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2018/2020 SESSION of the BERMUDA HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY OFFICIAL HANSARD REPORT 14 February 2020 Sitting number 35 of the 2018/2020 Session (pages 2955–3066) Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., JP, MP Speaker Disclaimer: The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for informational purposes only. The printed version remains the official record. Official Hansard Report 14 February 2020 2955 BERMUDA HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY OFFICIAL HANSARD REPORT 14 FEBRUARY 2020 10:06 AM Sitting Number 35 of the 2018/2020 Session [Hon. Dennis P. Lister, Jr., Speaker, in the Chair] MESSAGES FROM THE SENATE PRAYERS The Speaker: There are none. [Prayers read by Mrs. Shernette Wolffe, Clerk] PAPERS AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS TO THE HOUSE The Speaker: Good morning, Members. The Speaker: There is a paper this morning in the [Gavel] name of the Minister of Education. Minister. CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES [Minutes of 31 January 2020] Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Good morning, Mr. Speak- st er. The Speaker: Members, the Minutes of the 31 of January have been circulated. Are there any amend- The Speaker: Good morning. ments, corrections, adjustments to be made? There are none. The Minutes are confirmed BERMUDA EDUCATORS COUNCIL (EXEMPTION) as printed. (2019 TO 2020 SCHOOL YEAR) AMENDMENT ORDER 2020 [Minutes of 31 January 2020 confirmed.] Hon. Diallo V. S. Rabain: Mr. Speaker, I have the MESSAGES FROM THE GOVERNOR honour to attach and submit for the information of the Honourable House of Assembly the Bermuda Educa- The Speaker: There are none. tors Council (Exemption) (2019 to 2020 School Year) Amendment Order 2020. Thank you. ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE SPEAKER OR MEMBER PRESIDING PETITIONS APOLOGIES The Speaker: There are none. The Speaker: Yes, this morning we have two sets of STATEMENTS BY MINISTERS announcements. The first is that we have been noti- fied by two Members that they will be absent today. The Speaker: We have five Statements this morning. MP Ben Smith and MP Pearman have both indicated The first Statement is in the name of Minister Foggo. that they will be absent. Minister, would you like to present your Statement? REPORT OF 25TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF SPEAKERS AND PRESIDING OFFICERS Hon. Lovitta F. Foggo: Yes, Mr. Speaker, with your OF THE COMMONWEALTH permission. The Speaker: The second announcement is that ta- The Speaker: Go right ahead. bled this morning is the report from the recent Speak- ers’ conference [the 25th annual Conference of THEMES FOR HERITAGE MONTH Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Common- AND BERMUDA DAY wealth (CSPOC) in Ottawa, Canada] that was attend- ed by myself and the President of the Senate. And Hon. Lovitta F. Foggo: Thank you. Good morning to that should be on your tablets as part of the infor- the House and to the good people of Bermuda. mation for today. Bermuda House of Assembly 2956 14 February 2020 Official Hansard Report Mr. Speaker, Heritage Month is a celebratory Islands of the Caribbean have never been homoge- time when all Bermudians have the opportunity to re- nous. And one has only to look, for example, at our flect on our commonalities rather than our differences, traditions of celebration, architecture, food, music, art on what unites rather than divides us as a people. It is and family customs passed along from generation to a time to think about what it means to be Bermudian generation to appreciate the various racial and ethnic and what makes our cultural identity unique. pools from which our culture is composed. Mr. Speaker, the Department of Community Mr. Speaker, Bermuda is indeed, as we de- and Cultural Affairs has long advocated for Bermuda’s scribed with our parade theme from a previous year, a cultural heritage to be something celebrated all year tapestry of cultures. As the Government, we appreci- long rather than solely within the confines of a single ate that our diversity is also our strength, something month, and the quality and quantity of their program- that we can all celebrate as Bermudians. This is why, ming has consistently reflected this goal. With this in Mr. Speaker, we have looked to emphasise the history mind, I am pleased to announce that the Heritage and contributions of the communities which we com- Month theme for 2020 is “We are Bermudian.” This prise—most recently in last year’s celebration of 170 will also be the theme for the Department of Commu- years of Portuguese presence in Bermuda. And look- nity and Cultural Affairs for the entire 2020 calendar ing forward, we are delighted to be able to participate year. as the primary sponsor for the St. David’s Islander Mr. Speaker, this will allow the department to and Native Community’s biennial pow wow taking organise their programming around issues relating to place in June of this year. national pride. Especially given the strong emotions Mr. Speaker, we are excited to see what kind surrounding cultural identity, this theme provides our of ingenuity and creativity parade participants will citizenry with the opportunity to give consideration to bring to bear on the entries for this year’s parade. We what it truly means anytime that anyone makes the hope to see examples of the colour and flare that is proud declaration, We are Bermudian. part of the legacy gifted to Bermuda from the rich cul- Mr. Speaker, I think most will agree that the ture and history of our Caribbean ancestors. And it is jewel in the crown of Heritage Month is Bermuda Day my hope, Mr. Speaker, that in exploring this theme, it and the Bermuda Day Parade. On occasion, Mr. will provide us with the opportunity to more fully ap- Speaker, the Department of Community and Cultural preciate who we are and where we come from. Par- Affairs has set a parade theme that is different and ticularly this year, as we celebrate 400 years of the distinct from the overall Heritage Month theme; this is first sitting of Parliament, our shared history is a such a year. As the department uses the theme for touchstone that all Bermudians can claim and utilise the year to explore what it means to be a Bermudian, as a means to better know each other and ourselves. the theme of the parade will focus on one of the root Thank you, Mr. Speaker. cultures that form the base of our Bermudian identity. So, Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to announce The Speaker: Thank you, Minister. the Bermuda Day theme: “Celebrating our Caribbean The next Statement this morning is in the Connections.” name of the Minister of Works. Mr. Speaker, Bermuda’s connections with the Minister, would you like to present your Caribbean are profound on a number of levels— Statement? historic, familial and cultural. In fact, Mr. Speaker, as was made evident in a talk by Honorary Consul for St. Lt. Col. Hon. David A. Burch: Mr. Speaker, yes, I Kitts and Nevis, Mrs. Louise Tannock, hosted last would. Thank you. Good morning. month by the Department of Community and Cultural Affairs, there are an astonishing number of Bermudi- The Speaker: Go ahead. ans who can trace their recent lineage to St. Kitts and Nevis. UPDATE ON THE OTTIWELL SIMMONS ARBITRATION CENTRE The Speaker: Hear, hear! st Lt. Col. Hon. David A. Burch: It was November 1 Hon. Lovitta F. Foggo: If one examines Bermudian last year that I reported on the state of plans for the surnames in relation to those commonly found in par- Ottiwell A. Simmons International Arbitration Centre. ticular Caribbean Islands, as one can see at an exhibit So I rise this morning to provide a further update. Let at the National Museum of Bermuda, for example, you me first acknowledge that we did not meet the dead- will see the connections to Saba, Jamaica, St. Lucia, line of December 31st, 2019, for demolition (as men- Dominica, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Trinidad, tioned in that Statement) for a variety of reasons, but as well as a host of other Caribbean nations. most notably, few plans survive contact with this bu- Mr. Speaker, one of the commonalities that reaucracy. we share with our Caribbean cousins is a culture Mr. Speaker, to remind, in 2017 the Bermuda which reflects a wealth of diversity. Like Bermuda, the Business Development Corporation proposed that the Bermuda House of Assembly Official Hansard Report 14 February 2020 2957 vacant property be converted into an international ar- JOINT INITIATIVE WITH BELCO bitration centre. And in the 2018 Speech from the Throne, it was announced that this would be the direc- Lt. Col. Hon. David A. Burch: Mr. Speaker, if you are tion of the Government and that the building would be a road user in this country, then the announcement of renamed the Ottiwell A. Simmons International Arbi- a plan to coordinate road trenching and remediation tration Centre in honour of this most distinguished works with all the entities involved will be welcome Bermudian. news. For many years, various service providers at Mr. Speaker, with a view to preparing for this one time or another have on their own carried out project, the building was stripped out last year and a road trenching works to install or repair equipment building survey was carried out by our engineers, who under the public roads, oftentimes without much re- discovered that there were serious structural cracks to gard for the landowner—the Ministry of Public the external walls which would require the front and Works—or the road-using public. rear facades of the building to be rebuilt. It was also Mr. Speaker, just over a year ago, in an effort discovered that the water tank and electrical main to address this issue, the Ministry implemented a poli- supply is shared with the adjoining Valerie T.