the listening
public, we have just concluded the second of five
heads. We just finished Head 68 and the Minister is
now going to go into Head 79 under the Environment and Natural Resources.
Minister.

HEAD 79 —DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT AND
NATURAL RESOURCES
Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, it gives me great pleasure to
present the budget for Head 79, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources [DENR], found
on pages B -214 through B -221, C -6, C-13 and C -19 of
the Approved Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure.

Mission
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, starting on page
B-214, the Mission of the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources is To protect Bermuda’s environment and responsibly manage its natural resources.
The department’s objectives comprise the following:
1. To provide strategic direction and management in the formulation and implementation of
legislation, policy, and standards to protect
Bermuda's environment.
2. To reduce negative impacts to Bermuda's
natural environment, biodiversity, natural resources, and marine heritage.
3. To increase the Island's food security and lo-cal food production. 4. To better ensure the survival of threatened species and habitats.
5. To improve humane care and protection of
animals.
6. To improve the quality of Bermuda's ambient air and water quality.
7. To improve care and appreciation of Bermuda's natural environment and marine cultural heritage.
To meet these objectives, the department has
14 business units as shown on page B -215 each of
which comprise a varied complement of skilled officers. The business units are as follows:
• 89000 Administration
• 89010 Marine Resources
• 89020 Marine Conservation
• 89030 Marine Heritage and Health
• 89040 Marine Enforcement
• 89050 Terrestrial Conservation
• 89060 Veterinary Services
• 89070 Animal Control
• 89080 Plant Protection
• 89090 Agronomy
• 89100 Pollution Control
• 89110 BAMZ Administration
• 89120 Aquarium and Zoo
• 89130 Museum

Expenditure Overview

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, on page B -216
you will note that the department’s total budget allocation is approximately $9,148,000 for the 2025/26 fiscal
year. This represents an increase of $279,000, or
3 per cent when compared to the original budget of
the previous year. This increase is due to the increase in salary and wages and energy costs, as well as the hiring of a new temporary assistant for the Marine Resources Section.
Mr. Chairman, the Subjective Analysis of Current Account estimates is found on page B -216 and
includes the following:
• The total salaries for the department is shown on Line 1 and is an increase of $135,000 from
fiscal year 2024/25. Wages is shown on
Line 2 with an increase of $121,000, an
11 per cent increase. The total of salaries and
wages represents 79 per cent of the department’s budget.
• Professional Services is shown on Line 9 and
is $276,000. This budget provides funds for
the overseas consultant agronomist and to
undertake specialised environmental -related
scientific studies and monitoring to address
various pollution and fisheries issues.
• Energy is shown on Line 13 and is $494,000.
This is the same allocation as the previous
year. It is noted that high energy costs are reBermuda House of Assembly quired to energise the numerous buildings
managed by the department, inclusive of the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo [BAMZ], as well as the Agriculture Services
Centre.
I would note that significant efforts have been
made to reduce energy consumption throughout the
department where possible. Both the department headquarters and the BAMZ have significant solar
installations and the BAMZ also has an integrated energy reduction plan that they have been implementing for several years. An audit of energy usage across the
five sites and other buildings of the department is recommended to ensure that the benefits of solar installations and other cost -saving measures are maximised.
• Grants and contributions are shown on
Line 18 in the amount of $230,000. These
funds account for the grant to the Bermuda
Institute for Ocean Sciences [BIOS] to address some of the requirements of the Clean
Air Act. Further explanation will be provided
under Grants and Contributions.
Mr. Chairman, these increases to salaries
have been offset where possible with savings from building rental for a satellite fisheries warden.

Revenue Summary

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the department’s
Revenue Summary is found on page B -217. The department generates revenue from a variety of licences, permits, services and other fees including: licensing of dogs, lobster and fishing activities, water rights,
clean air operating licences, crop storage fees and
daily visitor admissions to BAMZ.
The department’s projected revenue is estimated to be $1,374,000 for the 2025/26 fiscal year.
This estimate represents an increase of $6,000 when
compared to the original estimate of the 2024/25 fiscal year.
An analysis of the projected revenue, includes
the following:
• Admissions, 8253, is shown on Line 2. Admissions are projected to increase $38,000 over the original estimate from 2024/25. This
increase is attributed to revenue expected
from an upward trend in entrance fees into the
Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo [BAMZ].
• Several other revenue cost centres are expected to decrease slightly, and these will be
explained as part of the forthcoming performance measures discussion. However, of
note are the reductions of Lobster Divers Li-cence by $21,000 or 33 per cent. This is reflective of a decision to reduce the number of
licences to lessen the pressure on Bermuda’s
lobster population, which continues to show signs of significant stress, and to help this im-portant resource recover. It is noted that the expected reduction in dog licence revenue
across the Bermuda Post Office counter in
8495 of $40,000 and associated increase in
expected revenue collected at the department
head office Dog Licences reflects the transition to the GovPilot online licence payment system that is currently in the process of being beta tested.

Manpower

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the department
has 79 full -time equivalent posts as shown on page B -
218 of the Approved Estimates of Revenue and Ex-penditure. This remains the same as for the original for last year’s budget.
Currently the department has 10 funded vacancies. Priority to fill the following funded posts this year include:
• Fisheries Warden
• Accounts Assistant
• Administrative Officer
• Plant Protection Officer
• Veterinary Officer
• Marketing Manager [BIU —Agriculture Service
Centre]
• Marine Enforcement Officer
• Environmental Engineer
• Agronomist
• Collector of Marine Specimens
The department is in the process of identifying
a trainee agronomist to provide critical services to our farmers after the previous trainee resigned in November 2024. I also note that the department continues to
modernise numerous job descriptions throughout the
department’s organisational structure to accurately
reflect operational need and priorities.

Capital Development Expenditure
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the capital expenditure budget for the department can be found on
page C -6.
The department has two active capital accounts focused on minor works.
Project 75271, Minor Works for the Environment and Natural Resources is a capital minor works
budget of $150,000 that will provide for the general
maintenance and upgrading of the headquarters facili-ty and plant protection laboratory located in the Botanical Gardens, the Coney Island Facility for marine resources management and enforcement, the Government Agriculture Service Centre in Prospect, the Government kennels, and improvements in the 200 acres
of Government -owned nature reserves and associated buildings managed by the department.
474 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Due to the need for specialised facilities and
educational displays $100,000 has been allocated to
the Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo, for repairs to exhibits and life support systems. This is shown in
Project 75236, Aquarium Refurbishment. This includes minor repairs to ensure the continued operation of the Zoo and Aquarium.
Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to announce that
$2,500,000 has been allocated to continue the ground
investigation work for the replacement Agriculture
Services Centre. This is shown in Project 75367, [Ag-riculture Services Centre]. I can advise that at this
time a new replacement centre has been designed
and received full Planning permission. This funding
will allow for the completion of the project’s contract
and preparation of the new site adjacent to the current
facility. I look forward to briefing this Honourable House on this and other important agriculture- related
projects that are aimed at providing important support
to our farmers and bolstering the Island’s food security.
Mr. Chairman, I am also pleased to announce
that $1,750,000 has been allocated towards the implementation of the Master Plan 2025– 2038 to improve and transform the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum
and Zoo. This is shown as 75371, BAMZ Master
Plan—Infrastructure.

[Crosstalk]
Hon. Jache Adams: One happy customer.
[Laughter]

Grants and Contributions

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the department
has traditionally engaged local entities to undertake specialised studies, such as the Ambient Air Quality
programme through the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences [BIOS]. The funding for the Ambient Air
quality monitoring programme can be found on page
C-19 as 7006, BBSR —Air/Water Quality Study.
The grant for $230,000 will enable the department to meet its monitoring requirements mandat-ed by the Clean Air Act 1991. I can confirm that seven
monitoring stations are currently being installed in areas around the Island, including in the vicinity of
BELCO, to monitor the Island’s air quality. I will elaborate on this in due course.

Output Measures

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, while a complete
tabulation of the Output Measures for the Department
of Environment and Natural Resources can be found
on pages B -219 to B -221 of the Approved Estimates
of Revenue and Expenditure for 2025/26, I will endeavour to highlight some of the measures of note.
Business Unit 89000, Administration
Noted on Budget Page B -219
Hon. Jache Adams: Twenty -four protected species
permit applications for research licences were issued
to local and international researchers within five working days in fiscal year 2024/25. This is higher than the
seven issued for 2023/24 and perhaps reflects the need for greater understanding of our local biodiversity.
Research topics included a wide gamut of interest including surveys for reintroduced captive- bred
endemic land snails and Bermuda skinks, cave mapping as well as collecting and identifying marine cave-dwelling species, and surveys on non- native freshwater crayfish in local wetlands. Work continued to de-termine the status of our leafcutter bees, potential sea level rise impacts to caves, collection of terrestrial
plant seeds, and rat detection in the landscape using
artificial intelligence. All of these were paid for by our project collaborators at no cost to the Government. A
number of invasive pest species continue to have a
negative impact on Bermuda’s ecology and farming
sector, as well as being nuisances to the general public. These are predominantly bird species such as fe-ral chickens, pigeons and crows. However, the department is also addressing increasing numbers of
complaints from other species such as rabbits and guinea pigs that have been released into the wild. The
department removed over 6,000 pest species for
2024/25 which is down on 2023/24 at 8,000 species.

Business Unit 89010, Marine Resources Noted on
Budget Page B -219.

Hon. Jache Adams: Sustaining our local fisheries is
paramount. In the fiscal year 2024/25, the Marine Resources Section continued to successfully manage the licensing of our commercial finfish and lobster fisheries, and the recreational lobster and spearfishing fisheries, as well as providing support to the Marine Resources Board and the Commercial Fisheries Council. Work also continued on data collection for the spiny
lobster, guinea chick, and black grouper research
programmes, including a pilot spiny lobster recruit-ment study. The section also maintained compliance
with our membership to the International Commission
for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas [ICCAT], as well as providing support to the Sargasso Sea Commission.
Additionally, the Marine Resources Section
served as the department lead for several specialised
projects, including the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity
Programme and the UK Blue Belt Ocean Shield Pro-gramme. Some of the achievements under these programmes during the past year are
• the completion of the final draft of a Blue
Prosperity Plan for Bermuda, which includes a

B ermuda House of Assembly Marine Spatial Plan and a Blue Economy
Strategy; and
•the preparation of a Cabinet memo to seekGovernment approval for a Marine Development Act that will enable the Marine Spatial
Plan and promote sustainable use of Bermu-da’s marine environment;

I am actually very riveted in what you
are talking about because in another life I wanted to be a marine biologist. However, it has been brought to
my attention that we are approaching the 12:30 mark,
so I will leave it up to you to find a place to leave off and then you can move the motion to take us to lunch.
Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will
be one minute.
[
Committee of Supply, continuing]
Hon. Jache Adams:
•the finalisation of a stock assessment for the
red hind fishery;
•the development of a new online platform an d
mob
ile app designed to modernise fisheries
data management in Bermuda;
•actioning of the 2024- 25 workplan for the Blue
Belt Ocean Shield Programme that isstrengthening marine enforcement and compliance, alongside maritime domain aware-ness; and
•the development of data sharing protocols
and a shiprider agreement with the U.S. Coast
Guard to assist with monitoring Bermuda’swaters for IUU [illegal, unreported and un-regulated] fishing.Mr. Speaker [sic], I think at this moment, Iwill—Mr. Chairman, I move at this moment . . . I will
stop here for lunch, so I move that we break for lunch and return at 2:00 pm.

The motion has been moved that we
go to lunch and come back at 2:00 pm. Any objections?
No objections. We will break for lunch.
[
Gavel]
Proceedings in Committee suspended at 12:30 pm
Proceedings in Committee resumed at 2:06 pm
[Mr
. Scott Simmons, Chairman] COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY
ESTIMATES OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE
FOR THE YEAR 202 5/26
[Continuation thereon]

Thank you, Minister.
Mar
ine Conservation
Hon. Jache Adams: In addition to its many other duties in 2024/25 the Marine Conservation Section re-viewed 10 planning applications pertaining to the ma-rine environment, presenting all of them to the Marine Resources Board within four weeks of receiving the application. This represents 100 per cent response
target. This was down on the numbers of consultations received in 2023/24 at 17, but all were responded to within the Department of Planning in 2024/25. It
is expected that in 2025/26 this may increase to 25 applications, but this is wholly dependent on devel-opment interest.
Mr. Chairman, 75 marine habitat assessments
were conducted in the 2024/25 period. The majority of these were related to seagrass surveys. This was an increase from the 65 habitat assessments completed in 2023/24.
Mar
ine Heritage and Health
Hon. Jache Adams: The Marine Heritage and Health,
[which] is noted on page B -219. In 2024/25, the 14
marine heritage consultations were conducted by the section within 20 working days which was slightly
down on the 2023/24 period of 17 consultations. It is
expected that in 2025/26 dependent on development MINISTRY OF PUBLIC WORKS AND
ENVIRONMENT
476 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly interest, the numbers will remain about the same as
the original forecast with 12 applications being re-ceived, and 100 per cent being responded to within 20
working days.
Visits to protected dive sites and use of the
Government -managed moorings by residents continue to increase as cruise ship and airlines visits contin-ue to grow and more residents visit our reef. The per-centage of the 40 protected dive site moorings being
largely in place and operational for the summer of
2024/25 dive season represents 97.5 per cent of the
total. These represent an increase from the actual
number of dive site moorings available in 2023/24 of
35, representing 88 per cent of the required availability for the summer months.
In 2025/26 it is expected that there will be 40
dive site moorings in place for the whole summer season and 100 per cent will be assessed within 60 days
and repairs made in readiness for the season. This
coming season is expected to be very active as both
tour operators and recreational marine users take ad-vantage of this unique natural resource. The department has also recently improved the website that describes the wreck at each site location, including no
fishing zones and other restrictions and protections.
The department and the Ministry are most
grateful to the Stempel Foundation for its continued support of this important project.
The DENR Marine Heritage Section’s boat
Firefly was badly damaged in Hurricane Ernesto in
August of 2024. Survey of the crash scene deemed it
was unsafe to repair. Insurance claims were brought
and paid to Government in January of 2025 and appli-cation for the 2025/26 budget has been made for a
replacement research boat for the Marine Heritage
section and to assist with various BOPP -driven [ Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme] monitoring pro-grammes.

Marine Enforcement
Hon. Jache Adams: Marine Enforcement is noted in
the Budget Book on page B -220. In budget year
2024/25, there were 250 vessels were stopped and checked with particular attention to daily bag limits,
fish size, and species restrictions. This level was below a typical season though an increase on 2023/24
at 215 vessel searches. This was due to personnel
issues. I am happy to report that all patrol vessels are now in working order and efforts to synergise with the [Bermuda] Coast Guard Unit continues. Summonses
for three cases of illegal fishing activity have been issued in the past 12 months with a further five cases
due to lead to summonses shortly.
The DENR Coast Guard Unit and Marine and
Port Services contribute to the witness statements for these cases with DENR leading on three and the
Coast Guard Unit leading on five cases. It is noted
that the current number of cases for prosecution are significantly up on the 2023/24 period of one. The department is also working with the Department of Pub-lic Prosecutions [DPP] to provide improved training on
the importance of the fishery statutes in the context of
protecting our marine environment against the ever -
increasing stresses created by climate change.
Training of the judiciary is an important priority
after a recent illegal fishing case resulted in a sus-pended sentence. The Marine Resources Enforcement Strategy is due for completion in June of 2025.

Terrestrial Conservation

Hon. Jache Adams: Terrestrial Conservation is noted
in the Budget Book on page B -220. An important part
of the Terrestrial Conservation section’s mission is to
provide environmental and habitat assessment advice to the Department of Planning and members of the
public for all matters related to terrestrial conservation
zones.
In fiscal year 2024/25, the section undertook
110 consultations on Planning applications, Environ-mental Impact Assessment Scoping Reports [EIAs],
Conservation Management Plans, and proposed
landscape schemes and 90 per cent were responded
to within 20 days. This is slightly more than for the
2023/24 period at 109 consultations where 98 per
cent were responded to within the 20 working day target. It is expected that similar numbers of applications
will occur in this upcoming fiscal year.
The Terrestrial Conservation Crew continued
their important job maintaining Bermuda’s Government Nature Reserves, especially those used frequently by the public including visitors, such as Cooper’s Island and Spittal Pond Nature Reserves.
This work includes trail maintenance and control of
invasive species such as Casuarina and Brazil Pepper, as well as replanting with native and endemic species.
The number of guided tours and talks provided by this section, especially to school and education-al groups continues to be at normal levels of 49 for 2024/25 which is similar to 2023/24 at 50.

Veterinary Services

Hon. Jache Adams: Veterinary Services is noted,
again in the Budget Book at page B -220. Activities of
the Veterinary Services Section remained customer -
focused on animal imports and re- visiting the conditions of entry for various species. However, a significant portion of activity focused on work in conjunction
with animal control on animal welfare and judicial matters. As a result, lesser attention focused on farm pro-duction and animal welfare on farms over 2023/24
and 2024/25.
The additional Disease Response Plan that is
currently being drafted for 2025/26 is to address avian
flu if it reaches Bermuda. The resources required to


Bermuda House of Assembly meet the task listed in the plan in preparation for such
a response will be discussed within the Ministry.

Animal Control
Hon. Jache Adams: Again, this is noted in the Budget Book on page B -220. During 2024/25, the percentage of dogs believed to be eligible for licensure and which were actually licensed was 30 per cent, which is
a slight increase in 2023/24 at 26 per cent. This percentage is likely the result of multiple factors at play, including ongoing economic challenges in the community and the lack of awareness on behalf of dog
owners. The department has set a forecast of a 40 per
cent target for licensing for 2025/26 in anticipation of widespread publicity campaign and broadening enforcement tools. It is noted that the new online GovPilot licensing system is not for new licences, due to the
various checks required for new pets, but for licence
renewals The total number of incidents and complaints investigated over 2023/24 was 1,027 and the
average response time improved to one day. These
numbers do not reflect the complexity of cases and
the burden of housing and caring for the 387 animals
taken in over the year.

Plant Protection

Hon. Jache Adams: Plant Protection is noted in the
Budget Book on page B -220. There were 1,043,932
incoming items inspected for plant pests and diseases in 2024/25, with 9 per cent of those being found to be
infested. This was a slight increase on the number of
inspections for 2023/24 at 1,003,781 where typically
10 per cent were shown to be infested. It is expected
that the trend for plant imports will remain steady in
2025/26. However, it is projected that the plant pest
infestations may increase as a result of projected climate change which could lead to increases in pest populations and pest expansion into new geographical
regions.
As in previous years, our plant protection biosecurity inspection process continues to be robust
with high entry standards for propagation material and
vigorous quarantine inspections taking place upon
entry for all products that could pose a pest or disease
risk to our environment. This includes mandatory inspections upon arrival of all floral and plant material:
seeds, bulbs, fruits, vegetables, sand and potting mix-es. Together these efforts continue to exclude the se-rious plant pests and diseases that would negatively
impact our environment and our agricultural industry.
I am also happy to report that this year the Island received shipments of seed potatoes, strawberries plants and sweet potato cuttings for planting.
These will be used to produce this year’s crop and contribute positively to the Island’s food security. The
Plant Protection section continued its efforts to ensure
that the importation process was smooth this year and reissued its guidance and regularly provided calendar
alerts to importers as well as support at all stages. Further, all fees for regular inspections of food- related
imports undertaken by the Plant Protection Laboratory continued to be waived in order to assist with keeping importation costs at a minimum.
A challenge that was addressed in 2024/25
was the unexpected arrival of lanternfly insects, a po-tential new pest to Bermuda that were littered over the
outer surface of incoming cruise ships from the East
Coast of the United States. Teams of DENR officers responded quickly to the situation, performing
onboard quarantine inspections of arriving high- risk
cruise vessels. In stating pre- arrival pest checks and
carrying out follow -up inspections until it was clear
that the lanternfly pest population no longer posed a
risk to Bermuda.
It is noted that the many swarms of lanternfly
insects currently in the US have arrived as invasive species from Asia.

Mm-hmm.

Agronomy
Hon. Jache Adams: Agronomy is noted in the Budget
Book on page B -221. The Agriculture Service Centre
is one of the main means by which the Government can provide direct assistance to our local farmers. The
centre provides cold storage for local crops, ice for
farmers and fishermen, packaging materials, banana
ripening services, seeds, and chemicals.
In 2024/25, the Centre handled a total of
$212,000 of produce, goods and services in support of the agriculture industry. This was similar; a slight
increase in 2023/24 at $210,000. This general trend
with a small increase is expected to continue through
this year and in 2025/26. Similarly, I note that the economic embargos for locally grown vegetables are
expected to remain consistent with 145 implemented
in 2023/24 and 138 embargos issued in 2024/25. This
confirms that our farmers are able to meet the local demand of certain crops for the entire Island for periods of time. Our consultant agronomist is working well
with local farmers to help introduce more heat -tolerant
varieties of certain crops in order to extend the growing season thereby extending the periods of the embargos.
I would like to extend a big thank you to all of
our local farmers for all of their continued efforts with their hard work and their contributions to the im-provement of the industry. Their produce continues to
be of high quality and is therefore in high demand by
the general public, restaurants and grocery stores. We look forward to seeing continued increases in the local
agricultural industry and the Government will play its
part to assisting and supporting our farmers to pro-duce more good quality food for our Island. Increased
local produce leads to increased food security. The
478 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly availability of high quality, locally sourced fresh produce lends itself to healthier diets and improved well -
being. We will continue to work with the Board of Agri-culture and the Farmers Association to identify efficiencies and potential production cost reductions.

Pollution Control

Hon. Jache Adams: Again, noted in the Budget Book
on page B -221. The Island’s four main freshwater
lenses remain at full capacity, but some allocated sectors continue to be underutilised causing the excess
rainwater captured to overflow to the sea. Processes
to fairly reallocate water rights to companies who will
abstract fully the fresh groundwater that is available to
them are being progressed. All reported spills of oil
and fuel were monitored and cleaned up according to the Government guidelines. The progress made under
the MOU [Memorandum of Understanding] between
the Government and KBB [Keep Bermuda Beautiful]
has resulted in 143 abandoned and derelict vessels being surveyed and advertised in The Official Gazette
since 2021. Once suitably advertised, Government
provides instruction to KBB for these vessels to be
removed to the Airport Waste Management Facility
using marine contractors who also drain fuel and oil
and remove batteries as well. Working closely with the Bermuda Shipping and Maritime Authority and Marine
and Port Services new regulations to address abandoned and derelict vessels are being considered that
will help to address associated pollution and aesthetic
issues with the goal of sharing these costs within the
boating public.

Bermuda Aquarium, Museum Zoo Administration

Hon. Jache Adams: Bermuda Aquarium, Museum
Zoo Administration [BAMZ] is noted in the Budget Book on page B -221. I am happy to report that the
facility maintained its accreditation with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and the facility continues
to be one of the most popular attractions for both locals and visitors alike.
I would like to take a moment to thank the
hard- working staff at the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum
and Zoo for their dedication to all the animals in their
care.

The Aquarium and Zoo

Hon. Jache Adams: Onsite veterinary examinations
continued on a fairly normal schedule with over 250 animals in the Government collection receiving preventative veterinary care in fiscal year 2024/25. These
numbers are a slight increase on 2023/24 at 232 animals receiving veterinary care.

Museum
Hon. Jache Adams: The Museum is again in the
Budget Book at page B -221. The number of specimens, images and research papers added to the natural history collection was 5,076 in 2023/24 which is
down on the target level of 4,000 due to the vacant underfunded librarian post.

MAJOR POLICY CHANGES AND ACHIEVEMENTS

Hon. Jache Adams: I will now provide additional details on the specialised projects that teams at the de-partment had been working extremely hard on in addition to their regular duties.

Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme

Hon. Jache Adams: Firstly, Mr. Chairman, I would
like to update this Honourable House on the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme [BOPP]. As noted in
previous years, the Government embarked on this programme in partnership with the nonprofit Waitt Institute and the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Science
[BIOS] in June of 2019. The result of this programme
will be the creation of an integrated marine spatial
plan for the entirety of Bermuda’s 200 nautical mile Economic Exclusive Zone [EEZ]. Also included in this
initiative is a Blue Economy Strategy which will look
into identifying ways to capitalise on numerous oppor-tunities in our waters such as for fisheries, blue tourism, and ocean r enewable energy.
In April of 2024 a finalised draft of the Marine
Spatial Plan and Blue Economy Strategy, known together as the Blue Prosperity Plan was produced. The
Minister of Home Affairs subsequently nominated an independent review panel to evaluate and respond to
public submissions on the Blue Prosperity Plan’s proposed marine protected area network and potential
use areas. The panel provided its final recommenda-tions to the Ministry later in 2024 and expressed
strong support for the core objectives of the Marine
Spatial Plan which included promoting the sustainable
use of marine resources within the Bermuda’s EEZ, protecting the marine ecosystems and enabling the
recovery of fish and other marine populations to historically abundant levels.
In response to theses recommendations the
Ministry of Home Affairs committed to integrating a number of objectives into the final Marine Spatial Plan and it reaffirmed its commitment to adopting a phased
implementation strategy of the plan to foster trust and
ensure effective enforcement. Upon assuming my po-sition as Minister of Public Works and Environment, I
announced that the Government will be pausing implementation of new marine protected areas until an agreement was reached with local fishermen on better
enforcement and fairer data collection rules to support
any new marine protected areas. My Ministry recog-nises that collaboration and inclusivity are key to
achieving the Blue Prosperity Plan’s objectives and


Bermuda House of Assembly stresses that stakeholder engagement and partnership will be prioritised as the plan evolves.
Since taking office, I have met with and discussed the Blue Prosperity Plan with the Government’s Statutory Board, the Commercial Fisheries
Council, the Fishermen’s Association of Bermuda and
key personnel within the department, Bermuda Ocean
Prosperity Programme and the Waitt Institute. As a reminder, the public can find all of the draft plans,
background documents and consultation reports on
the website www.bermudaoceanprosperity.org.
In addition to the progress made on the Marine Spatial Plan work also advanced on the Blue Economy Strategy. Particularly on the establishment of an Ocean Fund that will work hand in hand with the
Marine Spatial Plan. As indicated by a press release
on 3 February 2025, the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Fund Limited has now been formally gazetted for incorporation. Once implemented, the Ocean Fund will
drive financing into Bermuda projects and businesses
to grow the economy in areas related to sustainable fisheries, sustainable tourism, marine technology, renewable energy and nature -based projects.
Mr. Chairman, another notable accomplishment under the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Pro-gramme in 2024 was the finalisation of an assessment
of the Red Hind population in Bermuda. In collabora-tion with the University of California, Santa Barbara’s
emLab, it is well known that the Red Hind is a key local commercial and recreational fish species and
there have been a number of studies conducted on
the Red Hind fishery over the years. The 2024 assessment leveraged data collected from the previous studies along with new data to evaluate the status of
the Red Hind population in Bermuda.
It is worth noting here, Mr. Chairman, that
while the Fishermen’s Association of Bermuda disap-proves of some aspects of the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme, and have been quite vocal about that, commercial fishermen have largely supported
research on the Red Hind population for decades,
with several fisherman actively helping with the studies by taking researchers out on their boats and as-sisting with data collection. I would like to therefore
thank all of those fishermen who have assisted the
department with the Red Hind research programme
and other research initiatives over the years. The results of the Red Hind stock assessment were positive
and indicated that the stock is currently being fished within sustainable levels.
Mr. Chairman, with funding through the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme partnership, the
department worked with Shellcatch, an experienced
developer of fisheries data management software to
implement a new online platform and mobile app to
modernise fisheries’ data management in Bermuda.
The system streamlines the licensing process, simplifies catch reporting for fishers and ensures that rele-vant information is easily accessible to support scien-tific research and enforcement activities.
Commercial and recreational fishermen have
requested a user -friendly, app- based reporting system
for many years. The department worked closely with
experienced fishermen to gather input on the app’s
user-interface and functionality. By incorporating their
feedback, this new platform aims to streamline the
submission of the catch data which plays a vital role in
guiding fisheries’ management.

Better Marine Resources Enforcement

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Ministry continues to emphasise that effective enforcement is one of the most critical elements of effective marine resources management.
In 2024/25, the department continued its work
with the United Kingdom on its Blue Belt Ocean Shield Programme. This work not only involves the Depart-ment of Environment and Natural Resources but also
includes the Royal Bermuda Regiment’s Coast Guard
and the Department of Marine and Ports [Services].
This increased collaboration has resulted in a number
of cases being prepared for prosecution. The evolving partnership with the US Coast Guard has led to signing of a shiprider agreement to allow the Bermuda
Government officers to undertake patrols on US Coast
Guard vessels in Bermuda’s EEZ [ Economic Empowerment Zone ] as well as the surrounding high seas.
The US Coast Guard along with the UK Marine Management Organisation has also been providing regular intelligence feeds on international fishing
vessels operating near our EEZ boundary which is allowing for a better understanding of the patterns of
activity that could affect us.
I would like to thank the Government House
and the US Consulate for their great support in these
important initiatives. In addition to this work, a consultant was hired through the Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme to assist with finalising the Bermuda Marine Resources Enforcement Strategy. The consultant is providing targeted recommendations to
enhance the strategy, aligning the strategy with
emerging partnerships and initiatives and considering
the recommendations made by the Marine Spatial
Plan Independent Review Panel, particularly those
reflecting enforcement concerns raised by the Bermu-da community.

Animal Control and Dogs

Hon. Jache Adams: During 2024/25 the ad hoc Canine Advisory Committee examined the various issues
surrounding dogs and presented its findings and operations to the Ministry for consideration. The department also presented options to the new Ministry and will be working to identify the preferred way forward to
address public concerns around dangerous dogs, ille480 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly gal breeding, irresponsible ownership issues and including some legislative amendments that are antici-pated.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Jache Adams: Advancements were made for
an online ‘GovPilot’ dog licence renewal system which
has undergone some beta- tests and the issues identified are currently being addressed. The final rollout is anticipated very soon following final testing to ensure accuracy of information available to the public, privacy
of personal information, accuracy of fees and appropriate back -end handling of funds and financial reconciliation practices.
Management Services conducted a review of
animal control and has offered its recommendations
on the functions of animal control to create a more
effective and efficient service. Animal Control officers
received specialised training gaining knowledge
needed in their daily activities to ensure the safety of themselves and the animals they handle.

Tackling Pest Species

Hon. Jache Adams: Work has continued in the monitoring and management of local pests, disease and
invasive species that threaten the Island’s economy,
human health, and fragile environment. The department continues to control pest bird species mainly
focused on feral chickens.
Our farmers continue to bear the brunt of the
unwanted attentions of these birds that are seeing whole fields of crops decimated. Every effort is being
made to remove as many birds as possible and the
Board of Agriculture is currently considering additional
recommendations to the Minister.
As provided in recent Ministry press articles, I
would strongly encourage those members of the pub-lic to not feed feral chickens. And for those who have
chickens to be responsible and not allow them to stray
or to be dumped in public areas and fields. The discovery feral colony of non- native crayfish has prompted DENR to draft amendments to the Invasive Alien
Species Act.

Establishment of Critical Habitat Designation
for Nonsuch Island

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Department
of Environment and Natural Resources is expected to
make a case under the Protected Species Act 2003 to
designate Nonsuch Island and other Cahow nesting
islands as critical habitat. The successful establishment of viable populations of the endemic cahow or
Bermuda Petrel and the endemic Greater Bermuda Land Snail on Nonsuch Island greatly improving the
recovery of these endangered species. In collaboration with overseas researchers,
three new scientific publications on the cahow have
been published or are in preparation.

Ensuring We Have Clean Air and Water

Hon. Jache Adams: The Pollution Control Section of
the DENR has a major role in the maintenance and training of the National Oil Pollution Contingency Plan
in addition to ensuring that the local spill emergency
plans of Bermuda’s licensed ports and oil -handling
facilities are aligned to this National Plan.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Jache Adams: This section also manages the
spill response equipment in addition to maintaining
links with various organisations that can offer overseas assistance in the event of a large spill.
The UK Maritime Coast Guard Agency recognises this effort and has committed over $343,251
over the past four years for ongoing training and
equipment procurement including offshore oil spill response booms, dispersant and skimmer equipment.
As a result, Bermuda is currently able to meet the
demands of audits required by the International Maritime Organization [IMO].

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Jache Adams: The Pollution Control Section
has continued to manage complaints by the public related to air quality issues from BELCO’s large particle soot emissions, fumes from local tank vents and down drafting of exhaust fumes in addition to concern
of these impacts to residential water tanks. Through
the Environmental Authority the operating licence
conditions for the BELCO control plants have been revised annually to tighten emission parameters and
to increase oversight of these emissions.
Government -funded portable monitoring sensors have been installed at four locations with another
three sensors soon to be installed. The operating licence requires BELCO to also maintain ambient air
quality monitoring stations at Cemetery Lane and at the top of Langton Hill.
BELCO continues to select BIOS [Bermuda
Institute for Ocean Sciences] for the independent wa-ter quality residential water tanks which is conditioned
in their operating licence. Data for the 59 properties
analysed to date since 2020 has shown compliance to the “primary” UK drinking water standards and World
Health Organization [WHO] guidelines for fuel combustion- related contaminants.
“Secondary” standards for aluminium and iron
have been exceeded in 12 properties to date, with the five iron exceedances possibly originating from the metal exhaust flues of the BELCO North Power Station when combined with the soot emissions. “SecBermuda House of Assembly ondary” standards relate to the aesthetic qualities of
water, including clarity and taste.
The Pollution Control Section continues to
seek best regulatory practice from other developed
jurisdictions to monitor and legislate such large particle soot emissions but to date this can only be described as an unacceptable nuisance. Details of the
Clean Air Amendment Regulations are provided in the plans for the upcoming year.

Increased Food Security

Hon. Jache Adams: The department continued to
provide its important industry support services at the
existing 100- plus-year-old Agricultural Services Centre while preparing for a replacement centre. This fa-cility will be critical for the Island’s food security. Con-sultations have continued with the Farmers Association and its members to identify and clarify the challenges and priorities for the industry. Accurate identification of obstacles to the sustainability and growth of the industry will ensure that departmental efforts are
correctly prioritised and the industry is supported.
The consultant agronomist, Mr. Stewart
Swanson, continues his valuable work supporting the agricultural industry on a wide range of agricultural
issues with the goals of reducing costs and improving yields, providing specialised expertise in key issues
such as soil management, pest and disease surveyance and the procurement of seeds and supplies.
In conjunction with the specialist, Mr. Swanson has coordinated a n ematode survey of the Island’s agricultural field which has culminated in a report that has been shared with the agricultural industry
stakeholders. Nematodes are microscopic worms that
can be either beneficial or a major pest for crops. Information revealed through this study will help local
growers to make informed pest management decisions.
Food security remains a key issue and one
this department takes very seriously. DENR officers
diligently work with farmers and other industry stakeholders to support and promote local food production while monitoring the equally critical supply of imported
produce. There is exciting and welcome news as the
realisation of a new purpose- built Agriculture Service
Centre looms ever closer. This new facility will help
enhance the local agriculture industry by providing
greater storage and capacity for short - and long- term
storage crops as well as provide other essential ser-vices to the industry.

PLANS FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR

Increased Food Security and Reduced Cost of Living

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, this year the department will continue to focus on its efforts on increasing local food production and assisting the agri-cultural industry in reducing local production costs
whether that will be, for example, focusing on the re-duction of feral chickens on agricultural land or
through the improvement of the economic embargo
system to better support the sale of local produce. These measures will translate into increased food security for the Island and reduced cost of living for our
residents.
The department and the Board of Agriculture
will continue to develop the integrated agriculture strategy which would include a review of the National Crop Strategy 2016– 2021 and the draft Dairy Strategy
and complete new Livestock/Poultry/Honey and Aquaculture components. Further, the Government will
expand its direct support to farmers through continued
services provided by the consultant agronomist who
will prioritise the needs of the sector. He will continue to explore and promote strategies to increase food
production through measures such as effective fertilisation and weed management as well as investigating ways to expand the growing season of crops presently
being grown in Bermuda.

Plans for Long- Term Sustainable Use and
Conservation of Our Marine Resources in Our
Exclusive Economic Zones

Hon. Jache Adams: In the coming year, the department will seek permission from Cabinet for the Marine
Development Act to be drafted. This Act provides the
framework for the implementation of the Marine Spatial Plan and Blue Economy Strategy which will occur
once agreement has been reached with local fishermen regarding better enforcement and fairer data col-lection rules. Further, the department will provide recommendation for a phased implementation approach
for the Marine Spatial Plan to maximise buy -in for all
stakeholders.
Mr. Chairman, with regard to fairer data collection, the Government is committed to ensuring that
more data is obtained from other marine resource users in addition to the data provided by commercial fishermen as these are common property resources.
In order to collect additional fish catch data and to better promote sustainable fishing practices, the depart-ment intends to amend the Fisheries Act 1972 and the
Fisheries Regulations 2010 to require licences for recreational fishing activity from boats.
Current data collection programmes to inform
assessments of important commercial fish and lobster stocks will continue as these will help inform potential changes to existing policy. The department will also
assume control of the yearly maintenance and IT support costs for the new fisheries Shellcatch data base. Additionally, efforts will continue to protect our critical
seagrass and mangrove habitats through better management of existing areas where these habitats are found and through new plantings.

482 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Integrated and Effective
Marine Enforcement of the EEZ

Hon. Jache Adams: Ensuring m arine resources enforcement is essential and the marine resources en-forcement strategy is being updated to show Government’s commitment to addressing illegal fishing activity under existing national statues. The enforcement strategy will also continue to be integrated with the
Bermuda Ocean Prosperity Programme [BOPP] and
the UK Blue Belt Ocean Shield programme to en-hance the Island’s marine domain awareness as well
as its capacity and capability to effectively address
offences over the entirety of our EEZ.

Mm-hmm.

Addressing Lost Seagrass Beds
Hon. Jache Adams: Following the significant loss of
seagrass habitat in Bermuda over the past decade
that coincided with a large population growth of green
turtles, which subsequently crashed in 2020,
measures are being taken to help the seagrass recover. In addition to expanding sites that exclude the
pressures of turtle grazing, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources is working with other departments and private organisations to evaluate
and promote environmentally friendly moorings.
Novel seagrass planting studies are also being monitored internationally.

Tracking Pest Species
Hon. Jache Adams: Work will continue in the monitoring and management of local pests, diseases and
invasive species that threaten the Island’s economy,
human health and fragile environment.
A public awareness campaign will be developed to help the public and stakeholders better understand the recently passed Invasive Alien Species
Act 2021 and Regulations 2022 as well as the listed
pest species. Discussions with importers for the pet
trade will be undertaken to better understand the species that could potentially become invasive to Bermuda which will lead to proposed amendments to the
Alien Invasive Species Act. It is noted that controls will
be applied during 2025 to address the recently discovered invasive population of crayfish in Devonshire Marsh.

Ensuring We Have Clean Air and Water

Hon. Jache Adams: The Clean Air Amendment Act
2024 has passed through the House and Senate to align with best practices to better manage pollution and to include nuisance events to advance higher
standards and penalties for infractions. The Clean Air
Amendment Regulations have been prepared and are due to be tabled and debated in the House in the near
future.
Similarly, the Water Resources Amendment
Act 2024 also passed through the House and Senate to improve upon controlling pollution to ground water and sea water. The Water Resources Amendment
Regulations to address pollution to ground that presents a risk to ground water are being completed by Attorney General’s Chambers ahead of being debated
in the House in 2025.

Better Management of Animals

Hon. Jache Adams: I recognise that recently there
has been an increase of irresponsible dog ownership
and management incidents. I also note that the Animal Control Section has been working diligently to address these issues. But the responsibility cannot be
shouldered by the Government. The management of
dogs is a community issue. Dogs are supposed to be man’s best friend, and we need to treat them as such.
With that in mind, the previous Minister Roban reconstituted the ad hoc Advisory Committee under the
leadership of Senator Lindsay [Simmons] -Wilson. The
committee is made up of the stakeholder groups that
have advocated for dog welfare. The output from the
committee in addition to the considerations of the
chief veterinary officer, are now being considered on what can be done to ensure Bermuda’s dogs are
more responsibly managed and the community kept
safe from dangerous dog attacks.
The Animal Control Section will continue to
implement the Dogs Act 2008 with a view to improve
the keeping of animals and promote the prevention of bites and injury. This year the department will continue its work to implement the new ticketing and citation
regulations that will provide more efficient enforcement and mandatory bite reports for better data col-lection and informed management. As noted, the department will also be implementing a campaign to increase public awareness of the Dogs Act and responsibilities of owners.

Increased Environmental Education

Hon. Jache Adams: Numerous improvements are
also in process at the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo [BAMZ] to ensure that safety of the animals enhance the enjoyment of our visitors to the facility
and ensure that we retain the valuable AZA [ Association of Zoos and Aquariums ] accreditation that the
facility has enjoyed these past decades. Additionally,
as part of the Marine Resources Enforcement Strategy, the department will develop a new campaign to raise awareness of the rules and regulations governing youth and interaction with threatened marine resources.

Improved Visibility of Bermuda’s Maritime Heritage


Bermuda House of Assembly
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, several significant
film and television projects were initiated with notable international producers in 2024 and we expect to see
several projects launched in 2025 that feature Bermuda’s rich maritime heritage. A new website has been
launched that highlights the location of the many historic wrecks, dive sites and no- fishing areas in addition to your current location through your mobile device.
Mr. Chairman, in closing, I would like to thank
the hard- working and dedicated members of staff in
the Department of Environment and Natural Re-sources, including Director Dr. Geoff Smith, Dr. Tammy Warren, Dr. Sarah Manuel, Dr. Philippe Rouja, Dr.
Jonathan Nisbett, Dr. Mark Outerbridge, Dr. Ian Walker, Mr. John Edmunds, Ms. Claire Jessey, Mr. Jeremy
Madeiros, and Ms. Alvona Wolff e and their very able
teams. I hope to get to meet them all during my time
at the Ministry of Public Works and Environment.
Mr. Chairman, this now concludes my presentation for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Head 79. I will turn to Head 81, Department of Public Lands and Buildings as found on pages B-222 through B -224 and C -6.

Thank you very much, Minister.
The Minister has certainly found his stride.
The Minister just concluded Head 79, as he mentioned. And we . . . just to remind Members that we
are in the Committee of Supply for further consideration of the Estimates and Revenue and Expenditure
for the year 2025/26. This is under the Ministry of Public Works and Environment. It is under the direction of Minister Jache Adams.
Minister, you may continue on pages 22, 23.

HEAD 81 —DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC LANDS
AND BUILDINGS

Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Today I present the strategic role, responsibilities and planned activities of the Department of Public
Lands and Buildings for the fiscal year 2025/26.
The department's guiding mandate, Mr.
Chairman, is: To effectively manage Government
property and provide national mapping to [enable] the
delivery of effective public services.
This mandate may sound straightforward at
first glance, but in reality, it encompasses a vast and multifaceted portfolio that supports nearly every aspect of government operations. The department is not
just a custodian of land and property —it is a foundational enabler of service delivery, a facilitator of public access, and a steward of national infrastructure.
Mr. Chairman, the Department of Public
Lands and Buildings is responsible for the administra-tion and strategic oversight of more than 2,000 acres of Government -owned land and approximately 750
buildings across the country.
These assets are not abstract figures. They
include a wide spectrum of property types, each serving a vital function within our national framework:
• Public Service Facilities: These include police
stations, post offices, fire stations, customs
facilities, and courthouses —sites where citizens interact directly with government ser-vices and exercise their rights.
• Educational Infrastructure: The department
supports the Ministry of Education through the
management and maintenance of primary,
middle, and senior schools. These buildings
must be safe, secure, and conducive to learning.
• Residential Properties: We manage several
Government -owned residences provided to
civil servants and essential staff, ensuring
proper living conditions and maintaining fair
rental arrangements.
• Heritage and Strategic Sites: The portfolio includes two national lighthouses, multiple
farms, community beaches, and a number of
government -owned islands —each representing both cultural value and strategic utility.
These properties must be well -maintained, fully compliant with health and safety standards, and adapted to evolving needs, especially in light of climate resilience and technological advancement.
In addition to the Government’s own properties, the department is responsible for managing a
significant number of lease agreements.
For the 2025/26 fiscal year, the department
will oversee 75 active leases with private sector landlords and Government Quasi -Autonomous NonGovernmental Organisations (otherwise known as
Quangos). These leases are critical for housing operations that cannot be accommodated within the
Government’s existing estate.
Mr. Chairman, the department plays a critical
enabling role to all other ministries and public sector
agencies. Our core function is to ensure that every
Ministry —whether it is Health, Education, National
Security, or Social Services —has the physical infrastructure it needs to fulfil its mandate.
Without reliable, safe, and strategically located premises, no Ministry can deliver its services effectively. That is why the department must act not only as
a property manager but as a strategic partner, engaging with ministries early in the planning process, en-suring alignment between operational needs and
physical spaces.
We also work to ensure compliance with
building codes, accessibility standards, and health
and safety regulations across the entire Government
estate.
As detailed on page B -222 of the Estimates,
the department's operations are structured into five
484 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly core programmes, each representing a pillar of our
service delivery model.

8100, Administration
Hon. Jache Adams: This programme encompasses
financial management, human resources, strategic planning, procurement, and interagency coordination. It is the administrative engine that ensures the department runs effectively and remains accountable to
the public.

8101, Buildings
Hon. Jache Adams: This programme is responsible
for the maintenance, inspection, and renovation of Government buildings. This includes both preventative and responsive maintenance to avoid service interruptions. In 2025/26, we plan to modernise maintenance
protocols, improve energy efficiency, and implement
centralised tracking systems.

8102, Estates
Hon. Jache Adams: This programme manages land
ownership, acquisitions, disposals, boundary clarifica-tions, and lease administration. It ensures that Gov-ernment land and foreshores are properly recorded,
utilised efficiently, and safeguarded against encroachment or underuse.

8103, Land Surveys

Hon. Jache Adams: A vital programme providing national mapping services, geographic information systems (otherwise known as GIS), and land survey sup-port to ministries and the public. In the coming year,
we aim to digitise our mapping archives and expand
online access to survey data.

8105, Project Management
Hon. Jache Adams: This programme oversees the
delivery of capital projects and large- scale infrastructure works. It ensures that Government construction projects are completed on time, within budget, and to
specification. For fiscal year 2025/26, several innovation projects and new public facility builds are scheduled to commence under this programme.
The Department of Public Lands and Buildings is far more than a property custodian —it is an
enabler of public service, a guardian of national infrastructure, and a planner of our physical legacy.
Through effective estate management, strategic lease
oversight, and capital project execution, we ensure
that public services are delivered from facilities that are safe, accessible, and fit for purpose.
With that said, Mr. Chairman, I am pleased
to— The Chairman: Mm-hmm.
Hon. Jache Adams: —for the fiscal year 2025/26, the
department has been allocated a total budget of $22,469,000, reflecting an increase of $703,000 over the previous fiscal year as reported on page B -222.

8100, Administration and Training

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now turn to programme 8100, Administration and Training, which
plays a central role in ensuring the effective operation
and strategic direction of the Department of Public
Lands and Buildings.
This programme has been allocated a total
budget of $566,000 for the fiscal year 2025/26. Its core objective is To provide senior management leadership and administrative support for the Estates and
Buildings sections . In essence, programme 8100 underpins the department’s overall capacity to deliver its
mandate by ensuring sound governance, well -
coordinated internal operations, and a trained and capable workforce.

91000, [Administration ]

Hon. Jache Adams: This cost centre is allocated
$255,000 for the upcoming fiscal year. It supports the
department’s senior management team, administrative personnel, and internal operations. This includes
human resources, financial oversight, communications, internal audits, and interdepartmental coordination.
Effective administration is not merely clerical,
it ensures that planning is strategic, operations are
accountable, and resources are optimally deployed.
This team serves as the backbone of the department’s
structure, ensuring all programmes are properly sup-ported.

91001, Training and Apprenticeship
Hon. Jache Adams: This cost centre has been allocated $311,000, reflecting the department’s continued and growing commitment to skills development, ca-pacity building, and the nurturing of local talent. This
allocation supports
• technical and professional training for existing
staff;
• apprenticeship programmes designed to prepare young people for careers in estate management, building maintenance, surveying,
and project management;
• [certification] and continuing education initiatives; and
• partnerships with technical schools and local institutions to support practical on- the-job
training.


Bermuda House of Assembly These investments are critical in ensuring the
long-term sustainability of the department’s operations
by cultivating the next generation of skilled professionals within the public sector.
Mr. Chairman, the total allocation of $566,000
represents an increase of $49,000 compared to the
2024/25 fiscal year. This increase is primarily driven
by expanded investment in training and apprentice-ship initiatives, reflecting our strategic priority to
• address current and anticipated skills shortages in estate and facilities management;
• ensure staff remain current with evolving industry standards, technologies, and best practices; and
• expand employment and learning opportunities for young people entering the workforce.
As we continue toward modernising Government property management, investing in our people—both current staff and future talent —is not a luxury,
but a necessity.

8101, Buildings
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now turn to programme 8101, Buildings, which is a cornerstone of the
department’s operational framework and a critical
component in ensuring the safety, functionality, and longevity of the Government’s built infrastructure.
This programme carries the mandate To effectively manage the maintenance, repair, and reno-vation of all Government buildings.
This essential responsibility spans a diverse
range of properties —from schools, police stations,
and post offices to Government offices and residential
buildings —ensuring that these assets remain safe,
serviceabl e, and fit for purpose.
Mr. Chairman, the Buildings programme is organised into two dedicated cost centres, each with a
distinct operational focus:
• Services Management, [91002]: Allocated
$1,251,000 This cost centre oversees the
strategic and technical coordination of all
maintenance activities across the Government
estate. It includes staffing, inspections, compliance with building codes and safety regulations, and centralised management of maintenance requests.
• Maintenance, [91003]: Allocated $8,713,000
This cost centre covers the direct costs of maintenance, including repairs, renovations,
contracted services, emergency responses,
and material procurement. It is the primary
operational arm of the Buildings programme.
Together, these cost centres comprise a total
programme budget of $9,964,000 for the fiscal year
2025/26.
Mr. Chairman, this represents an overall increase of $431,000 compared to the 2024/25 fiscal
year. The increase is driven by three key factors: 1. Salaries and Wages Uplift as aforementioned.
Adjustments have been made to reflect re-vised pay scales, union negotiations, and
cost-of-living increases, ensuring the department remains competitive in attracting and re-taining skilled technical staff.
2. Realignment of Work Units: Operational efficiencies and restructuring have led to a more strategic deployment of resources within the
Buildings section, which is now better
equipped to respond to service demands and implement preventative maintenance strategies.
3. Rising Material and Contractual Costs: Inflation and global supply chain pressures have
led to increased costs for essential materials
such as electrical components, plumbing sup-plies, HVAC parts, and roofing materials, as
well as for outsourced labour and services.

8102, Estates

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now turn to programme 8102, Estates, which is a vital division within the Department of Public Lands and Buildings. This section is tasked with delivering comprehensive property and land management services to all Government ministries and departments, while also providing a range of services to the general public in matters relating to Government -owned land.
The core responsibilities of the Estates section include:
• property insurance management for Govern-ment -owned assets;
• land and building acquisition to support the
expansion of public services;
• leasing arrangements, both inbound and outbound, ensuring efficient and lawful use of
Government property; and
• oversight of Government -owned land, including licensing and leasing of strategic national assets such as islands, the foreshore, and the
seabed.
As the official custodian of these critical national assets, the Estates section plays a key role in
safeguarding the public interest and ensuring the responsible stewardship of land and property resources.
Mr. Chairman, programme 8102, [Estates], is
structured into two distinct cost centres, each with targeted responsibilities.
• 91004, Property Asset Management: This
cost centre focuses on the day -to-day and
strategic management of the Government’s property portfolio. It includes activities related to leases, licences, acquisitions, valuations,
and ensuring compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.
• 91005, Insurance: This cost centre administers the insurance coverage for Government
486 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly buildings and properties, ensuring that assets
are protected against loss, damage, and un-foreseen events. It also handles claims pro-cessing and insurance policy management.
For the fiscal year 2025/26, the Estates programme has been allocated a total budget of
$10,828,000.
Mr. Chairman, this allocation reflects an increase of $229,000 over the previous fiscal year. This
increase is primarily attributed to the recruitment of
two additional Estate surveyors. These appointments are a strategic investment intended to strengthen the
department’s internal expertise and capacity to
• more efficiently manage the increasing volume and complexity of property transactions;
• accelerate processing times for leases and licences;
• enhance oversight and accountability in the use of Government land; and
• support ministries with timely advice on prop-erty matters as service needs grow.
These new surveyors will also contribute to
long-term planning and help identify opportunities for
better utilisation of Government assets.

Thank you, Minister.

Hon. Jache Adams: For the fiscal year 2025/26, this
programme has been allocated a budget of $385,000,
which represents a decrease of $61,000 compared to the previous fiscal year. This reduction is primarily due
to the completion of specific equipment upgrades and
administrative needs.
Mr. Chairman, the Land Surveys section plays
a vital role in supporting not only the Department of
Public Lands and Buildings, but also the wider Government of Bermuda through the provision of specialised surveying, mapping, and spatial data services.
Key responsibilities of this section include:
1. Establishment and Maintenance of the National Control Monument Network. This network is a [geodetic] infrastructure that provides the foundation for all land- based spatial measurements in Bermuda. It ensures that both Government agencies and private land survey companies operate within a consistent
and internationally recognised coordinate system, thus preserving the accuracy and integrity of land ownership and development data.
2. National Mapping and Geospatial Information
Services. The section is responsible for the production, maintenance, and dissemination
of Bermuda’s official maps and geospatial datasets. These tools are essential for urban planning, infrastructure development, emergency response coordination, and environmental management across Government.
3. Hydrographic Surveying and Data Collection.
In a significant cost -saving and capacity -
building shift, the section has internalised hydrographic survey functions —tasks that were
previously outsourced to overseas contrac-tors. These include seabed mapping, coastal profiling, and other marine data acquisition efforts that support maritime safety, infrastructure planning, and environmental protection.
In addition to its national -level responsibilities,
Mr. Chairman, the Land Surveys section also plays a direct, operational role in supporting engineering and
construction projects managed by the Ministry. These
services include
• boundary identification and topographic surveys for capital works;
• precise layout support for construction sites
and support infrastructure projects; and
• verification of land measurements for Government buildings and facilities.
Such contributions are vital in minimising construction delays, ensuring legal compliance with land
boundaries, and enabling efficient project execution.
Another critical responsibility of this section is
the creation, assignment, and maintenance of primary
civic addresses across the Island. This function underpins numerous public services —from emergency
response systems and postal delivery to utility provision and voter registration. Maintaining a robust and
accurate address database is foundational to effective
governance and public safety.

[91008] , Project Management
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now turn to programme 8105, Project Management, which has been allocated a budget of $726,000 for the fiscal year
2025/26. This represents an increase of $55,000 over
the previous year. The increase is primarily driven by
the rising cost of professional consultancy services and the growing number of capital development projects.
Mr. Chairman, this section plays a central coordinating role in the planning, implementation, and


Bermuda House of Assembly oversight of Government capital projects. Specifically,
the Project Management Unit is responsible for
• managing capital development projects directly undertaken by the Department of Public
Lands and Buildings; and
• ensuring that all facility modifications and
property improvements align with service delivery objectives, safety standards, and longterm infrastructure planning.
Mr. Chairman, the work of this section is not
simply technical —it is strategic. Through the effective
management of facility upgrades and new construction, the Project Management Unit ensures that the
built environment continues to evolve in alignment
with the changing needs of public service delivery.

Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimates

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now draw Honourable Members’ attention to page B -223, which outlines the Ministry’s Current Account Estimates for the
2025/26 fiscal year in detail.
Upon review, Members will note a collective
increase of $132,000 in salaries and an additional $540,000 in wages. These adjustments again reflect
this Government’s ongoing commitment to fair compensation and investment in our public officers, par-ticularly in recognition of their dedication and the increasingly complex demands of public service.
Additionally, Mr. Chairman, there is a
$162,000 increase under the Rentals line item. This is for renovations to several Government rental properties to update the aging infrastructure.

Revenue Summary

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the department
anticipates generating $3,247,000 in revenue during
the 2025/26 fiscal year mainly attributed to the renting
of Government apartments to employees of the Gov-ernment and leasing of Government foreshores.

Full-Time Equivalents (FTE)

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the budgeted
number of employees for the department is 162 as
reflected, a decrease of five from the previous fiscal
year.
To reiterate, the apparent reduction in staffing
numbers is the result of a methodological correction,
not a reduction in the total workforce. In previous
years, all approved posts were counted —whether
filled, vacant, or unfunded. This year, the figures more
accurately reflect the actual staffing situation

Performance Measures

Hon. Jache Adams: As outlined on page B -224, the
Department of Public Lands and Buildings has estab-lished a comprehensive set of Key Performance Targets for the 2025/26 fiscal year. These targets serve as a strategic framework to guide the department’s
operations, enhance the quality and consistency of
service delivery, and ensure full compliance with rele-vant legislative and regulatory requirements.
These performance benchmarks have been
carefully designed to support our overarching man-date—managing Government property and land assets with integrity, transparency, and efficiency —while
also reinforcing our commitment to operational excel-lence across all programme areas, including Administration, Buildings, Estates, Land Surveys, and Project Management.

Capital Works Plans
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, as found on page
[C-]6, there are several planned capital works that will
take place across the various capital cost centres.
Mr. Chairman, the 2025/26 allocation for capital development cost centre [75112] for Major Build-ings Upgrade Projects is $3,639,000. This account
enables the department to carry out major works to
improve and redevelop facilities to modernise and to make them fit for purpose and meet statutory compliance. Whilst the demand for work often exceeds the budget allocation. However, the department strives to prioritise works for the most effective use of the capital
funds available.
The works under this account for 2025/26 include but not limited to the replacement and upgrade
of the central air -conditioning system for offices in the
Government Administration Building; improvements to
several buildings in the Botanical Gardens; refurbishment of Gibbs Hill and St . David’s Lighthouses; and
exterior works to Prospect Depot.
Mr. Chairman, the capital budget for 2025/26
has $250,000 under cost centre 75298 as found on
page [C -]6 for the Government Administration building
bathroom upgrades and will be spent on renovating
the bathroom around the two buildings.
Mr. Chairman, the capital budget for 2025/26
also has $2.9 million under cost centre 75309 for All Schools Maintenance and will be spent on annual scheduled improvements, repairs and painting works
to our schools.
Mr. Chairman, school facility maintenance
continues to be a priority for the department. The
Buildings, Estates and Project Management sections
are working closely with the Education Department on aligning school buildings with the longer -term Education Reform Plan for the Bermuda Public School Sys-tem. Whilst the Education [Reform] Plan is underway the general infrastructure of all schools must still be
maintained as part the Government Estate. The focus
for works under 75309 will [be] scheduled external
and interior painting and air conditioning improvements.
488 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Chairman, capital budget 75327 has been
allocated a sum of $50,000 for the completion of the
sewage disposal infrastructure works at Horseshoe
Bay Beach [ House] .
Mr. Chairman, in 2025/26 the Government
remains committed under capital code 75357 to reduce our carbon footprint by installing roof mounted
solar photovoltaic panels. However, we also need to allow for time to renovate the Government’s assets as
well. Therefore, $50,000 has been allocated to continue studies across the Government Estate in order to adequately prepare for this transition. However, I
would like to note that multiple Government buildings
already have solar panels installed including the Government Administration Building, General Post Office
Building, the Department of Public Transportation
Headquarters and the Transportation Control Depart-ment.
Mr. Chairman, a capital budget Account
75366 for 2025/26 in the amount of $300,000 for con-tinuing with the installation programme for [Electric] Vehicle [EV] charging infrastructure required to support the Government’s initiative to move towards EV’s
for the Government’s fleet. Locations are being identified and infrastructure installed for charging stations
ahead of procurement of EVs.

75099, Office Relocations

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, Office Relocations capital cost centre 75099, which is reported under Ministry Headquarters, has a sum allocated in the
amount of $5,085,000.
This capital budget account allows for the
planning and fit -out costs for moving and improving
Government offices. For 2024/25 this budget account will enable the movement of the Registrar of Companies. There are planned improvements to offices at Global House and the Government Administration Building.
Mr. Chairman, in addition, the department
takes the responsibility for the Design, Planning, Pro-ject Management and Capital Development Expendi-ture for [other] Departments Projects in Government
Facilities, including, as examples:
• Education Reform Projects, [75360]
• Government House, [75340]
• Marine and Ports Workshops, [75351]
• Lefroy House Care Community, [75361]
• Parish Clinics Refurbishments, [75347]
• Royal Bermuda Regiment Coastguard Facility, [75362]
• Royal Bermuda Regiment Officers’ Mess
Bathrooms, [75363]
• Police Headquarters Prospect Refurbishment,
[75103]
Mr. Chairman, as I conclude the Budget Brief
for Head 81, the Department of Public Lands and
Buildings, I would like to take this opportunity to rec-ognise all the staff in the department and thank them for their hard work of maintaining the support facilities that enable the delivery of public services.
I will now move to Head 82, Works and Engineering as found on pages B -225 through B -231, C -6,
C-7 and C -13, the last in my presentation.

I’m sorry. Minister, go right ahead.
You have about an hour and 15 minutes left.
Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you.

HEAD 82 —DEPARTMENT OF WORKS
AND ENGINEERING
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the mission of the
Department of Works and Engineering is To ensure
the effective and prudent management of all engineering services related to the construction, erection, im-provement, maintenance, and repair of Government
infrastructure, as well as the operation of essential
water and waste treatment services.
Mr. Chairman, the Department of Works and
Engineering is a cornerstone of public service in Bermuda, delivering a wide range of essential functions that directly support the daily lives of our residents.
The department is entrusted with the ongoing maintenance, repair, and improvement of Government infrastructure and the provision of critical services such as water supply, solid waste management, and environmental protection.
Our responsibilities touch nearly every part of
Bermuda’s physical infrastructure. From ensuring that
roads are safe and passable, to maintaining clean
drinking water and treating sewage, the department
works tirelessly, often behind the scenes, to uphold the standard of living that Bermudians rightly expect.
To fulfil its mandate, the department is organised into seven operational programmes, each with its own specialised responsibilities. I would like to briefly
outline these sections.

Go right ahead, Minister.

Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you.
1. Administration [programme 8200] provides for
the salaried senior management staff of the
department. The mandate of the senior man-agement team is the efficient management of
the seven sections of the department.


Bermuda House of Assembly 2. Engineering [programme 8201] provides
quality electrical, mechanical and structural engineering services.
3. Highways [programme 8202] develop and
maintain the public road infrastructure to ensure the safe passage of motorists and pedestrians.
4. Waste Management [programme 8203] arranges for the collection and safe disposal of
Bermuda's solid wastes.
5. Quarry Transport [programme 8204] manages
the fleet and equipment purchasing and mechanical maintenance for majority of the Government vehicle fleet.
6. Quarry Products [programme 8205] services
the Government Asphalt Plant and associated
paving operation products.
7. Water and Sewage [programme 8206] provided planning, design, construction, operation
and maintenance of the Government water
extraction, treatment and distribution systems and the wastewater collection and distribution
systems.
As we look ahead to the fiscal year 2025/26,
the continued investment in the department’s pro-grammes is essential to maintaining and improving
the infrastructure that underpins Bermuda’s economy and quality of life.
I now present the Department of Works and
Engineering’s budget estimate, which reflects our stra-tegic priorities, operational needs, and commitment to
delivering value to the people of Bermuda. However,
before I begin, Mr. Chairman, it is important to distin-guish between the Operational Budget and the Capital
Budget when considering the funding of the department’s work.
The Operational Budget covers the day -to-day
expenses whilst in contrast the Capital Budget is dedicated to funding major infrastructure projects and long-term investments. These include large- scale road
resurfacing, bridge rehabilitation, water and sewage
system upgrades, heavy equipment purchases, and
other construction or replacement initiatives that ex-tend beyond routine maintenance.
Mr. Chairman, while the operational budget
supports the foundational functions of the department,
most of the department’s major work is funded
through the Capital Accounts. This is where the bulk
of resources are allocated to support the planning, design, and execution of substantial [ public ] infrastructure improvements.
Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to present the
department’s operational budget.

2025/26 Operational Budget
Hon. Jache Adams: As detailed on pages B -226 and
B-227, the estimated current expenditure for the Department of Works and Engineering for the fiscal year 2025/26 is $34,316,000, which represents an increase of $1.88 million from the 2023/24 original budget level.

8200, Administration
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, turning to Administration. Administration provides funding for the sala-ried senior management [team] of the department. As
previously outlined, the mandate of this team is to ensure the effective and efficient oversight of the department’s seven operational sections.
Mr. Chairman, an operational budget allocation of $312,000 has been designated for programme 8200 for fiscal year 2025/26. This represents an in-crease of $26,000 compared to 2024/25. The increase
can be attributed to salary adjustments as previously
explained.

8201, Engineering
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the mandate of
the Engineering Services programme is to provide quality electrical, mechanical and structural engineering services. Within this, there are three separate
functions: Electrical/Mechanical, Electrical Support and Structures.
A budget of $1.685 million has been allocated
for this programme, representing a $61,000 increase compared to the 2023/24 budget. This increase is
owed to the salary uplift negotiated and increases in
material cost for maintenance.
Mr. Chairman, with respect to cost centre
92002, Electrical, it has been allocated $605,000. This
is no change to the previous budget.

8202, Highways
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Highways
programme is entrusted with the vital responsibility of
developing and maintaining the nation's public road
infrastructure. Its core mandate is to ensure the safe,
efficient, and reliable movement of both motorists and pedestrians across the country. This encompasses
the full spectrum of activities related to the planning,
design, and execution of road infrastructure projects, with a particular focus on the following:
• routine [road] resurfacing;
• installation and maintenance of drainage systems;
• erection and upkeep of signage and road
markings;
• construction and reinforcement of retaining
structures; and
• provision and maintenance of public bus shelters.
It is important to underscore, Mr. Chairman,
that the provisions being discussed here fall strictly
within the scope of the programme’s operational
budget. This means these allocations are intended for
490 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly the ongoing minor maintenance, management, and
support activities necessary to keep the road infra-structure functional on a day -to-day basis. These are
distinct from capital investments, which relate to largescale infrastructure development projects and new
construction works which will be discussed soon.
Given the breadth of the programme’s mandate and the critical importance of road paving in en-suring road safety and longevity, we have initiated an
internal assessment to explore the feasibility of establishing a dedicated unit focused exclusively on road paving operations. This proposed restructuring is
aimed at improving efficiency, enhancing project delivery, and ensuring more specialised attention to one
of the most resource- intensive and high impact aspects of our work. We recognise that any such change must be carefully considered, and as such, consulta-tions are currently underway.
However, Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to report that a $5,804,000 budget has been allocated to this programme, representing an increase of $466,000 as compared to the 2024/25 original budget. This increase is primarily due to the salary uplift negotiated
and the hiring of additional personnel.
Mr. Chairman, the budget allocated for Management stands at $969,000 for the fiscal year, reflecting an increase of $51,000 over the original 2024/25 allocation. This increase is primarily due to
salary adjustments arising from Government -
approved wage uplifts.
Mr. Chairman, the budget for cost centre
[92007] for Public Road Cleaning is $1,705,000, representing an increase of $296,000 over the previous fiscal year. This unit is tasked with the cleaning and
maintenance of public highways, including tree trimming and vegetation control, and oversees the Solo
Sweeper Programme.

8203, Waste Management

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the mandate of
the Waste Management programme is to arrange for
the collection and [safe] disposal of Bermuda's solid wastes.
Mr. Chairman, a budget of $19[,187,000] has
been allocated to this programme for fiscal year
2025/26. This represents an increase of $644,000 as
compared to the original 2024/25 budget. This increase represents additional staffing and maintenance costs for the Tynes Bay facility as well as the Waste Management Collection section. This increase also
encompasses salary uplift negotiated.
Mr. Chairman, the budget for cost centre
[92012] for Airport Disposal Facility is $1.237 million, an increase of $14,000 from last year’s original budget. This increase is again attributed to salary uplifts.
Mr. Chairman, the Tynes Bay Waste- toEnergy Facility plays a critical dual role in Bermuda’s
national infrastructure by providing both refuse dis-posal and renewable energy generation. As the Island’s primary waste management facility, it is re-sponsible for the safe and environmentally sound [incineration] of household and commercial waste, significantly reducing landfill dependency and helping to manage the country’s limited land resources.
Mr. Chairman, [cost centre 92016] Tynes Bay
Administration is $724,000, reflecting an increase of $41,000.
Similarly, [cost centre 92017] Tynes Bay Operations stands at $5.9 million, representing an in-crease of $38,000 compared to the original budget of
last fiscal year.
Mr. Chairman, I will turn to the Quarry
Transport.

Mm-hmm.

8204, Quarry Transport

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the mandate of
the Government Fleet and Operations Section (more commonly known as the Quarry) is comprehensive
and operationally significant.
Mr. Chairman, a $3,139,000 budget has been
allocated to this programme, representing an increase
of $453,000 as compared to the original 2024/25
budget. This increase is due to the hiring of additional personnel, salary uplift and increases in maintenance
and parts budgets across the section.
Mr. Chairman, the budget for cost centre
92034. Quarry Receipts, is set at negative
$5,500,000, consistent with the 2024/25 allocation.
This cost centre functions as an internal recharge budget, where the negative value represents the recovery of costs for services provided by the Quarry
programme to other Government departments and
agencies. These services include vehicle repairs, equipment leasing, and mechanical maintenance, with
expenses offset through internal charges applied to
the users of those services.

8205, Quarry Products
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, a budget of $2. 1
million has been allocated for cost centre [92023], the
Asphalt Plant, representing an increase of $21,000 over the previous fiscal year.
In addition, a rechargeable budget of
$3[,140,000] has been allocated for quarry products under this programme for fiscal year 2025/26.
Mr. Chairman, I would also like to address a
potential question regarding the purchase and produc-tion of asphalt. While this administration has consist-ently communicated that a new asphalt plant is on its
way—which will significantly improve paving capacity—some may question why current production remains limited. The answer lies in the reality that the
new plant is not scheduled to be operational until the


Bermuda House of Assembly first quarter of 2026. Until that time, we must strategically limit production to preserve the functionality of the existing ageing plant, as previously discussed in an earlier session.

8206, Water and Sewage

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the Water and
Sewage programme, on page B -227, was allocated a
budget of $5.2 million. This represents an increase of $209,000 as compared to the original 2024/25 budget.
Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimates
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, I now draw Honourable Members’ attention to page B -227, which outlines the department’s Current Account Estimates for the [2025/26 ] fiscal year in detail.

Revenue Summary
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the department
anticipates generating $11.4 million in revenue.

Full-Time Equivalents
Hon. Jache Adams: The number full -time equivalents
is 308.

Performance Measures

Hon. Jache Adams: As outlined on page B -229
through B-231, the Works and Engineering department's performance across various business units for the period 2023/24 to 2025/26 demonstrates a consistent focus on operational efficiency, public service
delivery, and infrastructure development.
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman.

No, go right ahead, Minister.

75042, Road Works

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, the estimate for
this cost centre stands at $5,000,000, which matches previous years. While this budget is certainly important for continuing major maintenance work, includ-ing road [re]surfacing, junction improvements, road
widening, and the installation of new sidewalks, I must
acknowledge that this amount is simply not enough to fully address the growing demands of our road infrastructure.
We are all acutely aware of the deteriorating
state of our roads, and the concerns raised by the
public are both valid and justified. The frustrations of
the public are not lost on us, and we are committed to addressing these challenges.
Mr. Chairman, I will skip to Quarry Refurbishment.

Yes.

75264, Quarry Refurbishment
Hon. Jache Adams: The 2025/26 estimate for this
cost centre, for the Quarry Refurbishment is
$5,575,000. This funding will support critical infrastructure upgrades at the Quarry Depot, including the
decommissioning of the existing asphalt production
plant, and site preparation for the installation of the new asphalt plant.
In addition, a portion of these funds will be allocated toward the establishment of training and test-ing sites, which will enhance our operational readiness and support the development of a skilled workforce capable of operating and maintaining the new
equipment efficiently.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, my last topic will be on
vehicles.

Yes, sir.

76495, Vehicles and Equipment

Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, since 2013, and
well before my time in this Honourable House, budget
constraints have significantly limited the replacement of vehicles and equipment, resulting in a fleet that is
now, on average, over 10 years old. This has led to
increasing maintenance challenges, particularly due to the difficulty in sourcing replacement parts [for] outdated models.
These limitations have had real and measurable impacts across Government operations. Although
a 2015 report recommended a phased replacement
strategy, it was unfortunately not implemented at the time due to a combination of ongoing budgetary pressures, management turnover at the Quarry, and the
widespread disruption caused by the COVID -19 pandemic.
Mr. Chairman, under the 2025/26 budget, vehicle and equipment replacements will focus on units that have clearly surpassed their useful economic life,
are in poor or unsafe condition, or are no longer suita492 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly ble for their intended purpose. While many of these
replacements will not yet be electric vehicles, they are being treated as “bridge vehicles,” essential interim solutions to support Government operations while we
work toward our target of achieving a fully electrified
fleet by 2035.
The estimate for this annual allocation is
$5,181,000 and will be used to procure the following amongst others:
• replacement kettle truck s
• new drainage cleaning vehicles
• mild-hybrid diesel utility vehicles
• new bucket trucks
• replacement vans for community centres

76917, Electric Vehicles
Hon. Jache Adams: Mr. Chairman, this capital programme is aimed to have Government lead by example with the replacement of combustion vehicles [ with]
electrical vehicles. Using the data from our pilot study,
we have identified areas within Government that provide the best opportunity for adoption based upon the upgradability of locations to provide the necessary
charging infrastructure.
It is envisioned that as our charging infrastructure is established that this budget will grow to accelerate the transition to EVs. The 2025/26 e stimate for
this annual allocation is $150,000.

76764, Parks Vehicles

Hon. Jache Adams: And finally, Mr. Chairman, this
cost centre is under the management of the Quarry,
and some of their purchases include the ones mentioned before.
The 2025/26 e stimate for this annual allocation is $625,000.
And so, Mr. Chairman, this concludes my
presentation of the Department of Works and Engineering, and indeed, the Ministry of Public Works and
Environment. I certainly open the floor to any questions.

You have got about a half an hour.
[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: I couldn’t help it. I was accommodating Government and all of its changes because we have so many Ministers out —not here!
[Inaudible interjections]
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Well, if you —

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: I’m here. I’m here to talk. I
would have loved to have had more time but we—
[Inaudible interjections]
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Mr. Chairman—

You have the floor, Member.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Be careful to chirp.
I have some serious concerns concerning this
particular Ministry and I will start off by saying . . . and
I want to . . . this has nothing to do with . . . our Public
Works civil servants do a fantastic job at the work that
they have to do. It has not been easy for them to work
under the conditions that we have. But when I am told in the general statement that this budget represents
36 (through Public Works) a real investment going
forward, all of the investments that I see thus far are because of salaries or employee cuts. So while they
are saving money . . . so it increases the allotments,
or we are actually not adding staff where we have to
obviously pay a little more but the production is not
showing that.
And so, my concern first of all is this here. If
we look at on the general page, page B -201, if you go
down . . . and I have to move quickly here. If we go
right down to Capital Expenditure under Development,
you will see an allotment there that says $50,492,000.
Correct? Yes, Mr. Chairman?


Bermuda House of Assembly The Chairman: You are—

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Under Development —yes.
If you move to your left and you look under 2024/25
original amount, you will see $35,697,000. Now that is
quite a difference. And as the Minister was speaking,
that’s an incredible . . . that is beautiful to see that we
have got this kind of development. However, I am going to table for this House from the budget of 2024/25,
for everyone . . . I need somebody . . . Member, just
take that up to the desk.
You will see that in actual fact under Development [Estimate] for 2024/25 budget, the allocation was actually $52,992,000. In other words, what I am
getting at is, if the 2024[/25] budget original amount
was $52 million and here we are with 2025/26 with an
amount of $50,492,000, that’s a loss. That is not an increase in development. And so that number needs
to be corrected in the 2025/26 budget amount. It has
to be corrected to $52,992,000.
I can see how it would be a problem because
now it basically . . . it looks like it is inflating what we
are doing in development when in actual fact we are
allotting less money to it. So, I have tabled that, and I
am hoping as we go through this . . . I tend to . . . one
of my pet peeves is to find some of the challenges in the [Budget] Book and comparisons and ensure that they make the changes in the future. So, I hope that
this changes because I did bring this up before. So,
we need to change the Development amount under the 2025/26 Budget Book. We need to actually
change that now to $52 million.

Member, I do see exactly what you
are talking about but . . . and I haven’t done any
deeper digging, but it does say right next to the $52,992[,000] in 2024/25 “For details of scheme see
sec[tion] C, pages 4 to 16.” Did we look into that as
well just to see if that provided any explanation?

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. So what I am saying
to you is that this actual amount, even if you go back
to pages C -4 to C -16, you still have to make the correction, because you cannot have a revised amount to
what basically is almost like we are saying we are putting the revised amount and when we do these calculations we always calculate between the 2024/25 original amount and the 2025/26 original allotted amount,
which gives us disparity. Not between the revised
amount.
So maybe there was a mistake there. I am not
blaming anyone who was trying to do anything, but
the actual numbers themselves reflect something
completely different. And it is a major difference because as I go through the general statement, what we
are talking about here is . . . you know, the Premier
has said that the end of austerity has happened. But
when I start adding up these total figures, it still feels
like we are in austerity measures. Where is the . . . the Ministry of Public Works,
if we take a look over on page B -202, really under the
department objectives and the mission statement, it
says “ To ensure the provision of sustainable infrastructures, systems and properties for the operation of
public services. ” That is the bones of the country. Literally the bones of the country. And every other Minis-try then puts its flesh on top of those bones because Public Works touches everything. And I know that,
you know, you have been around for a while. It touches everything. Ministers in the House and in Cabinet when they are deliberating, they are coming to Public
Works because, Listen, I want to do this stuff over
here. Every single Minister is touched in Cabinet by
this Ministry. So, I wanted to qualify that so that we
are clear.
But if we also go back over to page B -201
(and I am going to move swiftly here), and we look
under Revenues. If we look under Revenues under
Environment and Natural Resources, I got to say this here. I feel for the Minister. Back in the day I remember Public Works only had three heads. Okay? I am
saying back in the day . . . I shouldn’t even say that.
But I was debating only three heads, and they are huge heads. Right? [It was] 81, the Headquarters, 81, 82. But now we are . . . we are . . . I mean, the poor
Minister. He is not even going to be able to have a cup of tea or coffee in the morning. This is incredible that we are adding this on.
I do not know how Public Works staffing is going to be able to keep up with this here because that Environment and Natural Resources is a huge thing.
But if you look at it, I see revenue is $6 million and
underneath [is] public lands and building revenues of $4 million. We are losing a little revenue under Works
and Engineering. We will talk about that as we get into
details. Hopefully we have the time.
My question on this page is, Is there potential
to grow this? I mean, one of the things that I find when we are running government . . . in the private sector,
we are always looking for an opportunity to grow revenue. But I have never heard . . . and even when I
was in the Ministry, I wasn’t really paying close attention, but we got a young, energetic Minister here and I
am asking him the question, Can we look at how we can grow these revenues?
The challenge with growing the revenues is
this: Revenue is driven by people. We got a problem there, right? We got to face up to the problem that we
got less people here. So, we got to figure this out. But
there is still opportunity to grow this revenue. So, I want to know from the Minister whether or not he will
take a commitment to looking at how we can grow
revenue. And we will get into that stuff as we go on a little further.
We need to spend more time than this. And I
thank the Minister for reminding us on page B -201 in
his general statement about letting us know that we
got 600 roads and 80 public docks, and we got 2,000494 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly plus acres and all of this stuff that we are responsible
for, it is important that we look for every opportunity that we can to improve. I believe, on page B -201, under the current expenditure (at the top) for Heads 36,
68, 79, 81, and 82, we have a commitment of $4.4
million more.
If we truly are going to put investment into the
country, the first complaint that comes out of every-one’s mouth, Mr. Chairman, is, It’s either the roads
are messed up . . . this or that. The railings are not
fixed. They have been down forever. This wall is down
. . . And that type of thing. If we are truly going to invest, I would love to see, not 6 per cent, I would love
to see a 10 per cent increase there which is a true
tithing on our commitment to the country.
This Ministry touches everyone. If Public
Works messes up . . . and let’s just say for instance
the roads are messed up and we got all kinds of stuff
going on. People are going slow. Then people get
frustrated. Right? And now something simple that we
are doing as far as allocations is affecting their real -
life experience. If we have to . . . and in the general
statement as he mentioned about roadworks, if we
have to repave an area two and three times because
we didn’t get it right in the first place, imagine the frustration on the people trying to get to work, trying to get
home and the like. So I will say that in general com-ment.
I want to move over to page B -202. And under
the department objectives, number 1, to provide man-agement oversight for Public Works, and I will let everyone read through the rest of it. I have a question.
What are some of the Minister’s policy objectives for 2025/26 that are going to allow us to see some progression here? What are some of those new policies
that we are going to be putting in place that are going
to make this whole thing more effective for Bermudians as they met out their everyday lives and we maintain a good bone structure?
The third objective here is to meet human resource needs. Now what I would like to do is . . .what
. . . what . . . for human resources needs what have
been some of those difficult areas that we have not been able to fill? I can say some of them off the top of
my head, but we just heard, through the Minister’s
briefing where he talked about as we go further on
down the line, we are trying to get an agronomist, we
are going to have to get people . . . lifeguards and all
these kinds of different things. And Estates as well. It
is difficult to get qualified Bermudians because we have foreigners in those positions right now who are
surveyors and the like. Some of those difficult areas,
why are they difficult and what are we doing about it?
The former Minister did spend some time on
talking about youth and training youth, so I want to get
to that.
And then on page B -202, I will go down to
number eight, to ensure that controls promulgated by
code of practice and other associated policies as it relates to procurement of goods and services . I know
that the Minister, like I said, he is a young guy, so I am sure he hit the ground running. What are the challenges and what opportunities can we identify where
we can get better at this? Because the more that we put out to procurement the more work that is getting
done, the more people who we can hire and hopefully
better salaries. And more important than a better sala-ry, or an increased salary, but work in and of itself,
sustained work is how it works to maintain people in
the position that they are in. So if they can give me some indication there on some of these things.
So now I am going to go over to some of the
analysis on page . . . I’ve got page B -201 here. I have
got a whole bunch of questions. I won’t do those
questions, though. I am going to move on because we
need to get to some of this stuff. And we will get to it in the analysis.
So, on page B -203, what I would like to be
able to do . . . (I’ll just flip over to my notes here.) On
page B -203, if we take a look at . . . we are still on
Head 36, unit 3601 and 46111, Administration. The Minister mentioned . . . and we are looking at the
numbers there. We are spending $41,000 more. The Minister mentioned new protocols in this particular area. I was curious as to what some of those new protocols might be.
Now, in addition to that, if you look at the actual estimate for 2025/26 of $2.4 million, I draw your
attention across to the far left under the actual for
2023/24. Which has been a pet peeve for me for
many years. We spent $5.9 million in 2023/24. That is
double what we originally quoted for. That is double
what the revised amount . . . more than double, three
times the amount of the revised amount. And simply
more than double the estimate for 2025/26. And we
don’t get these actual numbers until almost two years
later. And it is bothering me because it is way over what we calculated for, so why is there such a huge
difference?
If we go down to Finance Management, 3610,
on page B -203, again we are under Head 36. I guess I
was trying to understand what are we doing with the $119,000 more. I was trying to take note from the Minister on these particular areas here to just see . . . see
. . . now this involves accounts payable, receivables,
payroll and the like. So, I believe he said that it was staff adjustments that are counted for that. And that’s
fine. I get it. But again, if it is staff adjustments, then I
understand that. Mr. Chairman, $119,000 I am not
sure what particular position that relates to as far as staff adjustments are concerned. So, it would be nice
to know what we are talking about there. I think last
year there was some mention about truck fees and stuff like that. But I will leave that alone.
Let’s go down to unit 36111. We are still on
page B -203 under Purchasing. Again, as I was trying
to take note of what was being said, I think this had to
do with pay scale adjustments once again. And I am


Bermuda House of Assembly getting to a point here because, again, as I said in my
general statement, all of these increases, really dollar allotments, are not because we are investing in infra-structure and the like. It is because of salary adjustments. I understand that the Minister mentioned that.
What I would like to know is . . . go down to
Purchasing under 36111. I was just curious. When it
comes to the wholesalers and retailers that we pur-chase from, do we get a bulk or a discount as government because of the volume of what it is that we
are purchasing from the retailers and the wholesal-ers? It would be nice to know if we are doing that. I
mean, certainly we want to buy Bermuda. And if we
can strike up a relationship with whoever, it would be
nice to know what kind of discounts we are getting in
this particular area.
Also, if we look at Supply Stores. The Minister
did give some word to that there, so I will leave that
alone.
Under 3612, Telecommunications . . . let me
just look through my notes here, what he said. Telecommunications. He said that this increase, $26,000,
was due to . . . I believe he said higher fees. But what
I wasn’t quite sure of was the maintenance. I am not
sure. What kind of fees are we talking about? That
these fees are higher. Is that with the phone companies? I don’t know.

You just have 30 minutes.
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. Okay. I am going to
skip over all of that. I am going to move over to Parks because we just don’t have the time.
What I would like to ask is if the Minister, if he
is obliged . . . typically, Minister Burch would give me
his briefing. I would be able to write it down as he was very kind. I didn’t even have to ask for it. He just gave
it to me. You know, I must not be in good with this particular new Minister.

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: So, I am going to big him
up a little bit.
[Laughter]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: And I was also allotted the
fortune of giving the questions that I couldn’t get to
him, and he actually answered the questions the fol-lowing week. So, if I could submit those questions,
because there are lot of questions. I won’t look for it in
a week but if I could submit those maybe the Minister
would oblige in being able to get me some answers to
those.
So, I think what I am going to do, and it is unfortunate that I do not have the time. You know, it is beyond some of the things. I would like to point out if I
could, Mr. Chairman, move over to page B -211 under Head 68, Parks. I am going to jump ahead here because [there] is so little time.

[Inaudible interjections and laughter ]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: If I could jump . . . I am
jumping over pages here, Whip.
Under page B -211, under Performance
Measures, if I follow on down to Performance
Measures under Government House. In the middle of
the page, 78015. Is this . . . and go down two rows
there. Total number of bedding plants installed. If you
look at the revised forecast, it says [$]120,000. That has got to be an error. Correct? Because the original forecast $12,000, the target forecast $12,000. Now,
unless we hired about a dozen people to help us with
installing bedding plants and got some volunteer or-ganisation, I would like to know if that is a mistake. If it
is, again, I am a stickler about this stuff because this
is records for the history. If it needs to be changed, please change it. It has crept up before in other areas
under performance measures, if we could do that.
Under Maintenance and Development, 78020,
Number of toilets serviced. I notice that . . . I don’t
know where we got all these toilets, but anyhow,
3,500 serviced toilets. Is that . . . does that mean all of
our buildings and what not? Where are all these toi-lets?

Schools.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Schools. Yes, there we go.
Schools as well. I don’t know. I have no clue. Do you know?

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: I don’t know. It would be
nice to know. Sometimes these performance
measures . . . what the heck is that talking about —
3,500?
Now, the Government has . . . and it is saying
that it is investing in infrastructure and building new buildings, well, that number should have gone up from
3,500 from two years ago. It hasn’t. One of the issues also I do have is I need to understand why have we
taken out of performance measures in most of the
Public Works areas. Why have we taken the actual outcome out? There has got to be a reasoning behind
why we have taken it out. But if you take out the actual outcome in 2023/24 and it is all zeros —this is the
first time I have seen this in these slots —if we take
that out it avoids the public from holding us accounta-ble as Government and Opposition as to exactly what is going on. Now there has got to be a reason for that.
I don’t know what it is. Maybe it was a Cabinet decision. I don’t know. I just don’t know but it would be nice to find out.

496 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly The Chairman: I don’t know the actual answer but
just keep in mind that would be around the exit of
COVID -19.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: In 2023/24, we were well
out of . . . we were still functioning. I mean, if you look
at these, we were still cleaning toilets, Mr. Chairman.
It is zero. We were still planting plants. It is zero. So, I am just . . . there has got to be a more philosophical,
more strategic decision for it. I just don’t know what it is because all these performance measures are at zero.
You know, again, over on page B -212 under
Head 68, Parks. Total number of corporate events held at Fort St. Catherine. Now this is where I want to
talk about revenue. Remember, as I said earlier about
revenue? I mean, Fort St. Catherine is pretty popular. Are we actually working with like other ministries, like
Tourism and the like? I know that that was mentioned
that we do work with them in other areas in getting
publication. But I mean, what a picturesque place to have a wedding there and have pictures and advertise
around the world. Maybe that is something we can do.
Maybe we are already doing it. I don’t know. But this
is an opportunity to increase revenue significantly because it is a public spot. It is beautiful. It would be nice
to be able to . . . unless St. Fort Catherine is not being
kept up. But I do know that we were spending time.
Now when it comes to Fort St. Catherine in
this performance measures, and the other forts, I also know that historically we used volunteers. So, I would
like to know if the volunteers still exist who are helping
us run and maintain these forts. Are they still in place? Because we had quite a few. Maybe they are not now.
It would be nice to know whether or not they still are.
And if they aren’t, you know, we can increase revenue. We got time. We get this thing up and going.
Now, I am going to quickly switch over and I
pray that the Honourable Member will allow me to get all of these questions to him. He did mention about
Professional Services that I thought was important
that we get on with the work that needs to be done. I
am concerned in a few areas, and I will point that out when it comes to Professional Services, as we move
on. (Sorry. Here we go. Page 222)
I am going to now move over. On page B -216,
under head . . . I am moving over to Environment and
Natural Resources because I am trying to move
through all of these things here because I really want to get to the capital development and stuff. Under Head 79, Environment and Natural Resources . . . let
me first say this here. That was very in- depth. I have
never had to look at Environment. In fact, I can tell you most things about most all other ministries. But
Environment was one of those where I never really
paid close attention, so I got to do better there.
So, I want to thank the Minister for the detail.
It took up a bit of time, but it was very detailed and
informative. So, I am grateful for that. Now I know how to debate it, and I will be much better prepared next
year.
But what I would like to know —
[Inaudible interjections and laughter ]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes, yes.
Under the mission statement, B -214. I will
start there. Head 79, Environment and Natural Resources. Objectives: To increase Island’s food security and local food production. That is something that
has always been near and dear to many people’s
hearts, Mr. Chairman. I mean, I had a fantastic meal
last night, local wahoo, with local pumpkin and local tomatoes. I mean, beautiful! Well -seasoned. I had a
good time at that meal.
[Inaudible interjection]
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: I cooked it myself. That’s
the thing.
[Inaudible interjections and laughter]
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: That’s the thing. I cooked it
myself and my wife said, My goodness, man. We
need to open up a restaurant.
What I would like to know is this, under that
objective . . . and we can’t know . . . we . . . there ain’t
no food security at my house. I ain’t got one garden.
But under three, I was wondering if the Ministry would
consider this here. You know, we have reclaimed land
back in . . . years ago, back in 2012, 2013. We reclaimed land. Of course, we had America’s Cup because they used that part that we reclaimed. But that
was for essentially entertainment, investment as well.
Would we consider, or could the Ministry consider an
opportunity to reclaim land solely earmarked for agri-culture? I think it would be a fantastic thing.
The challenge we have in Bermuda is everything has to be imported. And the Minister was very clear that we do have certain crops that we now . . .
that we do, like potatoes. I was glad to hear about the
sweet potatoes because I couldn’t get sweet potatoes
forever this year. I was wondering what in the world was wrong. But now we have an opportunity. We
need to add more land for housing, quite frankly, and
for agriculture. It is important because one ship during COVID -19, Mr. Chairman, we were struggling to get
Bounty Scott towels, and different products. We can’t afford that. We have got to be sustainable here. So I want Public Works to really consider this. Now that
Environment has been enjoined into it, can we consider this here as potential for growing more agricul-ture land and earmarked for that?
Now, let me move over here. On page B -216,
the Minister mentioned that we have got an allotment here under the Subjective Analysis. And where was
the line item here? Under Professional Services, and


Bermuda House of Assembly the allotment there really had to do with overseas
consultants. Further on he also mentioned about that we were going to have to hire an agronomist. Is that likely to be a local or is that likely to be a foreigner? I
have no clue. I know what it is about basically, soil
and understanding the challenges with it. But is that
expertise on the Island or are we, if we are looking for
that person, when are we likely to get it? Because if we don’t have it now, then we got issues. Right? We
are just not going to make it.
Again, if you look on page B -217, now Environment does a whopping well job with revenue. You
can see there we have got revenue of about $1.374
million. It is extremely consistent. But I am wondering
under all of these categories that we see here . . .
Now I also understand under 8533, Lobster divers’ licence, it is down by $21,000 [sic]. That is really not a
whole lot. I mean, I don’t know . . . I’m sorry. That is
21 licences. I don’t know what that represents and
what the average uptick is for a licence, per licence,
how many lobsters they take up. How many . . . I
mean, we are making the statement that we don’t
want to . . . we want to help the stock but what is the
average? You know, per licence, what is the average
amount of lobster that they pull? Because if it is not
that much then I’m not sure it is going to be a helpful
type of thing. So, it would be nice to understand that
more.
I asked that question . . . I got . . . Oh, okay.
On page B -219, under Performance
Measures . . . where is it? Where is the one about . . .
Hang on a second here.
The Minister mentioned about the feral animals. Understood there. Public Outreach. The one
just before it. Under 89000, Administration, the number of public outreach. That doesn’t look like a whole
lot when we see a target amount of 10. Especially
when this is a very important area to get the public to
understand that we got challenges. You know? I mean, chickens are walking into retail outlets right
now. They are in town, you know. They were in
Shade’s and all kinds of stuff. We got to figure this
out. Right? We either cull them for their eggs or say goodbye to them. Something has got to happen.
I wanted to get to where we were talking . . .
marine conservation. I am trying to find the line item
for it where we were talking about . . . oh, under number of feral animals removed, I wanted to ask this
question. I have been out to the Pembroke Canal, Mr. Chairman, and I don’t know . I go out there . . . I am an
animal lover, right? I go out there and I get guppies.
You know? To feed bigger fish that I have in the fish
tank. Right? And there are millions of them there.
Right?
But what I discovered in the Pembroke Canal,
to my shock, there is literally . . . there has got to be,
easy, 800 in just a small canal part, turtles. I have never seen that many turtles before in my life in one
area. I am talking about hundreds and hundreds of turtles. Does that fall under the feral situation as well?
Because somebody is dumping turtles and they are breeding. Maybe they aren’t eating enough to keep all
the grass from growing there but I think they might be
a problem in some area. I don’t know. But I can literal-ly tell you that if you go over there, if it is not hundreds, it could be thousands. I mean, I just . . . the
water is littered with them.
So, I think if we can get our conservationist
people to go over there and check that out. Just don’t
take the guppies. Leave those. But we need to check out about these turtles because Bermudians are buying turtles, and they are dumping them. And that has
got to stop. Okay? So, I will leave that one alone. I am going to move over.
I would like to know, on page B -220, on Head
79, Environment. I really would like to know what is going on. If we go down under business unit 89040,
Marine Enforcement. Here we have a number of illegal fish traps —lobster [and] guinea chick traps. How
do you even know where these things are? Like they
are in the ocean. So how does that happen? How do
you get 15 traps? Is somebody diving out there telling
you? It is an interesting area, and I just thought, Well,
it would be nice if the public could know. And if the
public knows about traps, that the fishing line gets
hooked on them, where they need to call and that kind
of thing for that. So how does that process actually work?
The Minister also mentioned about lanternfly
coming off of cruise ships. I am glad we got control of that. But under the Environment in and of itself, I was
just curious as to whether or not, how do the farmers
. . . how are they . . . are they making suggestions
about how we can better deal with these pests and
the like? Because I know some of these farmers, I
have spoken to them. I mean, these guys are sharp.
And they may not be doctors, but they know their stuff. How is that relationship going on with the farmers and the Ministry on how we can deal with some of
these issues because usually the answer is right in
front of us? So, I will move on from there.
Oh, under number of dogs licenced, business
unit . . . on the same page, B -220. Business unit
89070, animal control. Number of dogs licenced as a percentage of eligible population. Now I think I know
what that means. I did pretty good in problem- solving
but I ain’t sure when it says 26 per cent. Are we saying that in the actual outcome there that 26 per cent of
the dogs on the Island are licenced? Is that what we
are saying? It is kind of confusing. Right? Number of dogs licenced as a percentage of eligible population.
So if we got 5,000 dogs, that is the eligible population.
Are we saying that 26 of them are licensed? Is that what that means?

So, you are asking for actual outcome
2023/24?

498 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Well, what I am saying is
. . . yes, under actual outcome in 2023/24, it is 26 per
cent. But the original forecast for 2024/25 is 40 per
cent and we are still forecasting this year 40 per cent.
There is a huge difference between the two, but I just
don’t understand the actual . . . percentage to what.
That is what I would like to know. What is that per-centage to? And as I said, is it to the total population of dogs that we have on the Island? Or . . . I just don’t
know. Or is it for re- licensing? I just don’t know. I
would like to know, understand more about that.
I am going to move on over to Public Lands
and Buildings. I am just going to put my notes away. I
have my [Budget] Book in front of me. Under Public
Lands and Buildings, on page B -222. If we look at the
general summary here, I am looking here and if we go to . . . under the general summary unit 81000, Administration.
And then Training and Apprenticeship, which
the Minister talked about 91001, Training and Appren-ticeship. Now, the Minister spoke quite eloquently about the fact that we are training, and we are doing
these wonderful things but if you look at the revised
amount for 2024/25 for Training, we didn’t do squat.
We didn’t do anything. And then our forecast for this
year is $311,000 that we are going to spend in training. And the 2023/24 actual amount, we didn’t do any training. Maybe that was because of COVID -19, I
don’t know. But then we originally said $273[,000] for
2024[/25]. And then we didn’t do anything.
So, I want to know, what were we doing? We
weren’t training anybody? It doesn’t make any sense
to me. But now we want to spend $311,[000]. Now, typically when you are forecasting you go over your
history, the past. So, it has got to be a major reason
why we didn’t do any training for two years. Two years
we didn’t do any training. So, what is going on? That
is hardly a commitment to getting us to where we
need to be. And I was trying to problem- solve this
thing here and then I said to myself, Maybe, you know
what, I was going over and I was looking here, and I
said, well, no, it can’t . . . maybe. I couldn’t figure it
out. I could not figure out why. So there has got to be
a reason for that.
I would like to . . . he did talk about buildings
and the maintenance. Under 8101, Buildings, if we
take a look at maintenance, unit 91003, under
maintenance. Under the revised amount for 2024/25,
we spent $9.3 million. We originally thought we were going to spend $8.3 million under 2024/25. So, we have spent over a million dollars in this particular area. That is pretty much, pretty close to the actual
amount that we spent in 2023/24. So, I trust in these
historical numbers because they are consistent. It is
only unfortunate that we don’t see these actual
amounts until years later. So, I am trying to under-stand why when there is so much going wrong with
our buildings and the like, how is it that we are only
estimating $8.713 [million]? The Chairman: [You have] 15 minutes.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Geez, man. Okay.
Insurance. Under Estates 8102. Insurance,
91005. If you take a look at the revised amount there
it is $8.1 million. But if you look at the original amount
for 2024/25 on page B -222, it is $5.8 million. Like that
is $2.8 million, plus. Maybe a little bit more, increase.
What was going on there? Or was that because we
added the new Ministry of Environment or something
like that? That could be the case. I don’t know. But it
is not making any sense. Unless a building . . . maybe
it is because we have not done anything with the Al-lenhurst Building. Maybe we lost the insurance on that. I don’t know. Because it has been sitting there for
years, hopefully something is going to happen there.
But we have not gotten to that. So, yes, I am trying to figure that one out.
If we also go down on that page B -222, 8104,
Project Management. And I do believe that the Minis-ter was talking about this as well with the allotment of
$726,000. And I recognised that this had to do with
hiring project managers on page B -223, at the very
bottom where it says, Employee Numbers. So, I am
assuming, he did give mention that that was probably the case. But what I don’t understand is that we allotted $671,000 in 2024/25 for the same reason.
And if you look over at the employee numbers
on page B -223, you will also see an allotment for five
people, but then we didn’t hire anyone. No one at all. And I would believe that the project management
people are local. Because we do have the expertise
here. So, were we having a challenge that we just decided that we are not going to do it after the case? Maybe. Something is happening there as to why we
didn’t do anything. But if you look now, we are hoping
to have six. And I happen to believe that these project
managers are actually . . . there are some working
now.
So, when exactly . . . also, the second question is: When did we hire them? Because it is lost here in translation when we look at 2024/25. When we look at the revised amount, it is zero. It is completely lost
so I am trying to figure out where in the world that
goes. So, please, if you can figure that one out, I would appreciate it.
I am going to move on. Under page B -224,
and then I am going to move onto . . . probably,
[Head] 81. Under the performance measures, business unit 91000, the second line item there says,
“Number of vacant Government owned buildings inspected and reports presented to the Minister on the
options for the properties. ” So, what I would like done,
I know we have . . . if you look at the outcome, 5, and
you look at the revised forecast, 5, and the original
forecast 5, I know we have more vacant buildings than
that. So, is there a report that we are doing? And how are we acting once we identify these vacant buildings
that we have, as I mentioned the Allenhurst Building?


Bermuda House of Assembly You know, the old police station there. It has been
flattened and it has been there for years and years
and years.
Government is looking to put legislation in
place that if your building is derelict or vacant for too long there may be tax implications, fees, because of
that. Government can’t own buildings in the city and
put legislation in place like that there when they are their own offender. Right? That is prime real estate. I
mean, if you put a coffee shop there for the civil servants. Do something. It is an eyesore coming into town. And the thing is just flattened. Just sitting there. Prime
real estate. Or sell it.
As I have been saying already, should we
consider . . . and that is a question. Should we consider selling Allenhurst Building? You will make some
money off of that building. Sell it. We are not doing anything with it. There has been plan after plan after
plan, you know. Arbitration Centre and the like. But we
haven’t . . . it has been years, Mr. Chairman. Nothing
has been done there except there are wonderful trees
growing. Right? Casuarinas are brilliant. Right? Nothing is happening at all. So, we need to move [swiftly].
And if there is one thing that bugs me and the Minister
is going to soon find out, sometimes we can move a
little slow. And I think we can do better in that area.
I know my time is dwindling down. So, I am
going to move over to Head 82, under Works and En-gineering. Where we start talking about on page B -
228—sorry. Page B -226. We talk about Highways
Management, on page B -226, Highways 8202. Listen
guys, I am concerned because if I go over to it . . . and
I might as well go over to it while I am here. I am extremely concerned because on page C -6, under Capital Development.
If we go down to 75042, Roadworks, we estimated $5 million that we were going to spend. And I
want to say to preface this, we estimated $5 million for
2024/25 when we already knew we had problems with our asphalt plant. But we still estimated $5 million to
spend. To spend in the revised amount it [is] $2.9 million. And so, we have slowed our production because
we have an ageing plant but then we go again and say we are going to put $5 million back there when we
already know we can’t do it. It is not good forecasting.
Right?
So, maybe a statement from the Minister of a
realistic amount that is going to be done for this up-coming year. Because every time you go somewhere everybody, the first thing they start talking about it, I mean. Roads! You know, it has gotten so bad that
unfortunately, and it is not the Minister’s fault, that
people are blaming their accidents, all kinds of stuff
because of the condition of the roads. Now I ride on
the roads. Mostly I ride on a bike, and I am going to
tell you, mate, that is like going to Coney Island back in the day when they had a wooden roller coaster.
That thing is rocky! I mean, those roads are rough. And I know the Minister is doing the best that
he can but maybe . . . Minister, question. I asked before about the asphalt machinery at the airport. And the reason we didn’t use it was because it was in
Spanish, the instructions. Do you know that you can scan those instructions in Spanish with AI and it
comes out in English? What a wonder! Let’s go to the
airport and say, Listen, we need this machinery. We got to get up to date here. Let somebody give this
some thought . I asked the Minister about it. He said, It
is in Spanish. We ain’t using it. How are you going to
tell the public it is in Spanish and you can’t . . .

Former Minister.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes, former Minister. Sorry. Former Minister.
I just sat there; Royal Gazette didn’t even talk
about it. I guess they didn’t like that at all. But I know
the Mi nister didn’t.
But come on now. That machinery is there at
the airport. I mean, that thing, that asphalt at the airport is handling planes jumping on it, not a car rolling
on it. We need to do something about it. I am hoping
that the Minister comes back and says, We are going
to go down to the airport. So, please, if you could, go
down to the airport and check that out.
So, I go back to page B -226, under Highways
and Management. Look, signs are down all over the
place. You need more than $2,000 to keep up. Under
92005, Roads Asphalt & Signs. Like, you are going to
spend . . . all of us riding on the roads, you can see
some of those signs are so old they are back from the old days. Right? You need to do something about that here. And then when it comes to the road maintenance, 92006, and the Minister did speak about what
they were doing there but —

Okay.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Remember, I said 10 per
cent is the key for Public Works. You would need a 10 per cent to catch up. I mean, we are behind. I must
say I want to thank the PS, this was last year so he
wasn’t the Minister at the time, but the former Minister.
A lot of railings were going up. I did notice that. It was really, really, really, really nice. But we are a long way
from where we need to be.
500 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly So, I would like for a realistic update on how
much more we need to spend to make sure that we
get this plant. I mean, this plant has been years now waiting. I still do not understand. This boat is coming
from China for sure because it is taking a long time to
get this stuff here. I just don’t understand why.
So, what I am going to do, Mr. Chairman, is I
am going to over to page C -6 and I am going to talk
about Capital Development because I know I only
have a couple of minutes here.

Yes, you have got five minutes.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes, I’ve got five minutes.
Under Capital Development. What I would like
to do is go down to Public Works Lands, page C -6,
where it talks about Horseshoe Bay beach bathrooms.
And last year we had a lot of complaints about this
bathroom, maintenance of it, keeping up with it with
the number of people who are going there. Have we
done anything about that? Are we hiring people to get . . . just like we hiring people to sweep the roads now?
We need more people maintaining the bathrooms. I
recognise that you have done that, yes. I pay attention.
So, this is our number -one beach. And every
year, we are going into a new season, holiday. Every year the tourists are complaining about lines. The
bathroom [toilets] are not flushing properly. What exactly is going on? Can we please put some money in
here to fix this thing? In 2024 the actual amount we
spent was $4.2 million. And I remember what was going on then because [there were] major, major issues with the backing up. We need to spend way more
money in that area.
I want to go over to under C -13 under Capital
Acquisitions. The Minister talked about cars and elec-tric cars and the like. We also talked about in Parks
. . . sorry. In Parks, yes, that . . . sorry. Under Communications Equipment. (I’m sorry, I’m going too fast.)
Mr. Chairman, 76868, Communications Equipment.
Where exactly is the tower going in St. David’s? Is it
near the . . . are we talking about near the lighthouse
itself? He never mentioned where exactly that tower
was going. And if I didn’t ask that question, I would not
be able to go back down to my family to make sure
that I got an answer for them.

Three minutes.
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes. I am going over to . . .
I want to go over to page C -28, under Head 81, Public
Lands and Buildings. We are renting out a new build-ing for almost $200,000 there, $198,000. The Paradigm Building in Hamilton Parish. It’s new. Who is actually in that building? Who is . . . like what Ministry, or
. . .? That is $198,000 for the year in new rent. —

[Inaudible interjection] Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: I didn’t . . . I didn’t . . .

[Inaudible interjection]
Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: I do? Oh, from the—

It would be nice if the Chair was included in the conversation.

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes, my apologies, Mr.
Chairman. You told me three minutes, so I panicked.

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. L. Craig Cannonier: Yes, so I will go back to my
original plea, because I am going to talk about this. I
am giving fair warning.
On page B -218 under Ministry of Public
Works for . . . for . . . where is my . . . Okay. Yes. For
the Ministry we have, in my opinion, probably grossly
miscalculated on page B -201, the actual development
under Capital Expenditure. Development is
$50,492,000. Yes, that may be what we want to spend but in actual fact the 2024/25 original amount, if you look at the Budget Book last year you will see
$52,992,000. That is a decrease in development and
that certainly does not speak to what I understand to
be this year because we have a surplus in our budget that we are actually putting our money where our
mouth is and investing in the fact that we want Bermuda to get better with these roads, and the like. That does not reflect investment at all. And if that number is
correct, I am woefully disappointed that the Ministry
was not allowed . . . it is not the PS’s fault at all. Cabinet has to bear the responsibility for not making sure
that more money was spent in this area.

Thank you, Member.
We have reached our time allotted. The four -
and-a-half-hours has elapsed and that brings us to the
end of this debate.
Minister, I will encourage you to move your
heads.

Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.


Bermuda House of Assembly What I will say to —

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. Jache Adams: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Any comments or just . . .

That now brings us to the conclusion
of that debate for the Ministry of Public Works and
Environment on Heads 36, 68, 79, 81 and 82.
Next on the agenda is the Ministry of Tourism
and Transport. Something near and dear to my heart. It is going to be piloted through by Minister Owen Darrell. He will be taking on Heads 71, 34, 48, 35 and 30.
This is a three- and-a-half-hour debate starting now at
4:46 pm.
Minister, you have the floor.

MINISTRY OF TOURISM AND
TRANSPORT, CULTURE AND SPORT

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good
afternoon.
Mr. Chairman, I move the following heads:
Head 71, Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture
and Sport, Headquarters; Head 34, Transport Control
Department; Head 48, Transport; Head 35; Public
Transportation; and Head 30, Marine and Ports be
now taken under consideration.

Are there any objections to these
heads being taken under consideration?
With their being no objections, Minister, you
have the floor.

HEAD 71 —MINISTRY HEADQUARTERS
Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. (I’m
getting myself situated here.) Mr. Chairman, thank
you. Mr. Chairman, I will start with Head 71, Headquarters. This is found on pages B -232 through B -236
of the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure.
Mr. Chairman, it gives me great pleasure to
present the budget for Head 71, the newly combined
Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport
Headquarters, found on pages B -232 through B-236
of the Budget Book. The mission of the Ministry of
Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport Headquarters is To create a globally competitive, diverse destination that enhances visitor experiences, expands
cultural and sports opportunities, and ensures safe,
efficient transportation for all . That is found on page B -
233.

[Inaudible interjections]

My apologies, Minister.
Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, a total of
$34,079,000 as found on page B -234 of the Budget
Book has been allocated to the new Ministry of Tour-ism and Transport, Culture and Sport Headquarters,
which represents the combination of the former Ministry of Transport, Head 48 and the former Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Head 71. The new Ministry Headquarters will now function under Head 71.
The aforementioned budgetary [allocation] of $34,079,000 represents 34 per cent of the total budget allocation for the Ministry as a whole.
Mr. Chairman, the Ministry of Tourism and
Transport, Culture and Sport Headquarters serves as
the central hub for strategic leadership, policy development, and oversight across Bermuda’s sectors of tourism, transport, culture and sport. It is responsible
for setting the vision and direction that guides these
sectors. By coordinating initiatives, shaping legislative
frameworks and providing high level support to departments and agencies, the Ministry Headquarters
plays a vital role in supporting innovation, enhancing
service delivery, and promoting Bermuda’s identity
and competitiveness both locally and internationally.
This investment is essential to strengthen and
moderni se Bermuda’s transportation infrastructure,
including our ports and public transit systems. It also supports the growth of our sports and cultural sectors,
enhancing the quality of life for our residents and enriching the experience for visitors.
Mr. Chairman, the departments which come
under the Ministry Headquarters’ remit include:
• Department of Sport and Recreations,
Head 20;
• Department of Marine and Ports Services, Head 30;
• Transport Control Department (TCD),
Head 34;
• Department of Public Transportation,
Head 35; and the
• Department of Culture, Head 52.
502 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly In addition, Headquarters maintains oversight
of 24 authorities, boards, consuls and committees.
Namely, the Bermuda Civil Aviation Authority, the Bermuda Shipping and Maritime Authority, the Bermuda Airport Authority; the Bermuda Tourism Authority; the Bermuda Arts Council; Golf Course Board; Liquor Licence Authority; National Sports Centre Board;
the Bermuda Sports Anti -Doping Agency; nine parish
councils; Naming and Recognition Committee; Public
Service Vehicle Licencing Board; Ports Authority
Board; Road Safety Council; Medical Reference Committee; and the Water Safety Council.

Revenue Overview

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, it is anticipated
that during the 2025/26 budget cycle, Headquarters
will collect approximately $1,357,000 in revenue,
found on page B -235. The revenue is mainly collected
from vacation rental fees, hotel licenc es fees as well
as liquor licencing fees.

Subjective Analysis
Administration

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the estimated
budget for the Administration Section will be
$33,479,000. This represents an increase of
$14,820,000 or an increase of approximately 79 per
cent when compared to prior years, cost centre
81000, which did not include the two merged Headquarters. The increase mainly represents the transfer
of the Administration Section, cost centre 58000, un-der the former Headquarters for Transport, Head 48.

Bermuda Airport Authority

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, included in the
administration budget is a grant to the Bermuda Air-port Authority, an amount of $14,901,000 for year
2025/26, representing a $200,000 increase, or approximately 2 per cent over the 2024/25 allocation.
Mr. Chairman, the Airport Authority currently
employs 61 full -time equivalent staff including vacancies. The mostly Bermudian, professional workforce
has the mandate to provide essential retained G overnment services as direct employees of the Airport Authority. Part of the increased expense allocation will
be used to fund essential overseas training for up to five Bermudian Air Traffic Controllers who joined in
Quarter 1 of 2025.

Bermuda Tourism Authority

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, also included in
the Administration budget is a grant to the Bermuda
Tourism Authority (known as the BTA) of $15,500,000
for 2025/26, representing a $540,000 decrease, or approximately 3.5 per cent compared the 2024/25
revised allocation of $16,040,000.
Mr. Chairman, the budget allocation to the
Bermuda Tourism Authority reflects the amount requested in its grant application. Should I repeat that,
Mr. Chairman? The budget allocation to the Bermuda
Tourism Authority reflects the amount requested in its grant application. This budget underscores the BTA’s
continued commitment to reducing its reliance on
Government funding. In keeping with the pledges
made in the 2024 Throne Speech, the BTA has demonstrated a proactive approach through cost -
saving measures and initiatives aimed at generating its own revenue to operate more independently and sustainably .
Mr. Chairman, our total income for the BTA is
forecast to be $32,100,000. The balance of approxi-mately $16,600,000 forecasted income is from fees
paid by visitors staying in Bermuda’s hotels, vacation
rental units, and by cruise ship passengers. The vast majority of BTA funds are spent on selling and marketing the destination , the sales and marketing organisation, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, the BTA operates as the Island’s Destination Marketing Organisation, working
diligently to advance Bermuda’s economic prosperity
through a robust and sustainable tourism sector. This
Government remains committed to ensuring that eve-ry dollar invested in Bermuda’s tourism industry delivers measurable returns, fosters job creation, and
strengthens our economy.
Mr. Chairman, the tourism sector remains a
cornerstone of Bermuda’s economy, directly and indirectly impacting thousands of Bermudians. In 2024, the Bermuda Tourism Authority and the Bermuda
tourism industry built upon previous successes,
achieving substantial growth in key performance indicators.
Total visitor arrivals increased by 4 per cent to
approximately 743,000, with air arrivals rising by
9.6 per cent to approximately 203,000, and leisure air
arrivals up by 15.2 per cent to approximately 140,000.
These results underscore the effectiveness and the
strategic efforts to enhance Bermuda’s tourism product and strengthen its global positioning.

Transportation Planning Team

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the Transportation
Planning section sits within the Ministry Headquarters, cost centre 81060, includes one full -time equivalent
employee and is allocated a budget of $147,000 and
can be found on page B -234 of the Budget Book.
The Transportation Planning Section is responsible for managing all aspects of cruise ship operations in Bermuda, including contracts, logistics,
regulations, and day -to-day coordination, to ensure
continuous and efficient service delivery. It also leads
key transportation projects and conducts policy reBermuda House of Assembly search to support the Ministry’s strategic priorities and
long-term planning objectives .
Mr. Chairman, in 2024, the cruise ship season
began with 190 scheduled calls and a projected passenger count of over 578,000 people. By the end of
the season, 17 calls were unfortunately cancelled, 13
due to adverse weather conditions and four as a result
of itinerary changes, resulting in 173 actual calls and over 535,000 passengers. This represented a reduction of approximately 43,000 passengers, or 7.4 per
cent. Despite the cancellations, the 2024 season outperformed the 2023 season, which recorded a total of
over 525,000 cruise passengers.
The economic impact for 2024 included:
$24,500,000 in passenger taxes and $10,800,000 in
transportation infrastructure tax. Additionally, other
cruise ship revenue was estimated at $7,000,000 in cruise ship visitor fees; $116,500,000 in combined
passenger and crew spending; and $9,300,000 in
cruise line disbursement expenses locally.
This culminated in an estimated total of
$168,100,000 in economic activity for 2024. Mr. Chairman, since the first published projections in December 2024 for the 2025 season includes 179 calls,
there have been seven cruise ship cancellations. The
new conservative projection at this time includes 172
cruise ship calls and approximately 475,000 passen-gers, based on a similar number of cancellations last
year.

Regulatory and Policy

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the Regulatory
and Policy Section sits within the Ministry Headquar-ters, cost centre 81065, includes four full -time equivalent employees and is allocated a budget of $453,000
and can be found on page B -234 of the Budget Book.
The Regulatory and Policy Section is tasked
with managing the full lifecycle of the Tourism Invest-ment Relief applications. This includes the receipt,
timely processing, and thorough review of all submissions.
Once applications are approved, the section
ensures they are efficiently advanced through the ap-propriate legislative and administrative channels to
facilitate implementation.
Mr. Chairman, the section is also responsible
for conducting compliance inspections for hotels and vacation rentals to ensure adherence to relevant standards and regulations. Based on the outcomes of these inspections, they are further responsible for issuing licences and certifications as required to support
lawful and high- quality tourism operations.
Mr. Chairman, the 2024 calendar year marked
the most active period since the enactment of the
Tourism Investment Act 2017. A total of seven appli-cations were approved for relief under the Act, all of
which are now in operation. This represents a significant increase, Mr. Chairman, compared to previous years, which typically saw an average of just one or
two successful applications annually. That shows, Mr.
Chairman, massive investment in this space.
This notable uptick reflects a glowing level of
investor confidence in the tourism sector and renewed interest in Bermuda as a destination for sustainable
tourism development.

For the listening public, the Minister is
speaking to Head 71, Regulatory Policies, mainly with the focus on hotels.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, the 2025/26 capital budget is
for the Bermuda Airport Authority, which totals
$2,713,000, which is found on page C -7. These funds
will be directed toward several critical, ongoing and
new airport infrastructure projects. Mr. Chairman, as
seen on page B -235, there will be a total of 13 full -
time equivalent employees in the Ministry Headquarters, Head 71.
Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to report that the
department’s forecasted performance measures found
on B -236 for fiscal year 2024/25 were achieved. Mr.
Chairman, this business unit, cost centre 81000, is
responsible for the strategic policy development, accounting support for the Ministry. The performance measures of 2024/25 include internal compliance re-views for heads within the Ministry, financial guidance
or compliance training sessions for the year, percentage of payments accurately processed within the relevant deadlines and a percentage of ministerial policy
priorities completed. All forecasted outcomes were
successfully achieved.

Regulatory and Policy , Cost Centre 81065
Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, as mentioned previously, this business unit oversees the end- to-end
handling of tourism investment relief applications from
intake to implementation. It also carries out inspections of hotels and vacation rentals to make sure they have met regulatory standards and compliance requirements.
The performance measures for 2024/25 include ensuring hotel and vacation rental properties
are inspected and licensed by the annual deadline of
the 31
st of March and the 31st of August, respectively.
Hotel and vacation rental complaints are acknowl-edged within 24 hours of receipt. Hotel and vacation
rental complaints are investigated within 48 hours of
receipt and ensuring final report of hotel and vacation
rental complaints are issued within 10 days of complaint. All forecasted outcomes were successfully
achieved.

Plans for the Upcoming Year

504 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the Ministry
Headquarters will continue to serve as a strategic and
policy development hub for the Ministry. Mr. Chair-man, a key focus remains the advancement of Bermuda’s cruise industry. In collaboration with the Bermuda Land Development Company, now operating
under the Ministry of Housing and Municipalities,
plans to extend to the King’s Wharf Pier by 200 feet will be implemented. Construction is scheduled to
begin on the 2
nd of October 2025 with completion expected by the 31st of March 2026. This extension will
enable King’s Wharf to match the size of Heritage
Wharf in capacity. Larger cruise ships will be able to
dock more efficiency and deploy additional gangways, improving both embarkation and disembarkation processes.
Mr. Chairman, looking ahead, the cruise ship
schedule for 2026 currently includes 190 calls, while
the 2027 season, still in early booking stages, already
has confirmed 180 calls. These figures, though subject to change, demonstrate a strong and growing interest in Bermuda as a cruise ship destination.
Mr. Chairman, the Bermuda Airport Authority
will continue to oversee several ongoing and upcoming infrastructure initiatives related to aviation weather services using the capital funding measured earlier.
These include, but are not limited to the
• Aeronautical Information Services;
• Aeronautical Information Management;
• organisational transition;
• Bermuda Weather Service;
• Weather Radar;
• random refurbishment, or resealing;
• Bermuda Weather Service application programme interface;
• Air Traffic Engineering infrastructure up-grades;
• the Bermuda Weather Service website de-sign;
• the Bermuda Weather Service hydrogen gas
generator, phase one;
• cybersecurity systems infrastructure upgrades; and
• the air traffic controller simulator.
I am sure you know all of those well, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, in the Tourism sector, the
Bermuda Tourism Authority [BTA] will continue its efforts to diversify Bermuda’s visitor markets. In 2025
market initiatives will expand, and they have already
started to do so beyond the United States to include
Canada and other international markets. Mr. Chairman, I am sure everyone has seen the video of the Bermuda Airport Authority at the opening day of the
Toronto Bluejays, which seemed to get a lot of popularity. These efforts will be powered by digital campaigns, influence of partnerships and strategic media
collaborations to position Bermuda as an aspirational
destination for a wider array of leisure travellers. The BTA will enhance the effectiveness of its
partner marketing through BTAConnect, a platform that allows industry stakeholders to manage their
presence on gotobermuda.com. This includes updating contact information showcasing amenities, uploading visuals, linking social media accounts and accessing key performance data. In 2024, the BTA consumer
website, gotobermuda.bm , received over five million
page hits, highlighting growing global interest in Bermuda. Ongoing optimisations to the platform aim to
further boost traffic to help partners convert the inter-est into meaningful economic returns.
Mr. Chairman, you may recall that in 2025 the
Throne Speech introduced a new initiative to broaden the Tourism Investment Act 2017 scope. I am sure
this one would also interest you, Mr. Chairman. This
expansion will extend eligibility for a full suite of con-cessions to other key sectors, most notably smaller
guest houses, and health and medical tourism—
facilities to further strengthen the impact and reach of
the Act. I will point that out again, Mr. Chairman —
smaller guest houses.

Thank you, Minister. Thank you, Minister. The Gold Coast of Bermuda will thank you.

Hon. Owen Darrell: There you go.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the dedicated teams at the Ministry Headquarters and the Authorities under the Ministry for their hard work and solid commitment to the Ministry and its mandate. That
concludes, Mr. Chairman, Head 71, the Ministry of
Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport Headquarters.
I now, if I may, Mr. Chairman, move on to
Head 48, the former Transport Ministry’s former Headquarters.

Thank you.
For the listening pubic, this is a three- and-ahalf-hour debate. It has five heads. The Minister has
just concluded Head 71 and is going on to Head 48.

HEAD 48 —THE FORMER MINISTRY OF
TRANSPORT HEADQUARTERS

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, the budget for Head 48, the
former Ministry of Transport Headquarters, can be
found on pages B -256 to B -257 in the Budget Book.
Mr. Chairman, as previously stated, effectively
February 2025, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport were formally
merged to create the new Ministry of Tourism and
Transport, Culture and Sport. This structural change reflected in the 2025/26 budget specifically on pages
B-256 and B -257, where a zero budget allocation is
shown for the former Headquarters. This is not an
oversight, but rather a result of the consolidation with


Bermuda House of Assembly all relevant budgetary and programmatic information
now centralised under the new combined Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport Headquar-ters, Head 71.
Accordingly, any past performance, ongoing
initiatives and future plans related to the former Head
48 are now addressed under Head 71, which I have
just presented, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. That concludes the
brief for the former Ministry of Transport Headquar-ters, Head 48. And if you allow, I will move on to Head 30, which is the forgotten Department of Marine and
Ports.

For the listening public, the Minister is
piloting through his heads. We have done Head 71 and Head 48, and the Minister is now moving on to Head 30, Marine and Ports.

HEAD 30 —MARINE AND PORTS
Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, it gives me great
pleasure to present the budget for Head 30, Department of Marine and Ports found on page B -243 of the
Budget Book.
Mr. Chairman, the mission statement for the
Department of Marine and Ports is The regulation and
safe operation of Bermuda’s maritime affairs including
Marine Board of Security, Search and Rescue and
Public Transportation, found on page B -243.
Mr. Chairman, the Marine and Ports budget
allocation of $23,787,000 represents an increase of
$791,000, or an increase of approximately 3 per cent,
over the 2024/25 budget, as seen on page B -243.
This increase is due to approved negotiated salary
and wage uplifts. Mr. Chairman, it is anticipated that in 2025/26 the Department of Marine and Ports Services
will generate revenues of approximately $6,314,000,
found on page B -244. The revenue is collected primarily through fees charged for the provision of ferry
services, tug services, boat haulage, pilotage fees,
boat moorings and port dues.
Mr. Chairman, the estimated budgets for the
Department of Marine and Ports Services West End Dockyard operations are as follows:
• Navigational Aids cost centre 40040 for
$853,000. This represents an increase of $55,000, or an increase of approximately
7 per cent over the previous year’s budget to
cover approved negotiated salary and wage
uplifts;
• Tug Service cost centre 40140 for
$2,137,000. This represents an increase of
$93,000, or an increase of approximately
5 per cent, over the previous year’s budget to
cover approved negotiated salary and wage
uplifts;
• Tender Service cost centre 40210 for
$410,000. This represents an increase of $14,000, or an increase of approximately 4 per cent over the previous year’s budget to
again, Mr. Chairman, cover approved negotiated salary and wage uplifts;
• Dockyard Maintenance cost centre 4260 for
$3,571,000. This represents an increase of
$110,000, or an increase of approximately 3 per cent, over the prior year’s budget to
cover approved negotiated salary and wage uplifts;
• Ferry Service cost centre 40090 for
$8,543,000. This represents an increase of
$250,000, or an increase of approximately
3 per cent, over the previous year’s budget to
cover approved negotiated salary and wage
uplifts;
• Mooring and Boat Regulations cost centre
40150 for $313,000. This represents an increase of $11,000, or an increase of approximately 4 per cent, over the prior year’s budget
to cover approved negotiated salary and wage uplifts;
• Administration cost centre 40220 for
$3,052,000. This represents an increase of
$130,000, or an increase of approximately 4 per cent, over the prior year’s budget to
cover approved negotiated salary and wage uplifts;
• Maritime Safety and Security cost centre
40100 for $2,632,000. This represents an increase of $45,000, or an increase of approximately 2 per cent, over last year’s budget to
cover approved negotiated salary and wage
uplifts; and
• Pilotage Service and Offshore Search and
Rescue cost centre 40180 for $2,276,000.
This represents an increase of $83,000, or an
increase of approximately 4 per cent, over the
prior year’s budget to cover approved negotiated salary and wage uplifts;
Mr. Chairman, capital development and expenditure for the department is set at $1,887,000. This
could be found on page C -7. It has been appropriated
for the ongoing Marine and Ports Dockyard Workshop
Renovations. And a further $525,000 has been appropriated for the Floating Docks Refit project. Capital
Acquisition is found on page C -14.
Mr. Chairman, Capital Acquisition Expenditure
for the department is set at $9,598,000. Mr. Chairman, $815,000 has been set aside for navigational aids for
the department’s ageing ship navigation infrastructure.
And a further $8,759,000 has been appropriated for
the completion of the two 550- passenger ferries in the
fourth quarter of 2025, which is currently on budget
and on schedule. Mr. Chairman —on budget and on
schedule.
Manpower, found on page B -245. Mr. Chairman, the 2025/26 budget estimates include funds for
46 . . . Sorry, that should be—I am going to check on
506 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly that. But it says 46 full -time equivalent employees.
Performance measures by business unit are found on
pages B -246 to B -247.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN

HOUSE VISITORS

And the Chair would just like to recognise the technical staff who are here to support the
Minister. They are making sure that, as he said, everything remains on time and on budget.

[Committee of Supply, continuing]
Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I am pleased to report that the department’s
forecast performance measures for fiscal year 2025/26 were for the most part fully achieved.

NAV Aids, Cost Centre 40040

Hon. Owen Darrell: The performance target of ensuring that all inshore and offshore lights and beacons
were operational 99.5 per cent of the time was successfully achieved in 2024/25. This high standard of service is expected to be maintained in 2025/26 with the target outcome anticipated to be achieved. This
continued success of this measure is supported by a
well-managed inventory of replacing lights and captain’s stock, ensuring quick response and minimal down time when maintenance or replacements are
needed.

Tugs, Cost Centre 40140
Hon. Owen Darrell: The measure to provide tug services to international shipping without delay 100 per
cent of the time was successfully achieved in 2024/25. This high level of reliability is expected to continue in
2025/26 with the target outcome anticipated to be
met. This achievement is largely attributed to effective
coordination and the provision of advanced notice for
scheduling, shipping arrivals and departures which has helped prevent service conflicts and ensure timely
assistance.

Dockyard Maintenance , Cost Centre 40260

Hon. Owen Darrell: The measure is to achieve full
compliance with Lloyd’s Register survey requirements
by ensuring 100 per cent of the fleet is dry -docked
annually, as well as maintaining 100 per cent vessel
availability. To meet the published schedule was successfully achieved in 2024/25. This standard is expected to be sustained in 2025/26 with the target out-come anticipated to be met. The achievement was
supported by an increase in staffing levels, Mr.
Chairman. Ferries , Cost Centre 40090
Hon. Owen Darrell: This measure to provide on- time
ferry services to the public, ensuring sufficient vessels are available to meet the published schedule 99 per
cent of the time, was not achieved in 2024/25, due to
challenges related to an ageing fleet. However, efforts
are underway to improve performance with a forecasted goal to reduce ferry service delays and cancellations by 10 per cent in 2025/26. While the target
outcome will require significant effort, it is considered
achievable. A key development supporting this improvement is the anticipated arrival of two new ferries
in Bermuda during the fourth quarter of this year, which will enhance fleet reliability and service consistency, Mr. Chairman.

Boats and Moorings , Cost Centre 40150

Hon. Owen Darrell: The measure to process all
mooring applications within six weeks 100 per cent of
the time and to relicense all moorings by the published deadline of 31 May at least 90 per cent of the
time was successfully achieved in 2024/25. Although
the removal of illegal, unregistered moorings remains dependent on available manpower, overall service
levels have improved. For 2025/26, the department
aims to reduce mooring processing times by one week with the target outcome expected to be
achieved.

Administration, Cost Centre 4220

Hon. Owen Darrell: The measure to ensure that
80 per cent of staff are standard of training certification and watchkeeping certified and 100 per cent of
performance appraisals are completed by the dead-line was successfully achieved in 2024/25. For
2025/26 the department aims to increase the number
of standard of training certification watchkeeping certified staff by 15 per cent, with the target outcome expected to be met. This goal is supported by the full
operation and on- Island Maritime Academy, which
provides more accessible and timely training, helping
to shorten certification timelines to enhance workforce
readiness.

Maritime Safety and Security , Cost Centre 4100

Hon. Owen Darrell: This measure to respond to distress calls and deploy vessels to offshore search and
rescue cases in a timely manner 100 per cent of the
time, along with reducing the registration timeframe
for the new distress beacons from 14 to 7 days, was successfully achieved in 2024/25. The high standard
of service is expected to be maintained for 2025/26.
The achievement was supported by enhanced radar capabilities and the use of long- range CCTV cameras,


Bermuda House of Assembly which have significantly improved response times and
situational awareness during maritime emergencies.

Pilot Services , Cost Centre 4180
Hon. Owen Darrell: This measure to provide branch
pilots for all arriving and departing international ships and ensure the availability of branch pilots and pilot boats 100 per cent of the time was successfully
achieved in 2024/25. This level of service is expected to be maintained in 2025/26. The achievement was made possible by having two well -maintained pilot
boats and a full complement of licensed, qualified pilots ensuring uninterrupted and efficient pilotage operations.
Mr. Chairman, the department will continue
consulting with stakeholders to ensure the continued implementation of the Marine and Ports Services Act
2021 remains a smooth transition to the new legislation.

Plans for the Upcoming Year

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, plans for the upcoming year will include the following:
• Training of departmental staff to international
standards will continue to ensure the department meets its international obligations in line
with safe manning requirements.
• Continue progress for the department’s succession planning to ensure highly technical
posts within the department are filled by qualified Bermudians with the relaunch of the de-partment’s training programme.
• Continue training for tug crews of the department’s state- of-the-art tugs.
• Introduce two new 550- passenger ferries to
the fleet in the fourth quarter of this year.
• Continue progressing the renovation of the
Marine and Ports Workshop in partnership
with the Department of Works and Engineering.
• Continue with the public -private partnership
programme for the removal of all derelict
boats.
Mr. Chairman, as mentioned in previous
years, the Department of Marine and Ports Services
represents one of the most critical operational arms of
the Government of Bermuda. And it facilitates the movement of vital shipping commerce in and out of
Bermuda’s ports. The services of the department provide and include the public ferry boats, pilot boats, tug boats ship tender services, boats and mooring registration, and the Bermuda Maritime Operation Centre.
Additionally, the department is responsible for the co-ordination of international search and rescue operations in this region of the North Atlantic. And retains
oversight of overseas seaport security and marine border control in compliance with international standards.
Mr. Chairman, I conclude Head 30 by expressing my appreciation to the leadership and the staff of the Department of Marine and Ports Services for their ongoing dedication to providing consistently
high-quality customer service. And if you will, Mr.
Chairman, I now will move on Head 34, the Transport
Control Department.

For the listening public, this is a
three- and-a-half-hour debate on the Ministry of Tourism and Transport. We are just over half an hour into this debate, as we started at 4:46. We will end at 8:16. We have done four of the five heads, and the Minister
is about to move the last head, which is Head 34.
Minister, you have the floor.

HEAD 34 —TRANSPORT CONTROL DEPARTMENT

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, thank you.
The budget head for Head 34, Transport Control Department, commonly referred to as TCD, can
be found on pages B -248 to B -251 of the Budget
Book.
Mr. Chairman, the mission statement for the
Transport Control Department is To ensure the safety
of all road users, which is found on page B -248.
Mr. Chairman, the TCD’s budget allocation of
$6,008,000 in 2025/26 is a $447,000, or an 8 per cent
increase over the allocation for 2024/25, which can be
found on page B -248.
Under the General Summary of Expenditure
for business units, you will find that the estimates for 2025/26 of each business unit have slightly changed
from the 2024/25 estimates. The core allocation of
funds is not very much from previous years. The minor increase will primarily be applied to compensation, facility operations and maintenance.
Mr. Chairman, it is anticipated that during the
2025/26 budget cycle, the TCD will collect approxi-mately $31,534,000 in revenue, found on page B -249.
This represents an approximately 2 per cent increase
over the 2024/25 total revenues.
Mr. Chairman, the estimated budget for the
Administration section will be $2,523,000. This represents an increase of $237,000, or an increase of approximately 10 per cent over the previous year’s
budget to cover outstanding maintenance for equipment that requires assistance from overseas vendors.

Registration Section, Cost Centre 44040

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, Registration section, which is cost centre 44040, processed 78,161
customer transactions in 2024. The estimated budget
for this section is $1,077,000 for the fiscal year 2025/26. The additional $49,000 represents a 5 per
cent increase over the 2024/25 budget. Again, Mr.
508 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Chairman, this increase is attributed to salary increases.

Examinations , Cost Centre 44000
Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, for this fiscal cycle, the Examinations section estimated budget of $1,393,000 represents a $48,000, or a 4 per cent increase over the previous year. This is mainly attributed to salary increases.

Traffic Control , Cost Centre 4410
Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the estimated
budget for the Traffic Control section will be $747,000. This represents a $105,000, or a 16 per cent increase
over the previous year’s budget to cover costs attributed to the busy cruise ship season to ensure staffing at the piers and places of interest like Horseshoe
Bay and are related to traffic control.

Road Safety , Cost Centre 44090

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the estimated
budget for the Road Safety section will be $268,000.
This represents an approximate 3 per cent increase,
or $8,000 increase over the previous year’s budget to
cover additional media campaigns and the anticipated
Project Ride enhancements. Of the $268,000 allocated to the Road Safety section, as seen on page B -248
of the Budget Book, the Road Safety Council will receive a grant in the amount of $80,000 for the Project
Ride Programme, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, the 2025/26 budget estimates
include funds for 46 full -time equivalents (or employees), as seen on page B -250. Mr. Chairman, the department’s forecast performance measures for fiscal
year 2024/25 found on page B -251 were mostly
achieved.

Administration, Cost Centre 44210

Hon. Owen Darrell: In 2024/25 the target to answer
60 per cent of incoming call centre calls within five
minutes was successfully achieved. The target of 2025/26 will be maintained. This has been supported
by the hiring of a second customer service representative, enabling the team to better manage the
high volume of approximately 12,000 calls received each month. The customer service representatives play a key role in delivering timely responses by
providing both general information and guidance on
the new online services now available to the public.
In 2024/25, the goal of processing accounts
receivable invoices within five business days was
successfully achieved. Looking ahead, this level of performance is forecast to continue in 2025/26 with
the target outcome anticipated to be met. This has
been made possible by the hiring of an accounts clerk, completing the staffing requirements within the
Accounts section. In 2024/25, the target of processing accounts payable invoices within five business days
was successfully met. For 2025/26, the forecast aims
to maintain the five business days with the expecta-tion that the target will be achieved.

Registrations , Cost Centre 44040

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, in 2024/25 the
goal of servicing 75 per cent of customers within 30
minutes of ticket collection was successfully achieved.
This level of performance is forecast to continue in
2025/26 with this target expected to be met. This is supported by successful recruitment efforts over the
past year, which filled key vacancies in this section.
Additionally, the implementation of a new customer management system has contributed significantly by
distributing work evenly amongst clerks, resulting in a
more consistent and efficient flow of customers.

Examinations , Cost Centre 44000

Hon. Owen Darrell: In 2024/25, the target of providing 90 per cent of requested driving test appointments
within 10 business days was successfully achieved.
This level of performance is forecast to continue in
2025/26 with the target outcome expected to be met. The achievement is largely attributed to the consistent
staffing levels, with three examiners dedicated to conducting both driving and riding tests. This has significantly improved scheduling efficiency, reducing the
average wait time for appointments within one week.

Examinations , Cost Centre 44000

Hon. Owen Darrell: For fiscal year 2025/26, the objective of keeping response times of 10 business days
to abandoned vehicle complaints will remain. This target could not be met in 2024/25 because the section
had to rely on external vendors to collect vehicles.
The process to secure a vehicle with a lift, to collect cycles, has commenced. Therefore, it is expected that
the performance measure will be met this fiscal cycle.
A new online reporting system is now in place
to assist with the ticketing of vehicles, and the section
will continue to work with the private sector to collect
abandoned cars and trucks.

And for the listening public, the Minister is roughly 45 minutes into his three- and-a-half-hour
debate. He has done four of the five heads. We are
currently on Head 34 going through the performance
measures.
Minister, you have the floor.
Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
In 2024/25, the objective of maintaining 90 per
cent pass rate for Project Ride was not achieved. This


Bermuda House of Assembly is partly due to the increasing number of 15- year-old
children who registered for the programme who had
never ridden a pedal bike. To achieve this objective for the next fiscal cycle, instructors now request that
parents enrol their children after learning to ride a pedal bike, which is a much safer approach. I think so,

No. In my day, you just knew how to
ride a pedal bike from the time you were three. So . . .
Hon. Owen Darrell: Okay.
In light of this new initiative, the success rate
of 90 per cent is expected to be met this cycle. During
the last fiscal cycle, a new instruction manual was
produced. As a result, the on- road instruction and examinations component to enhance programmes are
scheduled to commence later this year.

Plans for the Upcoming Year
Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the Transport
Control Department [TCD] continues to review its
governing legislation with the view of modernising
sections and regulations addressing modern vehicle
trends and technology. A major project currently underway at TCD is to provide the option of submitting applications and requests online. Several of the application forms have already been placed online and
more will soon follow.
The applications set for digitisation include a
wide array of permits, licences and services including
• Project Ride instructor application;
• exemption application for tint, seatbelt, signage and licensing fees;
• importation and replacement of vehicles and
vehicle parts;
• public service vehicle permit;
• sporting association trailer permit;
• change vehicle category for different use application;
• registration of a classic car;
• commercial vehicle permit;
• learner’s permit;
• driver’s licence; and
• the public service vehicle or heavy truck licence.
Mr. Chairman, this digital transformation began with the following three applications, which came
into effect on March 30 of this year:
1. Project Ride instructor application;
2. exemption application for tint, seatbelts, sign-age and licensing fees; and
3. the importation and replacement of vehicles and vehicle parts application.
The next phase of the digitised applications is set to
be launched this June, next month, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, in November 2025, TCD will
serve as the pilot agency for the Government’s Digital
Payment Initiative, acting as a prototype for the
broader implementation across other public sectors.
By transitioning its payment system to include a digital platform, the department will demonstrate the practical
benefits of adopting cashless transactions such as
improved efficiency, transparency and convenience for the public. This initiative will start with vehicle licensing fees. As the first point of contact, TCD’s successful adoption will set the foundation for standards of future governmentwide digital payment solutions.
And, Mr. Chairman, we saw the success of the conference that we just had just last week. So we are happy to be on board with this, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, the Bermuda Road Safety
Council will work in conjunction with the Road Safety Officer to continue the implementation of Operation
Caution, the Government’s five- year road safety strategy. From 2018 to 2023, Operation Caution has been
extended now to 2025 to cover the time lost during the
pandemic. One of the key deliverables of the strategy
for 2024/25 was a recommendation to enhance the
Project Ride programme for Bermuda youth licence
applicants to undergo training and final practical ex-ams on public roads. This enhancement is near completion and is expected to go live this fiscal cycle.
Mr. Chairman, I end Head 34 by thanking the
leadership and staff of the Transport Control Department for their efforts and continuously delivering a
high level of customer service. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. That concludes the brief of the Transport Control
Department, Head 34, and I now move to Head 35,
the Department of Public Transportation.

For the listening audience, the Minister is moving to Head 35, which will be the last of the
heads that he has to move. This debate started at 4:46. We will end at 8:16. And we are currently just
approximately just outside of an hour in.
Minister, you have the floor.

HEAD 35 —THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC
TRANSPORTATION

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The budget for the Head 35, the Department
of Public Transportation, is found on pages B -252 to
B-255 of the Budget Book. Mr. Chairman, the mission
of the Department of Public Transportation is Moving
Bermuda with a quality public bus service, found on page B -252.
Mr. Chairman, a total of $25,279,000 has
been allocated for this Head 35. This represents an increase of $1,439,000 over the previous year, or a
6 per cent increase. The increase will primarily be
used to cover the salary increases. The department
has five business units: Bus Operations, Repair Ser510 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly vices, Inventory and Management, Administration and
Management Support Administration.
The analysis by business unit is as follows:

Bus Operations, Cost Centre 45010

Hon. Owen Darrell: The current account expenditure
for Bus Operations cost centre 45010 is estimated to
be $13,203,000 for 2025/26 and represents an increase of $766,000, or an approximate increase of
6 per cent over the prior year’s budget. This change is
due primarily to an increase in full -time bus operator
hours that will equip the department to further improve
scheduled bus service.

Repair Services , Cost Centre 45090

Hon. Owen Darrell: The current expenditure for Repair Services cost centre 45090 is estimated to be $4,458,000 for 2025/26 and represents a decrease of
$167,000, or 4 per cent under the prior year’s budget.
This change is primarily due to the electrification of
the bus fleet and the reduction of reliance on diesel
fuel.

Inventory Management, Cost Centre 45115

Hon. Owen Darrell: The current expenditure for Inventory Management cost centre 45115 is estimated
to be $1,527,000 for 2025/26 and represents an increase of $64,000, or approximately 4 per cent over
the prior year’s budget. This change is primarily due to the planned maintenance of the buses.

Administration, Cost Centre 45120
Hon. Owen Darrell: The expenditure of Administration cost centre 45120, which accounts for salaries, utilities and shared services, is estimated to be $5,024,000 for 2025/26 and represents an increase of
$677,000, or an approximately 16 per cent increase
over the previous year. This change is primarily due to
improvements to the bus service to create a more convenient experience for passengers.

Management Support, Cost Centre 45200

Hon. Owen Darrell: The expenditure for Management
Support is estimated to be $1,067,000 for 2025/26
and represents an increase of $99,000, or 10 per cent
over the budget of 2024/25. This change is primarily
due to the increase in staff compensation.

Revenue

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the revenue for
the department is estimated to be $5,551,000. This is
an increase of $1,351,000 over the previous year’s
original budget found on page B -353. As the depart-ment continues to improve access to a more reliable
and digitised service, revenue is reflected accordingly.

Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimate
Hon. Owen Darrell: The subjective analysis of the
current account estimate of the Department of Public Transportation is found on page B -253. I will highlight
the material category increased and decreases:
• Training. The increase is due to planned development of staff.
• Communications. The increase is due to improved connectivity for facilities and telemetry
boxes on e- buses.
• Professional Services. Increase in professional services is due to the increase in opera-tional costs associated with achieving performance measure targets.
• Equipment purchase. Decrease is due to the
prioritisation of other current expenditures.
• Other expenses. Increase due to bank charges and fees partially related to increased digital fare media and bank card sales.

Capital Expenditure

Hon. Owen Darrell: Mr. Chairman, the capital expenditure is found on pages C -7 and C -14.
Mr. Chairman, the capital development estimate for the department is estimated to be $1,600,000 to address the ongoing upgrades at the Fort Langton
and satellite depots. The capital acquisition estimate for the department is estimated to be $5,054,000 for
the acquisition of approximately 20 new electric buses. Twenty new electric buses, Mr. Chairman!

I remember when the first one came
in.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Oh, I am sure you took a ride on
them, too.

[Laughter]
Hon. Owen Darrell: The continued phased introduction of the new digital fare media system, replacement support vehicles, updated computer equipment and
other necessary upgrades to the facilities, tools and
equipment.
Mr. Chairman, the total complement of full -
time equivalents is estimated to be 244 as recorded on page B -254 in the Budget Book. This is an increase of one full -time employee over the 2024/25
budget.
Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to report that the
department’s forecast performance measures for fis-cal year 2024/25 were mostly achieved.

Bus Operations, Cost Centre 45010


Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Owen Darrell: Bus Operations coordinates the
public bus service that is in operation 365 a year, 18
hours per day, Mr. Chairman, in order to provide the Island- wide transportation across 11 bus routes. Unlike most public transportation systems around the world, school bus service is coordinated during the
school year with free transportation provided year -
round to resident school students.
Reduction of complaints by 50 per cent was
achieved. Improvements have been made in better
tracking for passenger feedback, and number of pas-senger complaints through the Bermuda Government
online Feedback form and Shorelink online contact
form. The target of 30 per cent reduction of serious
vehicle incidents was achieved. There was an approx-imate 35 per cent reduction in the number of serious
incidents involving Department of Public Transportation vehicles.
Improved ridership. Passenger count by 5 per
cent was achieved. Investments in improving the pas-senger experience, e- bus and Digital Fare Media app
have led to increased fare media revenue, thus improved ridership. Further investments in technology -
driven collection of ridership data are planned.

Repair Servicing , Cost Centre 45090

Hon. Owen Darrell: The department employs a team
of professionals in repair servicing to maintain the
fleet of public buses, support vehicles and equipment.
Maintaining the number of buses in service daily at
80 per cent of the total fleet should improve with the
retirement of the aged, old diesel bus fleet and the
continued investment in electric buses, Mr. Chairman.

And for the listening public, the Minister is presenting Head 35, Public Transportation.
Minister, you have the floor.
Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Inventory Management, Cost Centre 45115
Hon. Owen Darrell: Parts for vehicles and equipment
were procured, stored, controlled and issued by the Storage section, which falls under Inventory Management. The department was able to achieve the target
of 5 per cent or fewer average number of buses out of
service due to parts. All planned maintenance was
achieved due to maintaining the target of 80 per cent
of the parts required for the plan presented to the
Maintenance programme.

Administration, Cost Centre 45120

Hon. Owen Darrell: The Administration section is
primarily responsible for developing department strategy, policy and procedures, ensuring that the people,
processes and resources are available to deliver a quality public bus service. Mr. Chairman, 100 per cent
of the identified occupational safety and health issues
were addressed. Further alignment of resources will
facilitate additional improvements and the delivery of
training so as to meet the target outcome of 100 per
cent of front -line staff completing customer service
training. Six critical vacancies were noted at the end of 2024/25. Recruitment and training will continue with the aim of meeting the targeted outcome of zero critical vacancies.

Management Support, Cost Centre 45200

Hon. Owen Darrell: The Management Support team
is responsible for selling and processing bus and ferry
fares and providing administrative services for accounts, procurement and human resources. The de-partment aimed to process vendor payments within
five business days. However, Mr. Chairman, it unfortunately fell short of the target. Improvements are planned for recruitment of staff to address shortages
and improvements in processing procedures to ensure that targets will be achieved.
Mr. Chairman, the Department of Public
Transportation continues to build on recent improve-ments to the provision of the bus service. The department continues provision of scheduled bus service including school bus service without the assistance of mini- buses. With continuing investment over the year,
the Department of Public Transportation fleet of buses
will be over 90 per cent electric and without doubt be
prepared to provide a reliable service for the people of Bermuda. The Department of Public Transportation
has realised advances in technology in recent years and plans to maintain the positive momentum in tangible enhancements to the public bus service.
Mr. Chairman, the Department of Public
Transportation aspires to be the mode of the transportation of choice for Bermuda residents and visitors.
This year the final phases of digital fare media will be
introduced as an easy and efficient way of paying bus
fare. Passengers will be encouraged to download the mobile Shorelink app from the comfort of their home
to purchase fare, plan trips and monitor bus schedules
. . . oh, sorry, monitor bus locations , Mr. Chairman.
We are getting like London.
One of the most impactful advantages of a
digital fare media system implementation will be the ability of passengers to tap on their cell phone or tap
their bank card on a device installed on the bus, which
will automatically verify that the bus fare has been paid. Passengers using their mobile device to monitor
the location of the next bus while waiting at the bus
stop is a highly anticipated improvement to the cus-tomer experience.
Investing in talent within the department will
be a continued focus. Training and experience will be afforded cheaply to those who desire and have capacity for investment. The team has once again exhibited
512 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly the benefits of internal development by daily observation and continuing nominations for the Public Service Excellence Awards.
Mr. Chairman, I conclude Head 35 by expressing my appreciation to the leadership and the entire team at the Department of Public Transportation for their ongoing commitment to providing excellent transportation to the public. And, Mr. Chairman, I would also like to thank my Permanent Secretary, who
is here in the Chamber today, Ms. Shivon Washington, for her leadership in the newly formed Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport. As well,
one of her trainees who is with her today, and Mr.
Mannard Packwood, who runs all things money -
related in the Ministry.
So, thank you to that team, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, that ends my presentation today for Heads 71, 48, 30, 34 and 35 under the remit of
the Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture and
Sport.

Perfect. Okay.
So, I will kick off at Head 71 then on page B -
234. One of the first things that I wanted to highlight is that it is just a point really. We saw a 4 per cent in-crease overall in the Ministry, and that was kind of
highlighted as almost an investment. But it seems, as
we heard throughout the brief, that most of these increases and most of this investment has actually gone to salaries, so I just want to make sure that that is
clear for the listening audience.
With the Professional Services, the Minister
did speak about this. But I believe that the jump from a 2024/25 revised $50,000 in professional services
overall under this subjective analysis of current ac-count estimates to $804,000 in the 2025/26 estimate, those warrant a bit more explanation, I believe. So, if
we could focus in a bit more on that line item and the
cost and the reasons why that increase has come
about overall for the entire Ministry, I would appreciate
that.
Also, just moving to Other Expenses in that
same—

Yes. Yes. I just wanted to
make sure that these increases were still mentioned.
So just going into Other Expenses, we have
an increase here where it is budgeted at $4,000 pretty
much throughout 2023/24 into the 2025/26 estimate, it jumps to $21,000. And I just wanted to get a bit of
clarity on that because that is an increase in other expenses and not really defined in the Budget Book. And it was a pretty lengthy brief, so if I missed the definition of “Other Expenses” under that line item, I
apologise. But I would like to get clarity on that.
Also, as far as Training, we see training is
zeroed out here in 2024/25 revised. And there was a lot of mention of training throughout the brief. And now
we have seen the estimate of training at $22,0000 in
the 2025/26 to return. So, I am wondering what caused that zero- out? And also, why was it only
$1,000 spent in training in 2023/24? And in the original 2024/25, only $6,000? So, you know, those are
some numbers there that are a bit conflicted in my
opinion as far as how much training is actually being
done. If we can get a bit of clarity on that.
Also, there was a lot of mention of . . . and I
think this was repeated for emphasis, that the BTA is
a marketing agency that is meant to sell the Island. And we see Advertisement and Promotion here in that same line item on page B -234. It was zeroed out in
2023/24 and has steadily increased to now being a
budget of $15,000. So, what is that marketing going
toward within the department and Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport? Because we just
have a lot of emphasis on the fact that BTA is the
main advertiser. I just want to make sure that we get a distinction between the Ministry’s budget for that and
the BTAs. And this is internal advertising and marketing for just the Ministry departments and not other things. (Let me just make sure I have got my notes
here.)
Just jumping here to the Revenue summary
on page B -235. We have the Vacation Rental Fee,
which has been budgeted for $400,000 as a revenue
source. And it has only hit 271. And I believe that this is a pretty paltry number when it comes to the massive budget given to this particular Ministry. However,
it does represent a burden for those who are in the vacation rental industry. So, I just wanted to put it to
the Minister if he would consider potentially repealing


Bermuda House of Assembly this vacation rental tax to further stimulate beds and
capacity. Because obviously that is something that the parties have been divided on for a bit. And I just thought I would put that question, seeing as how the
tax is not really yielding much in the grand scheme of
things, but is causing hardship for folks who are relying on it for additional income.
And I also wanted to say I welcome the brief
increase in cruise ship arrivals that I heard. That is
good news, and I just wanted to make sure that it was
not overlooked. That we on this side do support those increases and green shoots of growth in tourism. And
that that was very welcome news.
I would not spend too much time on this particular head because it is an overarching HQ portion
for the entire Ministry. So, I would like to just move to
Head 30, which is Marine and Ports.
So 40090, Ferry Service, I just wanted to
know if the two new ferries that are being built and
purchased will alter these numbers in any way? Do
these current estimates include the addition of these two new ferries? And this is page B -243 for the
Chairman.
[Mr. Scott Simmons, Chairman]

As far as Maritime Safety
and Security, I find this to be a very important topic,
and I just would like to get a bit of insight into what is making up this particular line item. I heard a brief
mention, but I am still not quite sure on exactly what this particular amount is covering. So, I would just like
to get a bit of clarity on that because obviously this is
a very important topic.

So just jumping to page B -
244, we have under Expenditure, Other Personnel
Costs which seems to be coming in consistently over
what is budgeted. So, we have a revised 2024/25 budget of $46,000, which is actually higher than the original estimate in that same year. And then we see
that the estimated 2025/26 amount goes back to
$34,000. Is this going to be achievable? What is this
line item covering? And why is it that it has been rebudgeted down when we have exceeded that budget
amount in previous years? Also, in that Training section, once again, we
see that that entire budget has been revised down. It
was not utilised in 2024/25. There was a $335,000
budget original estimate, which was underspent. And then we see in 2025/26 that this is actually budgeted
for more training. And I am wondering, is this to do
with a particular initiative or does the Ministry believe
that it will be able to overachieve what it has in train-ing in the past? I just wanted to get a little bit more
insight on that number. And if it is not utilised, maybe it could be utilised somewhere in another line item that may need it.
Of course, this is (I want to say) one of our
favourite topics in this House, which is Travel. And we have here a budgeted increase 2025/26 estimate to
$178,000, which I just wanted to get a bit of clarity as
to the reason why this is increased and what this trav-el budget is going to be covering. And how will it
benefit the people of Bermuda?
Also, just heading down to Energy, on page
B-244, I am still in Subjective Analysis, the energy bill
of the Marine and Ports is $2,933,000. And you know,
this is a pretty monstrous electricity bill. And we hear a lot about the electric buses, and we hear a lot about
solar panels and energy efficiency from this particular
514 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Government. I am wondering, is any of that being applied to this particular energy bill? Is this energy bill being racked up utilising effectiveness and solar pan-els and energy efficiency? And how will that number
be improved or not improved by more electricity and
more infrastructure when it comes to that sort of
thing? So, I would just like to get a bit of clarity on
that.
And a little bit of future planning as to whether
or not this bill is that size because of a hindrance to advancement? Or is it that size because it has always been how we have always done it? Because obviously $2 million could go long a way in any other line
item. So, I just want to get a bit of clarity on that, Mr.
Chairman.
Also, my eyebrows always rise when I see
Other Expenses in a line item. So just a bit of clarity here, because you have it zeroed out in 2024/25 in
the original. But then a revised budget says $29,000
was spent and then we zeroed it out again in the
2025/26 estimate. Is this unbudgeted expenses, or a last-minute cause that came up? Or was this a cause
that was just not anticipated by the Ministry? Could we
get some clarity on what occurred there and what is
going on in that particular line item?
My honourable colleague who spoke before
me in another debate mentioned Government chasing revenue or gearing itself to, you know, be a bit more
revenue- centred without compromising the people
whom we all serve, but potentially offsetting some
costs with what is going on in the global and international economy. So, we go down to the Revenue
summary on page B -244. And there seems to be over
a $1 million decrease in revenue from this particular
line item from the 2023/24 actual to now. And I just
wanted to know, Is this over $1 million decrease in revenue causing any sort of ripple effect in the Ministry? Has the Minister identified what may be the cause
of this decline in revenue? Because it does look as though it could be due to fewer private boats and fewer . . . mostly population- driven things. So, this may be
a signal or a symptom of our population issue.

And the fact that, you know,
we are getting fewer people on the Island, with private
boats and various things. And it is causing a decrease, and we have seen it here in this particular line item. Or it could be economic pressures or showcas-ing a struggling local economy where folks are not
able to maintain certain benefits and goods that they
once had. And this is now reflected in almost a $1 million decrease in this particular source. So just a little
bit of clarity as to whether or not this impacted the
Ministry or whether or not they are looking to remedy that going forward, because I see that in the 2025/26
estimate for that revenue, the goal is to increase it
back to over $6 million where it was previously in 2023/24. And I would just like to also know how they
intend to achieve that goal, how the Minister or his team intend to achieve that goal.
And we all welcome new ferries. I know my
colleague catches the ferries quite often. And we want to see an increased and more effective ferry service
going forward. So we welcome the purchase of new
ferries.
And I would like to congratulate the Minister
on that because it is something that a lot of my con-stituents and I am sure his have welcomed.

But as we to go to page B -
245 under the Full -Time Equivalent, we see . . . I want
to say a decrease of one person. But the decrease of one person in the Ferry Service is not the thing that
catches my attention. It is the fact that the budgeted
amount is 72 full -time equivalents, or full -time staff.
So, it does not seem like we have actually hit that 72
full-time staff even going back to 2023/24. And if we
are now decreasing and we are still budgeting for
2025/26 to hit 72, how will two new ferries impact
this? Because if you have under the budgeted amount, or as I would assume, the Ministry’s aimed
amount, Mr. Chairman, where that is what they are
looking to have for what I would say . . . I guess we
could work it as the Ministry’s function and number for
an effective ferry service. It says 72.
You are adding two new ferries to that. So, is
that going to cause an impact on the current folks who
are working there to be able to utilise and to provide
that service? Because we can get two new ferries. But if we do not have the people to operate them, if we
are putting extra strain on the workforce, how does
that affect things going forward? So, I just want some
clarity on that number and whether the Ministry has set a hard target to do 72 full -time equivalents, or
whether that is just number that is put in the Budget
Book as a placeholder? And if there are any issues of
hiring as well. You know, like what may be some of the issues that they have come across when hiring?
Or what has been the hold -up there when it comes to
that?
I am jumping over here to Performance
Measures. This is page B -247. The Minister did a
comprehensive job of speaking to most of these. But
the one that is still sticking out to me is this removal of
500 illegal and unregistered moorings by year -end.
The actual outcome for 2023/24 was 20 per cent. And
the target outcome for this fiscal year is 40 per cent.
And the reason given was it could not be done due to
available manpower. So how much available man-power is required for us to get that number to even
about 50 per cent? And how long does the Minister
intend for this removal to take? Because we are getting a lot of talk about addressing problems, longstanding issues. This seems to be something that


Bermuda House of Assembly could drag on for a while and affect people. Because
we are setting the bar at 40 per cent because we do
not have the available manpower.
So, I would go now . . . I am going to get
through and then I will make way for anyone else. But I just want to get through all of these heads with all of
my questions, and then we can circle back. If that is
fine with you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you. I appreciate that.
So, we are on page B -248. And I just wanted
to speak about the department objectives because as the Shadow Minister I have received a few concerns
about the data collection and data maintenance of the
TCD when it comes to how many taxis and vehicles
are on the road and information being requested to
assist with certain business decisions. And I see that it
is an objective here. So, I just would like for the Minis-ter to speak to, How is the data management? How
has digitisation potentially affected and improved?
And will we see a bit more collaboration with the private industries like the BTOA [Bermuda Taxi Owners
and Operators Association] and others who may require that for their future planning and also to service their membership?
The same thing in Department Objectives. To
review and modernise the motor car and road traffic legislation. Now, I have not been in this Honourable
House for a long time. But I have not seen a lot of
modernisation of our road laws as of yet. So, I would
just like to ask for any progress on this. And if there is
any legislation in this fiscal year that we can expect
from the Minister and this department when it comes
to modernising our laws to not only make things easi-er for folks who are operating in our transport industry to operate, but also to provide a much better service
to those who will utilise it? And I know that that is a
goal that the Minister has listed, and I support him in
that goal, the Honourable Minister in that goal. But just
to get a little bit of clarity on what legislation may be
coming down the pipeline that the people of Bermuda can look forward to [that] say, This is an objective, but
this is also something tangible that will change in this
next fiscal year. Now, moving to the General Summary, the
line item 44090, Road Safety.
Page B -248, Member. Thank you.

This is a huge line item here
for many Bermudians who are either listening, those in the Chamber as well. You know, we have all seen and grieved, some of us, unfortunate losses on the
road, critical accidents, things that impact all of us.
And not to be critical, but I do believe that if there is one thing I would like to see increased in this budget,
it would be the funding going toward road safety. It
has increased from 2023 to 2024. But it is budgeted in 2025/26, estimated to be $268,000. And personally, I
feel like we need to find a way to increase that number because I just feel like it is a critical thing, and it is
very clear that what we are doing currently is not
working. You know, we are not quite breaking that systemic root that is causing a lot of these poor driving
habits.
And of course, it is not all on Government.
And you cannot police behaviour. You cannot apply a
policy for behaviour. But I do believe that we can push
a little bit harder in this area to try and support the
folks who are, even if that means applying a bit more
collaboration with Project Ride and looking at different
ways in which we can strengthen the training process before folks get on the road. So, I really do not think
that $268,000 in the light of what is budgeted in this
particular ministry is enough for that. So, I just would
like to understand what is being done in this particular line item, 44090, and whether or not that budget is
deemed suitable by the Ministry to cover what the
goal is supposed to be achieving.
(Let me see. I have got a lot of notes here. So
forgive me.)

No, go right ahead.
Members, we are in the Committee of Supply
for further consideration of the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for the year 2025/26 in the name of the Honourable Minister for Tourism and Transport,
Culture and Sport. That will be covering, if I am correct, [Heads] 71, 34, 48, 35 and of course where the Shadow Minister just was, and that was in Head 30.
Shadow Minister.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I
appreciate that.
So, we are on page B -248, and I just wanted
to ask here under the Transport Control Department
header if there is any update on the ridesharing pro516 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly ject that was slated to be brought forward? I believe it
was mentioned last year March. What is the update on that? Has the Minister or the Ministry been able to get the buy -in and support from the BTOA [ Bermuda
Taxi Owners and Operators Association] who has made their opposition to this quite public? And also,
we are talking about a lot of things for digitisation and
all of that. How are we doing with the ridesharing pro-ject? I did not hear an update in the brief. And along
with this, when will we anticipate to see regulation
come down when it comes to these ridesharing and also certain unregulated applications that are providing ridesharing services, or at least were? I am not too
sure if they are now.
[Inaudible interjection]

—to go into Committee and debate
these different heads. I believe Head 74 is not part of
what you asked for us to have a look at and ask the
Minister to review. I do believe, and I stand corrected
should that be the case, that we are looking at Heads
71, 34, 48, 35 and 30. And I do believe the Road
Safety Council, Traffic Control and all of the rest fall
under another head. Now —

Number one, is the Ministry
or Minister aware of any unregulated dispatch apps
currently operating? What was the resolution of the
Island: GO! inquiry in which the last I heard, the former Minister asked for a legal inquiry? And also, what
is the future planning to make sure that this does not
occur and that we can see some dispatch legislation
and regulation for that? Because that is a big issue
because it is money leaving Bermuda’s shores and undermining the current regulated industry that is doing things the right way.

So that is one part.


Bermuda House of Assembly And also under the line item Examination
44000, there were a few complaints made to me as
the Shadow Minister regarding the timing of vehicle inspections for taxis and minibuses during peak travel
hours or peak arrivals or cruise ship arrivals. And I just
wanted to put this question to the Minister and to the
Ministry: How does that process go when you are asking for taxis and minibuses to be relicensed and to be inspected? Because we all want to see a thriving tourism industry, and we all want to make sure that everything is done in a way that supports that. So, if you have occasions where taxis and minibuses are not
available for folks when they get off of a cruise ship
because they have been called to do a vehicle inspection, that is not necessarily optimal for a first impression to tourists and also for returning visitors. So, we
want people to have a good impression and come back and continue to come back to Bermuda.
So, could the Minister and the Ministry let me
know if they have any knowledge of that occurring? If it has occurred, how can it be prevented? And do we have an examination schedule for taxi drivers and
minibus drivers that is collaborative with what we
know to be peak season? Because I am sure the Ministry and Minister who deal with tourism know when
the peak arrivals are and what the cruise ship schedules look like. So how can we make sure that those examinations and inspections do not occur during
times where we need to provide service to visitors and
locals alike who may require it?
Just jumping to page B -249 under Wages.
And I just found it peculiar here that wages are zeroed
out. And I just wanted to get some clarity on that line item and why the wages have been zeroed out in the
2025/26 Estimate.
And coming down to Professional Services,
once again we see an increase here in professional services, and this has been a theme throughout multiple sections of the Budget Book. So, I just would like to know, what is the reasoning for the increase here in
professional services up from $411,000 in 2024/25
revised to $623,000 in the 2025/26 estimate?

And what are the details of
this particular line item when you say professional
services? And how does that apply to the Transport
Control Department?
And just moving to Repair and Maintenance in
this same area on page B -249 in Subjective Analysis
of Current Account Estimate. It is budgeted there for
$481,000 for repair and maintenance. And I recall in
the brief the Minister did mention that there was
planned maintenance, certainly, but I am not sure this
was the section. So, I would just like to ask because we see in 2024/25 revised when it was $219,000
spent. So, we have budgeted almost double that in
the next year. So, is that because of some planned maintenance? Are there more things that require repair? I would like to just get a bit of insight on that.
Equipment and Minor Capital Spending in that
same box originally was zeroed out in 2023/24. It seems to be added to the budget for an original esti-mate of $3,000. However, in the 2024/25 revised, it
was $8,000. So, we have a zeroed- out amount added
here in 2023/24, and it has gone over what was budgeted in that line item. And then in 2025/26, we anticipate that it will go back to $3,000. And I just want to
know, What was the overage there for that line item in Equipment and Minor Capital? And why do the Ministry and the Minister believe that $3,000 is suitable
when we went over that in 2024/25?
And we have another line item directly underneath that, same page, Other Expenses. Again 2023/24 was a $775,000 budget there that in the re-vised 2024/25 original was $10,000. A big disparity.
Only for it to be revised to $678,000. So, you have a
$678,000 spend. But in 2025/26 it is only $10,000 budgeted there. So, what is the disparity in that number? And what is the line item of other expenses on
page B -249? Because it is a very large . . . I do not
want to use the word “overspend”; I will wait until I get the explanation. But it is a very large discrepancy there in what was spent and what was budgeted.
So, I also heard in the brief that there was an
increase here in revenue by (I believe it was) 2 per
cent. Do not let me quote it; I am sure I can be corrected. But in this revenue summary it is an increase,
and the Government is correct, and the Minister is
correct to say that. But it is key to note that it still
comes under what Government has budgeted for that
revenue in 2025/26. And it came under as well in 2024/25. So, we have to be careful when we tell the
people of Bermuda that there is an increase. It is, but
it is not what the Ministry’s and the Minister’s goals
were set for in that particular time. So, I think it is key. I wanted to make that [distinction] there and to ask,
How do the Minister and Ministry intend to reach that
set goal? They are heading in the right direction, but it
is crucial to paint the whole picture for Bermudians to know that the actual budgeted amount was not
reached in the last year. So how will we reach it this
year? (Right. Just going through my notes here, Mr.
Chairman.)

Right. So just heading over
to Performance Measures. It is a bit of a discrepancy
between the percentages that are showing and not.
Because in the business unit 44090 on the Road Safety, we do get a percentage of 90 per cent as the
target. But not all of the percentages are presented in these performance measures, especially when we get into 44110, Traffic Control. Sorry, not that one. In the
518 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly 44000 Examination where we do not get a percentage
here, but I think it was listed in the brief.

So, I am just wondering why
is it a . . . not all of the percentages where they apply
are being displayed in that particular performance measure. Because it is easy to say Achieved, Expected to achieve, but what number are we working
with? And also, on the same page. I just wanted to
ask, regarding the cost centre 44040 Registration and
the 44210 Administration, are these particular percentages due to increase due to potential digitisation
of TCD? Will we see a higher standard being set with more things being offset now by the improvement of
the digitisation at TCD? Does the Ministry expect to
set a bit of a higher benchmark than 60 per cent and
75 per cent, to serve 75 per cent of customers within
30 minutes and answer 60 per cent of incoming calls
within five minutes?
Understanding and appreciating the work that
folks do at TCD and understanding it is a large vol-ume, as the Minister spoke about in his brief. But I just
wanted to know whether or not they anticipated that
that will be aided by digitisation where more resources
may be allocated to this? And we might be able to get
that increased.

And I would be remiss [not]
to ask when we talk about digitisation, and TCD is a
holder of data and many people’s personal data that I
ask and inquire of the Minister and the Ministry, How
have they considered cybersecurity when it comes to
this particular digitisation process? Because as we know, we did have a very crippling cyberattack. And it
will be nice to reassure the members of the public and
also the Members of this Chamber that if we are moving to a digitised TCD that there are stringent and effective measures in place to protect the personal data
of the folks who are using it and also the personal da-ta of those who are working there as the civil service. So, I just would like to get a bit of insight on whether
or not that cybersecurity component has been paired
and considered along with the digitisation of TCD.
Now I will move to Head 35. (I will just sort out
my notes here, Mr. Chairman.)

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Just looking at page B -252, which is under
General Summary, looking at line item 45000, Auxiliary Bus Services. And we see here in 2023/24 an actual that was $238,000 budgeted here spent. In the 2024/25 original revised, it zeroed out. In the original it
zeroed out, and then in the revised of that same year,
it was $163,000. And then it zeroed out again in 2025/26 estimate. And I just want to be sure that this
is . . . Like what are the particulars of this line item?
Why is it zeroed out and then spent? Why not have a
standing budget for it if it is going to be utilised? And
why are the amounts fluctuating? Because it seems like the Government is intending to not budget for it in
2025/26, and that seems to have been a mistake
made in the previous years because it ended up being a spend under that line item.
So, Bus Operations. There is an increase in
the operations here most likely due to salary uplift. But we are seeing a bit of a decrease in staff here. So, I
just wanted to get a bit of clarity on the correlation between the decrease in staff and the increase of sala-ries seeming to offset and increase that number. That
just has me a little bit perplexed.

[Inaudible interjections and laughter ]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Just moving down to Maintenance. It would be
nice to know just under 45090 Repair Services and
under 3502 Maintenance, how many buses are actually in need of repair? How many buses are currently being repaired? How many are in need of repair?
What is the state of our fleet when it comes to repairs
and maintenance? Because, you know, we see that even though there was not over $4 million spent in
2024/25, we do see that in the 2025/26 estimate, that
is budgeted for $4,458,000. So there is intent for re-pairs to be done. And I just would like to know how
much of our fleet requires repairs.


Bermuda House of Assembly And this is for one of my constituents who
requested that I mention the need for more buses for
the disabled, more disability inclusive buses where folks who are disabled or have mobility issues can
utilise the buses. And I just wanted to know whether
or not the Ministry is looking into that and whether or
not all of these electric buses that are being ordered
are also wheelchair -accessible for disabled folks and
providing a bit more accessibility for people who may
need it. So just general comment if they can answer
that.
And when the Minister mentioned 20 new
electric buses, is this correlating with the capital acquisitions of new buses, that is the number of new
buses that are being purchased? I just want to be sure
because it does not have the number of buses in the
line item. But I just want to know if that is the number of new buses that are being purchased with that capital acquisition.
And what is the Ministry’s working number for
an effective fleet? How many buses do we need in
operation to say that we are fully covered and all of
our routes are fully covered? So just the working
number from the Ministry would really help. And also,
to let us know how many buses we have when it
comes to comparison to that working number. So, if it
is 450, do we have 300? You know, just give us a bit of an insight into where we stand as far as a fully operational, fully covered bus fleet and what that number
is.
Just jumping to page B -253, going to
Transport, there is a sharp increase here in Subjective
Analysis and Current Accounts Estimates where you saw in the actual 2023/24 there was $92,000. And it
moved to $79,000 in the original 2024/25. But that
$79,000 was revised in that same year to $200,000—
or $203,000. That is a very big revision. And I would
like to just get a bit of clarity on that number and line
item and why that revision occurred and why we budgeted in 2025/26 an estimate at $80,000 when the
amount spent last year was far more than that.
And just moving down to Professional Services again, I would just like to get a bit of insight on
this particular line item when it comes to an original
budget in 2024/25. We actually came in under that at
$788,000 in the revised. But we budgeted to increase
back to $1,228,000. So, if we came in on the budget,
what is the reason for such a large increase? And are
we anticipating an increase in that line item? So, if I can get a bit more clarity on what that line item is ser-vicing for Public Transportation and how that improvised this budget?

And with Repair and Maintenance, we also see here a $675,000 number for the
2024/25 original. And that revised amount in that
same year went up to over $1 million in Repair and Maintenance. So, what exactly occurred here that
caused that amount to jump up like that in the same year? You know, was there an increase in collisions or
were there more damages at that particular time? And
we see in the 2025/26 estimate that it is actually budgeting to go down to $729,000. And how feasible
is that when we know we spent $1 million last year? Is
there a reason behind that? Is there perceived sav-ings that are going to occur? And if so, I would like to
just get a little bit more insight on that.
Materials and Supplies. In the same Subjective Analysis of Current Account Estimates, we see
almost a consistent kind of overage here in this particular line item. In 2023/24 it was $2,186,000, which dropped in the following year but by $1 million. But I
would like to know, what was the cause of that spike
in 2023/24’s actual? And also, how have we anticipat-ed that we will be able to keep that number down underneath $1 million that we have budgeted in
2025/26’s estimate, knowing that we have consistently spent over $1 million on supplies and materials? So, I
just would like a bit of clarity on that as well.
And just moving over to page B -254, which is
Employee Numbers. As I mentioned previously, we
have seen a slight increase in employees from 2023/24 when it comes to bus operators. And this is
45010. But we are still under the Ministry’s target of 168. And we are ordering 20 new buses. So, we are running into the same issue that I mentioned previously in the ferry services. You know, we are ordering 20
new buses, but we are under what our set goal is for
the number of posts in bus operations. So, I just want
to know from the Ministry and the Minister whether or
not this 143 number is workable when it comes to the addition of 20 new buses or whether or not that number is needing to increase? How will the Minister
achieve the 168 necessary bus operation staff? And
whether or not there will be effective coverage for all routes, especially if this results in decreased hours,
which was mentioned in the brief, increased hours for
operators? And is that sustainable for the operators if
they are required to have an increased workload for them?
And digital fare media, which I think all of us
would welcome Bermuda stepping into the 21
st century. What are some troubleshooting measures for that
should it have some issues? Because I do recall . . . I
do not know how credible it was, and the Minister can
correct me if I am wrong. But there was a post done where it was apparently in French.
[Inaudible interjection]

You know, I am sure. So, I
am just wondering with that issue that came up, what
are the troubleshooting measures for some of our
more senior, seasoned members who may have is-sues with using the digital media? And how will that
be dealt with on the fly, especially if it is being utilised
away from the central hub, the central bus station and
is just being picked up on, let us say somewhere far
from where the central hub is? So, I just would like a
little bit of clarity on potential troubleshooting that may happen.
Okay. Heading over to page B -255, looking at
the Performance Measures, seeing on- time delivery of
all scheduled services a discontinued measure. And I
just would like to know for that line item why this particular measure was discontinued? As on the face of it, for someone who obviously is just reading it, it
seems like a measure we would like to keep to have
on-time delivery of all scheduled services. So, I would
just like to get a little bit of clarity on that.
Number of passenger complaints, minus -
50 per cent, Mr. Chairman. As a measure to what?
What was the number of complaints? What is the minus-50 per cent? What is the current number? And
what are we measuring that minus -50 per cent off of?
The reduced number of serious vehicle incidents,
again a minus -30 per cent off of what? So, we are
looking at performance measures that are giving you the deduction of what happened, and we do not have
the base numbers to measure whether or not that is at
a sustainable level or not. So, I would like know what
number that minus -30 per cent is based off of?
Improved ridership passenger count. Again,
this one was not really included in 2023/24 actual outcome, but we see a 5 per cent, which I assume is
wanting to be a 5 per cent increase as opposed to
what? What number? So I would like to see what
number they are aiming for and I am sure that we will
be able to rustle that up.
Moving down to, Maintain the number of buses in service daily at 80 per cent of the total fleet. The
revised forecast in 2024/25 was at 68 per cent. And if am reading this correctly, and I beg the indulgence of the Ministry and the Minister to correct me if I am in-correct. But it seems as though this particular performance measure is letting us know that in 2024/25 on
a daily, only 68 per cent of the operational bus fleet
was in service on any day -to-day. If that is the case,
why is only 68 per cent of the bus fleet available? Is it
because they are getting scheduled maintenance? Is it because they are unavailable?
[Inaudible interjections and l aughter]

Is there a breakdown of infrastructure when it comes to the electric buses’ infrastructure to charge and different things? Because I
know that this has been an ongoing issue that Bermuda’s infrastructure has not really matched yet the re-quired output for this particular fleet. Just my inquiry. I
stand to be corrected if I am incorrect. And just maintain buses according to preventative maintenance programmes. And the forecast, the aim was 90 per
cent and it was only 73 per cent achieved. And I just
want to know if there is any issue with maintaining
buses and provided maintenance. Is it the transfer
from diesel to electric that may be causing a bit of is-sues when it comes to having available mechanics?
Like what is the reason we cannot achieve? Because
the Ministry believed —it set the number at 90 per
cent. So that was estimated as to what we could have
gotten to. And unfortunately, we only reached 73 per
cent. Which is a pass. So I do not want to come
across like I do not appreciate the work that is being
done in the Ministry. But it is not where the Ministry
had set itself up to be. So I just wanted to get a bit of clarity on that as well.

And this number here, Average number of buses out of service due to parts. I just
would like a little bit of a dive into what exactly —are
these parts that are not available or sourced easily onIsland? And also, how is it that it is 5 per cent —but we
know that the original forecast had 68 per cent on the
road and we only have 5 per cent not on the road due
to service of parts. But just a little correlation of that
particular number.
The reduction of inventory levels, what was
this in reference to? It was a pretty fast brief, so I
might have missed it. But it is a discontinued measure
in 2025/26, and I just wanted to know why that meas-ure was discontinued. I did not mean it in any disrespect for you, Minister, about indeed a fast brief. I actually appreciate that. I just mean maybe I might have missed something that was said. Because, you
know —

[Inaudible interjection]



Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Dwayne Robinson: And yes. I am on Twitter, so
you know —

[Laughter]

Address identified occupational, safety and health issues under business unit 45120. This measure is discontinued in 2025/26. So, address and identify occupational, safety and health
issues I think is a performance measure we want to
keep as well. So, I just wanted to know why that was discontinued and if it was anything to do with staff or
anything like that. And I would appreciate some insight in that.
And also the percentage of identified occupational safety and health issues addressed seems to
only have kind of started in 2023/24. Was that hap-pening previously, or is it that just because it doesn’t
go past 2023/24? And I just want to get that clarity as
to the track record of that.
Complete customer service training for front -
line staff. Well, we started at 1 per cent in 2023/24. It
is just concerning. But even more concerning is that
we were unable to achieve 50 per cent. I say “we” because, you know, we all have to stand up in front of
our constituents and explain these sort of things. But I
would like to get some clarity onto why we seem to be unable to achieve 100 per cent front -line training for
staff and what the hold- ups might be for that?
And last, one of the last ones I would say, is
Produce Performance Report Analysis and Confirmation by the Budget Office deadline. This is a discontinued measure in 2025/26. And I just would like to know why? Because I think a performance report analysis
and confirmation by the Budget Office deadline
sounds important. But I would leave way to get clarity
from the Minister and the Ministry.

I thank the Minister for
being so generous with his time to allow other Members to contribute to the debate.
I communicated this to the Minister that as it
comes to public transportation that with the difficulties
that we have on the roads —just a little preamble to
my question—that we need to get as many people
using public transportation, particularly on the water,
as possible. And I know we did have a commuter ferry
service in St. George’s at one time that went to Hamil-ton. I have always felt that an integrated ferry and bus
. . . And just recently the Minister did a wonderful initiative in Cut Road. There are other areas that could be
integrated, Ferry Reach, for instance. I declare my
interest. I happen to be a Member of Parliament for
that area.
But it could very well be integrated with the
ferry service in the commuter and in the evening time to allow persons in some far -reaching communities
. . . and I do not want to take the liberty to speak for
others, like Spanish Point and others. But there could be areas in which we can encourage people to use
public transportation and to get more people on the
water. And even maybe as a test case integrating
that. And then in these smaller areas, maybe initially it
might be something like a minibus size.
But I would think with the commuter service,
that could be something. Because we have got to do
something about the road. And the Junior Minister
who was the Road Safety Chairman for many years
did an outstanding job as a young MP, having held that role as Chairman of Road Safety now some, I
dare say, 40 years ago. I know he did a wonderful job.

But we still have many
people succumbing to, and condolences to the family
of persons just as recently as this week who lost their
life on the road. We have got to do more to get people
off of the road. And I believe the water, particularly with commuters in the evening, and my community in
St. George’s and constituency could very well be the
pilot case. And I would take an undertaking to help the Minister communicate that to people to be able . . .
Because it is going to take a campaign.

I gave him a slight bit of . . . he said
he was going to speak ever so briefly. And I was
about to break in when he finished his remarks, and I
allowed him to continue. So, I recognise that he did
not mention . . . On the record, I would certainly state
to Members that when you are getting up, please give
us the line item for which you are speaking—

[Crosstalk]

This was budgeted last year
for $400,000, came in at $271,000 and it was budgeted again for $400,000. And I am trying to understand what will change this year that they will actually
achieve that revenue.
And if I recall, I believe there was some [ reluctance] by those who are operating vacation rental properties to in fact pay those fees. So perhaps the
Minister could comment on their approach to that situ-ation.
Turning now to page B -244, I will probably
echo my colleague’s comments. As you may know, Mr. Chairman, I am a boater. So, I pay close attention to things like mooring fees, this being the time of year to have completed your mooring registration (anyone
listening). And I notice that it is the same question as
before because last year line 8173 under Revenue, last year was budgeted for $900,000 or $901,000. It
came in at 746 and again was budgeted at
$901[,000]. So obviously we would like to understand what the decline was and what is changing this year.
And now I turn to page B -247, and I am actually sticking on the theme of moorings, removal of ille-gal moorings. And it is a question regarding boating
registration, actually, mooring and boat registration.
So, you could perhaps also stick to B -244, 8169 if you
prefer. And we have heard in other ministries about
the derelict boats. And of course, there is always a
cost to pick these boats up and remove them. And that is one reason they remain derelict, as boat owners cannot afford. And has the Ministry considered
requiring insurance? Just like when you drive your car you have to have insurance. Should you not, in order
to license your boat, have insurance both for the protection of injury and damage to other boaters and for
the unfortunate situation we have when after a hurricane.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, I have a number of questions
across a number of different heads. I will start first with Head 30 and in particular will look at the Capital
Expenditure on page C -14. It is noted in line item
76540, which is Ferries and Pilot Boats. And I think
what we would like is confirmation that the new ferries
are not electric. Because in the previous debate we
were told that we are hearing electric ferries. I thought that is what the Member from St. George’s was going
to ask about. But I think if we could get some clarity
on that.
In addition, for the two new —
[Inaudible interjections]

I thought you would comment. I
thought the Member would comment, Mr. Chairman.
In relation to the two new ferries, which I understand are going to replace two older ferries, the


Bermuda House of Assembly previous Minister (to the current Honourable Minister)
had made mention I think in 2024 that there was a possibility that the old ferries would be sold. And I would like to understand if there is any progress, any
potential sale of those two ferries. And if so, will they
be possibly sold locally or would they be sold overseas? And in addition to that, has there been any interest expressed to the Bermuda Government and these particular departments under this head for the
purchase of those two vessels? They are still operational. They are not languishing in Dockyard. So, one presumes that they are viable, and viable for that matter. So, I would like some clarity on that.
As well, we have heard an awful lot across
these debates, Mr. Chairman, about digitisation. We
heard it in debates on Monday. We have also heard
the digitisation of the bus fares, et cetera, which I think is fantastic. And I agree. I am going to say that because I know it is something that . . . Interesting.
When I held the role of Minister of Transport and tourism this was something that we had urgently begun to explore and ran out of time. But with that said, I am
glad to see progress made on that. So, can the Minister advise if there is intent in the next year or two to
digitise the ferry fares like the bus fares? I think that is
important. And why is that?
When you in fact turn to Marine and Ports,
and I think that is under page B -244 (in my notes). Let
us just take us to that. You can see under Ferry Receipts 8187 that ferry receipts have consistently been,
well, $630,000 for 2023/24. The original estimate then
in 2024/25 was $100,000 in terms of revenue for ferry
receipts, which then declined on the revised 2024/25 to $545,000. That is quite a decline in terms of what
was estimated to what in fact was collected. Given
that the Minister in his brief made it clear that it is the
Government’s intent that the public transportation
network should be the primary transportation of Bermudians, that is not a good number. It is not a good look.

When you compare, Mr. Chairman, the takings in respect of the various ministries or the various departments, what is interesting when we
look at public transportation, and if you look at Head
35, because I just want to bring a comparison to it
(you will see on page B -253), there is quite a significant revenue source breakdown for the bus service between passes, tickets, cash, media fare for passes,
tickets and tokens. And it is broken down quite significantly so you can get a good understanding of how
the fares are collected and how they are being used.
What you do not see in respect of the ferries is a similar breakdown. And I think it would be very helpful go-ing forward, since in fact some measures are not
measurable anymore in the bus service, that maybe we can have some extra measurables in the Marine
and Ports Services.
Now, I do have, Mr. Chairman, a real interest
in this. As my colleague, the Shadow Minister for this portfolio, mentioned, I am a very regular user of the Pink Ferry Route, being a resident of Hinson’s Island.
So, I am very dependent on that ferry service. And I
do want to, with your leave, Mr. Chairman, thank the staff of the Department of Marine and Ports, who, despite some of the bad rep, do a good job. And I have
said it consistently. And when they do, I do acknowledge that and write the director and say,
They’ve done an amazing job. They are out there in
40-knot winds sometimes, okay? Even though it gets
cancelled and people say it is inconvenient, there is
now a WhatsApp group and people are communicating. So, the ferry is something that I would encour-age people to use.

I really do, and I have been absolute about that.
So, any encouragement that we can give to
get people to use the ferries will increase revenue,
which is something that, again, another Shadow Minister spoke about in a previous debate, is finding rev-enue sources. It seems to me that that is a great op-portunity because there are wide gaps here. If there is
$800,000 estimated and we are only collecting
$545,000, there is a big gap. Okay? So perhaps we
can see some improvements next year.
Sticking now or jumping to page B -253, which
is Head 35 on Public Transportation. I am not sure where this fits. I am going to assume on page B -252
the Department Objective says, T o deliver a convenient and cost -effective daily bus service. Has there
been any progress made since it was last announced by a previous Minister, the Honourable Minister from
constituency 29, about a revised bus schedule? It has
been outstanding for some time. And I did not hear
any mention of it in the Minister’s brief. It is a sad thing, and there are a number of things that then flow
from that. And those who are in the department will
know what I am talking about, and I hope it is not ac-tually the case anymore.
With that in mind about a bus schedule, perhaps the Minister can advise how many Grey Routes there are. And can the Minister explain what that
means in due course? But how many Grey Routes
exist, if any? Is there intent that at the Headquarters . . . again, I am just going to go with Head 35 in a
general sense at HQ for that or it can also fit under the HQ for the Ministry, I suppose. Is there proper digitisa-tion at the actual headquarters for the buses? And is
there still relative manual dispatching? And in addition, are the bus driver schedules still done by hand in booklets? Because they were eight years ago. I would
like to know if this progress, again, given that there is
524 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly a drive across the Government to have digitisation . . .
it certainly will improve, I would imagine, some of the
performance measures.
Having another look, Mr. Chairman, in respect
of buses generally, just looking at line item 45010. (I did not write the page number down on that.) Yes, that
would be on pages B -252 and B -254, I think.

Mr. Chairman, we do see that
there are issues obviously with bus repair and
maintenance, and the figures have increased. I am
not following why that is the case if we are having an
improved bus fleet.
If we are moving toward electric buses, which
are more efficient, are newer, presumably the money is being spent on those buses that are old and decrepit and do need replacing. And again, I pose the
question: On those buses that are being retired, is
there an intent to sell? I believe at one point we sold buses to Cuba, I think, a number of years ago. So, I
think that happened quite some time ago. But again, it
is something that I would like some clarity on. On
page B -255, line 45090, and that is . . . again I thought
the repair and servicing, which I have said.
Under business unit Bus Operations 45010,
improve the ridership passenger count, the Shadow
Minister has already made comments about 5 per
cent increase. It does not seem like a lot actually if the
desire, again, is to increase ridership for a 5 per cent
increase. It just does not seem like very much.
One of the things as well perhaps the Minister
can add some clarity to, is that there was a time, cer-tainly a number of years ago, when, sadly, there were
quite a number of assaults on bus drivers. And it was
abhorrent. And I remember a number of incidences
when I was Minister that we had to really, unfortunately come to the House (and to another place, certainly) and speak about these acts. And I am wondering if
the Minister could shed some light on improved safety
for the drivers themselves and what measures have
been taken to see that happen. Because again the drivers are on the front line and are driving on very
dangerous roads. I do not think they should ever be in
a position where they are facing possible assault from
passengers.
If I may, I will just quickly go to page C -14. (I
just had some notes.) Oh, yes. Generally, and I am
just sorry. I should have mentioned this under Head 30 again on Marine and Ports and ferries generally.

And I put it under HQ.
Under New Ferries, can the Minister shed
light on whether or not there will be vendor opportuni-ties on board the ferries for Bermuda businesses?
And for ferry riders, you will often see vendors at the various ferry stops selling different sundries and
things. Whether that is kosher or not I do not know. But we encourage it. But again, there are opportunities on these ferries in relation to that.
The other point that I would like to make here,
and a question that arises is we do spend an awful lot
of money on these ferries. I would be very interested
to know what the daily breakdown is per ferry. Be-cause a lot of times in the off season you see some of
the very large ferries running very empty, which is
very costly. And it always seems to me that it would be a useful thing . . . and again I need to preface this.
When the Opposition was Government we negotiated a deal with Norwegian Cruise Lines for a ferry. And the Honourable Member from St. George’s will be well
cognisant and recognise that ferry that did service and
ran service and continues to run service.

Because a lot of the times the ferries that are servicing Dockyard to Hamilton are primarily, during the day, tourists. That is not servicing locals. So, are we getting value for money in respect of that given the low ferry receipts (which I identified
that line item already), those ferry receipts, $545,000
last year, given the massive numbers of people who
are travelling on these ferries? It does not seem to me that we are getting the revenue that we should be getting. If these ferries have 550 seats each . . . what are
we . . . do the numbers. The numbers do not make
sense on the revenue. So perhaps we could get clarity
and even consider getting at least some estimates as
to how many of the users are guests to Bermuda ra-ther than locals. Because I think people do want to
understand where their tax dollars are going. And who
it is servicing.
So, I know the Shadow Minister has asked a
number of questions. As I said, forgive me. I have a particular interest in some of these, and I may make more contributions.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

On page B -252 under Transportation,
Head 35, specifically under 45010 for Bus Operations, just wondering if there has been any consideration for extending the time period of buses running during the
night hours? The reason I ask that is because we
have a lot of people in Bermuda who work shift work
and would probably be looking for transportation in hours that a lot of us are probably sleeping.
At the same time, we also know that we have
issues in the Island with people consuming alcohol. And we know that even when we give people notice,
they still continue to get pulled over for drink -driving.
We have dangerous issues on our roads. Could this
be an opportunity for us to provide a cheaper solution
rather than taxi fares, which sometimes make people
make a choice to go get behind their wheel when they
could be taking a cheaper way of transportation?
So, I am just wondering if there has been any
consideration, any thought on what that would look like. Obviously, you are talking about increasing shifts.
So, I know there would have to be a lot of consideration on the labour side. But considering some of these
issues, it could be something that could help us in two
specific areas: one for those shift workers; and, two,
to try to get some of our people off the road when they have been consuming.
Mr. Chairman, the other one that I was looking
at is under the Maintenance section, on that same page B -252. My question really is, If the Minister could
give us an idea whether some of these buses that
have to get maintained are being damaged on our
roads because we have had lots of foliage in the road
which has caused some of our cars to actually go over
the line. So, is this an issue that is causing a knock -on
effect which is causing damage to maybe the sides of
our buses that are now having to be repaired?
So, if you could give us some information
about some of those repairs that are having to happen
that are different from what I would call the maintenance on, you know, the engine of the vehicle, more
in the structure of the vehicle that potentially is happening because of some of these other issues?
So, with that, I will take my seat. Thank you.

Yes. Just really quickly, I just
wanted to get a quick update on the licensing issue for
and whether or not there will be any sort of legislation,
amendments coming down the line to ensure that they
are supported as they have the first Bermudian pilot. And I am sure the Minister also supports that venture.
So, I just wanted to know if there are any
amendments because there was a bureaucratic snafu
where, unfortunately, we are operating without. So,
this is on Head 71 and mentioned in the Minister’s brief. He mentioned the BTA.
[Inaudible interjections and laughter]

No. I prefer more . . . no, one moment. One moment, Mr. Robinson.
I prefer, more, frankly. And I allowed Mr.
Swan, and I allowed the Honourable Member Fahy
and Honourable Member Swan to have some latitude. However, there will be an opportunity to discuss the
BTA, and there will be an opportunity for us to do that,
but not under the heads that we are currently being charged with today.
I appreciate the fact that you said the Minister
mentioned it. I got that. The Minister is saying that he
did not. I would rather, if you do not mind, err on the
path of sticking to the brief.
526 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly Mr. Dwayne Robinson: No, that is fine. But —

What I was referring to, Mr.
Chairman, is we are dealing with the head Ministry of Tourism and Transport, Culture and Sport, Head 71. And underneath that, you know, you can make policy
proposals. And that is budgeted in there that in the
brief things were mentioned underneath that head that
I am just asking if there is any legislation regarding
tourism —because this is a Tourism and Transport sort
of question.

[Inaudible interjections]

Minister.

Hon. Owen Darrell: And I just want to thank the
Shadow Minister. I want to thank his colleagues, the
Honourable Member from constituency 20, the Hon-ourable Member from constituency 8. Anybody else? I
just want to say thank you. Because I did not hear
them; you know they like to chirp (I think one said)
about the time that they do not have. But I gave them
a solid two and a half hours.

A good time.

Hon. Owen Darrell: But with that, I want to thank my
team who have been listening. And I hope they were
listening a little bit more than the Shadow Minister. But I did not mention once BermudAir in my brief, not
once. And I think the Honourable Member was trying to connect BermudAir to Transport, not Tourism.
But with that said, we will get to that when we
get through with the answers. But I do want to go through a comprehensive answer session because as
a former educator, as you would know, Mr. Chairman—

I do.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Question and answer sometimes
is where individuals learn the most. So, I am pleased
to provide some of these answers.
Honourable Member? Yes?

[Inaudible interjection]

Hon. Owen Darrell: Okay, great. I am just making
sure that we are good.
So, we will start with Head 71. And there were
some questions asked on Headquarters. And it was
page B -234 I believe that this question came from.
And they asked about the 4 per cent increase in the
Ministry. And the Honourable Shadow Minister from
the other side questioned about the investment and
how I had highlighted the investment. Then it sounds
like the Honourable Shadow Minister took a little bit of a swipe at me because he said that it was not an investment; it was mainly on salaries.
But I will tell the Honourable Shadow Minister
this: Any good manager knows that an investment in
your team —and that solid team that you see right
here and the ones whom you may not see— everyone
knows that that, Mr. Chairman, is a solid investment. I
will start there. There is no greater investment than
the team of workers whom we have in the Govern-ment of Bermuda, our public officers.

Hear, hear.


B ermuda House of Assembly Hon. Owen Darrell: And that is why, Mr. Chairman,
we have taken great steps and gone to great lengths
to further invest in the money that they take home so they can continue to give quality service and service to the people of this country, Mr. Chairman. So I will not agree with—
[
Inaudible interjections and laughter ]

He is taking notes.
Hon. Owen Darrell: I see.
The second question was on Professional
Services, and again, Mr. Chairman, this was on page B-231 around Professional Services. And the question
was that there seemed to be a jump in 2024/25 of $50,000 for the overall current estimates. And the Honourable Shadow Minister asked for further expla-nation. And he just wanted to focus on that line item
and what was the reason for that increase. I am happy
to report, Mr. Chairman, that that increase is due to the combined Ministry HQ of the two former Head-quarters, and we put it together. And that is why the Professional Services was increased. So, it is pretty, pretty self -explanatory there, Mr. Chairman.
As far as Other Expenses, which was another
line item, that question was asked by the Honourable Shadow Minister. [He] asked about an increase of $4,000 previously, but then it jumped to $21,000. The Honourable Shadow Minister wanted me to clarify be-cause it was not defined in the Budget Book. And the
528 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report
B ermuda House of Assembly clarification, simply, Mr. Chairman, is that the increase
was again due to the combined Headquarters.
Further question on Head [71] regarded
training. Again training, also investment in people. It
was zeroed out in the 2025/26 returns. The
Honourable Shadow Minister wanted to know what
caused the zero-o uts. And it seemed only $6,000
seems . . . I am not sure about the ques tion. How
much training is being done? The answer is the
Government provides internal training at no c ost. So
internal training is encouraged before external
training, which costs. So that is the explanation
there. And this one I know the Honourable Shadow
Minister has in previous times had a lot to say on the
Bermuda Tourism Authority. He has had a lot. And he
has asked me to break my silence a few times. Then he has asked me to stay out of it. And then he has asked me to dig into it. So, I am a little confused as to
whether [he wants] the Government to get involved in
the BTA or he wants the Government to stay in the —
[
Crosstalk]
Hon. Owen Darrell: —of the BTA.

Please go ahead.
Hon. Owen Darrell: That the Bermuda Tourism Authority is a marketing, a sales and marketing agency. And that is the investment that I think another party at some other time decided to take it away from Gov-ernment to make it independent. And I am happy that the Bermuda Tourism Authority are doing good work
in this aspect of sales and marketing Bermuda.

Yes, yes.
Hon. Owen Darrell: [The Opposition] asked about
advertising and promotion being zeroed out in 2025 but is now a budget of $15,000. Okay. So, the marketing I think that they are looking at in Head 71 is not detail of the Bermuda Tourism Authority. It is im-portant to understand that once we give the grants to the Bermuda Tourism Authority, the Honourable
Shadow Minister would be happy to know that I have
no involvement as to how they spend their money and what they do as far as operations.
[
Inaudible interjections and laughter ]
Hon. Owen Darrell: A lot of hypotheticals being
thrown out over the other side, Mr. Chairman.
But the BTA budget, again I will reiterate, is
not detailed in the [Budget] Book. So again, I think the Honourable Shadow Minister, in all due respect, is not clear as to how government grants actually work and
how they are actually indicated in the Budget Book.
We give the grant to the BTA. The BTA do all of their own operations. And you will be happy to hear, Mr. Chairman, that I have zero operational control as to what they do over there.

There you are. There you are.


Bermuda House of Assembly Hon. Owen Darrell: So, the distinction here is that the
line item that [the Honourable Shadow Minister] saw
on Advertising and Promotion has nothing to do with the Bermuda Tourism Authority.
There was a question here about the vacation
rental fee, and it was a budget of revenue of $400,000
as a revenue source. And I think two Members from
the other side mentioned that the $271[,000] that we did receive, falling short of the $400,000, seems paltry
(in their words) for a massive budget, but represents a
burden for those in vacation rental industry potentially. The suggestion was that we should repeal this.
A revenue of $400,000 reflects the actual
units available. And I will concede, Mr. Chairman, that the collection is lower, however. And we are working
to work on ways that we can get collection. There is a
commitment . . . I am sure the Honourable Shadow
Minister will be happy to hear this. There is a commitment to review this legislation as was laid in the platform. It was laid out. And again, this question is very
important for the other side because they asked it multiple times. So, I am happy to give that answer.

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. Owen Darrell: I would like to point out and say
thank you to the Honourable Shadow Minister for his
recognition that he appreciates the cruise increase.
So, I was very happy to see that. And another one . . .
So yes. That is Head 71. So, I am happy to give those
answers for Head 71, Mr. Chairman.
And I will move on to the questions that we
received for Head 34, which is the Transport Control Department. And this question, I believe, came from
page B -248 regarding the objectives. I guess this was
a comment that the Honourable Shadow Minister had
received concerns regarding data collection and
maintenance, the number of taxis and vehicles on the
road. And he has asked me if I can speak to how data management affected and improved, and will we see
more collaboration with (I guess) private operators
and the Bermuda Taxi Owners and Operators Association [BTOA].
So, the department and even myself, Mr.
Chairman, have met with several industry stakehold-ers to address this issue. In fact, we met with the
BTOA very recently to strategise. And I know the department has been meeting with them on efforts that
will benefit the department and the industry. And I would like to take time, Mr. Chairman, to speak on the transportation of Bermuda. And as the Minister now
responsible for Tourism and Transport, I will tell you
that speaking to the stakeholders about transport is
something that they have been long concerned about.
And it is very important that we have these meetings,
we have these collaborations so that we can get it right in the name of service, Mr. Chairman.

Correct.

Hon. Owen Darrell: So, thank you for pointing that
out. And the data management basically leads these discussions and these agenda items when we are trying to make things better for the user, the local user
as well as the visiting user. So, I am very happy to be
able to be in the room as one Ministry now and be able to see these issues that affect both sides of the
aisle. So, we are happy to continue on with this collaboration.
Another question under the Transport Control
Department. Will we review and revise the motor car legislation? I will tell you this, any good government continues to review legislation, and if it is continuing to
be effective to the people whom we serve. So, legislation, especially this one, goes way back to years and
years gone by. So as much as we would like to go out
and canvass and change everything tomorrow, there are some things that take some time. Changes that
will positively affect one group of individuals may neg-atively affect the others. So, the answer to that ques-tion is that we do continuously review that legislation
and happy to report that there have been updates to
the Motor Car Act. Examples are the classic cars.

That is correct.
Hon. Owen Darrell: How we have looked at it and we
have tried to make it better for individuals in the community.
530 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly I will tell you that the Transport Control Department has worked with the Office of the Tax Commissioner on legislation. And you will see that collec-tion on these taxes and fees has done very well in
other areas, mainly tax season, minibuses. Because
we notice that the way the legislation was set up was
not really conducive to collecting these fees. So yes,
we look at this Motor Car Act. We link with other min-istries, other departments. And there are several matters still in Chambers that are being drafted. Example
as was raised before could be the Project Ride pro-gramme.
So yes, I am happy that the Honourable
Shadow Minister pointed out that the Motor Car Act is a piece of legislation that we are continuously looking
at reviewing and making changes to in the betterment
of the individuals whom we serve, Mr. Chairman.

Exactly, Minister.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you.
So, another question, and this is again under
. . . well . . . this one again is under . . . Head 34. Sorry. I lost my place there. There was a question on Road Safety. And this came from page B -248. And
they rightly point out that it is a huge line item, and that is important because road safety is very im-portant. And as the Honourable Shadow Minister has
pointed out that he would like to see an increase in
funding, a comment there he made was that what we
are doing is not working. The approach of Road Safety is shared between the Transport Control Department and the Bermuda Police Service, as well as Public Works. Each play a respective part to educate
the public and enforce laws. So, what you may see
there may not encompass everything that is happening in Road Safety.
And I would just like at this time, Mr. Chairman, to point out the new Chair of the Road Safety Council, Mr. Altonio Roberts. And he jumped in with
two feet a couple of weeks ago with the Road Safety
Week.

Yes.
Hon. Owen Darrell: And I am sure . . . I am disappointed that if road safety is such, such a big deal and
they would like to see more money to it . . . I am really
disappointed, Mr. Chairman, that not one from the other side showed up to Road Safety weekend, the launch of it, to support the new Chair, to support those
from the hospital, to support the young people.

Continue to the Chair, Minister.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you. I tell you, one thing I
will give a thorough approach— The Chairman: You know that the line items are necessary.
Hon. Owen Darrell: —because as we started, as an
educator, if there are students who do not get it, Mr. Chairman, I will gladly go over it so that they can get it. That is called reinforcing the message. I do that
very well. So, I will go over it again since they asked,
Mr. Chairman. I tell you. Do it again.
So, they were asking about on page B -248, I
think that is where it was where they mentioned road safety.

Yes.

Hon. Owen Darrell: So, again I will get back to it. The
Road Safety Council had an opening and a launch.
And it is great to get up in this place and speak about
what we should be doing more. But as I say, every
time I get in front of the media, that support comes in many different ways, Mr. Chairman. And I am disappointed, I must say, that the support of the Junior
Road Safety Council, the new Road Safety Chair, the
outgoing chair did not seem to be appreciated by those on the other side. But I am glad that they pointed—

[Inaudible interjections]

Hon. Owen Darrell: I am sorry, Mr. Chairman. It
sounds like the other side wants me to do their administration for them.

It is.

Hon. Owen Darrell: And I look forward. I look forward
to seeing more participation from all sides and all
benches as the Honourable Member pointed out.
We are going on to page B -248. Is there an
update on the Ride Sharing project mentioned last
year in March? Does the Ministry have buy -in from the
BTOA? This is a new transportation initiative. Therefore, legislation is being drafted to create the new category. We are continuously meeting with the drafters
to go over the legislation to make sure that it is correct
and right so when we do produce this legislation that
they have asked us to look into, that it is fine- tuned, it
is user -friendly for everyone. And as of right now, Mr.
Chairman, a timeline has not been set. However, I can
tell you that every single day we strive to make the
user and the transportation experience in this Island better than the day before.
When do we anticipate seeing regulation,
consequences for unregulated persons or dispatchers
such as Island: GO!?

Right.
Hon. Owen Darrell: I think the Honourable Shadow
Minister said he saw that on the app on Twitter.
[Inaudible interjection]
Hon. Owen Darrell: Oh, oh, sorry. No, sorry. I do. I
will retract that. I think I did.

[Inaudible interjections and laughter] Hon. Owen Darrell: I thought maybe that is where it
was.
But the Island: GO! app, as I understand it, is
not a local product. As I am sure the Honourable
Shadow Minister will understand more than me, it is difficult for us to address its use until we find someone
who is actually using it and receiving money for its
service. So, if the Honourable Shadow Minister feels that that is such a concern, we would love to get his
sources as to the illegal activity that he may know
about when it comes to transportation services in
Bermuda.

Well, we do want to remind the public
that if you see something to say something.
Hon. Owen Darrell: Yes. But I will say the answer to
the question, the original question, is that it becomes
very difficult for us to really go after and enforce or
check what is going on. We do not know where it is operating from and who is operating it.

Correct.

Hon. Owen Darrell: There were complaints made
regarding the timing of vehicle inspections. I want to
take some time to talk about this. It is very important
that we go through this in detail. I think the Honourable Shadow Minister misunderstood the line item of which he was referencing. So, the Honourable [Shadow Minister] did talk about examinations on four, 44
532 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly . . . and then the question came about examining vehicles at a time when it may be busy, or something
like that. I think that the Honourable Shadow Minister is speaking about traffic officers. And traffic officers
and their role are not examinations, two different
things.
Examinations as we know, I will just remind
you, Mr. Chairman, is when the year comes to an end and you actually have to physically take your vehicle
to the Transport Control Department and go through
the process. You know, there are some workers who are there, the ones whom we have invested in. And
they come out, and they ask you to line up and drive
your car in. And they actually inspect your vehicle,
also known as examine your vehicle. So that is what
that line item is when it speaks to examinations. The taxi industry has asked, because I would know, I have some interest in that.

It is a matter of public record.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Yes. And it is a matter of public
record that once upon a time taxis used to be examined in January of the year, early. And you had to register by, I think it was, January 31. It was the industry
that came to Government and said, This is not the ideal time to examine and relicense our vehicles be-cause it is the slowest months of the year. So in listening to the taxi industry we actually took those examinations —I do not think those were the ones that the
Honourable Shadow Minister was talking about —but
the Government took those examinations and moved
them closer to the busy season so that operators and owners could have, you know, a little bit more money
in their pocket to take care of any examinations, any
repairs or the registration.

Hmmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: So, we cannot have it both ways,
Mr. Chairman. You cannot say, Well, look, let us be hands -off on this enforcement, let us let people do
whatever they want because it may not be convenient
for us to enforce the laws that come under the Motorcar Act that they have asked us to look at . But if we
want to get it right, sometimes the traffic officers have
to enforce those laws at times. But that is not, and I
want to point that out, the examination line item of which the Shadow Minister was speaking on.
Wages. Why are wages zeroed out? The answer to that is a just a simple clerical one: wages were moved to salaries.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Professional services. What is
the reason for the increase? And the details of the line
item for TCD. The increase of $150,000 which represents overseas vendors, visiting to assist with the commissioning of new examination equipment.
We will go to Repair and Maintenance. The
budget is $481,000. What is the cause of this large increase? The increase is actually $62,000, which
represents replacing security systems such as barriers, outfitting satellite centres with additional cameras,
safety measures and upkeep of the facilities that were
built in 2007. I can tell you from being at the Transport
Control Department, there are some areas that are definitely showing their age and, you know, are looking a little long in the tooth as they say, Mr. Chairman.

Yes.

Hon. Owen Darrell: And I am so glad I could give
them so much time so I can take their questions.



Bermuda House of Assembly The Chairman: And Members, we are in the Committee of Supply for further consideration of the estimates
of revenue and expenditure for the year 2025/26. We are discussing Heads 71, 34, 48, 35 and 30. The Minister with responsibility for Tourism, Transport, Culture
and Sport, the Honourable Owen Darrell, has the
floor.
And Minister, I am looking at about 25
minutes.

Hon. Owen Darrell: If that is what you say, Mr.
Chairman.

If I am correct. It is about 25, 26
minutes left. But go right ahead, Minister, I do not want to hold you up.

Hon. Owen Darrell: All right. As they say, on February 18, they elected me to speak, and I will do so.
[Laughter]

Hon. Owen Darrell: As much as you allow me to.

[Laughter]
Hon. Owen Darrell: So, if I only have 25 minutes, I
will guarantee that I will do the best I can to make sure
that the listeners of this country, and individuals of
which I serve, can get all the answers to the questions
that the Honourable Opposition has asked.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Take your colleague’s example.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Thank you, thank you, thank you.
The Equipment. $3,000 in 2024/25, they said,
$8,000? Has that gone over? In 2026, they see it goes
back to $3,000, what is the overage? Why do they
believe (I guess “they” meaning the Government) be-lieve that $3,000 is suitable? Replacing computer
equipment that was damaged in a particular cyberat-tack had to be replaced. So, question: other expenses, $775, the budget revised was $10,000, big disparity. What line item —and we are talking about B -249— it
is a very large; bank commissions and fees due to the
increase in credit card use in vehicle registration. The
expenditure will be covered by savings in other budget areas.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Revenue increased, but it comes
under what Government budget? It is 2025/26.
The increase does not match the goals. How
does the Minister plan to meet the goal? An additional
private car category with a higher licensing fee was introduced.
Question on page B -251, Performance
Measures. There seems to be a discrepancy between percentages as a target, but not all percentages are
present. Some measures, as I said in other things,
sometimes support is not measured always in numbers.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: The Wyatt does not have a
standard budget for the auxiliary bus service. This line
item is used for charters and site- seeing. That has
been discontinued for a number of years. Bus opera-tions increased due to salary uplift, decrease in staff, so please explain. There has been an aggressive recruitment process currently happening and therefore
the budget reflects anticipation of filling these posts.
Maintenance. How many buses need repair?
What is the state of the fleet regarding repairs and
maintenance? Approximately 25 per cent of the existing fleet are 20- plus years old and they are requiring
extensive maintenance just to meet the daily schedule. Buses for the disabled, more inclusive of mobility issues —is the Ministry looking into this? Are they
wheelchair accessible? Several of the new buses are wheelchair accessible.
Electric buses. Does the capital acquisition
amount and these buses, do they align? Yes. This is
represented in the 20 buses. How many buses do we
need to complete a fleet? How many do we have ver-sus how many we need? The fleet consists of 110
buses, which will be maintained. Transport has a
sharp increase, 92 to 79 in the original. Why? I will get
back to that one.

[Inaudible interjections]
Hon. Owen Darrell: What caused the increase—we
are talking about repair and maintenance— increase in
collisions? There continues to be increasing costs as-sociated with maintaining the diesel buses that we do
have left. As the old buses are replaced, this will reduce the need for excessive repair costs.

Mm-hmm.
Hon. Owen Darrell: Materials and supplies. How can
we keep the number down in 2026? In 2023/24, the
aged diesel fleet was largely still in service. This is
very expensive to maintain. Additional bus purchases
in 2024/25 were paused and the electric bus purchas-es that are coming in 2025/26 will resume. And this
will result in a lower budget material and supply cost.
This question comes to page B -254. Employee numbers —they have seen a slight increase in employees but still under the Ministry’s target. As we are
ordering new buses. Is 143 full -time employees workable? And how will the Department of Public Transportation achieve 168 bus operators, and if there will
be enough coverage for all routes? A new bus pur-chase will also facilitate the retirement of the older,
expensive, difficult -to-maintain diesel buses remaining
in the fleet. And I think that speaks to maintenance
guys.
What are troubleshooting measures, what is
the issue? This was the one where I think the Hon-ourable Shadow Minister had seen a post somewhere, I will not go to say where I think he may have
seen it. But he saw a post somewhere and it was in
French. We will have to acknowledge that in any new
implementation there are teething pains. However, the department has been swift to correct the issue as they
have been presented, and we have corrected them in
real time.
Performance measures, on- time delivery of
scheduled services —why was this a discontinued
measure? Why was it discontinued? There will be a new system planned for the delivery of timing data.
Once this process is established, the measure will be
reintroduced. Maintain 80 per cent. It seems as
though the performance measures are 68 per cent.
Are there charging infrastructure issues? The number
of buses in service is a fluctuating measure depending on the number of variables that kind of go up and down, minute to minute. Is there an issue with maintaining buses? What is the reason we cannot achieve
90 per cent maintenance levels? There are various
reasons for the level of maintenance achieved on
buses, such as staffing levels, supply chain difficulties,
necessary parts as well as unfortunate accidents.
Which, just by design, Mr. Chairman, are unexpected.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Average of buses that are out of
service due to parts. The parts ordered for the various series of buses are susceptible to supply chain issues and the parts available. Reduction of inventory levels—what does this refer to?
Give me a second.
As the diesel buses again are discontinued,
the relative parts are no longer needed in supply inventory. Is this new? This is a question about safety and health. It was discontinued in 2025/26, was it
dropped? This measure was discontinued and reBermuda House of Assembly placed with a more productive one relating the percentage of issues addressed and resolved.
Customer training and front -line staff. Only
50 per cent was achieved. Why were we unable to
achieve 100 per cent training? The shortfall in bus
operators prevents the robust administration of training needed. Bus service is a function that must happen, movement of people. When operators are in training, the work must be covered by another and
with the insufficient numbers, the core delivery of service takes precedence. The recruitment for bus opera-tors is a rolling one, meaning as soon as one recruitment process ends another one commences to fill the
vacant posts. So, if you know any of your constituents,
Mr. Chairman, please encourage them to become a
bus operator.

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: It has been considered. It will
take us a considerable level of negotiation and coordination, which will be more manageable with the new
scheduling software. Feedback will be sourced by the
travelling public before any significant changes are implemented. The current process for amending the
bus schedule right now, speaking to the other question, is manual, and this software design is going to
effectively enhance this service. It will be procured in
this fiscal year. The data gained from passengers will
also be used to develop schedules that are more con-venient and responsive to passenger needs.
How many Grey Routes are there? A Grey
run is defined as work that is provided to the public in addition to the public schedule. There are no listed Grey runs. However, many passengers expect and
look forward to these additional runs. There are approximately 35 Grey runs per week. Seven per weekday, with no additional runs on weekends. But I would
like to take time to talk about a very important initiative
that we did when it comes to bus routes. Every once in a while we look to put measures in place that will serve the public. And you would have seen in recent
publications just along this line item of Bus Operations
that when the call comes from certain segments, we
try to put on temporary routes or trial runs to see if
they will work.
Mr. Chairman, you may know of a particular
Honourable Member of the west, you may know him well—

Mm-hmm.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Bus Operations —improve ridership passengers by 5 per cent increase does not
seem like a lot. I will leave that as opinion- based. I do
not think that one warrants an answer. Page B -252,
we see that there are issues. Why have they in-creased when we have more efficient buses? Retired buses, is there an intent to sell them? I think this also
came from the Honourable Member from constituency 20.

Yes.

Hon. Owen Darrell: Or maybe it was [constituency] 25. I am not sure. But the business unit relates to
bus operations in full -time equivalents, which includes
bus operators, dispatch inspectors, traffic supervisors
and the management of the staff section. So, it might have been a misunderstanding as to what that line
item actually referred to.
Assaults on bus drivers, asked if the Minister
[would] shed light? When I heard this question, I
raised an eyebrow because I think that was . . . and
you know, knock on wood that we do not have any,
but it has been a while since we have had these types
of reports. So, I would say that the Government has
done good work in securing the safety of our bus op-erators.
And this Government takes very seriously the
safety of all workers. There is currently an initiative, development of a policy and review of legislation to
strengthen the safety and security for all public serv536 14 May 2025 Official Hansard Report

Bermuda House of Assembly ants. So not just bus operators but again these individuals in the public service whom we have invested in. Going back to the top, we are definitely taking steps to making sure that all public servants are indeed safe in their workplace. I thank the Honourable
Member from the other side for raising that, and I think
it was a backhanded compliment to the Government
for making sure that safety is important; thank you.

Ooh!

Hon. Owen Darrell: So maybe that has been a deterrent for the users. And it also makes the operators feel
safer. So, thank you for raising that. Maintenance. Are some of the buses being
damaged due to the foliage on the roads? The department is continuing with communication with my
colleague who sits to my right in the Department of
Parks and Ministry of Public Works to address areas that may pose a problem for buses to safely travel
without damage. I can tell you that the increase —I
would like to say thank you to the Minister.