OBA: Land Policy Reversal Welcome
Opposition Leader Craig Cannonier said the One Bermuda Alliance welcomes the land policy reversal, and noted that “Government has been in damage control for most of the past year, scrambling to reverse policies that have not worked.”
Yesterday [Feb.17] Minister Wayne Perinchief announced that a policy requiring mixed status couples to buy a land licence will be revised. The law came into effect in 2010, and required property owning couples of whom one is non-Bermudian to obtain licences costing $1,375.00.
Mr Cannonier said, “It can be argued that the PLP Government has done more to harm the Bermuda economy than any other single entity.
“It drove up debt to the point that it now chokes our ability to respond to economic slowdown and help people in need, with debt interest payments now costing a staggering $190,000 a day.
“It alienated international business people with careless words and counter-productive policies. It presided over a ten-year collapse of tourism as a meaningful arm of the economy.
“The damage from its flawed policies has caused untold stress on Bermudian families, in the form of lost jobs for thousands, reduced paycheques and shrinking business earnings.
“The Government has been in damage control for most of the past year, scrambling to reverse policies that have not worked. Today’s rollbacks on land policy are the latest step in this process.
“The One Bermuda Alliance welcomes the statement by the National Security Minister, but we shake our head at policy-making that has caused so much distress and damage.
“Make no mistake; this was bad policy from the start. It discriminated against Bermudians who happened to fall in love with and marry non Bermudians, instantly making them second class citizens in their own country. It undermined the value of real estate owned by hundreds of families.
“And it gave international business people one more reason to consider moving their businesses elsewhere. The outflow of international businesses to other jurisdictions cannot be separated from the 2007 legislation, and every Bermudian who saw their rental income go down or disappear since should consider the cause.
“The Minister, by stating that today’s policy reversal is intended to ‘stimulate’ the economy, is admitting the 2007 policy helped depress it. The Minister, by stating the 2007 policy “unduly and adversely” affected Bermudians married to non-Bermudians, is admitting the discrimination at the heart of the policy.
“We sympathize with the people who had to pay for a licence during this period. For many, it severely strained family budgets and was fundamentally unfair. Perhaps the Government can address their concerns directly.
“The reversal of the 2007 land policy – a policy that went too far – is welcome,” concluded Mr Cannonier.
Um, just one problem, its not a reversal. People still have to get licences for their 2nd or 3rd or more properties, its a revision.
But OK OBA keep spinning. We know you are after the votes of wealthy Bermudians that own multiple houses, meanwhile most are happy to have just one.
This is a real vote winner, show people your foreigner’s first creditials.
Just like the last election, status for Permanent Residents, I can’t wait to see what other rewards you plan to give to those who are bankrolling your campaign.
Not a reversal?
Um, yes it is a reversal. It applies to every mixed couple, for their house. If they happen to have more than one house, it applies to their main property. It reverses the policy that has applied since 2007.
For those of us us that are not morons, it is obvious that the greatest number of people own just one property. Therefore every mixed couple who owns any property will benefit, because every mixed couple who owned an real estate were discriminated against. The reversal doesn’t apply to multiple houses at all.
It’s pretty amusing that morons like you resort to lies to defend the failed policies of the PLP.
By the way, when you say you ‘can’t wait to see what other rewards you plan to give’ , are you talking to Perinchief? He’s the one that has put the reversal in place. You are aware of that aren’t you?
You’re pretty confused aren’t you.
Let’s see, you’ve called me a moron while at the same time proving my point.
If it was a reversal, the entire policy would have been reversed and that didn’t happen.
You howevever keep free to calling me a moron and an idiot for expressing a different opinion. I just hope come election day you aren’t too dissapointed.
Majority of voters have less than 2 or more houses.
I think the interest on our debt is more like $200,000 per day and not $90,000 per day. We are all watching Bermuda fall into economic servitude. And how ironic. PLP have turned away from those who they are suppose to protect.
What a joke.
There are only about 100 people with that kind of money. The others have left.
And your point is.?
@ understanding how about the reward of having a county left to call home as the way i see it if the plp get back in you can say goodbye to you way of life as every bermudian and non bermudain that ,makes this island tick and with an ounce of brian power is planning an escape route
Ahh! Let the scaremongering begin. Same thing was said in 1998, 2003, and 2007. It clearly doesn’t sway people, but keep up the scaremongering and let me know how that works out.
N wur have we been headed…gettin progressivly worse or betta?
just look around, numpty.
The OBA don’t need to scaremonger, if you want a fright, just read the latest Bermuda Government financial statements. Continuing to spend $100′s of millions more than the Government is earning and with the credit lines near to maxed out. Within 12 to 24 months Government employees will start to see their pay checks bounce. That is of course unless the Premier really does ‘grasp the nettle’, as she is so fond saying, and start laying people off.
No, the ‘scaremongering’ by the opposition in 2007 pointed out the economic difficulties that did in fact come, and are here now. At the time, the idiots in government said “you’re wrong, Bermuda is different”, “you don’t understand”, “you’re just making mischief”, and, best of all “we don’t care what you think”.
In other words, the PLP stuck their heads in the sand.
And now we have thousands unemployed, companies leaving, empty houses, government housing that stands empty, and Cox suggesting a good way for gthe government to save money would be for everyone to stop contributing to their pensions.
What a mess you lot have created. And you still call it ‘scaremongering’? No, it isn’t. The future is here, mate. Cox and the government haven’t got a pot to pee in. You and every one of the idiots that voted for them are going to start paying for that mistake, if you aren’t already.
Dude, you must be a very angry man who doesn’t have the power of influence you had pre 1998, let me help you out.
1) No one stuck their head in the sand, PLP just like UBP said that economic troubles are coming, its just that different sides have a different approach to tackling finacial issues. PLP focussed on demand, and made sure that by spening and yes borrowing, demand could be maintained in the economy.
2) I love how you say companies are leaving when we have news articles about companies COMING to Bermuda.
3) Empty houses are about markets. Empty houses mean lower prices which means more people have a chance to own which stimulates the economy. Its all part of an economic cycle which, this idiot understands.
The mess is a matter of perceptions. However the kids gettting an education going away to school coming back and suceeding don’t agree. The people working hard to provide services and to help bermuda emerge from the rececssion don’t agree.
The same governement that oversaw the BOOM in reinsurance in Bermuda from 1998 until now, will be the same governmetn to usher in new markets. The sad thing is, you’ll probably be angry when your country (if you are even bermudian) suceeds.
This idiot doesn’t need to be lectured by you thanks.
“The mess is a matter of perceptions.” No it is not! It is about REALITY and PLP/BIU PARTY cannot spin reality. Sorry dude, the only perceptions that are unclear here are yours! Our Country is going to hell in a handbasket.
Soon the PLP/BIU Party will be history -or- Bermuda will be history!!
We need a change.
@Understanding..
Clearly more companies (or more importantly people) are leaving than coming. This is plain to see. Look at the empty apartments, the lack of congestion in the morning…nothing like what it was. Private and nursery school advertising like never before…you’d be ray charles not to see that…
Having said that, empty houses are a reflection of the markets, yes. the market that has been beaten down because of the large numbers that have left Bermuda…More people have the chance to own, yes, if they had a job and the banks were lending which they arent due to lack of confidence and progressive increases in non performing loans..read the bma report.
Make no mistake, the PLP cannot take credit in the growth of the IB industry. The seeds of its boom were planted clearly 10-15 years before they got in power. What the PLP can take credit for is the entrance of HSBC into this market which I credit as a crucial precipice of where we are today….100% mortgages, the wealth effect created…$1.3B that flooded the market – a good bit of which went into real estate investment..this same institution which now charges a full 3 points above the 30 year rate which means they are making a killing while our people, your people, struggle to make mortgage payments in this environment. This same instiution has the power to move Bermuda out of this recession simply by reducinig mortgage rates and/or re-pricing mortgages…yes they will take a hit short term…but their market will be made healthier sooner and that has to be good business…
So if you want to talk proper fiscal management, I will agree that the PLP may have seen it coming, but frankly did not know how to manage the tsunami that was headed its way…it had never lived through it before.
Bermuda will come out of this…but this is not the world of second chances…Bermuda will have to adjust to a new normal. We have been identified as a not so friendly and yes, unpredictable environment with respect to government policy..where labour is not mobile due to stringent immigration poliices…S&P and Moodys said so. So companies will not return in droves to Bermuda. Plus, places like Dublin, the isle of Man, Guernsey have studied and copied our business model and have been more than hospitable in welcoming them to their shores.
I am a PLP supporter. And a close personal advocate of our Premier. All is not lost…but to be sure…we have significant challenges ahead of us…and the sooner the masses appreciate the magnitude of the challenges, the better we will be
By spending the PLP hoped to create demand in the economy? Putting to one sude how that’s a re-write of history, it was a complete failure wasn’t it. Empty houses and apartments are everywhere, and shops are closing by the week because they don’t have customers. So much for borrowing a billion dollars to ‘create demand’.
Have to admit that I was very worried in 1998 but a good friend said “Don’t worry, the PLP will discover graft long before they kill the goose that laid the golden eggs”. That statement was true as long as Eugene was alive. Then EFB came along and graft became an art form to the point that Bermuda is toast.
Interesting how all this GRAFT, somehow never gets picked up thought audits and finacial intelligence and by the police. No prosecutions, nothing. Quite interesting isn’t it.
Interesting, yes. But karma is real.
no scaremongering just the facts how many ib companies have left already, how mny have streamlined how much debt is bda in when plp pay civil service 600 mil but only make 420 by payroll and 200 by duty now if civil service takes up all that how are they paying for every thing else
The amount of companies that have left/gone out of business due to a global event is not the issue. Of course companies streamline, its called capitalism.
I’m with you on one thing, civil service is a bit big, however better to borrow during a recession, than fire civil servants and find yourself in a deeper recession.
We know that Paula likes to claim that it’s the global economy at fault but the fact is that the big companies in Bermuda are expanding, just not here. In fact they’re shrinking their Bermuda operations.
As for captives, in 2010 Bermuda lost 40 captives, Cayman gained 41 [those are net numbers]. That continued in 2011 – despite the increase in the number of incorporations Bermuda still lost more companies than it gained.
Societe Generale has stated that “Bermuda has made itself obsolte”.
http://cnsbusiness.com/content/ci-winning-insurance-market
As for tourism, I don’t think anyone will argue that the global economy has no effect but somehow, despite that our comptetitors have managed to see gains in the number of tourists coming to thier shores (and not just cruise ship visitors).
I am a Bermudian and I am leaving, just a fact. Anything I would have added to life here, or my family would have, will not be there to help you in the future, limiting your options. I am voting with my feet like I should have in 98, like I wanted to in 03 and how I know I should have in 07. I will be sure to cast my vote on election day to be counted, even though the way the system has been set up there is no way it can make a difference due to where I live. I will still vote, and then I, and my wife and child who cannot vote, will leave regardless of who “wins” because it took 15 years to get here and it will take at least as long to get back. I’m prepared, finally, shouldn’t you be?
Nah mate, doing just fine. And sorry to hear your predicament, but my life is much better than 1998. House and a job and a kid doing quite well in PUBLIC school.
Sorry its bad for you i really am, and I hope you get a chance to come back.
“… my life is much better than 1998 …” Yours must be the ONLY ONE!! Probably because you can get at the feed trough as a PLP/BIU Party bootlicker!
@Keeping it unreal: I’m with you. Wife and dog already left. On the bright side, there may be a couple of jobs opening up soon.
@ Understanding: Yes, the same thing was said, was called “scaremongering” then, and was repeatedly ignored, and look where we are!!! Exactly where the scare-mongerers said we’d be if we didn’t wake up, and you STILL aren’t listening – while we go to hell in a hand-basket! NONE so blind as those who WILL NOT see. SMH
Yes let the scarmongering begin. Why is it that we have the highest debt ever fro this little country? Why is it that IB is leaving here if we have such an attractable package for them to domicile here? Why are the division between classes getting wider? Why are members of the Governement above the law?
These things have all happen since 1998 until today. Some have gotten away with more than others but my gosh, what a way to destroy a thriving economy and tourist haven.
@Understanding – Your argument is so compelling. The PLP have such an amazing track record to run on don’t they. No scaremongering is needed at this point. It is a clear choice for the voters. 2012 will be a very different election campaign from all the others you mention. The PLP are definitely on the defensive right now. If they were confident of winning they would have called it by now. The biggest problem the PLP will have is apathy. Good luck getting people out to vote for a Government that has lost credibility with it’s own support base…never mind the swing vote.
Really, why is it that you all continue to fight just like the people in the House? Listen to yourselves. For all you OBA supporters, the young voters are tired of hearing the same UBP talk coming from you and your party. Actually they are tired was all the fighting from both sides that goes on in the House! When are you all going to learn to work together. We, the people, don’t care who makes or changes the Law, as long as it is fair for all!
We are Bermudian and have never voted for the OBA, many of us voted for the PLP,but have since been proven wrong to do so bythe PLP.
poor craig, not one comment here mentioned him
Craig can’t handle discourse at this level.
@ Phoenix – And Paula Cox can? She is has such a wonderful flowery way with words that when she finally finishes whatever she has said most people are left wondering what in fact she has said…
Craig would rip Paula to pieces at any debate. Just bring it!!!!!!!
This isn’t about him.
Poor Craig nothing! This is not an OBA issue. This is just another example of the PLPPLoP party not knowing what their doing. Every policy the flipflop PLP has tried to introduce has been reverse. This is another example proving that the flopPLoP party cannot run this country and have run out of steam. The FlipPLoP need to be voted out so we can get good governance!
From it’s inception this policy was nothing less than a form of apartheid and in gross violation of almost all basic human rights in a property owning society. This Government needs to be fired and sent to the Worker’s Paradise of Cuba where creeps like them belong.
It’s most interesting that the Opposition Leader could produce a press statement on the “Land Policy Reversal”, yet when he had the opportunity to speak on the matter in the House on Friday, he was silent as he usually is. Everybody should know by now that Mr. Cannonier says nothing, but his handlers say it all for him on paper. What a joke!!
But he does get more than 8 votes doesn’t he.
Unlike your good self Ms. Furbert…
You say it sister! Those who yack on all day and all night are obviously intelligent beyond question.
@ LaVerne: It is time for people to get the point that it doesn’t matter who says it, the message is the same – the PLP is not, and has not, been doing the best job of running the country. In fact, it is difficult to imagine who could have done a better job of running the country into the ground.
Please stop trying to shoot the messengers and deal with the message.