iNews Briefs
Passport will maintain Cayman identity
Premier Hon. Alden McLaughlin met with United Kingdom Passport officials while he was in London recently and has been given assurances that following repatriation to London of responsibility for the issuance of Overseas Territories passports, those issued to Cayman Islands residents will continue to bear the country’s name.
Too, the Cayman Islands will retain control of passport applications and distribution.
“They will be bespoke passports, meaning the country’s name will still be on the front cover,” Mr. McLaughlin said.
The Cayman Islands will also maintain its ability to produce emergency passports.
Once the UK begins printing OT passports, Cayman passport applicants will enter their information here and it will be transmitted to the UK using secure technology. The passports will be printed in the UK and returned to the Cayman Islands Passport Office where they will be distributed.
“I feel a bit more comfortable about that,” he said.
Last year the UK set a deadline of December 2014 for the repatriation of passport printing for all Overseas Territories.
The UK-printed passports will be biometric. Passports issued in the Cayman Islands do not have the biometric feature.
Mr. McLaughlin said Cayman has about two years’ of stock for emergency passports.
Inadequate equipment at dump needs to be addressed says Minister
The Minister for Environment, Osbourne Bodden, has said years of chronic under investment have meant that the George Town landfill site, which caught on fire again, has inadequate equipment due to the long-term chronic underinvestment at the site.
Because of the constraints imposed by the UK and the Fiscal Framework for Responsibility that sets out the process government must follow on all public sector projects, it will not be possible to address the long-term solution within the next two years.
Buying new equipment and fixing what could be repaired is the only short-term solution the Minister said and it would cost at least $1M. He said government officials were currently looking at an immediate plan of action to bring new equipment to mitigate the problem.
Dress For Culture
The Cayman National Cultural Foundation (CNCF) is holding their 3rd Annual Dress for Culture Day on Friday, 28th February.
The CNCF wants everyone to show off their culture by wearing their national dress.
People can do this by displaying their flag or by wearing their country’s most prominent sporting team’s jersey. By dressing up, participants can raise funds for youth arts at the same time.
Dress for Culture Day is part of the 2014 Cayfest celebrations.
Chisholm’s supermarket robbery: 2 accused plead guilty to lesser charges
Odain Lloyd Ebanks (18) and Ian Fernando Ellington (29) appeared in court on Wednesday (12) for sentencing after one of the men admitted handling stolen goods and the other to being an accessory after the fact in connection with the robbery at Chisholm’s supermarket in North Side in September last year.
Both of the men had originally been charged with ‘casing the joint’ before the crime and then waiting to help the robber’s escape.
Earlier Courtney Bryan was given six years in jail, reduced to four for his guilty plea in the case and three years for possession of an imitation weapon to run concurrently. Another man, who is only 16 and therefore cannot be named, is awaiting trial for his alleged part in the robbery.
Sailing cruise ship to call in at Cayman Brac
This Friday (14) a sailing cruise ship, the ‘MS Star Flyer’ is scheduled to visit Cayman Brac and disembark its passengers. It will be the first cruise ship to make a call on the Brac for six years.
The ship is scheduled to make regular visits this season.
WestStar has cash flow problems due to fibre optic implementation
WestStar, Cayman’s oldest cable TV provider will not make any cash payments to its creditor, WestStar Holdings Ltd, this year as the upgrades to massive investment in its fibre optic plants and network has proved more costly than expected.
Because of the new competition from three other providers WestStar has speeded up its implementation of the fibre optic work. The company said it was spending $40M on the project.
In a letter to investors at WestStar Holdings the firm said it would not make any cash payments to its creditor, WestStar Holdings Ltd. that has approx. $30M of investment tied up in the firm in notes and equity.
Rod Hansen, the former owner of WestStar but still has a seat on the board said in the letter, ““During the decision process we weighed the potential legal costs of either an actual or technical default related to foreclosing on our position versus preserving our position as a creditor. After much consideration the board of WestStar Holdings voted unanimously and passed a resolution agreeing to convert the cash portion of the 2014 interest to equity.”
Webb to speak at CEO conference
CONCACAF President Jeffery Webb will be one of the speakers at the Cayman Economic Outlook (CEO) conference (formerly Cayman Business Outlook) on 20th February at the Ritz Carlton.
Other speakers will be Cayman Premier Alden McLaughlin, Ian Bremmer, Tyler Cowen and Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace.
HE Governor Helen Kilpatrick, CB, will open the conference.
Cayman Economic Outlook is an annual conference that brings together leading thinkers and doers to explore how global business, technology, science, finance, politics and culture shape the Cayman economy.
For more information go to: http://fidelityceo.com/
Film targets child abuse in African-Caribbean community
From BBC
A south London film-maker has produced an educational film to raise awareness about child abuse in the African-Caribbean community.
The film, Some Things, tells the story of a young girl who is being abused but her cries for help are ignored.
BBC London’s Ayshea Buksh spoke to the film maker Fredi Nwaka, Fiona Small, from the community group the Young Mums Support Network, and a victim of child abuse.
To view the interview go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-26161167
U.S. Department of Justice Investigating Whether Caribbean Princess Violated Pollution Laws
By Jim Walker From Cruise Law News
A number of news sources are reporting the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) joined an investigation by the U.K. whether Princess Cruises’ Caribbean Princess cruise ship violated international pollution laws.
Bloomberg News states that Carnival Corporation announced that the DOJ joined an investigation being conducted by the U.K. Maritime & Coastguard Agency which had initiated an investigation last August.
The news sources are reporting that last September, Carnival reached an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to spend $180 million to reduce sulfur emissions from its fleet of cruise ships. Carnival agreed to to install scrubbers and filters on its ships to reduce the toxic emissions of its cruise ships.
This news account was posted on a Princess Cruises’ message board but there has been no discussion yet.
It is not clear whether the joint U.S.-U.K. Caribbean Princess investigation is related to air emission issues or some other type of pollution violation. Princess Cruises’ ships were often cited in the past for violating Alaska’s waste-water regulations.
The Caribbean Princess was last in the news when it returned to Houston after a norovirus outbreak.
Anyone with information exactly when and what the Caribbean Princess is accused of violating please leave a comment or join the discussion on Jim Walker’s Cruise Law News Facebook page.
Auditor General’s staff hold Workplace Walk-off challenge
In order to promote health and fitness the staff of Cayman’s Office of the Auditor General recently held their second annual Workplace Walk-off challenge.
The exercise concluded with a scavenger hunt on Saturday (8).
Certificates were presented to all participants who completed the challenge. Prizes were given to the winners of the scavenger hunt.
Memorial walk to honour UCCI founder
A memorial walk this weekend will honor International College of the Cayman Islands founder Hugh Cummings and raise funds for students in need of financial aid.
The walk takes place this Saturday, Feb. 15.
Students who will benefit from the proceeds are those who need additional assistance with books and tuition or who are out of work but wish to continue to pursue or complete a degree in order to prove themselves competitive in the job market, walk organizers said.
They said the International College is aiming to raise $30,000.
Christine Smith, director of academic affairs at ICCI, said, “We’re living in difficult economic times where it’s challenging to obtain a job without a degree, but it’s equally challenging for some students to fund their own education so they can earn that degree.
“As a society, I believe we all share a certain degree of social responsibility to help one another. I welcome you all to join us as we work toward achieving Dr. Hugh Cummings’ vision of empowering students by making education accessible.”
For the walk, suggested donations are $15 per person, which enables participants to receive a T-shirt, and snacks and drinks at the end of the walk. Registration is 6.30 a.m. and start time is 7 a.m. The walk will begin at ICCI’s campus, with a turnaround at Pedro St. James.
Registration forms and payment can be submitted at ICCI or downloaded from www.myicci.com or www.caymanactive.com
Cayman to implement tax exchange initiatives
By Daniel Jackson From CIT
A working group has been set up in Cayman to assist with the development of the Cayman Islands’ legal framework for the automatic exchange of information for tax purposes.
This is being done in response to international initiatives that include US and UK FATCA.
Group chairman Roy McTaggart has said that the working group will provide recommendations regarding draft primary legislation, for consideration by the Legislative Assembly during its May session.
Mr McTaggart said: “AEOI is rapidly becoming the global standard for tax information exchange. While the public is increasingly familiar with the terms “US FATCA” and “UK FATCA”, it is important for them to understand that those initiatives are mechanisms for the automatic exchange of information for tax purposes. Other mechanisms will develop, whether by individual countries or on a global scale.
“The working group is therefore assisting with the development of Cayman’s legislative and regulatory framework to meet both the current needs of US and UK FATCA, as well as future AEOI initiatives.”
The Cayman Islands saw a total of 761 licenses at the end of 2013, with 39 new licensees being signed on that year. The captive industry earned $12.6 billion in total premiums and had $69.2 billion in total assets as of the end of 2013.
For more go to: http://www.captiveinsurancetimes.com/captiveinsurancenews/article.php?article_id=3261#.UvzTriiSa68
Cayman’s International School cancelled classes due to fire at dump
Because of the fire at the George Town Landfill waste site on Thursday (13) classes at the Cayman International School, located between Camana Bay and the dump were cancelled.
“Faculty and staff are not required to report today [Thursday],” a note issued by the school announced.
In an email to parents, school director Jeremy Moore said:
“Due to smoke from the landfill fire, school is cancelled for today.
“We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Student safety is our primary concern.
“We will continue to get more information as the day progresses and we will provide further updates.”
5 Qualified Bidders named for 36MW RFP in Cayman Islands
In accordance with the Guidelines set out in the Electricity Regulatory Authority Request for Statements of Qualifications, the following parties have been selected as Qualified Bidders in the upcoming 36 MW competitive generation solicitation:
· AECOM ENERGY
· CAYMAN36SPV (Optimal Energy Limited and InterEnergy Holdings)
· DECCO Ltd. (Dart Enterprises Real Estate Ltd.)
· ENERGY WORLD CORPORATION LTD.
· THE LOUIS BERGER GROUP, INC.
Hundreds Of Skeletal Remains Found Along U.S.-Mexico Border
From Latino Voices
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican officials say hundreds of skeletal remains have been found scattered on ranches in a stretch of towns along the U.S.-Mexico border as police carried out a wide search to locate missing people.
Coahuila state prosecutors’ spokesman Jesus Carranza said Monday that the remains were burned and extremely hard to identify.
Police have not said whether an organized crime group is suspected, but it’s an area known to be dominated by the Zetas drug cartel.
The police operation took place on ranches of 11 different towns around the border city of Piedras Negras after interviews with family members and former local officials.
Investigators found bullet casings as well as barrels of diesel fuel at some of the farms likely used to burn bodies.
For more on this story go to:
http://www.ieyenews.com/wordpress/wp-admin/post.php?post=99247&action=edit&message=9
