Bush gets UK OK to borrow
(CNS): Updated — Following meetings between the FCO’s overseas territories minister and the Cayman Islands premier, the UK has agreed in principle for the government to add to the country’s debt to help get public finances back on track. McKeeva Bush met Henry Bellingham on Tuesday for the first time to discuss Cayman’s financial situation and the forthcoming budget. In a statement Bush said the meeting marked the start of a new positive relationship between the UK and the Cayman Islands. Government officials have confirmed that the UK has sanctioned $155million, $52million short of the amount the premier had originally asked the FCO to approve.
Describing the meeting with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office as “excellent”, the premier said the OT minister had welcomed the “positive action” so far and had commended the Cayman Islands Government on the measures proposed in the three year plan, which did not contain proposals for direct taxation and was sent to the UK earlier this year as a proposal on how the CIG would restore public finances to a sustainable footing.
“We had an excellent meeting today which we believe willbe the start of a new and positive partnership between the UK and the Cayman Islands,” the minister and the premier said. “We have agreed in principle that the Cayman Islands Government can undertake additional borrowing next year. This agreement will help the Cayman Islands deliver its three year plan to deal with the impact of the global slowdown."
Estimates suggest that the Cayman government will need to borrow over $200 million in the next fiscal year in order to continue existing capital works, initiate a number of new projects including roads and a juvenile detention centre, as well as balance the 2009/10 budget deficit, which is expected to be over $50 million.
Following today’s meeting with the new UK foreign office minister, Bush is scheduled to head for Brussels tomorrow to meet with EU representatives over the Alternative Investment Fund Manager Directive (AIFMD), which could have a detrimental impact on the local fund industry.
The new EU initiative only allows non EU based funds to be marketed in the Union if the country of domicile meets strict new criteria relating to regulatory oversight, anti-money laundering and countering terrorist financing, compliance standards and TIEAs. Bush said last month he believes Cayman will meet the criteria but he intended to find out for sure. "We believe that Cayman, on an objective assessment, meets these criteria. However, we are still seeking clarification on the specifics of the process that they will put in place to assess whether the criteria are met,” Bush had said.
The premier is expected back in the Cayman Islands at the weekend in time for the Queen’s birthday celebrations. The state opening of parliament takes place on Tuesday, 15 June, when the government will deliver the annual Throne Speech and the Budget Address.
Category: Headline News
"Estimates suggest that the Cayman government will need to borrow over $200 million in the next fiscal year in order to continue existing capital works, initiate a number of new projects including roads and a juvenile detention centre, as well as balance the 2009/10 budget deficit, which is expected to be over $50 million."
Better revisit those estimates as in now transpires that the two biggest liabilities (as confirmed in the Miller Report) were mysteriously missing from the budget:
“…One bright spot in government’s financial statements has been that the net worth for Cayman remained positive – totalling some $512 million in the 2010/11 budget.
But some information contained in a 2009 bond offering made by the government, which set out the country’s estimated liabilities for health-care services and civil servant retirement benefits were not included in the budget plan, the Caymanian Compass has learned.
If included in the spending plan, those figures would have a major impact on the Cayman Islands government net worth, dropping it into negative territory of between minus $150 million and minus $230 million, depending on which calculations were used….”
Source:
And saying inclusion of these liabilities is not ‘required’ is a pathetic excuse for what I believe to be a deliberately misleading tactic employed by the government – yet another sham of a budget, just as anticipated.
Folks simply put this is a loan that our grand children and great-great grandchildren will have to repay, so it better be spent wisely. It does not mean there will not be salary cuts or other sacfices made because they will have to be made sooner rather than later. Interestingly enough I just heard of the IMF having to bail out Antigua and Barbuda, they will have to bail us out too if we don’t spend wisely.
The days of wasting money is over and the days of borrow, borrow, and spend, spend, spend went with the PPM. It’s now pay back time and inch and pinch every dollar, that’s the way I see it.
Certainly this means that the money we do go and borrow will have to be paid back by future generations. That is of course one way to look at it.
Here is another
Bush would have had to put together a budget with revenue measures that pleased the UK while at the same time not including taxes, which of course the UK was pushing for.
It is going to be interesting to see the full detail of the budget. In july 2009 the revenue measures was not productive lets hope these are better.
"The days of wasting money is over and the days of borrow, borrow, and spend, spend, spend went with the PPM".
If only that were true. The UDP is still borrowing, spending and wasting money. E.g., not only were they not liable to pay anything to local sub-contractors on the Matrix deal but it appears that they have overpaid them based on invoices which the main contractor disputes.
Say what you will about Mac, but at the end of the day, he is the only one capable of getting us out of this economic mess. Do you all remember during the last election who said, "I did that!" I wonder if he is willing to admit his mad spending did this to all of us?
He still needs to cut the civil service! Sorry but no way around that.
Find that $52m more you want by cutting spending — including by making a firm decision on those senior civil servants twiddling away on indefinite gardening pay.
Mac has cojones to take on everybody, when he starts making the obviously needed civil service cuts he will have my respect.
As I recall he jacked up infrastructure fees to bleed the private sector supposedly to balance the budget in one year with a $5 surplus…so its intriguing that we are still now $50m in deficit.
Where in hell are we getting our numbers? are they based on cloud formations? rays from Mars??
Get it together people. it cannot only be the private sector to flot the entire budget. the public sector must be trimmed and better managed.
Wow!
I must say – the way some of you folks stick together is truly admirable!
People, the bottom line is simply as follows:
Cayman is today in a FAR better position economically than its "master" the UK – point blank.
Can anyone refute that FACT?!
I hear the warnings and in fact DESIRES of our implosion in the coming months and years but that is irrelevant to both my original post and the overall picture.
No one knows how this current economic downturn will play out so can we all kindly pause with the mass speculation. Furthermore, if doomsday does in fact come to pass then the UK and its citizens will be in a drastic state as well – no?
Taking the bait: So many are waiting for the downfall of the financial industry in this country (I do trust that my fellow Caymanians are paying attention – there is NOT much love to be found in these quarters), however, if that still unlikely demise was to come to a reality – have any of you bothered to consider that with that comes a SUBSTANTIAL decrease in required expenditure for this country?
We all know that if our financial industry falls most of you will be packing up and leaving in droves. Where the initial negative fallout from this will be quite severe – it will also result in an eventual dramatic decrease in cost of living, cost of construction etc. (E.g. The construction and presence of multi-million dollar corporate buildings currently has a direct impact on the costs of the average Caymanian Joe when purchasing a lot of land, building a home etc.)
Have we forgotten that our population is around 50/50 in regards to Caymanians / expats – with a large percentage of those expats being here for the sole reason of our financial industry? It appears many of us are conveniently ignoring the massive costs that Cayman has incurred in its hosting of its financial industry and its ever expanding expatriate work force. (Consider the fall in the current mind-boggling demand for new roads, schools, residential developments etc.)
The very presence of a lucrative and high earning financial industry in this country is a major contributor to its high standard and cost of living. Our two industries are more or less 50/50 – are they not? Ok then. Things will eventually balance themselves out – it may actually force us Caymanians to finally come to the realization that we need to diversify our mindset, ambitions and expectations in order to keep this ball rolling – a welcome development in my humble opinion. It appears as if many amongst us are expecting and hoping for us to simply roll over and die. Ain’t gonna happen – not without a good fight.
Some have warned of what will happen if the Union Jack is removed from our flag – it appears many of us are stuck in the year 1962.
More often than not when I meet new people abroad and show them or flagor explain the current situation it is met with:
"Britain still has colonies?!"
Lol! As I said before – a dying star indeed.
Anyway, I know I am wasting my breath here as I have had far too many debates and conversations with blindly arrogant "other nationals" to expect any degree of a level headed and balanced response.
To the posters warning of the negative realities of our $200 million dollar loan: Do you know how many countries only wish they were in the advantageous position of having to deal with a mere $200 million dollar loan?! Do I have to remind the room of the current economic standing of the USA, EU and Britain? Come on people – get real and grow up … this is almost to the point of tit for tat playground antics.
My fellow Caymanians, do not despair and do your best to ignore the majority of the sentiments in this regard. Most of them are blatantly backed by fickle, hyper-sensitive and arrogant mindsets – sadly for them, the figures and statistics speak to a different truth.
Anyway, I will sign out now, butI will like to end with this little reminder:
No American, Canadian, European or Brit that is currently residing in the Cayman Islands is in any rush to return to their home country at this particular point in time in this particular global economic time of hardship. That speaks volumes.
So could you all kindly respect that fact and get back to work (we do have a country to run here … quit skiving off on CNS!)
If not, then please simply pack your bags, book a ticket, and prove ‘whodatis’ wrong.
Just think – you will never have to witness my annoying (but truthful) words ever again.
Simple.
** It is times like these that we really see what is in the hearts and minds of many in our midst. Again I say – I trust my fellow Caymanians are paying close attention. It is not a myth – many folks truly do not give a ra$$ if we end up crashing and burning.**
Congratulations to the PPM, this was their suggestion, & it has now proven to be our life saver (for now, until Mac screws it up again……. so much wasted travel & expense, not to mention those unnecessary expensive perks!)
I agree with much of what you say but, you may want to generalize a little less. The Canadian economy is doing very well (never had a banking crisis there) and some EU countries are also quite well.
The problem I see is that if the whole financial services sector disappears, and the expats all leave, Cayman still has a hugely bloated civil service, with no high work permit fees to feed the kitty.
Canada is doing just fine thank you due to prudent fiscal policies.
And high taxation!
Which gives us free universal health care, free world-class education up to high school and heavily subsidized university educations, effective emergency services, proper roads maintained in a timely manner, a well-regulated and highly successful business environment, social support systems to protect and provide for our less fortunate citizens… You get the picture.
By the way, the Royal Bank of Canada is reporting on the smoking-hot state of the Canadian economy:
The economy posted a whopping 6.1% annualized growth rate in the first quarter building on an already impressive 4.9% increase in the fourth quarter of 2009. The solid gains in these two quarters provide strong evidence that the stimulative monetary and fiscal measures helped to pull the Canadian economy out of the recent slump. The 0.6% gain in March GDP indicated strong momentum late in first quarter setting up another good quarter of growth for the second quarter. The surge in payrolls in April also corroborates this view. Employment expanded by another 24,700 in May culminating in a total 279,000 jobs being created since the end of the recession. This means that 68% of the peak-to trough decline in employment during the recession has been replaced setting up the recovery’s momentum to be maintained." http://www.rbc.com/economics/market/pdf/fmm.pdf
It’s good to be Canadian.
How do I get a job in Canada?
Just come on up, eh? No criminals or evil-doers allowed, but aside from that it’s just a bit of paperwork away.
@Whodatis – why are your comments designed to be inflammatory and stir up reactions irrelevant to the real problems that Cayman faces?( and you do a great job of that by the way)
Educate Caymanians to use the fortunate position they have in the world’s economy (and climate) to ensure their continued prosperity. You are a tiny island enjoying enormous benefit from the UK’s extended jurisdiction (legal system, defense etc). You have willing and able foreign expertise that make money here (for themselves), which you share in. Why you’d want to shake a stick at that those people is beyond me. Address some of the real issue in the budget overspend and help your fellow Caymanians understand where all our bread is buttered.
Make no mistake you are 100% in control here, so chose a way forward wisely. The world is not interested in your view of macro economics – there you have no say. Choose badly and those lawyers, bankers and accountants will be looking after themselves in some other country.
"No American, Canadian, European or Brit that is currently residing in the Cayman Islands is in any rush to return to their home country…"
Now that’s just silly. The world economies are for the most part well into the recovery, notable and obvious exceptions such as Greece aside, but not Cayman. There are many expats who have packed up and gone home (I am one of them) to very well-paying jobs and all the services that come from living in a developed country.
The rest of the world is doing just fine, thank you, and hopefuly Cayman can address its very serious shortcomings in time to participate in the global recovery.
Fair warning though, if you do not stabilize financially and make yourself ready in time to provide the off-shore financial servies that the world wants, and on a cost-effective basis with reference to your many competitors, we’ll (meaning those of us back in the City(ies) who use off-shore facilities) just use the other off-shore jurisdictions and Cayman will fall out of favour. Likely permanently.
And to suggest that Cayman is more of an economic powerhouse than the UK – that’s just delusional.
Good luck.
Whodatis: I am a born Caymanian and I agree with the comments of Rest of the World. We Caymanians need to exhibit a little more modesty and gratefulness about the fact that we have done so well thus far and stop crowing about it and making silly statements about countries far far bigger than us and with enormously more economic resources than we have or will ever have, with or without (more likely without) Dr Shetty. Britain is toiling badly just now but it will eventually rebound. The same can be said of other large countries. You can’t compare Cayman’s economy with that of these "major" countries. Dart and his family could buy Cayman easily and we should be humble enough to realise that and make sure we put our house in order so that that cannot happen! This smugness and self satisfaction about Cayman we see so much of nowadays is to me almost as obnoxious as the nasty put downs by expats that the smug comments and jibes about the UK, Canada, US etc engender and which so often appear on CNS.
Thanks for that. Let’s do some business sometime.
"This smugness and self satisfaction about Cayman we see so much of nowadays is to me almost as obnoxious as the nasty put downs by expats that the smug comments and jibes about the UK, Canada, US etc engender and which so often appear on CNS".
I agree with that except that you have got the order wrong. Whodatis and others are responding to nasty putdowns by expats.
Ok buddy.
Interesting that you should say some of us are stuck in 1962. That is of course the year when Caymanians chose not to go independent with Jamaica. How did those decisions work out for both countries?
1962 to 2010, a period when Caymanians have had plenty of examples of independent Caribbean countries to scrutinise and consider, yet they chose to remain affiliated to the UK.
2009, the year when Caymanians adopted a new constitution which maintains ties to the UK. Just the amount of time and effort spent on gay rights would have been sufficient to deal with independence, but nothing.
2010, the year when BigMac sent Steve McField to the UN conference on de-colonisation to put forward the position that Cayman was not interested in independence, leading to McField describing Cayman’s relationship with the UK as " one of the best arrangements’ in the world.
Actions, or in this case inaction, speak louder than words. It’s fortunate for Cayman that your simplistic views are opposed not merely by expats with broader perspectives, but by Caymanians with greater vision and a less pronounced desire to cut off their nose to spite their face.
"To the posters warning of the negative realities of our $200 million dollar loan: Do you know how many countries only wish they were in the advantageous position of having to deal with a mere $200 million dollar loan?!"
Whodatis, you have to look at it in proportion to who has to pay the bill at the end of the party.
Presuming there are about 25,000 "genuine" Caymanians and the $200 million amount is accurate (there is some question), the math shows that this borrowing is $8,000.00 per Caymanian per year.
Translating this level of government borrowing to Canada and the US, this is the same as $240 billion borrowed in Canada and $2.46 trillion borrowed in the US every year.
Canada’s current debt is about $527 billion, and people are really concerned about it. Borrowing $240 billion more every year would double the debt every 2 years and a bit, and crush the country financially in short order. Fortunately they don’t do that.
The US is at about $13 trillion in debt, running record deficits, and they are simply screwed and they know it.
What saddens me is that there are those who would read your post and agree with you simply because it may strike some emotional chord for those who are already anxious about the cayman/expat situation.
No surprise here, Mr. Premier you have your hands full in dealing with our people because you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t…..there is just no pleasing of our people….I say you do what has to be done and forget the rest! I would not trade to be in your shoes not even for a day because after hearing what I would call the good news and then reading up on some of the bloggers comments I am disgusted to my stomach……
A real Caymanian…….
You are clearly one who is counting chcikens before they have hatched. Just out of cuirosity, have you seen the budget yet, have you sseen the 3 year plan, have you seen how this money will be spent?
What are you going to be saying if this loan gets us through the next year and we find ourselves in more debt with no action plan?
Pull the wool from over your eyes.
A true Caymanian.
I can’t believe the ignorance!!!
Reading through the comments, I reapeatedly see ‘remember you have to pay it back with interest, so don’t rejoice just yet’. Come on people. OBVIOUSLY you have to pay it back with interest. That’s why they call it a LOAN!!!
I don’t really care about the thumbs down that will come from PPM supporters or anyone else. The fact is that there is a blatant lack of willingness to pay tax…even amongst the ‘MacKeeva bashers’. Nobody is saying, ‘This loan was a really bad idea. I’d much rather start paying direct taxes’.
We have to pay it back. So what? You also have to pay back the loan on your car and the mortgage for your house. $200m seems like alot, and it is, but do try to put it into perspective.
The loan is to facilitate a lifestyle that you can’t immediately afford. Spending cuts are not going to amount the the money needed to maintain the living standards of theCaymanian people which are undeniably high. Therefore, the hope is that the government can find a way to catch-up to the economic climate without making the country unbearable for the people to live in. The loan is one way of doing that.
Additionally, no-one can tell the furture. So for those pessimists who say that this is going to end in ruin for Cayman…get a grip. The country is not going to fall based on one decision. There may be hard times, but that does not mean that the Cayman Islands is going to implode.
I’d much rather start paying direct taxes
"Pay A loan back" or "Institute Taxes" are not the only options.. there is "CUT THE COSTS" .. so CUT already. FIRE SOME PEOPLE, SLASH AND BURN.. That is what happens when times go bad.. We recalibrate, there is pain, then we blossom again because the slashing made things better. This is a HUGE worldwide moral hazard going on here. We are all spending moiney we don’t have saying, it’s okay, they’rte doing it in the USA , Japan and Europe.. We can too. This is going to end very badly. See you in the breadlines "Whodatis"
The big grin says it all – MORE LUXURY TRAVEL MONEY!
10.41 you hit the nail in the head. I agree with you. What do you people want the Premier to do? all some people ever do is criticize every effort with no constructive suggestions to make. Its like they don’t want the country to succeed. I hope you know that if the ship sinks we will all go down with it.
May be you can find some raft or driftwood to sit on but how log can you stay on that?
Anon 15:26, sort of reminds you of Mac Bush when he is in the opposition, doesn’t it? When Bush was the opposition & criticizing EVERYTHING that the government did, did you ask "just what do you want the LOGB to do"? It sounds like sour grapes to me. You & Bush must learn to take what unna give, & by GOD you gonna have to take more because we not easing him or the UDP up one bit. If they slip we slide. If they steal we squeal! Got it? So get use to it, ok?
What the Hell do you people want?!!?!
You dont want taxes, you dont want pay cuts, and you dont want to borrow, you dont want to introduce any new industries (i.e. the casinos)…… All you want to do is sit up on this site with your negative blogs about the government and frankly I’m sick of it!
Honestly, I’m not a fan of Big Mac because I think he’s screwed us over royally since he got in but what the rass do you want the man to do? He’s made an effort and is trying to bail this country out (yes that seems like quite an oxymoron when he’s only created a bigger debt for us to pay back but still), instead of sitting up here critising every move [Mac] makes why dont you give some constructive criticisms, blog about what other methods could be done to help bail us out because everything he’s come up with so far has been unsatisfactory for you, yet I’m still not hearing any opinions/ideas coming from any of you
will said!!
If there was an announcement that spending had been cut so that no more money would have to be borrowed, I would personally lead a parade in the Premier’s honour. I will wait for the budget to see whether MLA’s pay is cut, whether luxury travel is abandoned, and whether there are more "slush funds" paid for with borrowed money. If the Premier does the right thing on these then I will join those who are saying that things are going in the right direction.
Well done Mr. Premier.
Now… we really need to focus on crime, it has gotten out of hands and it needs to be dealt with ASAP.
Congratulations Big Mac.
You have pulled off the biggest Snow Job of all time.
Keep up the good work on the 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 budgets.
Mr. Bellingham is no match for the Man from West Bay.
This is not a gift, this is a loan, and merely a stay of execution for these islands. It behooves the Gov’t to remember that this must be repaid with interest and a plan to decrease spending and flatten the budget is still urgently required.
Re: Concern over a further $200 million of debt.
So what?!
That is chump change in today’s world and more specifically in today’s state of the global economy – and may I remind everyone of what was the very likely alternative … direct taxation.
Even when we break it down by way of ratios the Cayman Islands is still much better off than the UK (and USA) in regards to a national deficit.
Their deficit is the greatest it has ever been in history and we still don’t know precisely how bad it actually is … there are rumors of the IMF and World Bank being summoned to assist in the UK’s economic plight for goodness sake! That is normally the first step in a nation being awarded "3rd World" status. (Not suggesting that this is the case here but … definitely not a good look is it?)
The great British reign is officially over – it is just so sad to see the denial and deflection of this fact in the political and media arena. They have devolved into not much more than the USA’s lapdog.
We really ought to keep an eye on how we still consider and refer to the UK with the pride and admiration of yesteryear for it is really not warranted today. Their glory has past – seriously, think about it – when one thinks of the UK now one normally becomes nostalgic – not innovative or inspired.
Also, we need to start thinking of in what way and for how much longer do we desire to be affiliated to this apparently dying star.
Furthermore, and most importantly – we in Cayman need to grasp a better understanding of "MONEY".
I say this in the context of the western method of fractional reserve banking, fiat money, the true nature of "inflation" and so on. After all, money is what we "do".
Due to our industry and geo / political connections with all of the western Anglo-Euro-American super-nations we are inherently pegged to their money system. However, that system combined with unconscionable capitalism has proven to be predatory onto the masses and inevitably leads to a greater divide between the haves and the have-nots. It is to be expected that we will be coerced and encouraged to play by the same economic playbook as "the bigger nations know best" but I hope that we will have the good sense to resist at every given (reasonable) opportunity.
Never mind the naysayers – and many of them are amongst us. We have to bear in mind that we are a Caribbean country; a territory of a European nation, but made up predominantly of "other" types of people. To see a nation such as ours thrive and be successful – especially at a time when the bigger ‘status quo’ ones are suffering – will NOT go down well with many. (Just check out the thumbs downs below for clarification.)
I appreciate that such a perspective is quite out of place in a jurisdiction like ours however, the same ills will definitely plague our society if we continue down the path that we have been fixed to for some time now. Actually, those ills are already here.
Again, congrats to the premier for ensuring that we dodge the most recent bullet however, it is now up to all of us to act sensible.
Money is sacred and it definitely does not grow on trees. We Caymanians are in a dire need to rethink our general approach to money and lifestyle. This not only applies to our personal lives, but in our businesses and most crucially our Civil Service. Please, Civil Servants, take nothing for granted and treat ever cost inducing decision as if it was your own money being spent at 3 days before payday!
We all blew a collective sigh of relief yesterday – hopefully we will now develop the mindset, awareness and political leadership to never again return to such a worrying state of affairs.
All the best Cayman.
whodatis
Yea the difference being that Cayman has 2 industries, both of which are dying. Financial services companies are leaving en-masse and the pace increases as regulations increase. Tourism is dying as the product in Cayman is overpriced and underwhelming. What little culture or local flavour on offer to tourists has been overtaken by concrete behemoths. The once spectacular seven mile beach has become one private hotel complex.
Other countries like the US, UK , France, Canada are not overly reliant on one or two industries so have more hope of recovering from the current economic crisis.
In 5 years the rest of the world will be back to full flourish whilst Cayman rots. The locals will be back to growing bananas and making rope whilst begging the indian doctor to bring back his promise of creating jobs with his hospital. XXXXX
Yet for some STRANGE REASON your behind is here instead of in your home country with its amazing and resilient diversified economy?
Do explain …
:o)
What makes you think that this perspective is from a foreigner, or even if it is from a foreigner that it is wrong? Or that they are even still located in the Islands?
I am an ex-expat and I left exactly because there is great opportunity in my homeland and little to none in the Cayman Islands with its failing economy. I agree with the view that you criticise. Does MY location make the view wrong? Is not the view either true or false, irrespective of whether or not I agree with it and where I am? Are you saying that by bashing expats you can change the economic reality of the Islands? That economic reality is true, and that truth doesn’t vary depending on that I think or where I live, or what you think about me or where I am from or where I am currently located.
You need to deal with the reality of the situation, and not concern yourself with the location of people ascribing to the stated view. You are then just hiding from the truth, and hurting yourself in the process by losing your focus from the problems and the potential solutions.
Explained enough?
@Whodatis – why are your comments designed to be inflammatory and stir up reactions irrelevant to the real problems that Cayman faces?( and you do a great job of that by the way)
Educate Caymanians to use the fortunate position they have in the world’s economy (and climate) to ensure their continued prosperity. You are a tiny island enjoying enormous benefit from the UK’s extended jurisdiction (legal system, defense etc). You have willing and able foreign expertise that make money here (for themselves), which you share in. Why you’d want to shake a stick at that those people is beyond me. Address some of the real issue in the budget overspend and help your fellow Caymanians understand where all our bread is buttered.
Make no mistake you are 100% in control here, so chose a way forward wisely. The world is not interested in your view of macro economics – there you have no say. Choose badly and those lawyers, bankers and accountants will be looking after themselves in some other country.
"@Whodatis – why are your comments designed to be inflammatory and stir up reactions irrelevant to the real problems that Cayman faces?"
I disagree – I simply counter with a realistic and balanced perspective.
It appears that to commit such an act is a no-no for a few individuals.
Far too many folk are on here lambasting our current economic situation while ignoring the blatant and historical failures in their respective home countries.
I am all about keeping things in perspective – nothing more, nothing less.
I can’t help it if people’s feelings get hurt in the process – they all have the right to correct me if I’m lying.
My thumbs down to your comment stems from the fact that you feel like this extra 200 million in "chump change" will somehow make a positive difference for Cayman. You have cancer and you have just taken morphine which will buy you 3 hours of hapiness rather than going for more unpleasant chemotherapy, which may actually rid you of the disease. Printing money out of thin air "works" (for a limited period of time) for the big Countries because they are "big". Their currency is global and they have the military and economic influence to force people to take their currency. All government issued paper is currency. "Money"is something of value which is nobody’s debt. Gold, Silver, Platinum, Copper, Food,Fuel, Shelter – these things are not beholden to anyone. They can be considered MONEY. All the rest is scrip. A promise to pay. A promise that will eventually be debased and broken. This extra 200 million will keep the wolf off the door for exactly 12 months. It simply prolongs the unsustainable dream for a short time causing the inevitable pain to be that much greaterr. The economies of the world will be in FAR WORSE SHAPE in 12 months than they are now. This will end very poorly for Cayman and it’s people. To paraphrase Franklin; those who would trade economic freedom for economic security deserve niether. In the end I fear we will be getting exactly what we deserve.
You and I actually share many of the same views.
The way I see it – Cayman is for the most part in the same boat as many other western countries … however, our standing appears to be much more advantageous.
Same principles but differing states of disarray.
For someone who posts regularly, you seem awfully concerned about the thumbs down button! I sometimes find I get thumbs down when I have misunderstood something; maybe we should explore your post to see if you got anything wrong.
"… "and may I remind everyone of what was the very likely alternative … direct taxation." Whether you recognise it or not, this sentence shows you don’t understand what you are writing about. Direct taxation is not an alternative to borrowing. In Cayman’s case, it is not possible to put in place a direct tax system which could deliver $200m within the next year. Direct taxation in whatever form it might take is a means to generate a sustainable income stream from which to fund future borrowings, not an original source of capital of the type Cayman needs to access. You have fundamentally misunderstood the situation.
"Even when we break it down by way of ratios the Cayman Islands is still much better off than the UK (and USA) in regards to a national deficit." Well apart from being a variation on the typical 2 wrongs make a right argument, you also totally fail to comprehend the difference in sheer scale between the UK and Cayman. The UK is a fully developed industrial nation with a widely diversified industrial base. As pointed out by another poster, Cayman has 2 basic industries and only one, tourism, where it really controls ( and I use that word very loosely ) the product. You fail to bring any perspective to your posts.
"The great British reign is officially over…". Well no. Britain’s reign as a world superpower has been in decline from at least the end of the WWII, but Britain’s rule over Cayman is still embodied in the Constitution. It can be " officially" over but Cayman would have to stand alone and take the risk that the little Union Jack in the corner of Cayman’s flag really is a cornerstone of Cayman’s success as a financial centre. Feel like taking a gamble of that size?
"… how much longer do we desire to be affiliated to this dying star. " I wonder if the people of the UK know they are a dying star, because when I was there recently they all seemed to be walking about, living normal lives without anywhere near the level of public moaning and discontent on show here in Cayman. But more to the point, isn’t this comment just typical of the " what have you done for me recently" mentality so prevalent in Cayman? As I wrote above, remove the Union Jack from Cayman’s flag and we may find out what they’ve done recently.
"We blew a collective sigh of relief yesterday." Sounds a bit like premature exhalation to me, since we know no details about the nature of information presented to the UK. I am prepared to speculate that it was at best optimistic and at worse, woefully so. Short term gain for long term pain – maybe that should be Cayman’s national motto.
I see you didn’t manage to work in a reference to the Chagos Islands today. Pity because if you had managed that, I would have given you a thumbs down!
Whodatis, borrowing is not an alternative to direct taxation. Indeed in the long run it may increase the likelihood and amount of direct taxation in order to repay the loans.
Cayman compares well to the U.S. and the UK in terms of debt to GDP ratios until one considers that (1) unlike the U.S. and the U.K. a large chunk of that GDP is not taxable (2) there is a very real possibility that we could lose our financial industry within the next 2-3 years and with it more than 50% of our GDP, and (3) the major contributors to that GDP are not citizens and are highly mobile.
I don’t wish to take anything away from whatever success the Premier has achieved but it is important that we understand it for what it is.
borrow baby borrow!!!!
reminds me of Greece..
According to the Compass thankfully only $150 million in borrowing has been appoved.
Luckily that is $50 million less than Mac requested.
Every dollar more in loans we incure is another dollar that our children will be burdened with repayment of the principal and all interest.
Time to think of the children.
Congratulations to the premier for a job well done. Was rather curious as to how his ‘pathological’ detractors would react. Judging by the postings so far, they appear to be in something of a quandary. I mean, how do you denigrate the guy who’s just scored the winning goal in the world cup?
B
The very notion that the ability to put your country further into debt is akin to winning the World Cup is hilarious. McKeeva’s detractors, my friend, gather voice when people like you support him.
simply using the power of the "sore loser" party..do at thumbs down..it’s the PPM way!!!
Opposition for Opposition sake!!
This just means Bush had added another 200 million dollars to the already huge bill that will keep the Cayman Government in paychecks for another year. Does that really sound like a reason to celebrate? Now he can be irresponsible for another year again on Caymans futures dime.
The civil service should not be let off the hook regardless of this news.
nice going ……$200 million of further debt…….and no need to deal with the civile service….. lets continue with caymans national pastime of sticking its head in the sand……..zzzzzzzz
Don’t forget PRAYING for ‘mo’ money. Can someone please post the "magic words" that will make it fall from the sky?
I seem to remember that our beloved leaders recollection of discussions with the British are very different from their own. Lets wait and see what they actually approve. Whilst I agree and support the extra borrowing (the government building loan for instance is really no more than a mortgage, which subsitutes for rent payment), it needs to be carefully ringfenced and NOT used for recurrent expenditure (like bailing out the Turtle farm or Pedro Castle).
One thing about McKeeva, you gotta to love him because if he can’t find a way out we are in trouble. Good work Premier, I know with the grace of god we together we will once again overcome this.
Just a few months ago another Overseas Territory was not so successful. Different UK government yes, but still, success says something about the negotiating. Well done Mr. Premier.
Borrowing is not something to be proud of and it should be used wisely on infrastructure the country really needs, not on pet projects that supporters crave, because that is $200 plus interest that you have to pay back. So to those of you rejoicing, it may be short lived. Next year, will be the same thing unless they cut spending back to within their revenues. And don’t rely on KEN-NO-NOMICS to tell you how much!
I am amazed at all of the good comments on here followed by the thumbs down. Call a spade a spade. Just because you don’t like someone doesn’t mean you shouldn’t look for the good in them.
I don’t agree with McKeeva on everything, didn’t even vote for him, but this born Caymanian says "thank you" and to those "Caymanian crabs" crawling around in the bucket, I say it is people like you that drive this country into the ground.
We are all Caymanians and we should transcend parties and pull together to get us out of this mess. That is what Caymanians used to do. It is terrible to see what has happened to us.
This is not a time for badmouthing. Would all of you with your thumbs down would have rather they said no to him and that we had to start paying taxes. I would hope not. Stop being so hateful and mischievous that does no one any good. See what is good and give praise, constructively critisize when needed. He is the leader now and he has made us proud on this occasion. Stand with your fellowman and be grateful.
From one Caymanian to the next, "Thank you," Mckeeva, for saving my country and for saving me and my family from having to pay taxes.
Now that’s a mouth full! Well said.
We will not know what is in the budget until June 15th. I’ll reserve judgement until then. I would make this point now, why didn’t the Government reveal what they were proposing before it is a fait accompli – a done deal?
Not only am I concerned about the additional borrowing potentially to finance over spending rather to build anything of lasting value. I am also very concerned about the sell off of valuable and profitable Government assets. Some people call it "divestment", sort of like describing a person’s death as their "passing", sounds less dramartic but they are still dead! Who will profit in the end from the sell-off / divestment?
You thanking McKeeva for saving you from having to pay tax? As dem West Baya’s would say, "You foo fool or wha?" Come next year when he done spent all da money and he na ga no more and he na cut expenses and dey come knockin at Cayman door for dey money and government ca’an cough it up, you ga hear bout taxes. T’ank him den! Put on ya glasses so ya can see pass ya nose.
Perfect example of a "crab in the barrell!"
We Caymanians are our worst enemies!
Do you realise who has to repay this additional debt? You and I, our children and everyone else who lives here. I’m glad we could get the money but would like to see real spending cuts by Govt – not just salaries – plus the 30% reducation in the PRemier’s salary and 20% in the rest of the MLA"s. WE cannot keep borrowing, borrowing and borrowing while income is way down.
All of a sudden you realise that we can’t continue to borrow and borrow. Who’s fault is that? Your distain for the Premier and the UDP has caused you – and many like you – to suffer from Alzheimer’s. You MUST be Schitsiphrenic.
What a wonderful rant you had. I have neither the time nor the energy to respond to all your claims but there is one recurrent UDP claim that I must raise: "The PPM gave away more PR than the UDP gave Status". Can you please present your evidence for this statement. Are you calling the award of Permanent Residence by the CSPR Board in accordance with the Immigration Law and Regulations a "give-away" and making a false comparison with the status give-way by the UDP govt. which was (1) probably unlawful, (2) lacked transparency (3) based on a political agenda, (4) cheapened Caymanian status by throwing it at some who had no desire for it, (5) provided no level playing field for applications, (6) not based on any clear, consistent criteria, and (6) exposed our country to serious risks by failing to perform any backgrounds checks? Please tell me that you have some real information that you can enlighten us with and this is not just partisan propaganda.
Don’t ask me any questions. Use FOI and stop being LAZY!!! Your support for an incompetent party is what cheapens us as Caymanians, and defies logic. Further, there are serious loopholes in the Immigration Policy and PPM did not address anything – again because they were too lazy and arrogant. Your 1-6/7 list is typical rhetoric. the facts re who’s committing the serious crimes are also available based on nationality from RCIPS and ESO.
Go educate yourself and recognise that before we can solve anything we must first acknowledge that we have a problem. Now I’m not saying that the UDP aren’t without fault but I’m dumbfounded to see that you can’t seem to shake the Status grants fiasco off but spend the time to criticise the Premier for protecting our economic way of life…Go get a life and stop being a spoke in the wheel of destructive rhetoric – another thing that’s cheapening us. You are following an illusion, wake up and smell the swanky!!!
If you are going to make wild, unsupported claims then you are going to be asked questions. The fact that you cannot answer the questions and put forward any actual information in support of such a serious allegation confirms my suspicion that this was only UDP partisan propaganda andnot worthy of anyone’s time.
As for shaking the status grants off, you are clearly so mortified by them that you feel obliged to repeat the invention of a mass PR giveway 7 years after the fact to deflect from the fiasco of the status grants although no one had mentioned them on this thread.
You are being stupid. I dont care about political parties. All politicians in Cayman are idiots. I would rather Mac cut spending than incur huge debt. Thats so basic it beyond me how you cant see it. Would you go out and get a bank loan to buy a ferrari when you have no job? Thats what we are doing. No positive cash flow, no spending cuts, yet huge debt. This is really short sighted and stupid. What are we going to do when the banks asks us to repay the loan?
Montana, reading your blogs I was of the view that you are very smart. But for you to state that “all politicians in Cayman are idiots” is very rude and even make you seem as one yourself.
JMCSR – I am happy to take back that comment when I see one of them standing up and doing something that is right. Why has not one politician said "crime is getting too much on this island and has to stop now!" or "we need to have a plan to cut expenses and increase revenus before we borrow this much!". Im sure that a 4 year old could understand that its silly to borrow money while living beyond your means and not cutting any spending yet I do see this understanding in the elected officials. Why? I am just incrediblly frustrated with whats happening with this Island.
I would like to add my thanks to Mac for getting this done BUT bear in mind folks that just because we are getting another loan it does not mean that we can go crazy spending money hither and yon.Mac must now tighten his belt and do what is right to get this country back on its proper footing.We have to prioritise our projects to keep a proper balance here folks.
A job well done ………… for now.I will wait to see how this pans out in the long run.NO MORE AFTER THIS IS WHAT IT WILL BE I AM SURE.So lets get things done right this time around.
I must really congratulate the PPM for energising and organising a group of people who constantly monitor every single story and post on this site to click on thumbs down to try to denigrate the efforts of the Government in general and Mac in particular. Even reasonably neutral comments – not Mac worshipping – are savaged by the PPM thumb!
Now I guess I can sit back and wait for the onslaught of thumbs.
First of all for those who know about government you would understand that Mac’s role in this was largely ceremonial……..the technocrats on both sides do the negotiating…….and the political leaders do the photo opts.
Yes Mac could have helped reduce the deficit by staying in Cayman and making his joint announcement with the UK Minister.
I figure this could have saved $5,500 in airfare; $4,500 in hotel; $1,500 in meals; $1,000 in ground transportation and $2,500 in entertainment.
Yep a whopping $15,000……every little bit helps Mac.
Oh and this should help us figure out how much Mac has spent in total on travel based on his list of overseas trips since taking office which he revealed recently when he went on the rampage about the media and "dem bloggers" 🙂
Blog away peeps !!!
Yeah great, well done.
Can we sort out the friggin crime now?
I am as eager for good news as the next person, but having read the offical press release there is only an agreement in principle folks.
We don’t have chickens to count just yet, but the farmer has said that he thinks that he might be willing to let the rooster get into the hen house on terms that are not public just yet. Depending on how all that works out, we may get some eggs that we can then watch to see if they hatch into something that will eventually grow into chickens.
Probably the only thing that is certain is that before everything is done there will be some feathers ruffled.
WOW, you will never see a more genuine smile on Lil Mac face than when he has been able to talk money out of people, lol.
Why should I applaud or congratulate someone for putting theCayman Islands into even more debt when all he had to do was straighten that backbone, piss off some folks but get the job of straightening up this country done.
The point still remains the civil service is too large for such a small country and one way or another it needs to be cut in order to save.
Train the government employees who are bright, with initiative and drive, let go of all the slackers and check collectors. It will make such a vast difference, you’d be so surprised.
McKeeva, XXX
You amaze me with your willingness to continue selling us up and down XXX creek but irregardless of me or even yourself…have you considered our grandchildren’s future and the infiniti hole you are digging for them?
Please McKeeva, start going to one of the churches that you so adamantly support and actually listen to the messages of humility, grace, humbleness and a few of those commandments that you so readily ignore.
I am glad that the immediate cash flow crisis is averted, but we must be clear that we are borrowing more, this will mean more interest and prinicipal to be paid back.
I sincerely hope that the Government will stay on course to reduce Government spending and keep capital spending to the absolute minimum until we can reduce the country’s debt to a manageable level.
Considering that politicans usually like to create impressive projects to brag about at re-election time, let me say that the most impressive achievement that they will be able to present to me is the reduction of the country’s debt at the end of their term.
Now that would be a reason for me to cast my vote for the incumbents.
I am glad that the UK has given us a bit more time to restore the economy, but I am aware that it will come at the cost of more debt that will probably burden not only this generation but also our children.
I will wait to see the budget and whether the Premier and the other MLAs have done the right thing by cutting expenses including their own very large salaries and the outrageous MLA pensions that some of them are getting while still serving as MLAs. If they have done the right thing then I be the first one to sing their praises. If they have not done the right thing then all they have done is to burden us with more debt so that they can live well for a while longer.
Do any of you realise that we have just been granted the ability to incur more debt than the Cayman Islands has ever had in its history??
Do you really think incurring huge debt and not stopping the spending is the way forward and Mac should be commended for this? Really? Please dont tell me you are this stupid Cayman.
Debt has to be paid back at some point. It cant be paid back if the country has not made any spending cuts. This is so basic its ridiculous. Wake up people. We are heading down the same road as Jamaica did in the 70s when the politicians got rich, raped the country and just put it more and more in debt.
The Devil is in the details. .
Don’t get too excited until we get the budget.
The opposition told the premier on many occasions that the best way forward was NOT to try & solve our problems in one year but to spread it over three years instead. McKeeva Bush did not want to accept that the Cayman Islands suffered mostly because of a world wide recession. In fact, he only wanted to use the "world wide recession" excuse when it affected him & his failure to balance the budget. He refused to listen to the suggestions of the opposition, & because of his delays he made matters worse. Now he has had to put his tail between his legs, eat a lot of humble pie, & accept that the opposition was right all along (the PPM’s three year plan). We must now keep a close eye on where the borrowed money goes, because we do not want a repeat of what went on during those disasterous years between 2001 and 2005 which started the decline of our country. Those were very dark days that we have never recovered from.
We had four years (’01-’05) of suspicious & questionable deals & activities, to four years (’05-’09) free of corruption, to one year already full of, well, you know the story. Let us keep our eyes open wide.
This is an agreement in principal. What is the agreement details and when are we going to see it?
Well done Mac. Credit where credit is due. But you need to keep the screws tight on spending to get through this and since we have been waiting for ages and ages for a juvenile detention centre, we should wait longer.
Good for you Mr Premier, thats one thing they cant take from you. Being a good negotiator. Besides that I am sure the UK realizes by now that Cayman has some very Intelligent Government bodies, whether they be home grown or imported.
I believe that until we see:
1) What is contained in this budget submitted to the UK
2) Whether we can actually meet the budget put forward
3) And whether he will make us look like royal XXXX (saved you some time CNS) in the end.
Until this is done we should reserve jugement on just about all you have said Twyla. You yourself might swallow your tongue.
Bigmac couldn’t negotiate himself out of an open door, what are you talking about. The UK know that they have no real choice but to allow the islands to borrow more money, otherwise they would be in a bail out situation.
What I do know is that there will again be many strings attached which Bigmac will only make public when it is too late. I reckon it’ll be a couple of years maximum and Cayman will have to become a UK subsidiary, and yes I do mean subsidiary as in a branch owned by the UK and operated as a business. Or maybe sell it to BP to set up it’s regional mining facility.
Well done! (Don’t care about the thumbs down)
There are alot of people that don’t like you, and are not thankful for what you have done, Mr. Premier. Yes, you have your flaws, but one thing about you, you can work and do it well…
Thank you, Mr. Premier
I am sure the PPM would not had done any better since they were accusing you of the "borrowing" and the flip-flopping
You do realise that the country is now +200 million more in debt right?
I mean wow, he managed to secure another LOAN, that does not mean we are free and clear. And in any case, has anyone seen what this 3 year plan entails?
Don’t count the chickens before they hatch…nuff said.
It really must have chaffed Mac to have to write a plan, then on top of that know that someone will actually measure his performance / compliance against that plan.
Now that will be a "New Mac".
Try 1 billion.
No need for the thumbs down, just hoping we are out of the flip flop mode. Will reserve judgement when letter of confirmation is received.
Lenny,
His last budget was 55mil off course. I would sit back and wait before we say anything positive or negative about this budget. As it sits neither you or I know even what is in this budget.
I believe once we can see this budget to see how reasonableit looks or even until we see how the numbers really will play out we should reserve our opinion about how well this was done.
Lenny any fool can throw numbers on paper. We always need to see if they can be attained.
PS I gave you a thumbs down. Not because of you speaking positively about Big Mac but because you naively gave him praise without anything to stand on. You priase people when they have achieved something not when they say I aim to acheive something. The only way I would tip my cap to someone for saying I will be aiming to do something is if it was going against a particular grain. The Gambling comes to mind. I tip my cap to him for saying he intends to bring it to a vote. It’s more than PPM did.
PSS. PPM you are a fool for being against this. Gambling is the way to go.
All smiles now, eh?
Deeper in debt now, eh?
For all those CRITICS about his travels aren’t you glad that now you may be able to receive your pay. To Mr. Lach McTavish who just posted on the Burger King robbery that the Premier needs to stay home…would you have done his job to help the people of the islands receive their pay as Civil Servants?? Think before posting nonsense!!
Dear Mr or Ms Anonymous 14:27,
All smiles for a 3 year plan and a budget we have not seen, for borrowing money for a countries debt that is 200 times what it it cost to run the whole country when I moved to The Cayman Islands. Nonsense I think not. We cannot borrow our way out of this situation. This debt will grow as The Premier continues to not make the hard necessary decisions.
What is the difference between the amount they are okay to borrow under the PMFL without UK consent and the amount they want to borrow in total?
In any case, 200 million is really chump change in this day and age and this is much ado about nothing.
Yeah, chump change. CI$8,000 for every Caymanian person, including children and the elderly. Only CI$480 in interest every year. CI$11,000 per member of the workforce.
Of course of the 200m being borrowed, nearly 170m is just to pay interest.
Good deal, nice work! We can just keep borrowing money to spend and never pay it back! And we can even put the interest on our credit card. I did the same thing in college and that turned out okay.
Hallelujah for the economic miracle that is unlimited public borrowing and our rich uncle who underwrites it!!!
Actually it is your mother underwriting it and she is as broke as you. The Tooth Fairy could have gotten the UK to agree to that amount of borrowing.
Some estimates on the cost of the US "bailouts" put the cost per person living in the USA (note that not only the Citizens end up paying as you so imply) at about $33,261 or one McDonalds cheeseburger per person every day for the next 90 years.
So consider yourself lucky and do your part to make sure that the money borrowed is going towards worthwhile and necessary projects, XXXXX
YES SAH!!
Mac shut all a’ us up … unna hol’ dat!!
Lol!
Congrats Mac!
Credit should always be given where and when it is due!