Library
About the CNS Library
(CNS Library): This is an ongoing project, which aims to make information readily available and easy to find. We would very much appreciate any comments or suggestions, so if you notice an error, you have additional or updated information, or if you would like to submit an entry, we would love to hear from you. The CNS Library will be for public documents and factual content only and we hope that this will become a useful resource for the general public, including students and journalists, both local and international.
Documents: Over the years many reports have been commissioned that could be useful to future policy makers and the public which employs them, or may be used by students and historians. The documents and reports we have filed represent an incomplete collection which we hope to add to as we unearth them. If you have any documents that you think should be in the public domain, please send them to us and we will publish them here.
Biographies: We will be including biographies of people who hold a position of some significance in the Cayman Islands, in either the public or the private sectors. If you would like to submit an entry to this section, please send it to us for consideration. No comments will be allowed on biographies but entries may be updated by CNS.
Please email info@caymannewsservice.com to add to or improve the CNS Public Library.
Cabinet
(CNS Library): The government of the Cayman Islands follows the Westminster system, whereby the leader of the party which gains the most seats in a general election assumes the controlling position of Cabinet — the premier of the Cayman Islands. The premier holds one ministry. He also advises the governor on the appointment of another four ministers from among the elected members to various portfolios. However, there are also three ex-officio members: the governor, who presides over Cabinet meetings, the deputy governor and the attorney general. Under the new constitution the number of elected ministers will increase to six.
If no political party gains a majority in a general election, the members of the Legislative Assembly elect the premier by ballot. No individual can serve as premier for more than two terms.
If the governor he is absent from a Cabinet meeting, it is chaired by the premier or, in the absence of the premier, the deputy premier. The governor and the premier together set the agenda for every Cabinet meeting, and both of them are entitled to include items on the agenda.
Cabinet:
Official Members:
Duncan Taylor – Cayman Islands Governor
Franz Manderson – Deputy Governor, Portfolio of Internal & External Affairs
Samuel Bulgin – Attorney General, Portfolio Legal Affairs
Elected Members:
McKeeva Bush – Premier, Minister of Finance, Tourism & Development
Juliana O'Connor Connolly – Deputy Premier, Minister of District Administration, Works, Lands & Agriculture
Rolston Anglin – Minister of Education, Training & Employment
Mike Adam – Minister of Community Affairs, Gender & Housing
Mark Scotland – Minister of Health, Environment, Youth, Sports & Culture
Members of the Legislative Assembly
(CNS Library): There are currently 15 elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands who represent the six districts: four each from George Town and West Bay, three from Bodden Town, two from Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, and one each from North Side and East End. Under the new constitution, this must increase to 18, however, how and where and even when the new members will be added is a much discussed and controversial issue. The deputy governor and the attorney general will continue as ex officio members.
There is no upper house of parliament. Laws are passed by a unicameral legislature — which is the Legislative Assembly. The speaker of the House, or the deputy speaker in the absence of the speaker, presides over the Legislative Assembly while it is in session.
A bill is put to the LA after it has been approved by Cabinet. If passed by the members of the Legislative Assembly it must then be assented to by the Governor of the Cayman Islands before it is is published in the Official Gazette.
The Governor may at any time, by Proclamation, prorogue or dissolve the LA. Every four years the governor dissolves the LA and within two months there is general election to elect new members or re-elect incumbents.
Members:
West Bay
McKeeva Bush (UDP) – Premier
Rolston Anglin (UDP) – Minister of Education, Training & Employment
Cline Glidden (UDP)
Captain Eugene Ebanks (UDP)
George Town:
Alden McLaughlin (PPM) – Leader of the Opposition
Mike Adam (UDP) – Minister of Community Affairs, Gender & Housing
Kurt Tibbetts (PPM)
Ellio Solomon (UDP)
Bodden Town:
Mark Scotland (UDP) – Minister of Health, Environment, Youth, Sports & Culture
Dwayne Seymour (UDP)
Anthony Eden (PPM)
North Side:
Ezzard Miller (Independent)
East End:
Arden McLean (Independent)
Cayman Brac and Little Cayman:
Juliana O'Connor Connolly (UDP) – Deputy Premier, Minister of District Administration, Works, Lands & Agriculture
Moses Kirkconnell (PPM)
Government oversight
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC)
Office of the Auditor General (OAG)
Office of the Complaints Commissioner (OCC)
Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)
Department of Health Regulatory Services
Judicial and Legal Services Commission
Pensions Office
Constituational Commissions:
Human Rights Commission
Commission for Standards in Public Life
Constitutional Commission
Legislative Assembly Committees
Standing Committees
Finance Committee
Register of Interests Committee
Standing Orders Committee
Standing Select Committees
Standing Business Committee
Standing House Committee
Standing Select Committee on Privilege
Standing Select Committee to Overses the Performance of the Office of the Complaints Commissioner
Advisory district councils
(CNS Library): The government passed the Advisory District Councils Bill (2010) by eight votes to five in the Legislative Assembly on 31 October 2011. The purpose of the district councils is to advise MLAs but under the law they are appointed by Cabinet and not elected. The bill was opposed by Independent MLA Ezzard Miller and the opposition PPM party after government refused to reconsider making them elected councils or bodies chosen by all the constituency MLAs. As the bill passed, Premier McKeeva Bush said the bill would improve public participation and set in train an “evolutionary change” between the governed and those who govern.
In the news:
Government boards and committees
Government boards are set to over oversee various government entities. They are appointed by the current administration.
Adoption Board
Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy
Agricultural Development Committee
Airports Authority Board
Air Transport Licensing Authority
Animal Welfare Advisory Committee
Anti-Money Laundering Steering Group
Aquaculture Development Committee
Assessment Committee (Roads)
Beautification Committees
Business Staffing Plan Board
CAYS Foundation Board of Directors
CINICO Ltd Board of Directors
Caribbean Examinations Council National Committee
Cayman Against Substance Abuse
Cayman Airways Board Of Directors
Cayman Islands Development Bank Board
Cayman Islands Film Commission
Cayman Islands Monetary Authority Board of Directors
Cayman National Cultural Foundation Board
Cayman Turtle Farm Ltd. Board of Directors
Caymanian Status & Permanent Residency Board
Central Planning Authority
Central Tenders Committee
Civic Centre Management Committee, Aston Rutty Centre, Cayman Brac
Cinematographic Authority
Civil Aviation Authority Board (345) 949-7811
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) of the Legislative Assembly
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Executive Committee of the Legislative Assembly
Community Development Action Committees (CODACS)
Company Sector Consultative Committee
Council for Professions Allied with Medicine
Dangerous Substance Handling & Storage Board
Department of Vehicle & Equipment Services Board
Development Control Board
Development Plan Tribunal
E-Business Advisory Board
Education & Training Board
Education Appeals Tribunal
Education Board Cayman Brac & Little Cayman
Education Council
Electrical Board of Examiners
Electricity Regulatory Authority Board
Financial Reporting Authority
Financial Services Committee
Grand Court Rules Committee
Growth Management / Investment Advisory Board
Health Appeals Tribunal
Health Councils
Health Services Authority Board Of Directors
Hospital Complaints Committee
Hotels Licensing Board
Immigration Appeals Tribunal
Immigration Board Cayman Brac & Little Cayman
Information & Communications Technology Authority Board
Investors in People Steering Committee
Labour Appeals Tribunal
Labour Tribunals
Labour Tribunal of Cayman Brac & Little Cayman
Land Surveyors Board
Legal Advisory Council
Legislative Assembly Committees
Library Committee of Management
Liquor Licensing Board (Grand Cayman)
Liquor Licensing Board of Cayman Brac & Little Cayman
Marine Conservation Board
Maritime (Shipping) Sector Consultative Committee
Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands Board of Directors
Medical & Dental Council
Miss Cayman Islands Committee
Museum Board of Control
Museum Law – Trustees
National Council of Voluntary Organisations
National Drug Council
National Gallery
National Gallery & Art Institute Board
National Gallery Management Board
National Gallery Trustees
National Housing Development Trust Board of Directors
National Hurricane Committee
National Pensions Board
National Roads Authority Board
National Trust Council (Appointment of Certain Members)
National Security Council
National Youth Commission
Nursing & Midwifery Council
Parole Commissioners Board
Pedro St. James National Historic Site
Pharmacy Council
Pirates Week Festival Committee
Planning Appeals Tribunal
Planning Appeals Tribunal (Sister Islands)
Plumbers Examination Board
Port Authority Board (345) 949-2228
Price Gouging Control Commission
Prison Inspection Board
Private Finance Initiative Advisory Board
Private Sector Consultative Committee
Public Library Management Committee
Public Sector Investment Committee
Public Service Pensions Board
Public Service Pensions Board Trustees
Public Transport Board
Receiver of Wrecks for the Cayman Islands
Shipping Sector Consultative Committee
Sister Islands Affordable Housing Development Corporation Board
Special Land Disputes Tribunal
Stamp Advisory Committee
Stamps Survey Board
Street Naming & Property Numbering Committee
T E McField Youth & Community Centre Management Committee
Tertiary Education Council
Tourism Advisory Council
Tourism Attraction Board
Trade & Business Licensing Board
University College Board of Governors
Utilities Advisory Committee
Veterinary Board
Water Authority Board
Work Permit Board
Statutory authorities & Government-owned business
Statutory authorities and government companies are owned by the government on behalf of the people of the Cayman Islands but are legally separate from the government. The ownership relationship exists regardless of whether it is reflected in the form of shares or a formal capital holding.
Statutory authorities:
Cayman Islands Airports Authority (CIAA)
Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA)
Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA)
Health Services Authority (HSA)
Information Communications and Technology Authority (ICTA)
Maritime Authority of the Cayman Islands (MACI)
National Roads Authority (NRA)
Port Authority of the Cayman Islands
Stock Exchange Authority
Tax Information Authority (TIA)
Water Authority (WA)
Government-owned companies:
Cayman Airways Ltd (CAL)
Cayman Islands Development Bank (CIDB)
Cayman Islands National Insurance Company Limited (CINICO)
Cayman Islands National Museum
Cayman Islands National Cultural Foundation
Children and Youth Services (CAYS) Foundation
Cayman Islands Stock Exchange Limited (CSX)
Cayman Turtle Farm (1983) Limited
National Drug Council
National Gallery of the Cayman Islands
National Housing Development Trust
Public Service Pensions Board
Sister Islands Affordable Housing Corporation (SIAHC)
Tourism Attractions Board
University College of the Cayman Islands (UCCI)
Documents
Over the years many reports have been commissioned, and many of the authors made discovered that are either useful to policy makers and the public which employs them, or may become useful to students or historians. The documents and reports below represent an incomplete collection which we hope to add to as we unearth them. If you have any documents that you think should be in the public domain, please send them to nickywatson@caymannewsservice.com.
Anti-Money Laundering Regime in the Cayman Islands – fact sheet (CIG)
Criminality Report (2006) By Yolande C. Forde
Electoral Boundary Commission Report 2010
Framework for Fiscal Responsibility
ITALIC Review Report (April 2006) By Hassan Syed
Petition for single member constituencies
Review of British offshore financial centres (October 2009) By Michael Foot
Sale of Government Office Administration Building (GOAB) proposal
Video archives
Cayman Islands Constitution
Cayman Constitution – official website
The Cayman Islands Constitution Order 2009 on legislation.gov.uk
Constitutional Commissions:
Know Your Constitution – The Cayman Islands Constitutional Commission
In the News:
Mac will be Premier 6 Nov (2 October 2009)
CNS promotes access to information
(CNS): In the same spirit of reader participation with which we launched our FOI section, today Cayman News Service has started the CNS Library, which will provide ready access to valuable information and a place, in this age of transparency and open source technology, where the people of the Cayman Islands can share documentation. The library will be for public documents only – this is not designed to be a place for gossip or to expose any personal information – but the hope is that this will become a useful resource for the general public, including students and journalists, both local and international.
“One of our main goals at CNS has always been to deliver to our readers as much information as possible,” said CNS owner Nicky Watson. “Traditionally, news organizations have been gatekeepers of information – they obtain access to the documents and data and then supply their interpretation of them to their consumers. This is what our hardworking journalist Wendy Ledger does – summarise and interpret the news so that it is easier and less time consuming to digest – but we also, wherever possible, supply the original documents, so that it is available for anyone to read and draw their own conclusions.”
Generally you will find these documents attached to a relevant article in the CNS news pages, but there is also a need to have some documentation in a more accessible format, and this will be the function of the CNS Library.
Over time we will be uploading all the documents we have into our library, including some important laws, with relevant links to more information, and we will also post documents that are sent to us that we think are in the public interest. In addition, if there is a particular document that readers would like to view, the CNS staff will see if it is in our files or post a note to see if any of our readers have it in their possession.
“This is an ongoing and may be a slow process, since it is something that we will work on when we have time, and we are relying on our readers to tell us what they want, point out gaps and to help us collect documents,” Watson said. “This is a project that will evolve as we find out what works and what doesn’t and, as ever, we will be taking note of feedback. However, it is also a never-ending project and one that has enormous possibilities. We could, for example, create a space for photographs if our readers express a desire for this.”
Right now we have begun the process with the Cayman Islands Constitution, the most recent budget and the immigration, labour and freedom of information laws, which we think are some of the most useful. “The laws of the land are not effective if people do not have access to them or know where to find them,” Watson said, “and we have also linked to the relevant entity so it is easy for people to find out more. The FOI Unit, for example, has an excellent guide to making a request but we want to give the public one more pathway to find their website and use this guide.”
She added, “The process gives us and members of the public the opportunity to assess government websites to see if they are up to date, easy to use and comprehensive. One strange omission that we have found so far is that the website of the Employment Relations Department does not appear to have a link to the labour law.”
The link to the CNS Library is on the menu bar. If anyone would like to share a document or comment privately, please email nickywatson@caymannewsservice.com.