Members
Parliament
Transparency
Dennis Lister III, JP, MP

Dennis Lister III, JP, MP

831
Speeches
141,450
Words Spoken
102
Sittings Active
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
92 words
The original estimate 2025/26 was $1,322,000. The estimate for 2026/27 is $1,880,000, which represents an increase of $558,000, or 42 percent. This Administration business unit provides for the administrative and personnel costs associated with the daily operation of the Ministry Headquarters, for which a total of $1,880,000 has been allocated. This represents a notable increase of $558,000, or 42 per …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
689 words
The original estimate for 2025/26 [was] $2,223,000. The estimate for 2026/27 is $2,686,000, which represents an increase of $463,000, or 21 per cent. Madam Chairman, the purpose of the Legal Aid Office is: To ensure that legal advice and representation is readily available to those who need it most, and who, because of limited financial means, would otherwise be unable …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
69 words
For the current fiscal year, Madam Chairman, expenses incurred (excluding salaries) were as follows: • legal fees ( for external counsel ) training and consultant services —$9 17,000; • telephone and courier expenses —$8,100; • memberships fees, board and committee fees—$19,000; • apportioned for insurance, training, rent and maintenance —$244,000; • allocated for cleaning—$13,700; and • allocated for office supplies, …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
66 words
Madam Chairman, between the period 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026, the Legal Aid Office processed a total of 268 new applications: • 196 criminal matters ; • 43 civil matters; and • 29 matrimonial matters. Out of the 268 new applications for funding ,154 matters were approved , 96 were declined, and 18 were deferred . The Work …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
625 words
Individual client cases managed by in -house counsel generated cost savings of approximately $1,225,000 in legal fees which would otherwise have been paid to external counsel. Madam Chairman, the Legal Aid Office represented clients who were granted legal aid certificates with respect to a broad range of legal matters over the past year including: family court matters ; civil claims …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
269 words
Madam Chairman, external legal fees remain the largest area of expenditure for the Legal Aid Office, except for salaries, and continue to be challenging to accurately predict. Last year the legal fees paid to external counsel were higher than predicted for several reasons, including the following: • There was an increase in the rate of murder and other serious violent …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
267 words
Madam Chairman, t raining and development, along with succession planning are amongst the most important objectives of the Legal Aid Office over the next year. As the number of experienced barristers who are willing and able to represent L egal Aid clients is expected to continue to decrease over the coming years, it is imperative that we train and develop …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
228 words
The original estimate for 2025 /26 estimate was $120,000. The estimate for 2026 /27 is $120,000, which represents a zero per cent dollar value or zero per cent increase. Madam Chairman, t he Parole Board has been allocated a budget of $120,000. The allocation under this business unit is designated for board fees and board training programmes as we seek …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
164 words
The original estimate 2025 /26 was $98,000. The estimate for 2026 /27 is $104,000, which is $6,000, or 6 per cent increase. The Treatment of Offenders Board, which has recently been transferred to the Ministry of Justice, has been allocated a total budget of $104,000. Of this amount, $73,000 is designated for the salary of an administrative assistant, while $30,000 …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
523 words
Thank you, Madam Chairman. The original estimate for 2025 /26 is $320,000. The estimate for 2026 /27 is $320,000, which represents a zero dollar and zero per cent increase. The Justice Protection Programme has been allocated a budget of $320,000 for fiscal year 2026/27 which represents no increase from the prior year. The Justice Protection Programme, Madam Chairman, is operated …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
167 words
The o riginal estimate for 2025 /26 [was] $3 76,000. The e stimate for 202 6/27 [is] $409,000, which represents a $33,000, or 9 per cent increase. Madam Chairman, t he Financial Sanctions Implementation Unit (FSIU) plays a critical role in uphold-ing Bermuda’s reputation as a cooperative jurisdiction with a strong and effective sanctions regime. Its responsibilities include implementing and …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
455 words
Madam Chairman, the FSIU is comprised of two posts: the h ead of the FSIU, and one legal counsel. The FSIU team is responsible for: • providing legal advice and technical support to the Minister of Justice in carrying out functions delegated to the Minister from the Governor; • implementing targeted financial sanctions, as well as trade sanctions, including bringing …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
166 words
Madam Chairman, applications under the Russia sanctions regime continues to be the prominent regime for which licence applications are submitted to the FSIU. In 2025/ 26 the Minister of Justice issued: • Three General Licences (GLs ). • The GL for Legal Fees was reissued twice under the Russia sanctions regime (Bermuda General Licence 2024/09GL; and Bermuda GL 2025/01GL). This …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
269 words
Madam Chairman, the FSIU continues to ensure the sanctions webpage of the Government portal is updated within 24 hours of receiving updated notifications from the UK Government. These updates are required to notify the public of additions or de-listings to the various sanctions’ regimes in force in Bermuda. Thus, upon notification from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office [FCDO ] …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
431 words
The o riginal estimate for 2025 /26 was $171,000. The estimate for 2026 /27 is $451,000, which represents a $280,000, or 164 per cent increase. Madam Chairman, t he Law Reform Commission has been allocated a budget of $451,000 for fiscal year 2026/27, which represents a $280,000, or 164 per cent increase from the 2025/26 estimates. This increase is mainly …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
245 words
The original estimate for 2025 /26 was $2,125,000. The estimate for 202 6/27 is $2,250,000, which represents an increase of $125,000 or 6 per cent. The budget allocation for grants for fiscal year 2026/27 is found at page C -17 of the Approved Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure for fiscal year 2026 /27 Budget Book. We highlight $2, 250,000 has …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
117 words
Madam Chairman, in 2025/26, the FIA continued to enhance its capabilities through targeted training. Staff participated in virtual webinars and courses on topics including sanctions, virtual as-sets, fraud, terrorist financing and proliferation financing, hosted by leading institutions such as: • The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) • The Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units • The Caribbean Financial Action Task …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
131 words
The FIA contributed significantly to the domestic and international fight against financial crime efforts. Key achievements included: • Contributions to the n ational money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation financing, and legal persons and a rrangements risk assessments, as well as sectoral and new product risk assessments. • Ongoing participation in National Anti -Money Laundering Committee [NAMLC ] working groups and …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
228 words
In 2025, the r eporting entities continued to file Suspicious Activity Reports/Suspicious Transaction Reports [SARs/STRs ] to the FIA. This year, the Agency received a total of 1, 297 SAR/STR reports. Among these, report types included 429 SARs, 711 STRs, 7 C -SARs and 150 C -STRs incoming reports. C -SARs and C-STRs are the FIAs recently created consent -related …
2 Mar 2026 House of Assembly
Official Hansard Report - House of Assembly
158 words
For the 2026/27 fiscal year, the increased grant will be strategically used to strengthen the FIA’s operational capacity and effectiveness. Key investments will include the recruitment of additional analysts and support staff, upgrades to the IT infra-struc ture ensuring advanced analytical tools, and enhanced training, both in- person and virtual, focused on money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation financing, and high- …