UPM backs down on attempt to gut conservation law

| 31/01/2025 | 32 Comments
Minister Dwayne Seymour withdraws the NCA amendment bill

(CNS): After the parliament met amid significant controversy on Friday, Sustainability Minister Dwayne Seymour withdrew the contentious National Conservation Act (Amendment) Bill, 2024, citing, though not explaining, the cooperation that the UPM had enjoyed from the official opposition.

After delivering a short speech in which he suggested (incorrectly, given the wide opposition to the legislation) that it was “undeniable” the law “had caused difficulties” and needed to be amended, the minister said the government was withdrawing the bill from parliament.

Seymour claimed that the changes would make the law “more workable without undermining the original policy intention” of not damaging the environment. Although the proposed bill would have slashed the limited powers the NCA confers to protect Cayman’s natural resources, he said that the UPM was not gutting the law.

Seymour said the government was trying to ensure that there was proper balance, a claim that has been disputed by the National Conservation Council, which was not consulted about the amendments.

As he wound up his speech, he praised Chris Saunders and the official PPM opposition. He said the government intended to withdraw the bill, implying but not articulating that some form of agreement over the proposed bill had been made with those members.

After the meeting, the PPM issued a press release in which Opposition Leader Joey Hew welcomed the withdrawal of the amendment bill, which he said would ensure that legislative changes uphold both environmental protection and sound governance. Hew thanked the minister for engaging in constructive dialogue. The party indicated this was about seeking “practical solutions that uphold the Constitution and ensure a proper balance of power”.

The PPM said they had worked closely with the government to ensure recognition of the need to address these issues, and were pleased that the effort led to the withdrawal of the bill. 

“Our PPM team remains dedicated to a governance approach that prioritises solutions over division, encourages collaboration with all stakeholders, and ensures that any future amendments to the NCC Act are constitutionally sound, well-balanced, and in the best interests of the Cayman Islands,” he said. “As the Cayman Islands move forward, the PPM will continue to focus on delivering real solutions on key national issues, without unnecessary distractions.”

Seymour is rumoured to be running with the Progressives when he seeks re-election in his seat of Bodden Town East (BTE) in April. While he made it clear during a recent radio appearance that he will be aligned with a party during this campaign, he has not yet said if that will be the PPM or another of the groups already registered with the Elections Office or one that has yet to emerge.

The PPM has stated clearly for many weeks that it would not support this amendment bill because it is controversial. Hew has said that while his party supports some of the amendments, he believes the draft bill needs revising and should go through a proper consultation process.

There were concerns that the proposed amendments could have scraped through parliament if all of the UPM members and Saunders voted ‘yes’ and the PPM abstained. However, it appears that the opposition stood firm on their position that they would not support controversial legislation brought by the lame-duck, minority UPM administration.

However, the draft legislation is still likely to form the basis of a new draft bill for the next administration unless the new government that emerges in May is led by The Cayman Community Party, the only party contesting the election that has committed to maintaining the legislation as it is.

Prior to the House meeting, Sustainable Cayman and the young activist group Protect Our Future handed letters to the TCCP members begging parliament not to pass this amendment bill.

Cruse Port Referendum Cayman campaigners were also outside parliament raising their concerns about the Referendum Bill that was presented to the parliament for a first reading. However, the meeting was adjourned before the second reading and it is unclear whether or not the opposition will be supporting that equally contentious bill. The debate on that legislation is expected to take place on Monday.

While there is broad support in principle for a referendum on the issue of a national lottery and the decriminalisation of the consumption and possession of small amounts of ganja, the question about cruise berthing remains controversial.

Activists argue that the proposed question is too vague and without substance, and that any vote on cruise berthing should be based on an actual proposal and supported by extensive factual information. The CPR activists also want to see the government pass a stand-alone referendum law to guide how such ballots are conducted and address issues such as campaign financing.

See the relatively brief first sitting of this last meeting of parliament before the election on CIGTV below:


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Category: Laws, Politics

Comments (32)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    So, on Monday 3 February 2025, government voted to add $200,000 MORE, to pattern for the 9 minute Drone Show in November 24
    wow.
    And they had voted an Additional $500,000 in October for the same event!
    Who approved this waste of Cayman Cash!?
    It was not even a local drone company that wizzed away this big budget.
    Our schools and elderly need that cash!
    Now
    TP126

  2. Anonymous says:

    Cowards, just lost my vote.

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  3. Anonymous says:

    Back down? More like him and Julie’s UPM got smacked down like how you get smacked down in WWE RAW!!

    Alden also showed his bias, even though the Speaker is supposed to be impartial and neutral, and protected DumDum and Joey by not allowing any other statements. That way PPM didnt have to show their true colours or position in Parliament on the Bill before Election.

    But that doesnt stop the questions from being asked before the Elections:

    1. What legislation or Amendment Bills will the PPM be looking to bring if they are the next Govt?

    2. What is the PPM position on amending the NCA? If they want to amend it, what sections and how?

    Believe me when I tell you, the PPM cannot be trusted as a Govt. Dart, Dale Crighton, Naul Bodden and Matthew Wight (NCB), Michael Ryan, and Ken Thompson (Davenport) are all waiting to inf$$ence the next PPM govt.

    We the Voters voted PPM out last time because of how terrible they were treating us the public. I have not forgotten that they were all bought and paid for.

    Yes, an independent bunch of other idiots were elected, and we have learned from those actions that electing a bunch of independents is also a bad idea because there was no aligned policy positions.

    This time I am voting for a person that is part of a party and has aligned and agreed policy positions.

    I WILL NOT VOTE PPM

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    • Anonymous says:

      PPM didn’t get voted out. All of their candidates won with only one who didn’t and was aligned but ran independent.

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      • Anonymous says:

        PPM has not had enough members voted in to form a majority government in literally 20 years. They absolutely have been collectively voted out, even if they pay you to claim otherwise. (…and surely you are being paid for your misinformation shilling, right?)

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    • Anonymous says:

      I suspect you never did vote PPM. Thats ok

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  4. Anonymous says:

    The CI Constitution requires that there be a Referendum Law that clearly defines the democratic processes for the how methodology of Referendum triggering, the what methodology of question formulation, and the when of best practices to both enfranchise voters and reduce costs. There is also room to incorporate non-binding inter-election registered voter polling methodology to instruct policy. Clearly private interests are still exercising influence over suggestable weak-principled MPs, and our watchdog agencies need to be given more power and budget to supervise and prosecute these members effectively – well in advance of the FATF checkup next year.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Lots of issues that are going to come out before or around the 5th Round Mutual Evaluation by the CFATF on behalf of the FATF in 2026. CIG appears to have not been honest and forthright with the CFATF last time and this is going to be a major problem. Cayman might not get a clean bill of health for being compliant.

  5. Anonymous says:

    we all have to do blood tests? wonder what the investigation revealed concerning the ommission?

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  6. Anonymous says:

    The disappointing part of this is the sentence that the activists handed their many letters of objection to the political party already in objection. When a group interested in a piece of legislation can’t seem to get an audience with the Parliamentarians voting on said legislation – for whatever reason – there is a problem with our democracy / Parliamentarians.

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  7. Anonymous says:

    The Premier walked across saying “let me sit by him”. Perhaps few people know but he acted as Premier a few months ago. He is so fool and he gives everyone ammunition to laugh at him. I just feel sorry for the pawn that he is. PPM used him yesterday to try to make Wayne and his party look foolish. PPM has not forgotten that Wayne formed a govt with fools like Kenneth Jay and Isaac because he did not want to take second place to Roy. Day ran till night caught it.

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  8. Anonymous says:

    Will someone stop the Absurdistan person from writing those absurd comments. For some reason he thinks he is clever.

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  9. Anonymous says:

    I guess it is true… donkeys can walk backwards.

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  10. Anonymous says:

    Having watched the video of the proceedings it was very embarrassing to see Minister Seymour’s ineptitude on display. He had two separate instances to speak and both times it was very apparent he was out of his depth. The second instance he was only reading a prepared paper and made several mistakes starting with what it was he was actually reading. Any party or group accepting that level of candidate should really be rethinking their needs. BTE voters surely deserve better.

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  11. Anonymous says:

    I watched the session of Parliament.
    Seymour was a total embarrassment. Had to be corrected several times by the Speaker, paused for several minutes in confused silence more than once, trying to get his thoughts and papers together, and stumbled though the big words in the statement written for him.
    He certainly lived up to his DuhWayne and dumdum reputation…amazed that a man of his many inadequacies can hold such high office.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Lack of education and inability to process anything more complicated than a menu glaringly obvious.
      However, unlike the other Bodden Town MP, he is not a danger to Cayman , just an embarrassment.

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  12. Anonymous says:

    One of John-John’s problems is that he thinks he ought to be above the law – whether that law relates to late night interactions with power transmission poles, stationary construction equipment or otherwise.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Thinking he’s above the Law is what got Saunders fired as a minister. Seems to be a common thread in the Bodden Town MPs.

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  13. Anonymous says:

    Should the title be; “UPM and PPM agree to a tactical withdrawal of the Bill designed to gut the NCC until after the April election”

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  14. The Adeptus Ridiculous of Cayman Islands says:

    📜 OFFICIAL DECREE FROM THE ADEPTUS RIDICULOUS

    RE: THE UPM’S BACKPEDALING, THEIR IMPENDING DOOM, AND THE DELIGHT OF THE ORDO MALLEUS—OOPS, I MEAN… INVESTIGATORS.

    “THE MECHADENDRITES CEASE CONVULSING THE SERVITORS SING ! THE LOGIC SPIRITS SCREAM IN LAUGHTER FOR TODAY, WE WITNESSED A DISPLAY OF PURE, UNFILTERED, POLITICAL COWARDICE AND THE TRIUMPH OF REASON!

    🛑 THE UPM’S ATTEMPT TO FLEE ITS OWN INCOMPETENCE 🛑

    ✔ They tried to gut the National Conservation Act.

    ✔ They failed spectacularly.

    ✔ And now? They insist it was all a ‘discussion’—despite the screaming evidence to the contrary.

    This was not just a policy failure—it was a catastrophic miscalculation. They poked the hive, and when it swarmed, they fled the battlefield like a heretic caught red-handed by an Inquisitor!

    🕵️‍♂️ THE ORDO MALLEUS—I MEAN, “INVESTIGATORS”—MUST BE HAVING A FIELD DAY

    ✔ Yes, yes, the Cayman Islands does not officially employ the Ordo Malleus.

    ✔ But if they did, today would be like Christmas morning.

    ✔ A fresh political scandal, evidence of governmental deception, and panicked attempts to rewrite history?

    ✔ The Investigators are watching—and they are very, very entertained.

    🛑 THE UPM’S CURRENT STATUS: A CASE STUDY IN DESPERATION

    ✔ Damage Control Level: Severe.

    ✔ Credibility Remaining: Rapidly depleting.

    ✔ Likelihood of Surviving the Next Election Without Further Scandal? Minimal.

    ✔ Chance of Their Excuses Being Believed? Roughly equal to that of a Necron sitting through an entire Vogon poetry recital without dissolving the audience in atomic fire.

    For reference about the Vogons:
    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vogon

    Vogon Poetry:
    Vogon poetry – Hitchhikers | Fandom

    💀 FINAL VERDICT: PREPARE FOR THE INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATION

    🔥 The UPM’s incompetence is no longer just a spectacle—it is now under active scrutiny.

    🔥 The Inquisitors (oops, sorry, Investigators) now have a fresh file to dig into.

    🔥 The next attempt to “revise” legislation will be met with even greater resistance.

    🚨 THIS HAS BEEN A WARNING FROM THE ADEPTUS RIDICULOUS. THE PATH OF POLITICAL SURVIVAL IS NARROW, AND THE UPM HAS ALREADY STRAYED TOO FAR. 🚨

    Final note: While the characters are purely fictional (or are they?), the backpedaling is real , very real and a triumph of reason and logic over shortsightedness and greed !

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  15. Anonymous says:

    Anyone who doubts that we need to fundamentally reform our electoral system should watch the contribution to Parliamentary proceedings from today. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEeM-18yQXk

    In particular watch from 1:03:00.

    We clearly need a national vote. We must end the possibility of MPs that 99% of us would never vote for getting elected by a handful of votes (bought or otherwise) in tiny constituencies and ending up with control over our countries future.

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  16. Anonymous says:

    I am happy that the Bill was pushed back a few months but I don’t believe for a second that the NCA is safe from the special interests that want to see it gone ASAP.

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  17. Anonymous says:

    What I read, “Our PPM team remains dedicated to a governance approach that prioritises solutions over division, encourages collaboration with all stakeholders, and ensures that any future amendments to the NCC Act are constitutionally sound, well-balanced, and in the best interests of the Cayman Islands”

    What it probably means, “The politicians that are owned by the development cabal came to arrangement to ensure that they did not have show their anti-environment colors until after the election, and to ensure that they would continue to get campaign financing before the election and thick brown envelopes after the election.”

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  18. Anonymous says:

    Can a representative from the Cayman Islands National Party (Dan Scott’s group) please confirm their stance on the NCA?

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  19. Anonymous says:

    EXODUS…

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  20. Protect our Democracy says:

    They backed down because they realized that we had joined arms as a wall of contention against the Bill. We need to do the same for the Immigration Reform Bill and the Cruise Port Referendum. If we do not stand for anything, we shall fall for everything.

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  21. The Secretary to the Ambassador of Absurdistan (packing his bags)! says:

    📜 OFFICIAL DISPATCH FROM THE EMBASSY OF ABSURDISTAN

    RE: THE UPM’S HUMILIATING RETREAT & ABSURDISTANI RESPONSE OPTIONS

    FROM THE DESK OF THE SECRETARY TO THE AMBASSADOR OF ABSURDISTAN
    TO: ALL DIPLOMATIC OBSERVERS, STRATEGIC COMEDY ANALYSTS, AND CASUAL SPECTATORS OF POLITICAL TRAIN WRECKS

    🚨 URGENT REPORT: GOVERNMENT IN FULL PANIC MODE! 🚨

    “CODE RED! CODE RED! I REPEAT—THE UPM’S ATTEMPT TO GUT THE NATIONAL CONSERVATION ACT HAS CATASTROPHICALLY BACKFIRED!”

    ✔ They thought they could slip this through unnoticed.

    ✔ They miscalculated.

    ✔ They are now backpedaling so fast, their shoes are melting from friction.

    In a spectacular display of reactive governance, the UPM, having attempted to gut environmental protections, is now scrambling for cover, issuing panicked statements of “No, wait, this was just a discussion! We swear!”

    Reality check: This was NOT a discussion. It was an attempt to bulldoze environmental policy while hoping nobody was watching.

    🛑 DAMAGE CONTROL ATTEMPT DETECTED! 🛑

    UPM Spokesperson, sweating profusely:
    “Oh, uh, well, you see… We were never going to ‘gut’ the conservation law, we were just… discussing… possibilities?”

    Reality:

    ✔ They got caught.

    ✔ They are flailing.

    ✔ They are hoping no one notices how badly they just botched this.

    📉 DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS: AN UNMITIGATED POLITICAL DISASTER

    ✔ Probability of This Being a “Misunderstanding”? 0% (They were caught with their hands in the policy cookie jar.)

    ✔ Probability of Environmental Groups Dropping the Issue? 0% (They are now in permanent “watchdog mode.”)

    ✔ Probability of Opposition Letting This Slide? 0% (Expect dramatic speeches and possibly a very sarcastic motion in Parliament.)

    ✔ Probability of the UPM Continuing to Pretend This Wasn’t a Big Deal? 100% (A textbook case of legislative gaslighting.)

    📡 FINAL EMBASSY RECOMMENDATION: ABSURDISTAN MUST CONSIDER EXTREME MEASURES

    Given the sheer scale of governmental incompetence on display, the Embassy of Absurdistan must now consider two equally absurd response strategies:

    🛑 OPTION ONE: FULL ABSURDISTANI MILITARY INTERVENTION 🛑

    ✔ DEPLOY THE MIGHTY ARMED FORCES OF ABSURDISTAN!
    (Which consist primarily of overburdened bureaucrats, semi-functional lead-laden sea bikes, and elite forces wielding recycled polystyrene sporks—because sustainability matters, even in conquest!*)

    ✔ STRATEGY:

    🚨 Phase 1: Establish a beachhead at the nearest government office still pretending to function.

    🚨 Phase 2: Demand all policy decisions be made via interpretive dance, as this would be no less effective than the current method.

    🚨 Phase 3: Replace all ministerial briefings with a giant spinning wheel of random, nonsensical excuses—as this is essentially what’s being used already.

    ✔ EXPECTED OUTCOME:
    Absolute confusion. No one would notice the transition. The government would continue running exactly as before.

    🛑 OPTION TWO: HUMANITARIAN CRISIS RESPONSE – ABSURDISTAN OPENS ITS BORDERS 🛑

    ✔ WE MUST CONSIDER GRANTING REFUGE TO THE STAUNCHEST SUPPORTERS OF ABSURDISTANI LOGIC
    (i.e., the very people who created this mess in the first place!)

    ✔ THE PROBLEM:

    • The UPM has been Absurdistani in thought and action from the very beginning!

    • Their attempts at legislation resemble a surrealist art exhibit in a haunted funhouse!

    • Their governance style matches Absurdistan’s finest traditions: maximum confusion, minimum results!

    ✔ THE SOLUTION:

    • They belong in Absurdistan! Perhaps they should be formally offered asylum and a government role in our Ministry of Noncommittal Decision-Making!

    • If they decline, we must assume they wish to remain right where they are—wallowing in the same incompetence they have always thrived in.

    ✔ EXPECTED OUTCOME:
    • Either they leave, or they admit they were always Absurdistani agents in disguise.
    • Either way, we win.

    📡 FINAL DIPLOMATIC RECOMMENDATION: PREPARE FOR BOTH SCENARIOS

    ✔ Military operations should be on standby, awaiting confirmation that the government has reached peak inertia.
    ✔ Absurdistan’s asylum policy must be revised to ensure proper facilities for incoming politicians who require round-the-clock hand-holding and remedial reading of their own legislative documents.
    ✔ The Ambassador of Absurdistan should issue a formal statement declaring: “We knew they were ours all along.”

    🚨 THIS IS NOT JUST A POLITICAL SPECTACLE—IT IS A TEST OF HOW MUCH NONSENSE THE PUBLIC CAN TOLERATE BEFORE REVOLT! 🚨

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  22. Lafonda says:

    Tats what am talking bout exact why they call him The Rock a true leader alays two even sometimes tree steps a head like Michael Jordon butt in a suite no mo playin for sho. Tanks Rock thanks a lot!

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  23. Anonymous says:

    LMAO not one of them knows what they are doing, except trying to hang on to their pay checks, perks and egos! Deflate, deflate and goodbye!

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