Budget passes through House in absence of opposition
(CNS): Premier Alden McLaughlin concluded his closing remarks on the budget speech around 6:30 on Wednesday evening but there were no members of the opposition benches in the House when the budget was put to the vote. Although the leader of the opposition, Mckeeva Bush, had notified the House of his absence due to a medical appointment overseas, the rest of the opposition benches left the parliament before the proceedings had been concluded. Most government members were there to offer support for the budget, though Deputy Premier Moses Kirkconnell had also sent word that he was unable to attend the meeting.
The budget passed with eleven ‘ayes’ from the government benches and recorded six absentee members. The meeting was then adjourned until the Finance Committee proceedings, which are expected to begin at 10am Thursday.
All members of the LA except for the opposition member for West Bay, Captain Eugene Ebanks, made a contribution to the debate, with minsters using their two hours to update on their areas of responsibility. Other members offered a mix of support for the budget as well as raising their own questions or concerns.
The MLAs will now examine the line items of the appropriations bill ministry by ministry to see what government will be spending its more than half billion of operating expenses on and why.
Category: Politics
Fake Budget made of fake numbers Just a guess not reality
You people keep fooling yourselves into bankruptcy
The day of judgement is coming
Just like lots of Caymanians. They only show up for work if it is convenient. I thought they were supposed to set an example for the rest of us.
This government is becoming a real joke more so on a daily basis it seems. The Cayman people are pumping hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of salaries every year into a bunch of incompetant, lazy individuals. Whether you agree with something or not, you show up because it is your job to! This is unacceptable and those who gave no written aoplogy of absence should be fined! It is just courtesy so send in an aplogy if not attending or if having to leave early for some reason. There needs to be some serious disciplinary rules and consequences in the L.A
I presume that you really mean "this opposition" in your first sentence.
It's one thing that so many feel they needn't show up for work when it convenes so few times a year. It's another thing for the Minister in charge of the dump to not anticipate basic fire suppression equipment and costs, even after the hands-on spoon-feeding educational tour of large waste treatment facilities in the USA (on our dollar). Has an MLA ever been terminated for cause or negligence? It scares me to think how bad it would really need to get for that to happen! Meanwhile, let's form some more committees that don't do their homework!
CNS, the Budget has not "passed through the House". This is not a technical point. There are people out here who trust what you write and blog based on it.
If we had expats as the Opposition, the attendance to work would be better, the job would get done and Immigration would collect hefty sums for their Immigration fees. 🙂 An option for us to consider, eh? A typical example of the Caymanian work ethic. Is it any wonder employers choose expats over locals?
I guess they just did not want to be seen to vote in favour of a good budget. This way they can say they were against it without any real proof.
Can someone please explain to me what the f**k Capt. Whogene actually does other than collect our money every month?
No
surprise surprise!! lol
The little red leprechaun is at it again.
I guess the Opposition Members who had not given absent notices (Bernie, Eugene, Arden and Ezzard) must feel that their time on the morning TALKSHOW will count as their official record of what they think of this Budget.
I do not really care what others may say, if you are an MLA, unless you have given notice of the absence for a good reason while the LA is in session, YOUR ASS NEEDS TO BE THERE!!
What are we paying you for??
You miss time in the LA, which is only in session a few weeks a year, but you make sure you are on the morning TALKSHOW EVERY WEEK!!! Something wrong with this picture.
Agreed!
And that "good reason" better be medical or death related. Parent teacher conference for instance is not a "good reason". A surgeon cannot leave in the middle of an operation to pick his kid up from school.
This is the result of the party system. We need to look closely at our candidate's integrity, and what he or she stands for, not who he is associated with.
OMOV is the way to go,let them prove who they are individually. Stop the coat tail effect.
Just another ho hum day in the House.And we pay these people huge salaries to not even attend?.Why do the people of these fair Islands put up with this behaviour?Someone told me just yesterday "its just the way it is in politics"Such utter ridiculous complacency on the people of these islands.
Shame shame shame. Treasury department please deduct 2 days pay from the salaries of the absentees, excepting those who ore advised their absence.
No they can probably afford to miss all 10 LA meetings per year and take 10 days of 365 out of their pay.
So prorate it based on meetings missed. Miss 1 out of 10 and you get 90 percent pay. Watch them show up and vote then!
Democracy in action – great to see we have such a vibrant and active opposition. How much do we pay them, again, and how many days do they actually grace the house with their presence? Is it too much to expect them to be there for a vote at 630!
With the great Salaries and Pensions that they get, ALL members should be present every day, unless sick!
But then, what are the implications if they are not???
They are a bunch of cowards- don't want to be held accountable for anything so they decided not to vote.
They probably didn't have anything meaningful to contribute anyway so might be a blessing in disguise.
Glad to see Mr Suckoo showed up even though he was sick.