Private Sector Oversight
GT pre-school gets top marks from inspectors
(CNS): Government school inspectors gave their first excellent grade to a George Town pre-school this month, following its latest round of inspections, which included one primary and several early years education centres. The new inspection reports published this week were on the Creek and Spot Bay Primary on Cayman Brac, as well as private pre-schools […]
ACC chair says unit busier than ever
(CNS): The Anti-Corruption Commission will need more investigators if the number of reports continues at current levels, according to ACC Chair Richard Coles, a former attorney general of the Cayman Islands. He told the Public Accounts Committee last week that the ACC could proceed with more cases if his team was doubled to match the doubling of […]
OfReg under fire after $2M cash injection
(CNS): The premier has admitted that the office created to regulate utilities has encountered a number of teething problems and has needed much more money than anticipated since its creation some two years ago. Outlining the need for more than $2 million in additional appropriations for the Utility Regulation and Competition Office (OfReg), the premier […]
Sol fined $200k over fuel tank blaze
(CNS): Sol Petroleum Limited has been fined just CI$200,000 plus costs of CI$86,700 by the utilities regulator in connection with the dangerous fuel tank blaze at the Jackson Point Terminal last summer. Sol has accepted responsibility and paid the administrative fine, which the Utility Regulation and Competition Office (OfReg) said reflected the potentially serious nature of the blaze and […]
Miller calls for OfReg chair’s removal
(CNS) UPDATED: Opposition Leader Ezzard Miller joined other public calls on Tuesday for the removal of the Linford Pierson as chairman of the OfReg board following revelations that he had threatened to punch the deputy chair during a recent special board meeting. Miller said that if the details revealed in the leaked minutes are an […]
OfReg chairs in near punch-up over CEO job
(CNS): The situation on the board of the Cayman Islands’ utilities regulator appears to be spinning out of control as leaked minutes of special board meetings last month show that Board Chair Linford Pierson threatened to ‘box’ Deputy Chair Ronnie Dunn in the head. This happened after Dunn accused Pierson of corruption over his attempts […]
Utility regulator appoints more bosses
(CNS): J. Paul Morgan, the first CEO of the Utility Regulation and Competition Office (OfReg), has left office after just over 18 months on the job and the board of directors has now appointed two people to act in the post while a recruitment process to fill the CEO post is undertaken. Officials said that Morgan left […]
Bean counters get to keep lid on CIIPA
(CNS): The Cayman Islands Institute of Public Accountants does not have to reveal anything to the public as the Office of the Ombudsman has confirmed that the Freedom of Information Law does not apply to the industry body. Publishing the most recent decision from her office this week, Ombudsman Sandy Hermiston said it was “an important […]
OfReg takes first step in fuel price monitoring
(CNS): As the price of fuel inches towards $5 per gallon at the pump, the Utility Regulation and Competition Office (OfReg) has revealed plans to begin examining whether or not Cayman’s gas prices are fair and competitive. More than a year after legislation was passed in the Legislative Assembly to regulate the industry and protect […]
CPA blocks South Sound housing development
(CNS): A proposed townhouse development in the heart of South Sound by former deputy chair of the UDP and Honorary Jamaican Consul, Joseph Marzouca, has been refused planning permission amid fervent objections from neighbouring residents, who want their locality to remain exclusively for single-family homes. The proposed development of 16 three-story units, in a similar style to the […]
PAC members accuse utilities of ‘robbery’
(CNS): Members of the Public Accounts Committee appeared particularly aggrieved about the cost of some utilities when witnesses from OfReg and one of the owners of internet service provider C3 appeared before them Wednesday to answer questions about the regulation of telecommunications, fuel, electricity and water. Focusing largely on the high cost and poor quality […]
