Video: Premier David Burt Press Conference
[Updated] Marking his first official press conference since the election, Premier and Minister of Finance David Burt held a press conference this afternoon [July 25], where he was accompanied by members of the newly-sworn in Cabinet.
The press conference has just concluded and we will have additional information later on, and in the meantime the 11-minute video replay is below.
Update 6.02pm: The Premier’s full statement follows below:
Good afternoon to the members of the media, my ministerial colleagues, civil servants present and the people of Bermuda.
It is an honour to stand here today at the conclusion of our first Cabinet meeting as the new Government. This morning, we reviewed our ministries in order to address the pressing issues facing this island. In the coming days and weeks, we will roll out precisely how we will implement our first 100-day plan which was endorsed by the people of Bermuda last week.
One of the most important matters discussed today was our plans for public education. The Minister of Education and the Minster for Public Works are working diligently to ensure that all schools will be ready for our students. Additionally we will be keeping our promise to increase financial support available to students who may wish to attend Bermuda College in the autumn.
We have spoken on many occasions about getting Bermudians back to work and ensuring fair treatment. Later this afternoon, the Minister of Home Affairs, the Hon. Walton Brown & Minster Lovita Foggo, Minister for the Cabinet Office with Responsibility for Government Reform, and I will meet with union leaders. We wish to hear directly from those that represent our workers their ideas of how we can work together to make Bermuda better. We will be a government willing to listen and we are confident that our public sector unions want only the best for Bermuda. Through collaboration this government will be able to create comprehensive plans to address any concerns. But the first step must be to open the floor for constructive dialogue.
Tomorrow, the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, the Hon. Jamahl Simmons and I will meet with members of ABIC – the Association of Bermuda International Companies. Next week we will meet with Representatives from ABIR – the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers. The objective of these meetings are simple, to ensure that we work together to build on Bermuda’s strength as a highly regarded and well-regulated international financial centre.
We see the unions and International Business representatives as important stakeholders as we work to create jobs in Bermuda. This government is committed to the prosperity of International Business. We know we can grow our IB sector AND put Bermudians First.
The two are not mutually exclusive and this government will do both. Together we will work collectively to advance our interests internationally while creating more opportunities for Bermudians locally.
In the last 5 days your government has been busy getting to work and “looking under the hood”. In the coming days I will provide an additional update on another matter of national importance to our economy.
The final matter that I would like to share today is that the House of Assembly will convene 2 months early in September to advance our legislative agenda as we begin to build an economy in Bermuda that works for all Bermudians.
I am happy to now take your questions.
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Did he resign?!?
YES DUNKLEY AND BOB RESIGNED!!!!
Best pre Cup Match present ever and the only day I wear the oba/UBP colors red/blue.
Dunkeley and Bob were both FIRED ! Get it right
Easily pleased?
no, but you should resign your life.
Burch has turned on hie evil eyes, ready to go.
Sure has, but they don’t ever turn off
I feel like I’ve been lied to already. I thought they were going to throw out empty promises. At least twice in in this video the Premier says that we will hear more details directly from the relevant MPs later in the week. I waited all week for these details and gave them the benefit of the doubt that maybe we would hear more today.
Why are you lieing to us already?! You promised us answers.
Good on him.
I love the mix of people there.
Ooops.
Where is Zane………………..
Zane is busy in New York (oh sorry that was canceled). I think he is planning another golf course redesign so we can attract somebody really cool.
Working on the golf course in st georges.
Completely different look on their faces with the reality of “empty Govt coffers” sunk in AND your hard-core supporters expecting a LARGE pay rise NEXT WEEK!!!
I hope a growth approach will increase the tax base. The problem is re insurance as an industry has been in the dumps for a while…. low interest rates and aggressive competition from more offshore sites but from US states wanting the business. It wont help to slow up or make business difficult for off shore business, I don’t think that will happen under Premier Burt as it did in the last PLP tenure, there are to many options to move for these business.
… not thrilled about gambling but it should bump revenues a little
Still sucking on sour grapes…lol
No…All that money went on AC
Well AC is a normal requirement in the summer to cool down, so maybe not enough. Lack of AC in schools has created the mould problem. Fans are not enough.
WOW glad to see the Col. dressed for the occassion ! With everyone else looking so smart…….he should show a little respect perhaps to the new Administration or is it tooooo old hat for him…. Been there, done that….got the ‘t’ shirt already…..?
@ Long Bay, stop grabbing at straws. There could be many reasons why the Col is not “dress for the occasion”. And, frankly, it really doesn’t matter. I’m, for one, am more concerned that he does right by me and not his attire.
Get your life!
maybe your nanna didn’t teach you to dress appropriately for every occassion. It is not only good manners, but a sign of respect for the host, the occassion, the other people attending, etc.
LongBay Trading Inc: While men look at the outward appearance God looks at the heart.
Delighted to seee that there are three women in Cabinet, women I believe represent 50% or more of the population of Bermuda.
Representation is key to inclusion.
You must be concerned about the lack of another kind of diversity in the cabinet then.
representation is key to inclusion but the PLP are not interested in inclusion. i give it 24 hours and we will see friends and family lining up at the trough waiting for their cushy civil servant job or “consultants” for underwater basket weaving
Interesting observation bee , did you question who insured all of those vehicles associated with the Americas Cup event ? Or did you assume that insurance wasn’t needed for temporary licenses ?
Was the fox guarding the henhouse ?
Let me guess . You thought that they’d be insured by companies that don’t even exist .
Glad to see a red tie and shorts. Lol hmmm
Please reinstate a technical school a.s.a.p. It will bring a huge reduction in crime, especially with the younger males whom hope is at a minimum!!
very smart ,,,, why does everyone think they need college ?
I know a lot of unemployed college graduates ! no so many unemployed plumbers !
Why do you think that criminals are only prone to do manual labor. I venture to suggest that many of them could do academics as well. What they need is better homes to reinforce the basic disciplines and then let the possibilities be open to all areas of study or activity. I speak as a black male from a single parent home and I have a terminal degree in the biological sciences.
Now get to work paving the roads!!
Road paving rates were much higher under the OBA than the PLP. They just didn’t tell anyone.
Yes they were pretty bad when I was there in December
Look under the hood Burt,you might get a finance lesson from the OBA if you look hard enough.
He’s a pretty sharp guy …. lets see what he can do. I don;t thing he’ll try to be inclusive ….. I think he knows there are only so many qualified lawyers,accountants etc that a population of 65000 can produce.
We have some sharp ex pats in Bermuda …. lets keep them
I think for schools we should look for the very best teachers to the children in Bermuda. How many great Bermudian teachers are there with only 65000 people ???? If you want to increase the standard and generate students to they can be do you do it with the best or hire based on citizenship …… I guess ask the parents …
Nice to see our new government dressed professionally EXCEPT the colonial with his unprofessional attire. You would think for the first press conference he would look the part. Never has a smile on his face miserable as always. Burt should not have chosen him or Zane. Watching there first first 100 days very closely.
They all look stressed out! It’s only day 5. Job looked easy from a distant – LOL!
My sentiments exactly! They’ve aged in a week.
Does anyone know when they puttin the fitness equipment into out public parks I need ta workout for summer splash?
Please do not sink us further into debt. Please do not chase the lifeblood of the economy away.
What a silly request. When the Oba borrowed it was okay. Not a word from you. The Govt barely has its feet wet and you start with this nonsense.
For the 50 millionth time… the OBA had to borrow money to pay the interest on the DEBT LEFT BY THE PLP. Add that to the outrageous Civil Service payroll and freebies. Honestly, where do you think money comes from?
@Wow. In 1998 the PLP was elected and the Government ran a balanced budget. In 2012 the OBA were elected and the Government ran a $300m deficit. In 2017 the PLP were elected and the budget is almost balanced. Won’t be long before the deficit reappears and the debt increases, just when the working population is falling and the PLP is still against non Bermudians. Enjoy the austerity imposed by the IMF.
The Premier makes a major announcement with meat and potatoes and the people respond with silly comments yet they say why can’t we all get along. See the hypocrisy. Not a word of criticism towards the ,OBA but lits of derision for the people from these hypocrites who need to be exposed.
We do not love the OBA. But we are not so forgetful either… The lesser of two evils. *cough* COI *cough* but I guess that’s gone with the wind
Jamahl with IB lol
Seriously. This is why the PLP can’t be taken seriously.
maybe he will tweet about it
Why did they use the OBA statement “looking under the hood” sounds like they still nipping at their heels feels like revenge language certainly not unity dialogue and a precursor to blaming them for not filling up the bank account enough after they blew it all last time …….. I am sure there is no play money for freebies especially as this years budget is already done ……….100 days ticking away
Now I want you to all hold your hands the same way! And so it begins!
Im willing to give them a chance as long as they dont do anything stupid like term limits again. We need to grow IB so we can compete with cayman who are laughing at us. We also need to deal with immigration which sadly for most of the plp diehards means giving more people status. Its going to happen by legislation or the courts. Dont dissolve the corporation of hamilton and dont raise taxes. Deal with govt inefficiency to raise more money. Stop sending youth offenders to the states fpr millions of dollars a year. Send them to the UK for free and use those savings fpr education. Trim the civil service too. Problem is again, the plp supporters wont like it at all. Gonna be a rude awakening.
Premeir Burt: Please allow me a minute of your time. The PLP Party has been given another chance by the majority of Bermudians whether, Black, White, Pink, or Purple. Enough with the mud slinging and un-pleasantries. It’s time to get to work and show ALL Bermudians that you are a government for us all. You appear to be an intelligent man and I hope that you can do all the things you have promised in your first 100 days without putting this island into any further debt. I along with the rest of the island will be watching.
I did NOT vote for PLP this time around as I was happy with how current Government was handling the economy and understood we needed to make money before being able to give it back to the community. I believe the ousted Government wanted to educate it’s people but in order to do so you need a healthy strong Bermuda. I don’t think has been very clear, somehow it’s been muddied and you will see that the new Government will face the same challenges and use the same strategy to grow Bermuda because it was working. So all of that is behind us now and I am open to giving our new Government a chance to run Bermuda and put BERMUDIANS first, it wont be feasible in all instances and that is what Bermuda needs to understand. I feel the new Premier articulates himself well, he has some really good people onboard. Wayne Caines is an awesome man who is passionate about the community and I genuinely feel he will do his best; it comes from his heart. Let’s get on board but hold our leaders accountable as we don’t have time to go backwards, other nations are moving forward and there are others waiting to take some of our glory so let’s unite…….maybe consider United Labor Party
“Enough Already”. What mud slinging are you talking about? Be honest if you hope to see the Govt do the same. Before the Govt could even take one step you are slamming them with tour condescending comments about giving them a chance. Typical superiority complex but you are too chicken to run and do anything to improve Bermuda. To prove it, I look forward to seeing what it is you will do so we can challenge you before you even say a word. Now wouldn’t that be something.
Not all Bermudians are qualified to work in International business nor do they all want to work in International business, you have a sector that are older and having to go back to college to get educated to work in International business may not be realistic for them. So is the focus primarily on the younger generation and do you believe all of the younger generation want to work in International business? I don’t think so. We need a well rounded, diverse group. We need masons to build homes, we need carpenters, we need service workers, Doctors, Lawyers etc. I think it’s great to have money’s available for our citizens to return to college or attend college but what expenses will you cut to make this happen? Making cut’s will affect the people of Bermuda in one way or another. You see you have to be able to make money to give it away or cut it back. Helping Bermudians or putting Bermudians first is important but with any country you still need overseas workers and what will you do to ensure that Bermudians (both black, white and other) get these jobs that has not been done before? You cannot force people to work, you cannot force people to have motivation, you cannot force people to attend college if people don’t want to attend. You see I believe there is a greater problem to solve, not slavery and not about being privileged it’s more about where are we as Bermudians. what are Bermudians prepared to sacrifice to see the growth of their country or do they feel it will be just given to them…
Well written
@ WOW – love that you tell all of us that spoke about the Col. to get a life and you piping up for anything and anyone that is critical of your PLP. Note to Self – they are ALL GROWN UPS and do not need you as their self appointed talking head. Got it? Try and keep up.