Archive for May, 2010
Cuts continue says Bush
(CNS): Updated 10:30 am — The premier is still cutting public sector operating expenses to reduce the amount of borrowing Cayman will need to bridge the expected deficit for the 09/10 fiscal year. McKeeva Bush said that he will continue to talk with civil servants in his role as Minister for Finance about cost cutting measures in order to reduce the deficit and keep borrowing to the minimum. Giving few details about the size of Cayman’s year end deficit, the UK’s position on the country’s borrowing needs or the introduction of taxation, Bush told the country that he would bring a budget to the Legislative Assembly before the end of May.
Mac attacks CNS and FOI
(CNS): Both the media and the Freedom of Information (FOI) law came under attack from the premier on Thursday afternoon when he accused Nicky Watson, the owner of Cayman News Service, of wasting government time because of an FOI request she submitted asking for details of his travel arrangements since taking office. Listing where he had been over the last year, McKeeva Bush asked what good such a request was and proceeded to criticise the FOI law for allowing not only anonymous requests, but requests without reason. He also took the opportunity to again criticise what he called "the blogs" (comments) on CNS, as well as the content of Cayman Net News and vowed to make the media pay “good fees” in future. (Photo by Dennie Warren Jr)
Man charged in Ming murder
(CNS): A man has now been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of Damion Ming in West Bay earlier this year. In keeping with the RCIPS’ recent policy of withholding the names of people charged with all crimes police said they had brought charges against a 26 year old man. No details of the individual or even the district the man was from were given. However police said that officers from the joint RCIPS and UK enquiry team had charged the man on Thursday afternoonwith murder and possession ofan unlicensed firearm. Ming was gunned down near to his home in the Birch Tree Hill area of West Bay on Thursday 25 March, 2010.
Fishing banned on the Sea of Galilee
(BBC): The Sea of Galilee has for centuries provided a healthy living for hundreds of fishermen – the disciple Peter among them, according to the Bible. But now an unprecedented fishing ban is being enforced on the Galilee because, says the Israeli government, chronic over-fishing has severely depleted stocks. The Sea of Galilee is a mythical and historical place. It was here, says the Bible, that Jesus walked on water and in the hills overlooking where he fed the 5,000 with two fish and five loaves. According to the Gospels, when Jesus told Peter to cast his nets into deep water, "they caught fish in such large numbers their nets began to break".
Cayman hosts the South Wales Police RFC
(CNS): South Wales Police RFC made the long journey to the Cayman Islands from Bridgend in South Wales, albeit for a small delay thanks to the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud, and arrived in George Town raring to play rugby last week. South Wales Police RFC is a relatively new club considering the national sport in Wales is Rugby. The club was established in June 1969 when the rugby teams of four different police forces amalgamated. These police teams represented Cardiff City, Glamorgan County, Merthyr Borough and Swansea Borough. However, in the club’s short history it has provided 13 players to the Welsh National Team, including Bleddyn Bowen, who captained Wales. (Photos by Caroline Deegan)
The Cayman RFU were both excited and apprehensive over the prospect of facing a squad which promised to be of high caliber and coming from a nation which prides itself on fast, expansive and hard hitting rugby, especially after having played a full international against Bermuda the previous week.
On Friday, 7 May, a mixed bag of players took the field against the Police and quickly found themselves staring down a 17 point deficit after only 40 minutes. From the first whistle the Welsh came out guns blazing and Cayman was caught off guard by such a powerful onslaught of fast running and quick passing, but what quickly became clear to all involved was that the Welsh visitors had not factored in the Cayman heat and humidity. A Cayman 2nd half comeback against a now tired and drained Welsh side, instigated in no small part by the smart kicking of Ed Hayward and the inclusion into the game of the Fijian rugby stars, Venassio Tokatokavanua, Seviri Tabunawira and Raqtoi, started to turn the tide and Cayman came nail bitingly close to a comeback win but were undone in a close battle 21-24.
Having sized up the competition and knowing that the South Wales Police had some players hidden up their sleeves Cayman prepared for a huge clash and picked a select squad of some the finest players available on island to take on the competition and earn National Coach Brad Cowdroy his first win in charge of the squad.
The game was at all times a fiery affair and the Welsh Police took an early lead thanks to 2 penalties in the opening exchanges, but those 2 penalties were to be the only points earned for the Welsh visitors that day. The Cayman defense stood strong and not once did the Welsh team cross the Cayman line for a try. The Cayman select squad meanwhile racked up 39 points in a 39-06 hammering of the opposition. The result was unexpected but the Welsh voodoo against small Island nations, which has been in the forefront of the Welsh Rugby psyche ever since Wales were sent crashing out of the 1995 Rugby World Cup in the pool stages by the island nation of Samoa, continues.
Albeit for the result, the camaraderie between the 2 sides was visible as always as shirts and gifts were exchanged over post match beers.
The South Wales Police will sadly head back to Bridgend with a 26 year unbeaten touring record in tatters thanks to the Cayman Islands but will no doubt have enjoyed their time on island enjoying all that Cayman has to offer.
Overseas Territory Minister to be named today
(CNS): The UK’s new prime minister is expected to name who will be responsible for overseas territories in his new government today, Thursday 20 May. Although former Conservative party leader William Hague has been given the top job at the Foreign Office, political pundits in the UK are speculating that in the Con-Lib coalition a number of the junior posts will be given to Liberal Democrats, a party that has been outspoken about so-called tax havens. It is quite possible that the Cayman Islands Government will be engaging with a liberal democrat in order to secure permission for further borrowing to plug the deficit.
The civil service
The civil service is the Caymanian middle class. It is the most tangible evidence of how Caymanians have benefitted from the staggering economic development of the past 30 years. The stability of the civil service is the most critical element to maintaining our national success. I hope I am not proven right.
During difficult economic times, it is understandable that members of the private sector (and wanna be civil servants) complain that civil servants have secure jobs and steady incomes. They also rightly resist any hint of taxes or raises in fees – after all, governments will usually find ways to spend the funds, and not always in the most prudent fashion. Read the blogs today and these folks are having a whale of a time criticizing civil servants and daring the politicians to slash and burn. They however do not understand that Government is much more than a business. If only it were so simple.
We cannot afford a destabilized civil service – the consequences are too grave for all of us. Remember also, the Miller report found that the Cayman Islands had a “low tax burden” and that while the government expenditure on personnel costs in ratio to overall expenditure was high in comparison to many places, they also pointed out that other countries have huge welfare costs that we don’t have. Take the welfare costs in these countries and add it to their civil service costs and you see how favourable we compare.
The G8 countries should be aware that the alternative to our economic model which encourages the voluntary inward investment from their nationals, – is that we become yet another third world country with all the myriad of problems which comes along with that. This actually costs the G8 and their citizens more in the long run (with no return), as it requires a never ending series of bailouts, IMF loans, poverty reduction strategies, disaster funding, crime and security issues etc., for the foreseeable future.
I don’t know about you, but I would rather pay for a generally effective and reasonably uncorrupt (even if slightly bloated) civil service and get some return on investment, than transfer that expense (plus much more) to pay for more welfare, unemployment, prison costs etc. The civil service however, must become more customer friendly and focused, it does not help when the people who are paying your wages, get less than helpful service. I applaud them for agreeing to take a 3.2% pay-cut, but 5% would have been more meaningful. In these extraordinarily difficult times, if we all shoulder a little of the weight, the challenge we face can be met.
Mangrove buffer ripped up
(CNS): As the National Trust launches its campaign to push for the long awaited conservation law, Grand Cayman has lost another significant stretch of natural habitat from the North Sound coastline. The developer of Dragon Bay, Michael Ryan, was granted planning permission by the CPA in February to clear over 378,000 square feet of mangrove buffer zone, despite the fact that the Development and Planning Regulations state that such natural protective barriers should only be removed in exceptional circumstances. Ken Crews from Orion Development told CNS that the goal was to replant a new 50 foot buffer of red mangroves out into the ocean, recreating what he said was the pre-Ivan mangrove fringe. (Photo by Dennie Warren Jr)
Crews explained that a major replanting project would now take place over the next few months to stretch the new fringe out into the ocean to rejuvenate the area where the mangroves grew before the 2004 hurricane. (Right: Trial planting – photo by Dennie Warren Jr) 
Experts from the Department of Environment, who had advised the CPA against allowing the removal of the mangrove buffer, said they had not seen evidence of hazardous waste in the existing healthy zone and the area being described as dead by the developer was in fact making a significant recovery (pictured left). 
According to the Planning Law, all forms of development are prohibited in mangrove buffer zones expect in exceptional circumstances. Crews said this case was exceptional as the mangroves were dead and the site needed to be cleared of debris. He also said the clearance was justified because the mangrovebuffer had failed to protect the property. (The site after clearance, photo by Dennie Warren Jr)
US bid comes top on schools
(CNS): According to documentation seen by CNS, the Central Tenders Committee has already assessed the schools construction management contract and cited Hensel Phelps, a US based firm, as the winning bid. The CTC has been considering a number of bids on the beleaguered school projects for several weeks after Tom Jones International walked off the job last year due to a dispute with government. Although not the cheapest, based on CTC’s points criteria, which looks at past experience, specialist expertise as well as cost, Hensel Phelps scored the most points at 84.20 with a bid of $6.5 million.
Calls mount for Golding’s head over ‘Dudus’
(BBC Caribbean): Pressure has been mounting on the Jamaican Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, to resign after his surprised admission on Tuesday that he authorised attempts by his Labour party to lobby the US government to drop its extradition request for a strongman in his constituency. The United States has been seeking to extradite Christopher "Dudus" Coke since August last year. Washington says he is wanted on drug trafficking and gun running charges.The Bruce Golding administration has been challenging the extradition on the grounds that the evidence against Mr Coke was unlawfully obtained.