Vexed Bermoothes

There’s plenty of blame to go around for the demise of Bermuda’s retail district. 
There’s the Government that would not listen to the warnings on the need to reform tourism approaches, tax structures, hiring laws, etc.  There’s the Corporation of Hamilton that is just … incompetent.  There’s the economic incentive for landlords to convert their retail […]

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I hear from friends in the public sector that the Cabinet Office welcomes the opportunity to get involved at the detail level in Government’s procurement and contracting.  If true, this is just begging to create political conflict of interest, waste, and over-expenditure.
Some may say this Cabinet’s role.  No, it isn’t.  Their role is to set […]

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The BPSU has won a stay against the Government’s outsourcing of the New York tourism jobs because Government failed to live up to its obligations under the Collective Bargaining Agreement to consult with the union before undertaking any outsourcing or privatisation.
This is the classic problem with the Bermuda Government these days.  It follows a pattern:

A […]

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Due to the sagging tourism sector, the collective salaries of hospitality employees dropped by almost 40 percent during the first quarter of this year, according to the latest Government statistics.
Meanwhile the collective salaries of international business workers rocketed by 51 percent.
Ouch.  That divide was already big - and it’s getting more divisive.

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With the block voting that typifies our legislature of late, it’s rare that even the crappiest proposed laws get rejected, or even amended.  The rarest of rarities happened yesterday when a proposed law was shot down in the Senate.
The law, dealing with the dental […]

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The following is a telling slip of the tongue from the developer of the Sonesta/Wyndham site.
Scout Real Estate Capital CEO Alan Worden announced today that work on its new 5-star resort hotel on the site of the old Wyndham Beach Resort in Southampton Parish is progressing on schedule. Scout intends to present its proposed plans […]

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People have many opinions regarding the separation between the personal and public life of politicians.  Here’s my deep contribution on the subject: this just does not cut it:
“For those who are asking that I step down, I don’t know how I can take on the action of someone else?” 
My criticism comes with a grain […]

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The UBP has chimed in following the Auditor’s Report.  No matter what type of “Plantation discount” you might try to apply to them, their points are valid and must be listened to.  The Bermuda Government is falling down on basic managerial controls.  Government’s Code of Conduct states:
“The individual responsibility of a Minister for the work […]

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Bermuda’s Auditor General is speaking out again about the political attempts to intimidate and interfere with his work.
He points out that the Auditor role is protected by the Constitution and the Audit Act 1990 which states that “the auditor is not subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority in the […]

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The Bermuda Cement Company fiasco has faded from the public consciousness.  But from the pocketbook?
Another factor which has contributed to the rising cost of construction, according to Mr. DeCouto, has been the increase in the price of cement by MaxCem since it took over the Bermuda Cement Company in December last year, with prices for […]

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