Government oversight
Outgoing ombudsman said offices should be separate
(CNS): Sandy Hermiston’s parting recommendation for the government is that the areas within the remit of the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) should be separated. The outgoing ombudsman, who left the Cayman Islands in February this year, said in the 2021 Ombudsman Annual Report that the merger of the complaints and freedom of information commissioners […]
Complaints about police fall sharply during 2021
(CNS): The number of complaints received about the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service fell significantly in 2021 compared to the previous year, according to the newly released annual report from the Office of the Ombudsman. Complaints decreased to 28 last year compared to 57 in 2020. Only four of the complaints were resolved after a […]
OAG asks for input on government scrutiny
(CNS): The Office of the Auditor General (OAG) is asking people for their opinions on work the office could complete over the next few years from a list of potential areas of public finance where it plans to take a closer look. From affordable housing and the civil service to the George Town revitalisation project […]
Minister urged DG to deal with ‘troubling’ report
(CNS): CNS has received several records in response to a freedom of information request relating to commitments made shortly before the 2021 General Election by the former premier’s ministry to open overseas offices and attend the Dubai World Expo. One record shows how the new PACT minister, André Ebanks, was “troubled” by a report by […]
OAG finds pre-election abuse of public cash
(CNS): The Office of the Auditor General noted an “unusual spike” in spending by the National Roads Authority during the two months before the 2021 General Election. More than $11 million was spent between the announcement of the early election and the day of the vote, Auditor General Sue Winspear and her team found during […]
CIG still battling to produce full public accounts
(CNS): Seventeen years after the Cayman Islands Government introduced the modern accounting system it now uses, it is still not able to get an unqualified opinion on the entire public sector accounts or produce the completed accounts on time. In a review of the 2021 government books released by the auditor general this week, Auditor […]
OAG urges CJ to tackle 3-year delay on court efficiency
(CNS): Judicial Administration has made very little progress over the last three years on recommendations by the Public Accounts Committee to improve the efficiency and value for money of the local court system. Auditor General Sue Winspear has urged the new chief justice to take on the recommendations as soon as possible because only three […]
OAG: Ministers must stay out of procurement process
(CNS): The Office of the Auditor General found no evidence of inappropriate actions by the civil service over the procurement of lateral flow tests to help manage the COVID-19 pandemic last year and that decisions made by Cabinet members were “reasonable and appropriate”. However, Auditor General Sue Winspear said clarity is needed around emergency decisions […]
Appeal favours right to know over commercial ‘secrets’
(CNS): A decision by the Office of the Ombudsman has clarified the extent to which records of private sector service providers are exempt from release under the FOI Act weighed against the public’s right to know about deals with the government. The decision related to a freedom of information request to the Cayman Islands Airports […]
Website launched to open up police commission
(CNS): Governor Martyn Roper said the launch of the new Police Service Commission (PSC) website will offer accessibility and transparency for the public on the new commission, which was established last year to manage the hiring and firing of senior police officers, as well as the good governance of the RCIPS. The commission had its first […]
Rules needed on post-election horsetrading and speaker’s role
(CNS): The Constitutional Commission has issued a number of recommendations, including introducing more robust rules relating to the formation of a government in the aftermath of an unclear election and rules to preserve the impartiality of the speaker’s position. Alongside the process of how a government should take shape, the commission questioned whether a speaker […]
