As time goes by, more and more distrust and frustration builds up within the unions and civil service against the PLP leadership. It’s not just the disillusion over promises made … and broken. It’s also the the constant allegations of meddling, shortcuts, and bullying. The media reports are normally angrily denied – but this is [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Reform'
Upwards Pressure
April 7th, 2009 · Comments Off · Business, Reform
The OECD just announced that the four countries named on its “tax haven blacklist” last week – Costa Rica, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Uruguay – have all cried UNCLE and agreed to the OECD information sharing principles. This means that all attention will now focus on the “greylist”, which includes Bermuda. Obviously, it behooves Bermuda [...]
Tags:G20·money laundering·OECD·tax haven
Turks Constitution Suspended
March 16th, 2009 · Comments Off · Accountability, Reform, Transparency
The Governor of the Turks & Caicos has announced that their constitution will be partially suspended for up to two years while the Government of TCI is effectively rebuilt. It seems that the many governance shortcuts that have been taken in pursuit of rapid growth have seriously undermined the country and, in effect, created a [...]
Tags:TCI·Turks & Caicos
Campaign Finance
February 20th, 2009 · Comments Off · Bermuda Politics, Reform
MP Wayne Furbert has tabled a motion in the House calling for a joint select committee to be formed to consider “Campaign Finance Disclosure.” PLP chairman David Burt expressed his support to the Royal Gazette. However, Mr. Burt’s “define your opponent” dictum sticks in my mind … it’s not clear if his comments are just [...]
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Cayman New Constitution
February 14th, 2009 · Comments Off · Islands, Reform
The Cayman Islands has a new draft Constitution and Bill of Rights that will go before a public referendum on May 20. Accompanying the draft are three letters from Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Minister for Overseas Territories Gillian Merron, detailing the terms under which the Cayman Islands can negotiate foreign treaties on its own; [...]
Tags:Cayman Islands
House of Dissembly
February 6th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Accountability, Bermuda Politics, Reform
The House of Assembly is meeting today. Who knew? No public schedule is published of meetings of either the House or the Senate. No agendas are published for either. And no detailed Hansard minutes are ever made public. Attendance records are not published, nor are voting records. Even our expensive (but normally off the air) [...]
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Gov 2.0
February 5th, 2009 · Comments Off · Reform
Government says it’s sincere about wanting to introduce greater transparency. Umm, then what’s the deal with that creaky-perpetually-out-of-date-and-not-particularly-informative website? The European Commission’s ePractice portal is about to hold a workshop on the use of internet technology by governments for greater transparency. The Sunlight Foundation Blog reports: They rightfully point to TheyWorkForYou, the product of … [...]
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Accountability through Transparency
January 23rd, 2009 · Comments Off · Accountability, Development, Reform, Transparency
Here’s wishing: In our democracy, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which encourages accountability through transparency, is the most prominent expression of a profound national commitment to ensuring an open Government. At the heart of that commitment is the idea that accountability is in the interest of the Government and the citizenry alike. The Freedom [...]
Vital Trust
January 20th, 2009 · Comments Off · Reform
President Obama’s inaugural speech was superb. What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it [...]
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More PATI Foot Dragging
January 16th, 2009 · Comments Off · Accountability, Reform, Transparency
Bob Richards, chairman of Bermuda’s parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which oversees Government spending, has just returned from a Commonwealth workshop revealing that most equivalent bodies meet in public. The Bermuda PAC still meets behind closed doors, despite Government’s ballooning budgets and need to increase accountability for its spending during the current financial crisis. Bermuda’s [...]
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