Vexed Bermoothes

The Premier has visited the new Government of Bermuda Representative Offices in London right around the corner from the Ritz, and in the same building as our Cayman pals. Expected to open in the next two months, it will be used for both intergovernmental relations and Tourism and is allocated about $1.46 million in this year’s Budget.  Wonder who the Official Representative will be?  What is the plan for their operation?

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The Premier also made vague mention of attending a meeting of the Overseas Territories Consultative Council. The leader of the Cayman Islands Government was a bit more forthcoming on the agenda:

The Overseas Territories Consultative Council meets once a year in London. It was established in 1999 and serves as a forum for the Government of the United Kingdom to engage in discussion of key policy issues with heads of territory governments. A packed agenda covering a wide range of issues, has been prepared for this year’s meeting. Here is a sample of some of the issues down for discussion.

* Good governance and follow-up to the Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC) report on the OTs;

* Economic Issues related to Development;

* International human rights obligations;

* Immigration;

* Environment and Disaster Management;

* A Witness Protection Programme for the Caribbean. I will be chairing this session.

* Financial Services and Anti-Money Laundering;

Several activities are planned for the delegation outside of the OTCC meeting. Topping the list is a bilateral meeting next Thursday with the newly appointed Minister for Overseas Territories, Hon. Gillian Merron. This will be our first meeting and I will use this opportunity to brief her on issues of interest to the Cayman Islands at this time. Also scheduled for next Thursday is a meeting with the Foreign Affairs Committee.