Minister Hosts Roundtable Talk on Economy
Late yesterday afternoon [Jan 24] as the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Sen. Kim Wilson met with several key stakeholders in the business community to discuss the economy.
The purpose of the roundtable was to hear the views of industry on ways to stimulate economic activity and sustain jobs. Concerns heard included law reform, work permit and term limits, and the need to attract foreign currency. Key questions posed were, “What does globalisation mean for Bermuda” and “How does it affect our policies and processes?”
At the conclusion of the meeting, Minister Wilson said: “I am extremely pleased with this first meeting. It was an excellent exercise that needed to be undertaken; it has given me the opportunity to hear firsthand what some of the burning issues are that are affecting our business community. I was pleased that we could gather around the table and be open and honest about the way going forward.”
She furthered: “At this time I am not inclined to divulge any specifics of the meeting as there is still a lot of work to be done across the board. However, I am pleased to announce that out of our commitment to doing all that we can to create an optimal and stimulating business environment, we have agreed to meet bi-monthly as opposed to quarterly. Everyone involved recognises the importance of these discussions and the value of a collaborative planning process. As we move forward our expectation is that all sectors will benefit from this exercise and Bermuda and Bermudians will be successful.”
Organisations represented were:
- The Chamber of Commerce
- The Construction Association of Bermuda
- The Association of Bermuda International Companies
- The Bermuda Employers Council
- The Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers
- The Hotel Employers of Bermuda
- The Bermuda Hotel Association
- Business Bermuda
Allow Hotels to have Casinos, they will build! Construction jobs will appear. Tourists will appear. Economy will make money outside of international business. It won’t stop people from going to Church!
Casino’s are not the panacea people think they are. First of all, all of the money in the economy is an illusion. The vast majority of the money travels in one direction. From the locals through the Casino’s to the shareholders and ultimately the Headquarters which is located elsewhere. Second, you are not contemplating the impact that gambling has on a city (Bermuda is smaller than most US cities). Crime goes up, extortion increases dramatically, robberies increase, money laundering becomes a more serious issue and the country has to spend more through the police service to combat this. Its all well and good to blame the Church but outside of that argument, there are more reasons to not do it than there are to do it. Try explaining to a child why they can’t go to college because the family college fund has been squandered ..or explain to the little ones why they have to stay with other family members because the house was lost. No lunch money, no school trip or clothes for that matter. Daddy was beat up or killed because he couldn’t repay his debt. Its convenient to look at only one side of the coin. The truth is that for those individuals who struggle with the disease, it is devastating not only for them but also on those who depend on them. We have a duty to protect those who have no voice. Instead of focusing on gambling, we need to be focusing on the things that we have and get that right before we contemplate introducing something else into the mix. Gambling is a short-sighted “solution”.
I said Hotels!! Try explaining to a Hotel developer, they just plain will not build here. There is too much revenue that could be made in other holiday destinations in the Caribbean. So the hotels will continue to be built in St. Barts, Barbados etc. Were talking about 2 different things. We are not talking about bringing Gambling into the household, were talking about allowing it on Hotel Properties , which will have stringent policies I am sure about who and who cannot gamble there. So the fabricated ideas about college funds being gambled away you can dream up yourself. But the reality of the Island’s construction problems and empty Hotel lots are there to be seen. They will still be there in years to come and guess what, college funds will not exist because dad will be sitting in Victoria park all day because he has been out of work for 5 years. Think about the lesser of two evils. Bermuda never modernized it’s tourism product when it should have and people embraced the idea of keeping it old fashioned. Well guess what, it does not work unless your target market is 70+, so think outside the box and don’t be afraid to change something but do it in a positive way.
Too little too late
This should have been happening a long time ago…….. but the Colonel seemed intent on driving away IB and looks like he has succeeded.
We are all in this ship together, just make sure you have a lifejacket
Bermyman, you can only build so much. Do we need extravagent buildings for gambling?
And so they come in 3-4 years. Whats do we do in the intrim. And then, the masons, and others have no jobs. Oh thats right…they can be waiters at the casinos. Silly me.
In 3-4 years, how about they start developing hotels now! Right now! On an Island where your construction costs are higher than anywhere else, how can you explain to a potential investor or developer that they cannot make income from a Casino? which equates to over 1/3 in most destinations. They just simply will look at the business model and go elsewhere. There will be no boost in constuction jobs without hotel financing.
Who the voice of the Bermudian’s at that table??????
All of them as they speak for every industry in which Bermudians are employed…
YES YOU ARE RIGHT!!!! that why Bermudian’s are UNEMPLOYED!!!
Please are time will come!
When the subject is the economy surely it is relevancy and expertise that matter. Not nationality.
I’m surprised that Senator Wilson doesn’t count as “the voice of the Bermudians” though. She is after all both Bermudian and a minister of a Government which derives its legitimacy from that fact that it was chosen by the majority of Bermudians.
Tell that to all the UNEMPOLYED Bermudian’s
BERMUDA WILL NOT COME BACK LIKE THE 70S 80S OR THE 90S ITS THE PEOPLE AND RACE!!!!!!
I see an iceberg. Captain……It’s only a Seventy degree day………………
Hmmm, talk is good. Hope they did not hold any punches on the desperate state the Island is in & how it got there.
They can make suggestions but it Governmet does nothing, nothing will change. The PLP needs to face up that they have failed & they have failed miserably on every front. Most of the rest of the world is climbing out of recession. Bermuda is still hurtling downhill. The advice from people who know business needs to be acted upon.
Too little too late? Maybe but we still have a chance. Here are my solutions:
1. How do we get a massive influx of money and capital to our island within a year? Allow foreigners to purchase property at any fair market price with no foreigner tax. Run it for one year and see how much the economy takes off!
2. Allow them to have long term residency on the close of the property. Caymans did it why can’t we?
3. There are about 100 massive insurance and reinsurance companies in the world. Bermuda has about 10-15 of them. Bring them ALL to Bermuda. Relax work permit restrictions completely. Again try it for a year. If a company brings 15-20 employees to the island and creates 20 to 30 support jobs etc. grant them 10 year work permits immediately. A support job in this recession is better than no job in this recession.
4. Reduce payroll tax for to what it was before.
5. Stop the Hospital project immediately and remove the government debt. We are in a recession, this government should NOT be doing a 300 million dollar project when it is debt for a billion plus!
Just my 2 cents… I have more but I can’t let them all out of the bag
More photo ops from the PLP. They want to be seen to be doing something, however, there is a significant lack of experience and motivation which precludes anything substantive from happening.