CIG refuses to release task force housing report
(CNS): The Cayman Islands Government has refused to release a report it conducted examining the country’s critical housing problem that was supposed to help shape a new policy and provide some insight into solving this pressing issue. A shortage of affordable homes for both Caymanians and expat workers to buy or rent is reaching a crisis point and impacting the economy and society on many levels.
However, although the UPM government has declared this issue a priority, it has made no significant progress toward solving it.
As the relentless overdevelopment of the island for high-end properties continues, a catalogue of issues has converged to make the acquisition of property for young Caymanians well out of reach and make renting appropriate accommodation almost impossible for even middle-income workers.
Speaking in parliament last month about initiatives to encourage private sector developers to build affordable homes, Housing Minister Jay Ebanks told his colleagues that his ministry was still working on developing the Cayman Islands’ first-ever Public and Affordable Housing Policy and a 10-year Strategic Plan.
“The initiatives under this policy and plan aim to tackle issues such as how to incentivise the private sector to build affordable homes,” he said in response to a question from Opposition Leader Roy McTaggart. “This policy and plan are expected to be completed before the end of this year… Cabinet has approved a new, modernised government mortgage guarantee programme.
“This programme features updated criteria that are in line with the current housing market, as it is extremely difficult, and I dare say impossible, for Caymanians to purchase a home at or below the CI$200,000 mark,” the minister said, referring to the old maximum purchase price of a property under the original Government Guaranteed Home Assistance Mortgage (GGHAM) programme.
Ebanks said discussions with financial institutions are underway, and the ministry aims to launch this programme by the end of this year. But he did not mention the status of the task force report or its findings or the progress of the broader policy. He made no mention of the work that has also been done by a group of consultants from the UK who were engaged last year to help with this policy or the results of a public survey they conducted earlier this year.
Some time ago, CNS submitted a number of questions to the ministry and asked for the report undertaken by a task force of cross-ministry representatives to be released. But officials refused to respond and directed us to make an FOI request, which was made to the Cabinet Office, which holds the document.
After breaching the law and extending its time to respond well beyond the period set down in the legislation, the office has refused to release the report. While CNS has appealed that refusal, we anticipate it will be some time before the report sees the light of day.
According to the letter of refusal received by CNS, Cabinet Secretary Sam Rose stated that the document was being denied because, among other things, it was “exploratory work to identify areas that could be further reviewed, researched or actioned to assist Cabinet’s deliberative process” in relation to the country’s housing needs.
While the government is still supposedly considering developing high-rise affordable housing, at the moment, the only high-rise development being approved is luxury or hotel accommodation.
The housing shortage is being fuelled by various issues, including the country’s outdated planning legislation and the government’s failure to tackle the public transport problem. This was illustrated by the recent refusal of an application by Legoland Real Estate for a 10-storey apartment block on Boilers Road in George Town. The authority turned the 189-bed project down because of the volume of traffic it would generate along the narrow and heavily used road.
The block would have had over 250 parking spaces. With no amenities in the tower itself and poor amenities in that area, the residents would be forced to use their cars frequently, not just for work but for all their needs, impacting already congested areas around it, such as Walkers Road and Seafarers Way.
While the apartments were not designed as affordable homes, the sheer volume of units might have impacted the significant housing problem in George Town. The lack of both affordable and appropriate accommodation for the capital’s growing population of workers, rich and poor, is impacting the recruitment and retention of staff.
It is also creating ghettos as landlords continue to increase the number of people they allow to rent individual units in breach of various laws, putting pressure on everything, from garbage generation to parking.
As the clock now ticks down towards the next general election, expected in April next year, the UPM has failed to make any noticeable headway in any of the areas it promised to tackle. There have been almost no advances at all in improving public transport, and immigration reform remains stalled and unchanged, while the recent end of ReGen has also set back the country’s growing waste pile.
It is also clear that the issue of housing is now also unlikely to be tackled, while the public is kept in the dark over the scale of the problem.
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Wait a minute. Have we the people not paid for this report? Then we have the right to see it. Why are we letting this government get away with so much cr@p?????
Wait till you read the Ritch Report!
Can this be found online? Can you please post a link? Thanks!
Sir Alden has a copy. We paid for it, and with more than money. We should see it.
Wait but this was suppose to be crowning achievement of the PACT government.
Come on show us how a report is done.
Shameful.
Cabinet is not smelling like Roses for coveting and hoarding all these many expensive public reports.
and for decades now!!
just cant understand the bunch of people wasting their breath and time commenting on the inadequacies and at times stupidity of a UPM government which was not chosen by the people but rather through their internal coup. so much for Independents. They cannot and will not solve any of the problems or tackle the pressing issues for they have no mandate, are unable to comprehend most of them, are not educated enough in most cases and generally are wallowing at the trough and thinking how to spend our money for their self aggrandiosement ( 50 million high school for 130 kids annually, cruise port and cargo dock Hundreds of millions, etc.)
PLease don’t get me wrong people PPM is just as bad so looks like if we don’t get some educated, dedicated, honest and right thinking Caymanians to come out and win the next election, as the old saying goes “Dog yamn our Supper”
The common theme. Incentivize the rich, and force the poor.
I’m a millennial and I’m in this non-stop grind because in the 90’s we saw light at the end of the tunnel…
CNS: Read the rest of this comment here.
I agree 100% with every word you’ve penned! 9 years ago I felt the same way and decided to relocate to another country. It’s sad and unfortunate our islands have come to this but not unexpected with the greed of our government, catering solely to the rich while neglecting the poor who elected them behind. It’s time for the young and bright Caymanians to say, I want a future for my kids, and get rid of these no vision greedy politicians!
Fed up!
They have done everything else to mimic our neighbour to the southeast so why not have our version of Tivoli Gardens in every district they already have their new Caymanian voters in place to run their various Garrison neighborhoods with their political crime and drug leaders controlling corners. Equipping them with towers is a natural progression for our now new political class! We can name it Cayman New Jack City with Julie park avenue Mckeewa Gaza Strip Jon Jon mean Jungle City Chris Saunders dutty corner Jay street Boyz lane erryting kriss.
A government owned high rise apartment building is a terrible idea. NAU will put all their clients in there & a slum is what we’ll have.
I’m a single young Caymanian & I am at my breaking point with this. Years of saving & I still can’t afford to buy a place of my own. I’m living with a relative because I can’t afford to rent & save at the same time. I’m being treated terribly everyday & fear I’m going to be homeless soon. Homes here are too expensive & a decent mortgage is hard to obtain. I feel like I’m clinging to life at this point it doesn’t feel worth it anymore. I’m educated with a decent job & I am struggling so much. Our government has failed me and its people. I don’t know how much longer I can’t take life being so hard. Rant over, this topic is exhausting & our government isn’t listening.
I feel for you!
This is YOUR government, making decisions about YOUR future. You and many others like you need to figure out a way to hold them accountable, and to elect better leaders. And no, I’m not an expat, I’m the older generation who has decided to leave because I can no longer stand the foolishness and jamaicanisation of my country.
You send a very well written message, one I have been hearing for far to long.
Many is us expats who came here is the 60/70s have seen a sad decline in living standards for Caymanians. Most of us have tried to help but we have always been in the hands of local politicians as we cannot represent what is now our country. Not only that but we no longer are invited to sit on CIG boards and committees. I can tell you there is a huge talent pool that remains untapped.
Meanwhile current politicians continue unabated to help the people. The difference between the haves and have nots is just over the top.
Cayman needs new politicians that understand the way forward and not those that love the limelight and themselves.
now they charging 7.5% stamp duty in transfers in divorce…kaching! more money for them to offer all expense paid weddings and have a good time travelling! lol…i glad i happily divorced…no sah!
boy..if ya na ga a piece of land y house and on way to being mortgage free…ya toated! lol…..find some other country…system gobble u up…spebd whole life working and have nothing to show…
In usual fashion it will be leaked like the Auditor General’s Report.
That was leaked because it showed the PPM in a bad light. Plus all the MLAs had access to it. This report will reflect on the current government, who have no incentive to release it. And the opposition don’t have it. Will get leaked after the next election if it suits the then government. Won’t be made public officially even though it was paid for with our money.
The AG’s report was confidential. CIG will now face lawsuits relating to breach of Non Disclosure Agreements signed by CIG.
“If it’s for the people, it’s against the government”
No pride in this bunch for anything but their pockets and stomachs.
Delusional by power
We are rudderless, we have been for the better part of 15-20 years, all we are doing is treading water and hoping that nothing adverse happens and as my mother would say – a blind man could see it
-No waste management plan, we are almost certainly just going to end up opening another dump at some point in the next 10 years
-No public transport or traffic management plans (The EWA is a project that exists to open up land for development it will not reduce traffic when we import thousands of new cars every year)
-No housing plan (encouraging building up rather than out, ensuring that Caymanians and permanent residents are given priority in new developments and that fancy gated communities and affluent apartment projects are given reduced priority.
-No conservation and sustainability plan to allow development at a steady pace while protecting endemic flora and fauna and not letting Caymanians of today rob Caymanians of tomorrow of the beauty of these islands for their own short-term profits
-No real plan to swiftly move toward renewables on an island with sunshine 300 days a year, every new roof should be covered in solar panels, every parking lot should have panels wherever possible, government should invest in a scheme to provide panels for every household which are owned and maintained by the state despite solar tech being cheaper and more accessible than ever
-No plan to reduce poverty, and increase incomes and address the prices of goods (including encouraging and expanding production of local goods to drive down prices)
-No plan to address crime other than punishing the one or two people caught with guns per year with longer sentences
-No plan to improve democratic processes and give citizens more say in the way the country is run (a bespoke referendums law, recalls for MPs, District Advisory Councils, Parliamentary reforms, cracking down on corruption and political donations etc)
-No long-term plans for serious necessary capital projects – we consider them only when the current system is near its breaking point (the dump, the port, roads and traffic etc)
-No plan to diversify our economy, we could easily be the education capital of the Caribbean with a state-of-the-art university that attracted thousands of short-term residents who would all need housing, consume local goods and entertainment while studying and then LEAVE, they would pay fees cheaper than the US or Canada but still substantial enough to subsidise Caymanian students. etc, We are just operating under the assumption that financial services will always exist as they do now as an industry like they are bound to reality like the laws of physics
– No plan to improve our standing with the UK as we quickly grow into the largest and arguably the most successful BOT, similarly no plan to strengthen ties in the region other than occasionally sending the police helicopter around or one or two aid deliveries a year after storms, we should be coordinating with other BOTC and Caribbean states where possible
No plan to fix the quite appalling education system that is spewing out kids who can barely read or write but get a job anyway just because they are Caymanian. Millions spent on John Gray and Clifton Hunter high schools and we are still producing a fair percentage of almost illiterate young adults. Shameful.
You clearly don’t understand. We NEED to, and MUST, APPEAR to be educated in fancy buildings. We don’t actually need to be educated. /s
Perhaps that is their plan. If there was proper education here there’d be less work permit fees, and definitely less people voting donkeys into parliament.
Have our politicians forgotten that they are to serve the people???!!!!
They serve their CI$13K a month, and that’s it. After all, someone has to pay for the personal trainer to tag in with the donkey!
Yes ! they have so much so they no longer actually need us nor or vote to remain in power !
oh they haven’t ‘forgotten’, they just don’t care except for themselves.
Almost all of our problems (and they are many and growing)appear directly attributable to a failure or even refusal by the civil service to follow, let alone enforce our laws.
A failure is usually maladministration.
A refusal can be a crime.
RCIP, what say you?
Attorney General….guess not!
Read the Doctor’s Express decision. There is recognition of the common law offence and of the constitutional obligations on all government officials. There is hope.
Would be interesting to hear the Attorney General’s view of unlawful conduct by CIvil Servants. Why is it so prevalent? Why is it not being confronted? It is wrong to require humble citizens to take on the government when they are wronged. Where is the accountability? Where is the rule of law, including when no one is watching?
Anyone travelling east to west during summer can see – Public transport is the answer to our traffic problems. My journey is taking 15 mins instead of 50 mins just because schools are out.
Government are partly to blame for this. Stop building single family homes as affordable housing. Build apartment blocks. Construction cost is cheaper, land would be cheaper, and they require less maintenance which most of the people who purchase cant afford. You could build 50-75% more homes building apartments instead of single family homes.
And stop housing the poor in swamps. One proper hurricane hit and hundreds will die, and where are you going to house the survivors?
No surprise if you want to coverup a Fraud or Theft of public funds! Corruption has never been compulsory unless you live in the Cayman Islands !
Thank god for CNS. There is a paragraph in this article that states The government is considering developing high rise affordable housing. Welcome to your future Cayman. Got to get to that 250,000 population. Kinda glad I wont be around to see it. I would rather be in prison.
They probably won’t have no space to bury you. They will just dump your body in the sea or cremate your remains.
Why would they allow the 10-story building in GT? That would have helped traffic, not congest it as those staying in those apartments would be going against traffic or working in town.
We all know the reasons for this crisis. I wont go into all that but the average joe is competing with all the major developers. for land, labour etc. Now if you want to know whos really to blame just look in the mirror. Just keep sitting back and accepting this and dont wonder why nothing changes.
As time passes, the more the present comic relief stays in office, the more obvious and unfortunately apparent the incapacity of our small island to self govern becomes !
Cayman islands not only faces an enormous challenge as to when it comes to its environmental needs , its energy security , its telecommunications infrastructure, its population growth , it is also facing a crisis in terms of governance and an overbearing bureaucrats and special interests that gets in the way of any meaningful reform.
When it comes to housing the price gouging that is now the standard by default clearly needs to be addressed none of the previous administrations want to address the problem as most of the existing officials are heavily invested in real estate, highly leveraged and any changes would be catastrophic for their interests.
One of cayman’s most open secrets is that to get a project approved one only needs to offer to an elected official siblings units at a deeply discounted price. Whereas this would ring all sorts of bells and alarms everywhere else on god’s green earth, this passes as a business as usual practice !
Would the exposure of that level of corruption be grounds to request intervention from the governor ? Only time will tell !
Yes , sadly so, Cayman’s future has been sold out and now caymanians are struggling , but let’s keep in mind that it wouldn’t have happened if not for the people involved in CIG over the course of multiple administrations regardless of political affiliation lack of a moral compass !
And yes it all comes down to the rising costs of inputs and services that require energy to function, we are more than a few quantum leaps away from powering a concrete manufacturing facility solely powered by renewable sources mostly thanks to CUC’s chokehold on the energy supply !
As long as the NEP’s calendar gets each and every time pushed away to further time horizons we won’t come close to any form of a solution !
By the time people wake up to the fact there is no such thing as a low energy rich country, it will probably be too late ! I will leave it to you to determine if that is all by design or not ! Personally I think it is high time to reconsider that the present situation happened because of incompetence only !
Who would have thought that a hodge-podge set of MPs forming PACT and UPM wouldn’t have accomplished much of anything over nearly 4 years?
Right? And who would have thought that the PPM would accomplish nothing beneficial to Caymanians in the 8 years prior to that?
CIG’s Mandarins will sort this out. Right after they finish up the National Egg Strategy.
“Back a Wall” beckons for the poor.
Tivoli Gardens style towers for the rich.
The only thing that can fix Cayman is the rising sea.
Thank you CNS for your valuable contributions to keep the public informed. Unfortunately, the people that elected Jay Ebanks don’t read these articles and most of them are clueless to his ministry’s many failures to address the housing crisis.
Hopefully others in North Side will read them and relay them.
The new mortgage program he speaks of will not get the approval of the commercial banks. To encourage a 40 year term is madness and the banks will not offer a fixed rate for 40 years. He claims these will roll out by December. I say NOPE!
We keep paying for consultants and not producing and now they refuse to release any data. Could it be that it spells out what really needs to help with the housing crisis but it doesn’t get them re-elected???
So they can breach the law and refuse to provide articles to the press? In a real world you would be fired!!
There is no accountability despite the Auditor General’s best efforts to share information to the public.
His ministry is struggling to get the affordable homes completed now and there is so much stop and go with them.
I hope the Auditor General is monitoring the affordable homes project and CNS you should ask for a report of them too.
Many rumors are circulating and more serious than the former chairman taking fill for himself.