Politics
MPs reveal frustrations over UPM’s internal conflicts
(CNS): Former ministers André Ebanks, Katherine Ebanks-Wilks and Sabrina Turner and former Parliamentary Secretary Heather Bodden, who all resigned from the UPM last month citing serious mismanagement of Caucus and Cabinet, held a public meeting Wednesday where they revealed more about what drove them out of the party.
Cayman freezes US$8.35B of assets under Russian sanctions
(CNS): The Cayman Islands Government (CIG) established a Russia Sanctions Task Force on 16 March 2022, almost two years ago. The task force, known as Operation Hektor, is chaired by Financial Reporting Authority (FRA) Director R.J. Berry. It was formed to coordinate, identify, and make policy amendments to implement sanctions on the Russian regime.
JOCC confirms $2,000 bonus for civil servants
(CNS): Public sector employees can look forward to a whopping $2,000 Christmas bonus after Premier Juliana O’Connor-Connolly said on Friday that the government was in a position to make the one-off payment. The bonuses are estimated to add another $9.7 million to the budget, added to a 5% cost of living allowance in the New […]
Seymour gets climate ministry despite criticising DoE
(CNS): Two weeks after four members, including three ministers, resigned from the UPM government because of a catalogue of issues relating to poor governance, Premier Julianna O’Connor-Connolly has finally handed the portfolios out to the remaining members of Cabinet. In a shocking allocation, Dwayne Seymour has been given responsibility for climate, despite his dismissive comments […]
MPs have common vision, policy platform for 2025
(CNS): André Ebanks, Katherine Ebanks Wilks, Sabrina Turner and Heather Bodden have already agreed on a common policy platform and vision on which they will stand together in next year’s election. The four MPs, who announced their resignation from the UPM government last month, have said they have plans to talk with others about joining […]
Referendum in question as law will be contentious
(CNS): The proposed referendum the UPM was planning to hold on General Election Day is now in question. Without a majority, the lame-duck government is unlikely to secure support to steer through the legislation required to pave the way for the national vote. With grave concerns regarding the cruise dock question and issues over campaign […]
Register lag means no election before April
(CNS): The UPM government is now expected to limp on for almost five more months as the governor is unlikely to call a general election on behalf of the premier before 1 April to prevent disenfranchising new voters. The current election law, which the government has been advised to change, provides a three-month review period […]
PPM won’t form coalition but will prop up UPM minority
(CNS): As Cayman Islands residents were busy preparing for the arrival of Hurricane Rafael on Monday evening, Opposition Leader Joey Hew issued a statement on behalf of the PPM regarding the “void in our country’s leadership” after four members resigned from the UPM government last week.
Turner: Bush using me to settle scores with Panton
(CNS): Sabrina Turner has accused McKeeva Bush of targeting her to settle political scores with former premier Wayne Panton. The MP for Prospect, one of three Cabinet members who resigned last week, also said on Monday that Bush is extremely influential in the UPM caucus and acts like the premier, with no checks on his […]
MPs resigned over school, dump and beach erosion
(CNS): André Ebanks, Kathy Ebanks-Wilks, Sabrina Turner and Heather Bodden have all circulated the same talking points on social media about why they resigned from the UPM government this week, with the dump, the cost of the Cayman Brac school and conservation all on the list. On Friday evening, the four MPs posted a notice […]
Premier claims ‘viable’ government remains in place
(CNS): More than 30 hours after Premier Juliana O’Connor-Connolly lost four members of her government, she released a short statement on the CIG website that revealed very little about the real situation relating to the state of government affairs. The premier claimed she was still leading a “constitutionally viable elected government” and said that Cabinet […]
