PLP Release Their Full 2012 Election Platform

December 6, 2012

[Updated with videos] The PLP officially released their election platform — entitled “Moving Forward Together” — both online and at a press conference held this morning [Dec 6] at Alaska Hall. Premier Cox first addressed the media, followed by Derrick Burgess, Dame Jennifer Smith, Jonathan Smith and Marc Bean.

Some of the highlights include amending the law to permit the naming of sex offenders, review the law so that civil debtors are not imprisoned, amend the criteria for housing to allow companies to hold real estate, consolidating public health insurance products like GEHI and HIP, and establishing a Blue Economy [sea-bed mining, aquaculture & offshore fishing] to create jobs and revenue.

The platform also says the PLP will embark on a plan to redevelop the airport, commit to upgrade Bermuda College to a university/college in a realistic timeframe, introduce the Mini Bill on gaming so that the referendum can proceed, establish a Small Claims Court and require able-bodied people receiving financial assistance to do a minimum of 10-hours community service while receiving benefits.

Premier Cox said: “The PLP believes in Bermuda, and we stand strong for Bermudians. We know that this country can succeed because our people always rise to the challenge and come together through crisis. We know that there is nothing that together we cannot accomplish.

Premier Cox continued: “”Recovering from the economic crisis will require us all to learn some new things and to take some different approaches, but we must never forget our guiding principle: an economy that’s built not from the top down, but by average Bermudians.

“In these challenging times, though, even the most hard-working Bermudians are struggling to find those ladders of opportunity that will lead them to a better life. We understand that, and that is why we work every day to create an environment that encourages job creation, economic growth, and personal evolution.

Some of the highlights of the platform are below:

  • Commit to upgrade Bermuda College to a university/ college in a realistic timeframe
  • Complete the first phase of converting the Marsh Folly into a national park.
  • Implement a comprehensive feral cat and chicken strategy in cooperation with NGO’s
  • End conscription and move to a smaller, full-time, professional regiment
  • Amend the law to permit the naming of sex offenders
  • Review the law so that civil debtors are not imprisoned
  • Amend the criteria for housing to allow companies to hold real estate
  • Expand the number of Economic Empowerment Zones
  • Implement the National tourism plan.
  • Pursue opportunities to expand Medical tourism
  • Implement the recommendations of the Taxi Commission.
  • Introduce the Mini Bill on gaming so that the referendum can proceed
  • A new sentencing framework/reclassification for different types of drugs
  • Introduce a National recycling programme including bottle deposit legislation
  • Establish a Small Claims Court
  • Strengthen the child support legislation
  • Attract cruise ships with an emphasis on locating an appropriately-sized ship for St. George’s
  • Install cameras on buses.
  • Expand local commuter ferry service with the acquisition of additional ferries.
  • Embark on a plan to redevelop the airport
  • Regulate Debt Collection practices
  • Continue to recognise and salute local heroes with naming and honouring ceremonies.
  • Consolidate public health insurance products like GEHI, and HIP to enhance efficiency and improve administration as we serve Bermudians
  • Require able-bodied financial assistance clients to undertake a minimum of 10-hours community service while receiving benefits.
  • Create new revenue streams using the Blue Economy, telecommunications/E-Commerce and other sources of potential revenue.
  • Encourage business to choose Bermuda as a jurisdiction by enhancing our work permit policies while being mindful of the needs of Bermudians, and businesses
  • Enhance the Incentives for Job Makers legislation to expand opportunities for Bermudian employment
  • Work with the financial sector including the Bermuda Stock Exchange to create a local bond market denominated in Bermudian dollars available to individual Bermudian investors and institutions, primarily for financing infrastructure project
  • Action the plan from the Gulf Cooperation Council task Force to diversify and to grow the economy
  • Expand job opportunities and revenue through the establishment of offshore fishing within our 200 mile economic zone
  • Establish a Bermuda Space Enterprise Zone and enter into a commercial agreement with a satellite operator for the use of our Orbital slot.
  • Establish a Blue Economy inclusive of Sea-Bed mining, Aquaculture, and Offshore Fishing, creating job opportunities and revenue

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“This election is more than just politics,” said Premier Cox. “It’s a defining moment in our history – a choice between two different paths – and it has the potential to lead us to a more vibrant and inclusive Bermuda.”

The full 40-page PLP platform is below [PDF here]:

Update 1.51pm: Video of Premier Paula Cox making the announcement below.

Update 2.01pm: Video of Derrick Burgess and Dame Jennifer Smith at this morning’s announcement below

Update 4.22pm: Jonathan Smith & Marc Bean

Q&A held after the prepared statements were read

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Comments (125)

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  1. More Confused says:

    How can anyone take the PLP stance on business seriously when in the last weeks nearly everyday a candidate or union executive is holding a press conference or meeting and blaming employers and business for Bermuda’s problems. They are clearly anti business so an election platform won’t make any difference. How many of the 2007 promises have been kept?

    • cant please em says:

      Wow, is this really what you (the PLP) think of when they think of Bermudians? One guy that looks like me on page 18 and that is it! Not sure if it was by design, but he has a teardrop tattoo under his eye. For those of you that don’t know what that represents…here is a Wikipedia link.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teardrop_tattoo

      • status! says:

        @can’tpleasethemall—and your point? we now what it means now we know you only identify with people that look like you!Since you didn’t identify anyone else! Even people with teardrops get representation even though they might not always be in a position to cast a vote that doesn’t exempt them from representation..Enouhg of people that look like you have been bombarding the tel-lie-vision too long, look in the mirror for yourself and get of the tattoo crap!

        • Anbu says:

          As usual deflect from what it represents. Typical plp. He noticed they didn’t look like him, and what?! That’s all Rolfe ever has to say. Hypocrites the lot of u.

    • Black Gurl says:

      Yes, one the one hand screw International Business, then we need IB…er, make your mind up?

      This is a poor effort isn’t it? Can anyone really say this will change things?

  2. Hey says:

    P 7 fiscal responsibility..the fake smiles are incredulous, and the guy looks like he doesn’t believe a word of the Fiscal responsibility page. I wonder why?

  3. JCS says:

    It’s all been said before

  4. i gotta be me says:

    Just SHOW ME THE MONEY!!!! Where has the 1.5 BILLION gone?!!! You can’t tell me day care, a wharf, a school and new police station cost all that money. Get’em OUTTA HERE.

  5. Vulpes says:

    The basic problem is not with these proposals – it is that the previous fourteen years, epecially the last five, have brought us to the brink of financial ruin – there are so any firms teetering on the brink right now it should scare the living daylights out of us all. I think a lot of business owners will be giving up if this PLP Government are reelected. I’m deadly serious about this as between Burch, Zane and Ewart, all trust has been betrayed.

    • Please!!!! says:

      Let them go there are new hungrier entrepreneurs that would love to use their retail space.

      • cant please em says:

        Where have you been living??? Retail space is not hard to find these days.

  6. Shelta says:

    Conspicuously missing is enacting Public Access to Information (PATI).
    But hey, glad we’ll get on that feral chicken issue….

    • Phillip Wells says:

      They list “Public Access To Information” under their “Achievements”. Which is odd, because even though Cabinet Secretary Donald Scott pledged in July that it would come into force “in the second half of 2012″, and said “a further update will be given in the early fall of 2012″, AFAIK we’ve heard nothing since.

    • Lifeblood says:

      LOL!!!

    • Um Um Like says:

      I dunno. Those feral chickens (and cats) could come in handy if Bermuda continues on its decline. Just imagine how many mouths could be fed…

  7. Hey says:

    P4 is full of lies, substantiate please. How dare they be so evil and divisive.

    It is like a propaganda manual for a dictator wanting to divide a country . Nasty, it breeds hate.

    Wake up PLP, we can only come through this mess together all pushing the same direction…this shows that the PLP are not willing to do that, so the talk of change in the opening was a lie. With their approach we will continue to fall and fail as a country and as a people.

    • Kanye East says:

      Agreed. Given that around 10,000 of us are employed in International Business, and countless more in the offshoots of these offices – cleaners, caterers, delivery men, plumbers, electricians , IT and gardeners ….

      ISN”T THIS AN AFFRONT TO ALL OF US? – ATTACK MY LIVELIHOOD, THEN YOU ARE ATTACKING ME.

      NO I WON”T VOTE FOR YOU PAULA (funnily enough). By the way you sound like Chris Furburt, welcome to 1980, you can keep your socialism Paula.

  8. rubber bong says:

    would have been nice to have seen a better cross section of the island represented in a document supposed to benefit the entire island…very sad and further shows that a certain segment of the community doesn’t matter. According to the Mayans, we’ll all be dust on the 21st anyway so hopefully non of this really matters.

    Officially a former PLP supporter…

  9. Joe says:

    Watch out you cats and chickens……..the PLP are out to get you…….

  10. lyfe says:

    now some of these topics are good. especially the airport one

    • R u serious? says:

      They said they will ‘embark on a plan’, in other words ‘there is no plan but we’ll hope to get to a plan’….vague, vague, vague!….and how will they do anything with no money? Airports are VERY expensive to redevelop so I dont think that should be a focus right now.

      • Born here Raised Away says:

        How are we going to get to the airport if the Causeway hasn’t been fixed yet??

  11. Phillip Wells says:

    “[Our opponents] still believe the best way to grow the economy is from the top down – the same approach that benefited the wealthy few and created the deep-seated challenges that we still experience today, some fourteen years later”

    Really? The PLP are *still* blaming the UBP for the problems we experience today?

    • Hey says:

      No, they are blaming everyone EXCEPT THEMSELVES ! What an insult to the people of Bermuda. they are saying they need to grow it from the bottom up full stop…therefore because that hasn’t happened under their watch it is everyone elses fault and not the PLP at the top.

      They want the pay and power, but won’t take responsibility for their failing us, instead they blame it on the average Bermudian !

  12. curious says:

    Is that Michael Markham on page 2?

    • Just saying says:

      Curious: Thats what I thought????? Can anyone definitively say yes or no? If it is- Really: We adamantly state he has nothing to with the PLP?

      • Zombie Apocalypse says:

        Cox was ‘adamant’ in trying to distance the PLP from him, but she failed to mention that Mr Markham was a consultant for the PLP over a 15+ year period, during which he described himself as a ‘card-carrying PLP supporter’. I wonder why she would leave out those inconvenient little details?

        • Please!!!! says:

          lol you racist kill me the PLP didn’t make racist remarks like your OBA/UBP stop trying to point fingers.

          • Zombie Apocalypse says:

            I see what you’re doing there. You’re making an Ad Hominem attack and attempting to demonise the opposition, as described in a report on election tactics by the long-time card carrying PLP member Michael Markham.

          • Hey says:

            How is that racist?

          • JOE says:

            So I’m not a house n****r anymore?!

          • Come Correct says:

            They didn’t what?

        • More Confused says:

          He must have been the surrogate white for the 2012 platform. Except of course he says was asked to resign from the PLP a couple of days ago. A bit embarrassing.

          What happened to the proposed amendment to the criminal act relating to marijuana that was referred to in the Makai Dickerson damage limitation conference?

          • Um Um Like says:

            The proposed amendment to the criminal act relating to marijuana was to apply specifically to plp ministers.

      • Dee says:

        It looks very much like Danny Faries to me.

    • Zombie Apocalypse says:

      That’s him.

    • haha says:

      That is NOT michael markham. U all kill me. That is a man that ran for the PLP in 98.

  13. Will says:

    lol..the majority of these ‘plans’ should have already been implemented. I remember the talks decades ago about turning the dump into a park…nothing done yet except a bunch of mysterious fires (cheapest way to get rid of it i guess). The ship for St Georges should have been figured out at least 5 years ago when they started transitioning into larger and large ships.
    Expanding EEZs sounds like a play on the OBAs plan..so once again PLP not coming up with anything new
    National tourism plan should have been implemented years ago.
    Saluting and naming ‘heroes’ has been going on for the past few years with a bunch of useless names being put forward. Of course the PLP recognise their own first. But what about the hundred of years of history we have? Why not honour the Cox family? Why not honour the men who first came to shore and built Bermuda? The past influential families who made Bermuda what it was?
    Offshore long line fishing is destined to fail as soon as it begins. I for one will look out for those boats and destroy them as they will be doing to our pristine natural habitat.

    Overall just another ploy for the politricks to play on. It seems as though the PLP (in fact all political parties) are holding the island ransom. Vote for us and THEN we will put these into play. Why not for once, just work together and implement all ideas which are in the best interests of all the inhabitants on this tiny ass little island. Cant be that hard is it?

  14. Phillip Wells says:

    “through aggressive austerity measures [the OBA] would repeal FutureCare”

    Isn’t this just a flat-out lie? The OBA have explicitly stated they’d do no such thing.

    • We the people says:

      Absolutely, this is a flat-out lie. They know it’s a lie and they still printed it. They apparently care little about the truth.

  15. Argosy says:

    It’s all words and empty promises.

    Not one actual specific, clearly articulated plan of action.

    But…..of course, it’s totally meaningless without the mid-term and pre-budget numbers to show us how deep we really are in the dwang.

    This is just rubbish without those numbers, which will clearly show what the PLP’s “policies” have done to date and then we will be able to judge what 5 more years of the same will produce.

    Show us the numbers, PLP and let us judge your record.

  16. small fry says:

    More empty promises…we had to deceive you once again..

  17. Bullseye says:

    “Work with the financial sector including the Bermuda Stock Exchange to create a local bond market denominated in Bermudian dollars available to individual Bermudian investors and institutions, primarily for financing infrastructure project”.

    This is hilarious!

    Govt needs more money so they issue a bond Bermudians will buy huh?

    The Govt.’s money IS Bermudians money.

    So they want even more money on which they will pay the Bermudian back interest with – you guessed it – THEIR money! What kind of crazy ponzi scheme is this?!!

    rofl. And I am sure some are saying this is genius! lol.

    • Um Um Like says:

      It’s a great plan if you don’t take the odd concept of inflation into consideration.

      • Bullseye says:

        Yup. it would have to be high interest, and only the wealthy would take the risk for if the govt cant pay its current debt and is borrowing then why would you think it would pay more?

  18. zzzzzz says:

    Nothing quantifiable in the entire platform. I would like to see statements like “if the PLP government is reelected, we commit to getting Bermuda back up to 2007 employment levels by the end of 2015″ etc.

    Instead they commit the next 5 years to:

    Evaluating
    Introducing
    Implementing
    Establishing
    Reviewing
    Enacting
    Enhancing
    Developing
    Facilitating
    Pursuing
    etc.

    Basically they commit to sitting on their hands for another 5 years while Bermuda continues to fall apart.

  19. GOD 1st says:

    P 4 Huge lie how can you raise the age limit for conscription from 33- 35 and fines for conscripts who fail to show up from 900-2000 and mention abolishing it. All i can see is the devil within the PLP

  20. Triangle Drifter says:

    A shopping list from the GONNA PLP rehashing alot of stuff that they were gonna do in the last 14 years but never got it done.

    Oh there was much talk, lots of consultants producing lots of reports, which got shoved on a shelf somewhere & forgotten while they went on junkets around the world.

    Nope, can’t trust a word that they say/

  21. GOD 1st says:

    In other words we the people are resposible for your mishandling of tax payers money lol

  22. GOD 1st says:

    responsible

  23. Hey says:

    Let it be said, there are no fans of he OBA here, there are fans of Bermudians and Bermuda…if the PLP had performed their job properly we would be voting for the PLP, instead they blame the average Bermudian….me and you for this mess !!!!! What they propose to plan to porpose to evaluate to plan to propose has all been said before. It will not fix the broken Bermuda or the downtrodden Bermudian. It does not offer hope, is shows hopelessness.

    • More Confused says:

      Well said (even if you had a bit of a stumble in your wording!)

  24. Will says:

    Youth section had me laughing : “the youth are bombarded with so many choices”. What choices, the only choice we have is get a job in business or be stuck in a low income job for the rest of your life…hmm seems like a lot of choices there!

    • Um Um Like says:

      Wrong. There’s always the drug trade. They have the choice of growing marijuana, dealing marijuana, coke, crack, ex, heroin, meth, etc.. Or they could support that industry by laundering money, or selling guns and ammunition.

      The world is at their fingertips. Thank you PLP!

      • Will says:

        oh sh@t yeh, forgot about that…how could i forget the young 16 and 17yr olds dealing what the government call ‘controlled substances’..what a joke

  25. C.B.A says:

    Where the heck is the PLAN TO REDUCE THE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF DEBT YOU PUT US INTO?

    • Carse Yer Wote says:

      CBA the plan is simple: Don’t Worry, be happy. Stamp out the evil white slave masters and only then will we truly be able to cast aside our chains and be free.

      God will help us blah blah blah……

  26. Terry says:

    All those empty seats.
    Irony.

    • DND says:

      Are we looking at the same picture? I counted 36 heads and seats 6 empty seats.. .36 people out of 42 seats (just in that picture) that’s 86% (aint bad for press conference in middle of the day) But hey, maybe empty is how you chose to see it.

      • Family Man says:

        Those are the unemployed.

      • 32n64w says:

        The vast majority of the 36 heads you see are their own candidates. Any right minded voter would be wise to stay well away from the PLP train wreck to poverty.

    • Hey says:

      All those empty promises
      All these empty pockets
      All those Average Bermudians who are mean’t to fix what all those PLP policies broke.

      Oh come on Was it the Average Bermudian’s fault that Grand Atlantic was a complete FLOP…but of course it was because we didn’t put ourselves further in debt by buying what we were told we needed and should be grateful to have. No, it was the PLP for going ahead, when everyone was saying NO we don’t want them. It was mean’t to be a hotel there, how is that going???????

      Was it the average Bermudian’s fault when the hotels weren’t built or Berkley or Wharf projects overan due to bad management and ignored / overruled procedures to prevent these things from happening. No it was not !

      The PLP are always committed to or planning to, but never do. Perhaps the voters will commit to or plan to vote for the PLP, but will never do too. Let’s get them out so they can learn what it is to take advantage of Bermudians, hopefully then they will mature into a PLP that works for Bermudians and Bermuda instead of the collection of self serving individuals that they are today.

  27. Angelo Pimental says:

    Madam Premier,

    How exactly has the PLP been rebuilding Bermuda for the last 14 years? When the people voted in the PLP in 1998 they were looking towards a brighter and better future, not an island riddled with cronyism, debt, violence and hatred.

    If this is your platform for moving Bermuda forward, why do you continue to spit lies and hatred towards anyone and everyone who disagrees with you? As a government the PLP has failed to live up to many of the promises made during past elections, how do you expect us to believe you now. Oh, I forgot … ‘you had to fool us’.

    It is kind of funny that only now the PLP wants to ‘roll out the red carpet for IB’, after doing its best to deter them in the past. Bermuda has been, will always be dependent on foreign money as we purchase the majority of our goods from abroad. None of your so called ‘investments’ in people will bring future prosperity to the island. Are EEZ, Futurecare and Daycare worth while, yes…. but again you are misleading the public in saying they are investments, when they are not.

    The PLP has failed our children for the last 14 years, failed to give them the education and tools to compete locally and globally. You prefer instead to create a welfare system, generations of people reliant on government handouts. You have failed to heal families, strengthen communities, instead you focus on divisiveness and poisoning the minds of the youth. Shame on you. You say you are for the people, yet as a government you have let in more and more foreign blue collar workers, how is that standing strong for the people? On one hand you deter those companies that create white collar jobs, then further give away more blue collar jobs … then have the gall to blame it on the global economy.

    You state that major capital projects are necessary to stimulate economic activity. This is true. Yet all your past and future projects are really major debt projects, as these projects keep only a small section of Bermuda employed now…. but as they are financed through debt they will end up costing us way more in the future. A country can only spend its way out of a recession if it already has money in the bank. The UBP did most of the major capital projects during recessions, when they had money saved to do so. Had the present government been more fiscally responsible and saved during the boom years, we would have the funds to do as you now plan. Sorry I forgot you were just a ‘cog in the wheel’ when Dr. Brown & Co. were emptying the coffers.

    I could go on and on and question your past choices, your promises for the future… I could ask how you plan to build Bermuda into a morally just, equitable and sustainable country, free from cronyism and discrimination. A prosperous nation where through hard work and determination all have the opportunity to succeed to matter their background. I could ask you such questions, but in your mind they would only be plantation questions.

    • Les B. Frank says:

      Well said Angelo

    • Pastor Syl Hayward says:

      Love it! @ Angelo! These are the things that need to be said. I only wish the PLP was listening…but I doubt it. They haven’t listened to anything anyone else said for years.

  28. me says:

    Did i read this wrong or is there nothing here regarding crime?

  29. jt says:

    Vince Ingham last night:
    “And in a forceful speech Pembroke West candidate Vince Ingham laid the blame for the Island’s economic troubles on the business community, which he said has no social conscience and is spending its cash supporting the One Bermuda Alliance instead of helping Bermudians.”

    How is anyone supposed to take the PLP seriously when they say they want to encourage business to choose Bermuda?

    • Angelo Pimental says:

      Who or what have they not blamed?

      - Global economy
      - UBP
      - OBA
      - Business community

      What else am I missing?

    • Vulpes says:

      Let’s be explicit about his PLP code – basically he resents successful white people who work hard to make their enterprises successful and he and his pals will continue doing there best to ruin in every way these second class minority citizens.

      • frank says:

        those nice white people stole from us do you remember death tax.when your parents died and left you a house you now had to pay the government a huge amount of money for a house that they did not give you any money .teamed up with all the lawyer frieds.the plp put a stop to that sh======t.

        • Vulpes says:

          Charming, another shining example of the education system, or should that be propaganda system.

    • media says:

      He is grinding his axe…

  30. Victor says:

    How long before the nasty little man behind the Cog and to the left of Dame J skewers both at his Master’s bidding…

    • Zombie Apocalypse says:

      As I understand it, he usually uses headlocks and punches rather than skewering.

  31. me says:

    what about the 2008 PLP platform, how much of that did they actually do?

  32. Sorry Sir says:

    I see barely nothing here that will stimulate Bermuda’s economy. This is what they say they’re going to do every election: Promise you sh$t that they can’t keep. Every time the PLP does this, it makes people more dependant on their Government and puts us further in debt.

  33. Tommy Chong says:

    “Pursue opportunities to expand Medical tourism”

    Here is where Dr. Ewart Brown comes back into play. Ewart says, “Mr. Billionaire so sorry to hear you that the stem cell procedure you want done is not passed in America. No worries! Anything goes here in Bermuda with procedures. Just give me a few million & sign this waver form just in case it gets a bit messy.”

    Did you really think the fancy new hospital was being built for you Bermuda?

    • Family Man says:

      Just as long as you don’t have acute appendicitis.

  34. Robb says:

    Well said Angelo Pimental. Totally agree with you.

  35. rock says:

    Innocent comment…how can they do a Blue economy? I thought they officially protected the waters around Bermuda? If not, just doesn’t sound good to me.

  36. Robb says:

    Nothing of substance in this platform; a bunch of promises. Was anything said about new hotels?

  37. Small fry says:

    In my humble opoinion allowing companies to buy real estate will just make it harder for hard working Bermudians to buy a home.

    • Pastor Syl Hayward says:

      The question is which companies? Are we talking about HSBC and Dubai merchants? Giving away our island as quickly as possible. First it was 125 year leases, now they’ll get to actually own parts of the rock in perpetuity.

    • Autumn Fire says:

      Tucker’s Point at Port Royal

  38. solutions not distractions says:

    they have been talking about restoring mangroves for the past 2 elections as least

    long-lining was brought up in the last election and i thought pretty much eliminated as not financially feasible

    overall, the blue economy is supposed to be like the green economy, soft on environmental impacts. mining the sea or longlining are not blue economy strategies but instead industrial actions with big environmental impacts

    we dont have black smokers nor other hydrothermal vents to mine like they mention. while we are at it, deep sea mining is very technically challenging and expensive and probably not a feasible option for decades to come at least. There are lots of places to mine on land all over the world. if deep sea mining was feasible would not the US be doing it already?

    aquaculture in the sea is also very hard to manage with summer hurricanes and winter gales. on-land aquaculture is probably 10x cheaper to do in the US vs Bermuda, not to mention 40x cheaper in other places. it is cheaper to import tilapia at $2/lb than grow it locally and it sells at $14 a lb. IF they made it illegal to import like carrots it might work, but tilapia is rather low grade fish. cheaper to catch grunts off the rocks.

  39. navin johnson says:

    cant really say anything about hotels as they have been promising them for 14 years since the beginning of the David Allen 100 day to turn tourism around plan…..I can see the local bond market as a way to make the mountain of debt a BIG mountain of debt by trying to take the last bit of money people have left……pyramid scheme…..I just have difficulty understanding how anyone can believe them

  40. It only hurts when I breathe................. says:

    if it wasn’t so awful it would be funny.

    I note the PLP poster says “MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER” and shows a bunch of faces including a smattering of white faces. This is of course UNLESS Rolf is speaking in which case there will be “NO TOGETHER” whatsoever given his vile racest remarks last night, which by the way are NOT refuted by the PLP Leadership (silence being consent).

    Then you have Vince blaming all of Bermuda’s huge debt and economic woes on BUSINESS (really???) yet Paula is saying we are open for business and welcome the international business community!!

    I guess Rolf did not get the memo and did not listen to the Cog’s impassioned and outrage speech of yesterday denying racism exists in the PLP!!!!!

    And Vince did not get the memo as he was too busy slandering business last night while today his party leader wants to woe business as part of PLP platform??

    Which is it guys???

    The PLP is telling so many lies and so many blatent falsehoods that they cannot keep up with it themselves!!!

    and this is the party of inclusivness?
    THE PLP – Standing Strong for Bermudians TWO WEEKS BEFORE THE ELECTION (especially if you are not white).

    • Keepin' it Real...4Real! says:

      i see at least4 white faces that are island construction….lol friends a fam i guess.

  41. Tommy Chong says:

    “Establish a Blue Economy inclusive of Sea-Bed mining, Aquaculture, and Offshore Fishing, creating job opportunities and revenue”

    If ANYONE after reading this really believes PLP is for Bermuda’s future & not for filling their own pockets they are complete IDIOTS TO THE POWER OF INFINITY. Legalized prostitution would be a much cleaner & more morally sound money maker then this. Every single one of this party’s members must have at least one other home abroad if they are willing to turn ours into a polluted waste land. Besides didn’t a petition with a bajillion signatures against Offshore Fishing get passed in already. This clearly shows that PLP has not listened to & does not care about Bermuda’s people. I could put a boogie on the voting form & tick a box next to it & it’ll still be a better candidate then any of the PLP ones.

  42. Pastor Syl Hayward says:

    I want the specifics: who, what, where and by when.

    I have seen Burt’s reply to one of the OBA’s ideas for expanding the economy – a specific plan, by the way. He tried to put all kinds of holes in it, but didn’t have any alternatives to suggest. If this document is the answer to the issue, it is not cutting it. Vague, airy-fairy, pretty promises.

  43. letariatpro says:

    No substance or solutions in there at all…all lip service and unsustainable ideas, with a smattering of untruths…wow. People believe this?

    • Concerned Citizen says:

      Take it easy BT, we know where you mind is…….

  44. the word says:

    everthing else they promised before were false so why should we believe them now especially now we have lost our jobs oh yeah thats right we need to vote you in so you can keep your free car and high extortionate salaries and trips yeah right I get it now all about you lot.
    promise the moon and deliver nothing got it !
    The island is not in recession its in depression worse in its history under this self serving lot ,wake up folks before we are sunk !

  45. Sandgrownan says:

    Nothing tangible in there to create demand for goods and services.

    No plan, no idea.

  46. dashound says:

    I wonder who will be bringing in all the genereic drugs to provide FREE to the seniors. Lets take a walk down memory lane shall we…. Paula no wonder in all your photos you always got your head cocked to the side and can’t look people straight in their eye. A telling sign of a true lawyer, But you all put on a good show, got Burgess right up next to you waiting to turn on you at first chance gues the saying keep your friends close and your enemies closer

  47. Codfish says:

    I think I just worked out which political party has put us back onto the Plantation…

  48. Ringmaster says:

    If the PLP is the answer, the question must have been pretty stupid.

  49. kevin says:

    Well lets see $1.5 billion in debt. how did we get there ….i’m sorry its pretty straight forward the PLP will continue in the same direction i don’t see a single initiative that will decrease our debt all i see are promises for your vote. They have lack of vision and even more importantly lack of personnel with the ability to define, devise, plan and execute any recovery. Fact is fact overspending with no regard for the consequences yes PLP supporters lack of consequence we all soon will bear the brunt of poor management. Its simple nothing to do with race, its just plain bad management. If this governement started a busines in 1998 it would have been shut down in 3 years. Simple stuff don’t over complicate it, they have failed. Time for a change

  50. Pastor Syl Hayward says:

    Apologists are noticeably absent from this post. I guess even they can’t find much that is good to say about it.

    • M.P.Mountbatten JP says:

      There’s a reason for that . Most PLP supporters are in St.Davids tonight , right in Mr. Cannoniers back yard , not very concerned about what the OBA supporters do or have to say .

      Confidence is unabated knowing that We the PLP WILL form the next government . So enjoy the fuzzy feeling of having the cyber night all to yourselves . You’ll have at least five more years of learning your roll as the Official Opposition . So I suggest that you settle in behind your keyboards .

      • Building a better Bermuda says:

        If all the PLP supporters are at the rally in the east end, then the PLP is in trouble (and I ido hope that is the case, we need a change in a progressive direction) that was a lot of empty seats and really sad sign when the MJ has the signal people to clap. The crowd looked really quiet, the greatest applause was coming from the stage.

      • Bullseye says:

        It’s true. If that was most supporters then you are in trouble. And if being in power 14 years simply enables you to “form” the next govt then again you have no plans and had no plans and have no right to be there.

        It also speaks to the fact that the PLP will transform after the election. And you know it. Win or lose it will transform. Yet all the wagons are circled so no-one knows and the bayonets are pointed out at anyone who askes questions and the AG’s are on leave it is a joke. A sick joke. I couldnt make it up the way it is transpiring.

        Many PLP supporters like you have told me they will have the last laugh. If they win they will be right. It will be the last laugh heard for a long time.

      • street wise says:

        “Most PLP supporters are in St.Davids tonight …” What, all 35 of them?! Look at the photos in another Bernews story and count the heads. The plp SHOULD be in Panic Mode… considering the poor turn-out! About 35 people.

  51. Keepin' it Real...4Real! says:

    jus a lil sumpin to ponda if ya not asleep…https://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=rDTLKLNSK8A&feature=endscreen
    and if u dont watch this…it’ll only show the depth of your consciousness. It might make u feel better or it might cause you to hang yourself.

  52. Leeann says:

    I don’t expect any of you to have anything good to say about the PLP platform no matter what it’s content. I will be having a clear look at the content of both this evening. While some make very good points relating to the OBA plan there is still the imature, childish and very arrogant comments on this blog that are a turn off. This blog is the morning entainment in my place of employment and the majority are expats. They are happily living and working amongst us and I might add have no attention of leaving this beautiful island no matter who forms the next government. May of them are already residents. Your comments are often an embarassment to us Bermudians working hard to prove that we are just as good or better at what we do. Whether you want to admit it or not the majority of this nonsence comes for the mouths of OBA supporters. You all need to STOP.

    I am an undecided voter but will not be persuaded by a very loud minority who want to blame the PLP Government for everything that is not right in this country. But that is a different topic. I am more interested in who can move this country forward in the best interest of every Bemudian.

    The nonsence and disrespect on this blog will not win the OBA any votes if that is what you are hoping for. You have not learned from the fall out of the Bernuda Housing and Cedar Beams. Folks will vote for the PLP just because…..What will you have to say than!!! Continue with the Koolaid comments? Continue insulting the Premier? Continue to refer to the PLP supports as dumb and stupid? The only people who will be looking dumb and stupid with be you. Will I vote in this election????

    • Furby says:

      I hear what you are saying , but…
      If you vote PLP then we lose again just like we did five years ago – can you stand another five years ?
      Do you really believe they can do better?
      Can the OBA really be worse?

  53. its a Hard Knock life for Us says:

    You people want change?? make a sign call it I WILL SU#K OBA’S D**K FOR CHANGE n go post up on any corner in town then cross when the traffic light turns green and kill yaself fool! I swear citizens of this island need to take their problems to the Queen of England.. tell her give you your money back.. tell her you want a British passport so you can flee to England and get away from your corrupted country and govt and move to the Mother country who owns your country for Asylum.. tell her you want to celebrate her birthday every year .. tell her you need some diamonds out of her crown so you can make ends meet… tell her Dr Brown took all the money… tell her the Governor sits on prime real estate that can house a few Onions and would like him to move cause he dont do nothing but “middle man” duties.. tell her you would appreciate some English pounds cause you can get double the money back when you foreign exchange..Tell her anything you want… Cause guess what tellin her all of that is like telling yourself to kill yoself Foool! now the PUPPET starts to dance! whos pulling the strings????

    • Bullseye says:

      Ok. Who’s pulling the strings? Who are these godlike few controlling the aspirations of many to make a better Bermuda? Are they demons then? Think about what you are saying. Who is your bogeyman? Everything is crashing down on this island but you fear some bogeymen. Who are they?

      • its a Hard Knock life for Us says:

        Pause. go canvass brah ya party awaits u and all ur problems that ur govt will solve for you. Politics is entertainment at the cost of living, snap back to reality! Vote for yaself and be your own “boogeyman”

        • Bullseye says:

          One party is going to win this election like it or not. That’s reality.

  54. Soooooo says:

    ” Strengthen the child support legislation” what a joke, how many mothers are not getting paid now due to a Govenment ‘computer glitch’…

    Ther are some things I think are great ideas, however, with the PLP’ s track record of reversing their prmices and not adhering to budgets,,, all I see are more lies and failures!

  55. RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIP3 says:

    You people want change?? make a sign call it I WILL —- OBA’S D**K FOR CHANGE n go post up on any corner in town then cross when the traffic light turns green and kill yaself fool! I swear citizens of this island need to take their problems to the Queen of England.. tell her give you your money back.. tell her you want a British passport so you can flee to England and get away from your corrupted country and govt and move to the Mother country who owns your country for Asylum.. tell her you want to celebrate her birthday every year .. tell her you need some diamonds out of her crown so you can make ends meet… tell her Dr Brown took all the money… tell her the Governor sits on prime real estate that can house a few Onions and would like him to move cause he dont do nothing but “middle man” duties.. tell her you would appreciate some English pounds cause you can get double the money back when you foreign exchange..Tell her anything you want… Cause guess what tellin her all of that is like telling yourself to kill yoself Foool! now the PUPPET starts to dance! whos pulling the strings????

  56. Not buying it says:

    Lets see how many of these items actually get fulfilled. That’s if they get back in. (Hopefully not)

  57. Building a better Bermuda says:

    So having read through the OBA’s and PLP’s plans for economy growth and development, I noticed the following:

    PLP 7 pages, OBA 9 pages
    PLP split into three columns with a larger font size than the OBA’s that is in only 2 columns
    PLP’s contained a lot of repetitive statements, vague details, mentioned ideas that have been batted out in almost every election, and while they didn’t come out a say it, there was a lot of phrases that gave me the sense that they would be hiring many consultants
    OBA’s plan had the occasional repetition, definitely more details and defined out ideas

    I will sum up by saying that while a couple of the OBA candidates haven’t done as well in face to face debates, I’m willing to chalk this up to them having been up late every night working on actual details for the future of this country. I would suggest that the PLP focus more effort in figuring out how to help restart our economy and less on figuring out how many ways you can use a 5 year old report given to a now defunct party, to flog their supports with some fabricated conspiracy of the white community out to keep the black community down. Doesn’t matter how many times you repeat a lie, it won’t make it true.

  58. Bermuda Girl says:

    Too little, too late. A lot of political verbiage. Angelo, get a Party together! You speak for many.