Video: Minister Renee Ming Press Conference

[Updated] Minister of National Security Renee Ming is holding a press conference this afternoon [Nov 17] to highlight the Ministry’s 2020 Throne Speech initiatives. We will have additional coverage later on, and in the meantime the live video is below.

Update: The live broadcast has concluded and the 8-minute replay is below

Update 6.12pm: Minister Renee Ming’s full statement follows below:

Good afternoon:

As was indicated during this year’s Throne Speech, today’s economic and social complexities challenge law enforcement to sensitively and effectively police communities. Over the past year, the Bermuda Police Service has steadily sought to engage in best-practices as it relates to policing. It is our commitment to ensure that we put a greater emphasis on supporting the Bermuda Police Service, and during this Session, a Bill to create a Police Authority will be introduced to facilitate an open and collaborative forum to support the Bermuda Police Service and the communities they serve. We are seeking to introduce a Police Authority which will comprise Government House, the Government, the police, and laymen, working together to help establish Bermuda’s policing priorities and determining the funding required to properly support our valued service.

Bermuda, on the issue of violence, we know there is still much work to be done to bring lasting calm to Bermuda’s communities. And we are committed to safeguarding our neighbourhoods and communities.

The Ministry of National Security will continue its priority of tackling the root causes of crime and working towards reducing violence in our community. Our intent is to create a National Crime Prevention plan that will focus on prevention, rehabilitation and reintegration. The National Crime Prevention plan will forge key partnerships with stakeholders to identify policies and programmes to reduce crime and ensure that our community is protected.

We intend to utilize our existing mechanisms to address gun, knife and gang violence – this includes continuing with initiatives such as the GREAT Programme, which restarted with the resumption of schools; the Redemption Farm programme which is set to restart with a new cohort of trainees; and continuing to support the important work of the Gang Violence Reduction Team (GVRT) – which has been invaluable during the pandemic and most recently during our increase in violent activities.

Lastly, we want to ensure that we are providing Bermuda’s vulnerable and at risk families with the right guidance and support they need to thrive. It’s been said that a healthy family setting is important as it provides a sense of belonging to those who make up the family unit. As part of our focus this upcoming session, we will seek to develop secure family structures by providing parenting classes to mothers, fathers and guardians. We believe that our vulnerable and at risk young people will be the ultimate beneficiaries as these specialized guidance sessions will contribute to their emotional, social and behavioral development.

Thank you.

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