The Budget will be delayed by 10 days to February 26 with Finance Minister Paula Cox today explaining that Government “wanted to give ourselves more manoeuvrability”. Huh? Now that’s a strange explanation. I read in this in four possible ways: Everyone would still be hung over on the 16th from Ewart’s celeb-stalking Valentine’s Love Festival; [...]
Entries from January 31st, 2010
GDP Shell Game
January 29th, 2010 · 2 Comments · Business, Economy
Some late night ramblings on Bermuda’s economic situation: Finance Minister Paula Cox again this week tried to reassure Bermuda that our growing deficits and national debt are not so bad when measured against national GDP. This is a flawed comparison and she knows it. Here’s why. GDP is the market value of all final goods [...]
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Spending Like a Drunken Sailor
January 27th, 2010 · 2 Comments · Accountability, Bermuda Politics, Economy
The Bermuda Government under the PLP provides a constant circus of conflict, allegations, and political machinations. That’s bad for Bermuda. It’s good for the PLP though, because it keeps people focussed on the scandal-du-jour instead of seeing the big picture. And that big picture is not pretty. Larry Burchall points out that Bermuda’s Net Public [...]
Tags:Budget
Reform the House
January 26th, 2010 · Comments Off · Accountability, Transparency
Last week, MP John Barritt wrote in the Royal Gazette about some changes proposed to the “standing Orders” of the House of Assembly that have been proposed by he and Deputy Speaker Dame Jennifer Smith. The MPs have had the draft since the House broke for summer recess last year, and one hopes the House [...]
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Public Meeting on City Takeover
January 26th, 2010 · 1 Comment · Bermuda Politics, Development
The Corporation of Hamilton will hold an open Town Hall meeting on the PLP government’s “hostile takeover” of the local governments of Hamilton and St George on Tuesday, January 26th at 5:30pm in the City Hall Theatre. From the Mayor: Since taking office six months ago, Hamilton´s leadership has made major progress. We´ve made the [...]
Tags:CofH
Power Grab
January 23rd, 2010 · 2 Comments · Bermuda Politics
Despite the abundance of evidence that the Bermuda Government has weak management control over it’s existing operations, the PLP has started a “hostile takeover” of the Corporations of Hamilton and St George by the central government. It’s all about the power. Minister Roban took great pains to say that Government has no “preconceived notions” and [...]
Tags:CofH
Leadership and Budgets
January 22nd, 2010 · Comments Off · Accountability, Bermuda Politics
I am sadly amused by the public opinion polls in the Royal Gazette last week: the Premier’s rating is in the basement, while the Minister of Finance receives a solid positive rating from the public. Sure, Paula Cox is dignified and well-liked … but let’s not confuse that with job performance. I suspect that her [...]
Tags:Budget
Education System, Still Fumbling
January 18th, 2010 · Comments Off · Education
The Bermuda Government loves to commission top dollar reports from international experts …. and then to ignore them. Bermuda First, which was heralded as a bipartisan effort to gain the input from the business community, quickly disappeared without a trace. Even more worrisome is the Hopkins Report on improving education which has been sitting on [...]
Tags:Hopkins Report
Curious
January 15th, 2010 · Comments Off · Bermuda Politics
Government House made a statement yesterday about those “funny” cheques related to the new Courthouse that caused one of those vast wingnut conspiracies that seem to surround the current administration. It is indeed the most curious official statement I have heard in a long time: Images purporting to show two valid cheques, apparently made out [...]
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Wings
January 14th, 2010 · Comments Off · Islands
The earthquake devastation in Haiti is heartbreaking. It’s interesting that the Bermuda Government’s contribution to CDEMA is the use of a twelve seater aircraft. The Bermuda Government has a twelve seat aircraft??? You can donate to the relief efforts through the Red Cross of Bermuda: Via bank transfer to Bank of Bermuda, 010-187417-011 or Bank [...]
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