TCCP committed to a greener, resilient economy

(CNS): Achieving a greener economy is not just about protecting Cayman’s natural resources and creating a sustainable environment in the face of a changing climate, but about creating new, good jobs and tackling the cost of living, the leader of The Cayman Community Party (TCCP), André Ebanks, has told CNS.

The party is putting greening the economy at the centre of its policy platform because Ebanks and his colleagues believe it will bring well-paid, future-proof work, new careers for local people, cut the cost of energy bills, reduce inflation, improve resiliency in the face of climate change and reduce welfare spending.

Following the launch of TCCP last week, three of the founding members, Ebanks, Wayne Panton and Emily DeCou, sat down with CNS to talk about the party’s shared agenda and policy platform. Ebanks said that if the TCCP is elected as a majority government, the necessary upfront public investment will lead to long-term benefits that will impact the Cayman Islands’ economic fortune.

“Greening the economy is one of the things that binds us as a party,” Ebanks said. “It’s not just about protecting the natural environment, but it’s also an economic issue… It may be harder for some folks to get their heads around it because they think about the upfront costs to implement things. But we have to break down the long-term benefits that actually make things less expensive by planning around the green economy and also the introduction of additional jobs… good jobs.”

Ebanks said that these jobs would not be hit hard by artificial intelligence and the country needs to begin training Caymanians to do this new type of work.

He said that not everyone will consider the natural environment a priority or something that will improve their lives, but if they begin to understand that greening the economy is about good-paying, solid careers, they will begin to understand the advantages of a green sustainable economy because it “will make their lives better”.

Ebanks noted that the natural environment is critical to mental health as well.

Emily DeCou, a well-known advocate for the environment, is very keen for the party to articulate the economic benefits and other important protections a sustainable economy provides and why a green economy can work for more people.

“We understand that a lot of education on this topic needs to happen so people can buy into the idea that investment in sustainable economic growth is an investment in our communities, people’s quality of life and job fulfilment,” she said, noting that investing in a green economy and the natural environment is the insurance for Cayman’s future.

DeCou said the TCCP team has a shared vision and its members believe they can solve many of the country’s problems efficiently because they are all on the same page.

Ebanks said that as a government, greening the economy is one of the ways the TCCP would tackle inflation — which everyone expects to get worse in the coming years — because all of these issues are connected.

“A green economy is more than just the natural environment. It’s putting money back in people’s hands through better jobs and a reduction in energy costs,” he said. “This is something tangible that can be implemented.”

Wayne Panton, who has long recognised the need to look after the natural environment and use green solutions to solve the country’s problems, pointed out that reducing the cost of energy through renewable solutions would cut everyone’s household expenses.

The former premier said that preliminary findings of the limited pilot of the CHEER programme, which he had started when he was still premier, demonstrated that improving energy efficiency and retrofitting homes reduced bills by 50%.

He said the pilot had stopped after he left office but would be resurrected if the TCCP were re-elected. He said that in many cases, local people could not afford the upfront costs needed to make their homes more efficient, but it would make a massive difference to the cost of living, especially for older people and those on government assistance.

“We have the ability to make a considerable difference in the living expenses of households,” Panton said. “The long-term benefit as well is that it reduces consumption, which reduces the amount of capital expenditure on power generation.”

Panton confirmed that the TCCP is in firm support of the National Conservation Act (NCA). At this stage, it is the only party whose members have all committed to preserving the law as it is and not bringing any amendment bill to parliament.

Panton said there is no justification for the current amending legislation put forward by the UPM minority administration. If anything, if the TCCP forms the next government, the party will be looking to make some quick fixes to deal with the problem of overdevelopment and the years of ignoring the advice of scientists regarding the environment.

He said the consequences of ignoring the National Conservation Council (NCC) were plain for all to see with the recent weather impacts, especially last February when a powerful Nor’wester blew through Grand Cayman.

A map drawn up by the Department of Environment highlights the locations where the advice and recommendations it had offered to help owners protect their property were ignored. Although it was a relatively benign weather event, it caused significant and costly damage, as the map shows.

Panton noted that this comprehensive map, which should have been welcomed as a wake-up call for planning, developers, land owners and other stakeholders, was greeted with anger and derision by some politicians behind closed doors and the developer lobby.

However, the TCCP would examine planning decisions that have granted variations against the recommendations of the country’s scientists and seek to curtail the ad hoc and unrestricted discretion that has been applied, especially over coastal setbacks.

Panton said he remains concerned about the number of developers who only want to build large, expensive developments for wealthy owners and then seek concessions from the government to maximise profits. He said the TCCP wants to discourage the continued overdevelopment of the coast for luxury condos and encourage the much-needed sustainable development of low-cost homes for local people.

“How do we incentivise local developers… to build more affordable housing for Caymanians rather than incentivising them to build mega projects on the beach to sell to people who are not Caymanians?” he said. “There has to be a balance. We can’t just tear out a section of the economy, but the issue is that it is completely out of balance now.”

Addressing the false narrative that the NCC is stymieing development through the NCA, he added, “If that were the case, we would not be having Caymanians feeling the way they do” about overdevelopment.

Panton believes that people can finally see the connection between unrestrained development and its impact on their quality of life. The implications are more than just the impact on particular flora and fauna and environmentally sensitive areas.

“This relates to population; it relates to traffic; it relates to quality of life; it relates to whether stormwater management is a priority and neighbourhoods that are now flooding… Caymanians now, I believe, understand that. I believe they no longer accept the cost of having an unrestrained approach to development or anything that has serious environmental impacts… because they know the price,” he said.

The former premier also made it clear that this time, he is running on a platform with people who really believe in conservation and genuinely want to see Cayman’s natural and cultural heritage preserved. “This time, there won’t be external special interests influencing the decision-making,” Panton said as he explained the TCCP’s shared policy platform.

The TCCP’s initial seven members have confirmed their commitment to its agenda. Once the team is complete, the party will outline its policy positions in detail and explain how those policies will be financed. The TCCP’s goal is to form a majority government and its members are confident that they will be fielding at least ten candidates.

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