Falklands : Public Meeting Report (22/08/06)
Submitted by Falkland Islands News Network (Juanita Brock) 23.08.2006 (Article Archived on 06.09.2006)
Find out what happened during this lively meeting.
PUBLIC MEETING: TUESDAY, 22 AUGUST 2006
By J. Brock (FINN)
A public meeting took place in the Court and Council Chamber of the Town Hall at 1700hrs on Tuesday, 22 August 2006. Present were Cllrs Summers (Chair) Clausen, Cockwell and Robertson. Three other Councillors were at a Tourist Board meeting and one was away. There was no theme for the meeting so it was up to the public that attended – approximately 30 people – to field the questions.
Former Councillor Stephen Luxton began by asking about an update on the tender awards of Coastal Shipping. Cllr summers said the advertising process ended last Friday and that a paper would go to EXCO on Thursday. Ex-co may decide on a preferred bider but if not the process will be carried forward next month.
Tim Miller asked what happened to two questions – one on Bio Security and another about Tourism and the FIGO stand at the Royal Show. Mr. Miller expressed concern that there are no forms or procedures for people on the air-bridge.
Cllr Summers said that questions on Bio Security would be answered when Robert King, the Collector of Customs, returns to the Islands in September. The Vet, Mr. Vic Epstein, assured people that there would be something in place sooner rather than later. It would mean possibly 3 months of advertising before customs clamps down on individuals.
Mr. Miller’s second question dealt with the fact that tourism was the emphasis at the FIGO stand at the Royal Show, yet the Director of Tourism, Mrs. Connie Stevens, wasn’t at the stand. She had moved to the UK to be of use but had neglected this important venue.
Cllr Summers said that due to the relevant councillors being at the Tourist board Meeting, the answer would be put on hold. Perhaps they would return during the meeting and answer the question.
Lewis Clifton asked why the appointment of Julian Morris’s successor has taken so long. Cllr Clausen said that the person co-ordinating the recruitment of a new General Manager of FIDC was in the UK for 6 weeks and didn’t begin the process until returning. This brought questions about how FIDC would function wile it had no General Manager. Cllr Clausen said that Chris Simpkins would take over the guidance and support and that the team was a good one and would function as normal until there was a new person at the helm.
A member of the public then asked why it was that a new Director of Tourism had not been recruited and Cllr Summers said that Tourism was not in Government’s remit. He was further questioned as to why two Councillors were on the Board. Cllr Robertson added that a Councillor was Chair of the Board. However, the notice time for the job was three months. It was thought that a longer period would not be beneficial to the person or the organisation in that it is difficult for a person who doesn’t want to be in the position any more to function.
Cllr Summers agreed about the concerns about the general manager of FIDC but not with the concerns about the Director of Tourism.
Another member of the public asked where we were with the Integrated Transport Study. Cllr Robertson said she saw something that indicated the process of dealing with it would begin in September. Cllr Summers said a report about public feedback would be sent to Ex-co in September. Issues like infrastructure and the type of service, etc. would be dealt with when more Councillors had returned from overseas duties.
Lewis Clifton mentioned that the Military had withdrawn the Chinook and needed the cross-sound ferry to re-supply mountain tops on the West. Cllr Summers mentioned that the Military were highly interested in the concept of a cross-sound ferry. Former councillor Stephen Luxton mentioned that the community generally tended to work things out if they needed to be done.
Cllr Robertson mentioned that she had brought up revisions to the seat belt law with the press and it was suggested that due to the absence of Councillors there should be a public meeting to discuss the changes at a later date. The simplification was still hard to digest but Councillors present wanted the bill passed before the present Attorney General, Mr. David Lang QC retired in November. He had worked tirelessly on the bill and it would delay the bill even further if someone new had to deal with it after Mr. Lang retired. Hopefully it would pass by the end of October. Passing the law in bits and pieces would be a legal nightmare.
Former Councillor Luxton brought up the firearms regulations and Cllr Cockwell said there was no point in progressing the regulations further because the Chief Police Officer and relevant Councillors were away. Cllr Summers mentioned that there was a revised policy paper for the public to consider.
Nick Hutton mentioned that Cllr. Summers had mentioned that other Councillors had not mentioned a smoking ban in their manifestos, yet they were making decisions on it. Cllr Clausen mentioned that when manifestos were being written they were on the outside looking in and problems can diminish or escalate as time goes on. Cllr Robertson agreed but said that many of the areas, like national health, that touched on the smoking policy were mentioned in Councillors’ manifestos. Cllr Summers mentioned that after the election all the councillors were asked to list 6 of their priorities and then met to collate them into a reasonable list of objectives. Cllr Cockwell said that once elected, a Councillor’s portfolio dictated the priorities.
Mike Forrest asked about whether the Islands Plan would be updated and Cllr Summers said that Council was happy with the plan as is but would review it mid term. It wasn’t something that needed to be changed every year. There was progress on the second report on the constitution that would be issued on Wednesday or Thursday this week.
(With reference to the content of Manifestos, Cllr Robertson said that there were also unforeseen items like the Dockyard Project that came up after Council was elected. That wasn’t in anyone’s manifesto either.
Dr. Barry Elsby felt that things like the anti smoking ban and the seatbelt law, etc. should be decided by public referendum. Cllr. Robertson, with reference to the smoking ban in public places, mentioned that there was a hospital survey from which the information was used to write up the policy. Nick Hutton wanted to know if status holders would be the only ones that could take part in a referendum. Cllr Summers said the hospital questionnaire went out to everyone and that a referendum would be complicated. Tim Miller didn’t see anything in the form that mentioned a smoking ban. Cllr Robertson said the benefits gained from the ban outweighed the infringement on anyone’s human rights. Cllr Summers said he thought a referendum on smoking policy would be very unhelpful. Light-heartedly, Lewis Clifton mentioned that we could ban the import of cigarettes.
The rising costs of Medical treatment overseas caused concern to several members of the public. Cllr Cockwell said that in the 1960s 20 people a year went away to Montivideo for treatment and that was the only place they could go. Mike Summers said that Dr. Roger Diggle had done a lot of work in writing up the reasons why the costs had risen in the past six years. There were more treatments available to people and they now had a choice to go to the UK or Chile for treatment.
The Dental Department was brought into focus, with an ever increasing waiting list. Cllr Robertson mentioned that only 26% of children in the Infant/Junior School got the all clear when there was dental screening earlier this year. She added that an affluent lifestyle meant that kids got more sweets and worse teeth. There was also an emphasis on saving teeth rather than just pulling them out when they were bad. Annie Gisby mentioned that things ran smoothly when there was a dental hygienist in post. Lewis Clifton said that there was neglect in recruiting a dentist. Cllr Robertson mentioned that people’s teeth got worse during the waiting period and she knew something had to be done. Cllr Summers mentioned that a paper would go to EXCO in due course.
Finally, Rob McGill Brought up the appalling service of Coastal Shipping over the past few years and hoped that something would be done about it. Cllr Summers mentioned it was discussed in the Transport Advisory Committee on Monday and that it was always Council’s aim to do better.
The meeting ended at 1810hrs.
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