Public purse coughs up CI$26k for UK MP’s trip
MPs Andrew Rosindell (left) and Henry Smith
(CNS): The September 2018 register of interest report for British members of Parliament reveals that the Cayman Islands’ taxpayers stumped up about £24,108 (CI$26,344) to cover the cost of a short visit from Britain, 2-6 August, by four MPs: Andrew Rosindell, Henry Smith, Col. Bob Stewart and Martin Vickers, plus the wives of Stewart and Vickers, who both work for their MP husbands. The politicians described the purpose of the trip as meeting local politicians and learning about Cayman’s financial regime.
However, the Cayman government, which invited the MPs, will see the public cash spent on the trip as a sound investment, as all four of the British politicians offered their support for constitutional change regarding how all of the British Overseas Territories are managed and said they did not support the recent amendment to the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Bill or the threat of imposing an order-in-council on Cayman regarding the introduction of beneficial ownership registers.
After just one day here the four MPs, who were representing the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Cayman Islands, all appeared to see the treatment of Cayman as unfair and supported intervention before the register is forced on the people of Cayman against their will.
Entries:
Rosindell, Andrew (Romford)
Estimate of the probable value: Flights £6,588.44; accommodation £786.82; meals and hospitality £500; total value £7,875.26
Purpose of visit: Meeting with Cayman Islands Government and Industry Leaders.
Smith, Henry (Crawley)
Estimate of the probable value: Return flights from London to Grand Cayman £4,066.11; internal flights £107.33; accommodation £786.82; total £4,960.26
Purpose of visit: Meetings with the Cayman Islands Acting Governor, Premier, Cabinet Government, Legislative Assembly Members, police, civil society and environmental groups.
Stewart, Bob (Beckenham)
Estimate of the probable value: for myself and my partner, flights £3,849.50; accommodation £786.82; meals and hospitality £1,000; total value £5,636.32
Purpose of visit: As part of the Cayman Islands APPG to visit the islands and there meet local ministers and members of parliament as the first parliamentary visit.
Vickers, Martin (Cleethorpes)
Estimate of the probable value: For myself and a member of staff (my wife), flights £3,654.84; internal flights (Grand Cayman to Cayman Brac) £214.66; accommodation £786.82; meals and hospitality £1,000; total value £5,636.32
Purpose of visit: To learn more about the relationship between the UK and the Cayman Islands, the regime of financial regulation and the range of public service provision.
Category: Business, Financial Services
Now a days even money wasted on some legitimate bull shit is better than money stolen
Cayman has a Register of Interests meant to provide a list of assets of each member which is an absolute joke and bears no resemblance to reality.Furthermore when are our MLA’s going to be required to detail all their trip expenses as is required in the UK. This would make extremely interesting reading as the Register is supposed to be open to inspection by the public.
Register of Interest for any MLAs is available in the LA – what sucks is the document is not available online. Additionally, there is a Travel Policy for Civil servants and ministers, all information can be FOI.
Just saying.
Small fry when compared with Ju Ju’s jaunt to the Postal Union conference which broke all records for overseas trips, and guess what, we weren’t even a member of the Union.She managed to spend more than all the MP’s (and their wives) put together.
Nothing to see here.
All my lifetime Cayman has been financially supporting the UK.
From sponsoring their international war efforts to botched espionage exercises.
From fun-having, rubber-tubing MI5 personnel to this latest excursion.
Makes me wonder who does more for who in this little arrangement.
Whoever said nostalgia is worthless?!
– Who
🙂
Talk about a narcissistic rant. You don’t support anyone, you barely support yourselves. You seem to have forgotten why London invented the offshore system in the first place. And it certainly wasn’t your money or financial expertise that allowed Cayman to grow. Everything you have, from food to tourism, from finance to legal services has all been imported. Even your people are all descended from or are recent immigrants.
And as for sponsoring UK war efforts, what a sad joke from a foolish small man. So your reserves are so huge you keep the UK military afloat do you? Hilarious when the one of the top government earners is work permit revenue and your only fighting force is the Army Cadet
Force, oh and the West Bay gangsters????
What a prize goon you are Who.
Why you mad tho?
– Who
Is that all ya got Who? The poster makes good points, ya talkin’ crap again bobo.
This country grow rapidly off the backs of money launderers and criminal enterprise, so no lessens from you thanks.
How much have Alden and Tara spent on vainglorious trips recently?
What you should look at is the ridiculous cost of BA airfares, (highlighted in the expenses) and their monopoly on the European travel market to Cayman. They are extortionate and holding back 500 million + Europeans from the option of travelling here. It’s about time CITA put pressure on BA to lower fares or start negotiations with other carriers, such as Virgin, Norwegian etc… to open up this lucrative market.
In the meantime, checkout your own freeloaders and career do nothing’s first before criticising others.
@8:31 Absolutely correct. Want to boost tourism? Open up more flights to Europe, there is where we need to focus and not these damned cruise lines or that money hole dock.
BA does not have a monopoly to Europe, check any search engine. Europe is too far and their economies suck, except Germany. There are literally hundreds of tropical beaches closer to Europe. Airlines are not stupid.
Europe does not have any ‘tropical’ beaches as Europe does not at any stage fall below 23.5’ N of the equator. You have to come down to the tip of Florida to do that.
And BA does most definitely have the monopoly on flights to Cayman from Europe. If not, name the others.
If Europe is too far, why is it that a 777 stops in Nassau and off loads 75-85% of its passengers. Some of whom pay a fraction of what it costs to come on to Cayman, an hour further?
Why are 28 flights a week operating from Heathrow to Miami alone, packed with tourists. Why is every Caribbean island packed with Europeans and multiple European airlines (7 from UK) operate to them? Why are several European airlines now flying to Cuba, South and central America full of tourists?
Why are dozens of flights to Australia and NZ, (and everywhere else in between) full of tourists?
Europeans travel, and they don’t let a few miles get in the way.
You are talking absolute garbage my friend.
WTF are you talking about. European airline frequently fly into the Caribbean. Matter of fact there are daily flights to the DR from Europe. Another fool spouting nonsense.
There is no monopoly for the Caribbean #facepalm.
Can you donkeys actually read English? The poster clearly says a monopoly to Cayman from Europe, not the carribean as a whole. I reckon that one flight per day, four times a week by one single European carrier into Cayman counts as a monopoly.
You do know what monopoly means, don’t you?
Just another example of small island ignorance by people who travel no further than Miami.
“Member of staff (my wife)….” and there in Vickers’s report is the sort of seedy selfish corruption endemic in British politics.
British politics? What about Cayman politics and the money spent on overseas trips particularly the UDP. What about the gas scams and the long term borrowing with credit cards at our expense. Throughout the the world politicians take advantage including our very own. One example I came across was a politician on a per Diem in Bermuda to cover his food costs. At the same time he was invited to several lunches, dinners and cocktail parties thrown at a conference and by a major bank. That is known as double dipping. No names no pack drill.
What Constitutional changes are government talking about , that the 4 MPs offered their support for ? Did they see the number of Banks in Cayman islands and how over developed and agreed that Cayman islands is ready for INDEPENDENCE ? But value for the money my butt , and they got a good free payed vacation out of the Cayman Islands Taxpayers .
“What Constitutional changes are government talking about” – The constitutional changes that the Premier is looking to implement – namely removing the ability for the UK parliament to legislate for Cayman, as they are doing with the beneficial ownership registry
“agreed that Cayman islands is ready for INDEPENDENCE ?” – No, they did not say or think this
“and they got a good free payed vacation out of the Cayman Islands Taxpayers .” – You are correct but the word is paid not payed
Anonymous 8 :44 pm, how do you know that what you’re saying is facts , must be in tight with the crew . Or is that what you’re hoping they discussed .
I’d be happy to see it that way also if I’d just been handed an all expense pain vacation to somewhere I don’t live or give a shite about.
Rubbish…..bullsh*t I say. Save the money….video conference wouldn’t have cost a dime. You have seniors in this country who cant afford their medication.
Take care of your people! Shame shame
Cheaper than I thought. Small price to pay for sympathetic ears. Bring another group next year.
Looks like good value for money to me.
Yes because when it comes to politicians talking and saying the right words automatically means that they are going to do what they say, or actually represent us. Right?
Nope
How about we do the sensible thing an ask for an elected non voting representative in the House of Commons, to represent the interests of the Cayman Islands, instead of relying on the good will of the government of the day or these MPs who could be here today and literally gone tomorrow
That is a terrible idea. Then we cannot object to anything the House of Commons does because it will be said we have representation and if our representative fails to convince the Commons, that is our problem. This way we can say our politicians are having their democratic mandate violated by the UK. Much stronger negotiating position (out of several that are all not very good).
Money well spent for once!