Parliamentarians returned to the House of Parliament on Friday, 6 March for the Third Sitting of the Fourth Meeting of the 2025-2026 Session. 

Following the prayer, Premier Honourable André Ebanks announced that Caucus had agreed to rename the Radio Cayman building the Loxley Banks Building in honour of Banks, pioneer and a former Director of Radio Cayman. The Minister for Education and Training and Finance and Economic Development Honourable Rolston Anglin then rose to offer remarks in tribute to Banks. Further statements to mark the occasion were made by members including Deputy Governor Honourable Franz Manderson and Parliamentary Secretary Honourable Wayne Panton. 

It was also noted that at the suggestion of Banks, the newsroom will be renamed the Deron Miller newsroom. Miller, a fellow pioneer and journalist, has been credited for playing an integral part in the establishment of Radio Cayman.

The proceedings continued with the presentation of five papers and reports. These included the Immigration (Transition) (Grant of the Right to Be Caymanian) (No. 2) Order, 2025 and the Beneficial Ownership Transparency (Legitimate Interest Access) (Amendment) Regulations, 2026.

Several questions were posed to members of the Government. Answering a question about the average cost of construction for the Government affordable homes in North Side, Minister for Minister of Planning, Lands, Agriculture, Housing and Infrastructure Honourable Jay Ebanks said the National Housing Development Trust awarded a contract to small contractors through an open procurement process for the construction of two unit types: two bedroom, two bathrooms for $135,000 and three bedroom, two bathrooms for $150,000.

Responding to a question on whether Cayman Islands National Insurance Company’s caregiver allowance rates have been adjusted to reflect the new statutory minimum wage, Minister for Finance and Economic Development Honourable Rolston Anglin stated that CINICO has indicated that an increase in the home healthcare allowance could increase costs by $9 million depending on usage. He therefore outlined that further assessments will be conducted. The Minister added that the country needs rehabilitation and assisted living facilities and urged the private sector to participate. 

Asked when an artificial intelligence act will be put in place to ensure the health, safety and fundamental rights of every Caymanian citizen is safeguarded, Premier Ebanks said AI is developing at a phenomenal pace and work is already underway with the Digital Transformation Taskforce. He said no guaranteed commencement date can be given at this time, until the digital transformation report has been completed. 

The Minister for Health, Environment and Sustainability Honourable Katherine Ebanks-Wilks was asked to provide an update on the Government’s plans to address the beach erosion on the southern end of Seven Mile Beach. Minister Ebanks-Wilks confirmed that the Government’s plan is to work in partnership with responsible private sector organisations. She said that the government is looking at various funding streams for long term maintenance where beach erosion takes place. 

Fourteen statements were delivered by members of the Government including Deputy Governor Manderson, Premier Ebanks, Deputy Premier Honourable Gary Rutty and Minister for Social Development and Innovation and Youth, Sports, Culture and Heritage Honourable Isaac Rankine. Speaking on the results of the Civil Service staff engagement survey, Deputy Governor Manderson said since 2017 there has been remarkable transformation in staff engagement. The response rate increased from 61 per cent in 2017 to 81 per cent in 2025. This he said was a powerful indicator of trust in the process and confidence that voices matter. 

The Deputy Governor further spoke on public safety and the reduction in crime noting, leadership, accountability and engaged civil servants deliver results. He advised that within the Royal Caymen Islands Police Service, the community policing unit, the firearms unit and the crime taskforce are all members of the prestigious 80 per cent club – the highest performing engagement cohort across government.

In his statement, Deputy Premier Rutty provided a report on historic arrival of over 47,000 stay over visitors in January 2026, which marked the strongest January in history. He noted that total arrivals of both stay over and cruise visitors totalled 192,754, adding that the country is positioned for continued growth throughout the year. 

Reporting on the Ministry of Social Development and Innovation, Minister Rankine said it addressing gaps in the system to improve the lives of Caymanian families has been a priority. He explained that one of the gaps is limited social support for adults between the ages of 18 and 64. 

He further advised that the Ministry is taking steps to address this gap, through among other things, the launch of the adults safeguarding taskforce. The taskforce will be a multi-agency group chaired by the Ministry with responsibility for coordinating support to adults at risk to ensure they get support in the short term. The taskforce will have representative from the Ministry of Health, Environment and Sustainability, the Department of Children and Family Service, the Department of Financial Assistance, Health Services Authority and the Royal Cayman Islands Police Force. 

The Parliamentarians also paid tribute to members of their constituencies who have passed away. Several members expressed condolences to the families of former Member of Parliament Austin Harris Jr and other members of their constituencies. This was followed by prayer by former Premier Honourable Juliana O’Connor-Connolly and a minute of silence.

The proceedings continued with Government business. The following Bills were deemed to have been read a first time and set down for a second reading:

1. Traffic (Amendment and Validation) Bill, 2026
2. Litter (Amendment) Bill, 2026
3. Registered Land (Amendment) Bill, 2026

Before the adjournment, the Speaker of the House reminded the members that the reason the House will not meet on Monday, 9 March is because of the Youth Parliament Meeting at 10:00 am. He urged the Parliamentarians to attend at least the opening ceremony, noting it would be interesting particularly for the ministries that may be connected directly to the motions the youth will be bringing, to hear how they feel about it. Chairman for the Youth Parliament committee, Kenneth Bryan also encouraged members to be on time. 

The House will return on Tuesday, 10 March at 10:00 a.m.

To watch Friday’s proceedings, visit:

Third Sitting of the Fourth Meeting of the 2025-26 Session of Parliament | 6 March 2026 

For further information visit: www.gov.ky/governmentinparliament. 

How to follow: Watch live broadcasts of sittings on CIG YouTube and CIGTV (Logic – Channel 23, C3 – Channel 3, Flow – Channel 106).