Bellingham gets chop, Simmonds takes on territories
(CNS): The apparent survival of the overseas territories minister in David Cameron’s Cabinet was short lived as Henry Bellingham was removed from his post when the British Prime Minister continued his reshuffle Wednesday. The responsibility for the territories has been given to Mark Simmonds, the Tory member for Boston and Skegness who was a former shadow health minister. Bellingham, with whom Cayman’s premier has claimed he had a good relationship, does not appear to have been offered another post in the Conservative-led coalition Cabinet. Meanwhile the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, one of the Conservative heavyweights, has retained his top job.
The UK government's mid-term shake up is seen by many as David Cameron’s attempt to revive the coalition’s fortunes in the face of continued austerity but is not expected to herald any major changes of policy. Simmonds is one of a number of new appointments considered to be further to the right of the Conservative party.
During Cameron's first cabinet re-jig, George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, was booed earlier this week as he handed out medals at the Para-Olympic games but remains at Number 11 Downing Street. UK polls had shown that the British public believes that Osborne, who is a close ally of Cameron, should be sacked.
Despite some speculation in the UK Press that Hague had lost his mojo, he has retained his post after telling the Evening Standard last week that he had wanted to remain in the position.
During the interview Hague told the London-based evening paper that the UK must shed lingering feelings of "post-colonial guilt" and be confident about its status on the world stage.
He said the UK had a "new and equal partnership" with countries unburdened by past history but Britain should be "more ambitious" about its role in the world and should not be held back by worries over any residual resentment overseas about its colonial past.
The foreign secretary’s comments come in the wake of the publication of a white paper regarding the future relationship the UK wants with its existing overseas territories and remaining colonial legacy, which indicates a desire for a much more hands-on approach.
Simmonds, a 48-year-old party loyalist, won his seat in the June 2001 General Election and within 30 months of being elected he was promoted to the front bench as the Shadow Minister for Education.
In September 2004 Simmonds was appointed Shadow Foreign Office Minister by then leader of the Conservative Party, Michael Howard. His work focused on international affairs in the Middle East, Africa, Central and South East Asia, and South America. After his re-election in May 2005 he was made Shadow Minister for International Development, where his role focuses on the important issues of aid, trade and debt.
Simmonds is also Secretary of the All Party Parliamentary Latin American Group.
In July 2007 he was promoted to Shadow Minister for Health when the Conservative Party was in opposition but missed out on a role in the coalition government after the 2010 General Election.
See more about the new minister here
See Simmonds list of responsibilities here
Category: World News
Looks like Lord Ashcroft's Bwoy running tings now, like poster 15:20 rightly said Big wheels turning and big deals moving. The ever changing tides of Cayman's future unfortunately no longer rest with Cayman our its people why because our elected officials and certain nostalgic nomads won't or can't wake up from their colonial daycare program and act mature and take responsibility for their actions.
I think on this one we can just leave it to Bush to bump his gums and tell him " your on my Island so do as I say" that should be enough to get direct rule. He has managed to ruin everything else with them flapping lips of his.
Actually, I have a few more concerns regarding this story.
Normally a person loses a job as a result of failure or under-performance.
Why did Bellingham lose his job as overseas territories minister? That information has not been provided to the general public – not that I was expecting it to be.
However, it begs the question: What was his job description?
For example, did he fail to bring to fruition the notion that has been increasingly flirted with, on behalf of the UK, that is direct taxation within certain or all of the overseas territories?
E.g. 2: Did the despicable approach to the introduction of V.A.T. in the TCI, as they sidelined the concerns and objections of the actual people (see video of public meeting in previous post), fall short of an even harsher objective?
Did Big Mac's stubbornness and resilience prove too much for Bellingham and lead to his ultimate demise?
Perhaps he did nothing wrong and was simply kicked aside to make way for the latest wannabe (Simmonds) on the Conservative side?
We constantly bicker and squabble on-island in regards to transperancy of our government and representatives, however, ultimately all of that does not really matter.
We have absolutely no clarity, knowledge or transperancy of the ultimate objectives of the actual powers that be.
In my opinion, the local efforts to bring about these changes are important, however they fail in terms of cruciality when compared to the lack of transperancy regarding the ultimate objectives of the UK.
*Surely many CNS readers will take offense to my stance but each and every one of you should rest assured that I do not give a rat's behind about your emotional responses.
Power is the deciding factor within any situation in life and I tend to focus on the (unelected / undemocratic) entities that yield the ultimate power over my existence.
If some of you don't like that then … tough luck.
Henry Bellingham is the MP for the constituency next to the one where I live.
You should check – http://www.lynnnews.co.uk/news/latest-news/incinerator-king-s-lynn-mp-now-free-to-fight-the-incinerator-battle-1-4231496
That is my local newspaper and it seems to sum up the situation pretty well.
Bellingham is an old-fashioned (and I doubt he will mind me using that phrase) local MP and it is quite clear that the OT Minister's job was taking him away from constituency duties.
Was he actually sacked? Oddly enough, and I was due to meet him next week to push for a public inquiry into Operations Tempura and Cealt, I don't think so. More likely the high profile fight with Norfolk County Council, that is coming to a head right now, over this project was simply incompatible with a ministerial post.
I now look forward to meeting Mark Simmonds once he gets settled in.
Good luck with Mark Simmonds a mate of Lord Ashcroft recently, of all people, elevated to the Privy Council. Lord Ashcroft's activities are well known to the people of the TCI where his friendship with the then Premier, Michael Misick furthered his cause at the expense of the people. Research into Mr Simmonds show that he had a freebie flight to TCI on Lord Ashcroft's plane owned by Flying Lion Ltd. They do say that birds of a feather flock together.
Many thanks for that Chris, it's very interesting and potentially very useful.
Do you have dates for the flights or any other info?
If you don't want to post it CNS have my email address.
Hello Mr. Evans,
This is a great example of the benefits of the internet and social / online media.
With a few taps on the keyboard and exchange of ideas tremendous light is shed on a situation – by way of an individual quite close to a key element in the story.
I sincerely appreciate the feedback and look forward to the reports of your enquiries if you decide to share them with the rest of us.
All the best to you Mr. Evans – I have always enjoy your contributions over the years.
– Whodatis
How the heck can anyone click the troll logo when the person has posted under their own name?
Morons.
oh boy out of his depth
Blimey, firsy we had the anti-Cayman boxers bloke with an agenda, then a sensible sounding Henry Bellingham, and now this gentleman. I only hope he reads the present situation and stands up for the average Caymanian against this Dart monstrocity which is dismembering and gobbling up our country. At the moment we have precious little representation. XXXX
UK wants a more hands on approach?
This means they are enshrining themselves into our constitution and reducing our powers and to put it simple. This is some sort of direct rule but very subtile in deed.!
Stop jumping to conclusions, read the fine print!
19:33, its not DART you idiot, its McKeeva.
DART cannot do anything without Mac's approval so blame him, Foolio and the rest of the UDP.
They and only they are sinking this island into oblivion and selling / giving it away, no one else.
It is you who is the idiot. The relationship spawned in hell itself between Kenneth Dart and McKeeva Bush is and has been to the detriment of the Cayman Islands. These two are hand in hand with each other and that is undeniable. The results of this are evident and will only get worse unless dealt with as the threat which it is.
anyone who's been to skeggy can see why he's been given charge of this rock
Dart gone clear so much for the West Bay Commitee these UK boys are for big business big bonuses big paydays you know how it go Cayman. Finally got somebody we can wuk wid? Poor old Ezz & Arden Like Bob Dole said I just can't win!
Let’s just hope that he fulfills the legacy of Bellingham and ensures that bush is kept to the fiscal program and constraints.the first test will be whether the Framework for Fiscal Responsibility is signed into law by the end of this month, as required by Bellingham’s directive
… and another.
My goodness, exactly how many of these "bosses" will we have per decade?
This is really not the best way to cultivate strong and meaningful relationships between 'mother country' and her territories. Consider the intense back-and-forth that just took place between CIG and the FCO regarding our finances and budget situation – suddenly we are facing a 'reset' button in terms of familiarity.
As always, I hope my fellow Caymanians are paying close attention and are able to properly asses their value in the eyes of certain entities.
Furthermore, as we squabble amongst each other over UDP vs. PPM – the actual position of ultimate power over our destiny is the lowest level tier of UK government minister, and is generally regarded as a mere warm-up or testing zone for the relevant (British) party's wannabe's.
Really puts your (Caymanian) 'democratic' vote into perspective, doesn't it?
Then again, the average Brit is feeling quite insignificant regarding his individual voting power as well. The EU and its courts seem to be calling the shots these days so it appears that all 'British citizens' do have something in common after all.
How nice.
Well, what a surprise. We’ve heard nothing from you on any of these recent stories that affect the quality of lives and the livelihoods’ of your fellow Caymanians:
National bird faces extinction
$8m missing in vehicle fees
CSIPL still waiting on law
NBF sails through committee
HSBC scandal may impact local AML regime
Traffic law expected to be enforced next week
South Sound mangrove threat
LA silent on Mac’s absence
Mystery Bridge on ETHE
Not a word! As ever you have nothing to say on anything that actually matters to Caymanians.
But – faced with a comparatively unimportant story about which minor British politician will be spending one hour of his working week on Caymanian matters, off you go with the anti colonial, anti-European and anti-white, ranting invective that we have all become so bored with.
And it is comparatively unimportant. There are twice as many inhabitants in my town than in Cayman and we don’t have a government minister assigned to our welfare.
As I suggested to you last week, why don’t you “pay close attention to” things that really matter:
The economy?
The environment?
The charges leveled against Mr. Bush?
The electoral system?
The make up of the Legislative Assembly?
Mr. Anglin’s driving problem?
Unemployment?
Education?
The service sector?
Those are topics that matter to Caymanians and when you respond to this with one of your withering put-downs, please refer to me in any way you choose but not as your “friend”.
I’ve worked out that the 3 thumbs up you usually get for your views are from you, your mother and your Honduran housemaid. If you actually did have any friends you might make double figures occasionally.
Lol, Ed, my good good friend … what's wrong, buddy?
Am I going to have to report you to the RCIPS? It seems that way for you have clearly become my designated online stalker.
While I appreciate the time and effort expended to submit your little rant, I am afraid my post was completely lost on you.
By the way – what is your obsession with race and colour?
Regardless of the issue at hand, it always comes back to these points with you.
Anyway, I will humor you – after all, I am 'in the bathroom' (really, I am) and have a few minutes to spare;
Re:
Again, you stay classy Ed-Ed … you and your supportive buddies.
"The EU and its Courts seem to be calling all the shots". I am not aware of many recent ECJ or CFI decisions which have caused significant controversy in recent years.
I think Whodatis meant the ECtHR which of course comes out of the Council of Europe rather than the EU. The significant controversy there pertains to prisoners voting rights.
Well maybe Whodatis will just admit he was wrong?
Right, wrong, splitting hairs or not – I will not allow my post to be derailed by others who have decided to highlight what I consider to be a most insignificant issue.
Grow up guys.
It is not an issue of splitting hairs. It is the kind of error which gives away that the writer is writing from a point of ignorance rather than understanding.
Sorry, forgot to add into post how hilarious it is that Whodatis cannot simply admit he made an error – speaks volumes about his character. "Right, wrong, splitting hairs or not" – no, your were just plain wrong.
Just admit you were wrong.
@ the desperate clowns below:
The issue referenced in that side matter to my post is that of the erosion of British sovereignty regarding legislation by way of the (external / regional) powers … out of Europe.
Are you guys really so depserate to 'score points' that you will pretend to not understand the point being made – even if it means focusing on a near irrelevant point within the wider context of the post?
Should we break open the Bradley and Ewing textbooks as well?
Even if I was to "admit I was wrong" (even though I am not clear as to exactly how I was "wrong") – would that have any impact whatsoever on the nature of the post? No. It would only serve to appease the emotions of simple-minded individuals.
Honestly, the immature, hair-splitting bickerings on this forum is nothing short of schoolyard antics.
Regardless, my focus and concern is of Cayman primarily – you guys feel free to argue amongst yourselves.
The point that has been made is that your error was substantively significant because it showed that your position was one that was not based on any significant understanding of the subject matter but rather the spouting of misinformed prejudice. When it comes to ranting about "immature bickerings" and "schoolyard antics" then stop throwing stones sir, because your home has an awful lot of glass in it. I would steer clear of difficult textbooks for now and perhaps buy a copy of "How To Win Friends And Influence People", by the manner in which you address people you would benefit greatly from that book.
The phrase “redbrick rigour” springs to mind.
Check out –
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-17104463
And – http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/mark_simmonds/boston_and_skegness
Does this mean that the Framework For Fiscal Responsibility is no longer required to be signed into law?
Good news
He looks like someone the Premier could wok wid. I wonder if he likes to travel on private jets?
http://www.parliament.uk/documents/Mr%20Mark%20Simmonds%20MP.pdf
Hmmm…
voting record too, LOL.
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/mark_simmonds/boston_and_skegness
"Has never voted on a transparent Parliament"
When you read the link 'See more about new minister' – he doesn't seem to do much – apart from show up.
Then again – thats a whole lot more than our man on the rock does.
Mackeeva will eat him up and spit him out.
If he is a conservative heavyweaight that should go in the "For Cayman Alliance" favor. Dart and MB should be happy.
What a speculative comment, 8:50.!! Not all conservatives have forked tails just as not all socialists have angels' wings.