Falklands : Falklands - The Election Manifesto of Dr Richard Davies
Submitted by Falkland Islands News Network (Juanita Brock) 14.12.2007 (Article Archived on 28.12.2007)
Dr Davies abandoned his seat when he became Acting Chief Medical Officer.
THE ELECTION MANIFESTO OF DR RICHARD DAVIES
If you care about the way the Falkland Islands are governed I hope you will use your vote on the 3rd of January.
First of all, let me explain why it has been necessary to hold a by election. I have not resigned my seat but I have been told it has become vacant according to the interpretation of the Constitution. This bars somebody who is acting as Chief Medical Officer from being a Councillor. This is contrary to the advice I received previously from Government, who told me that the rule did not apply to the Acting Post and that I could fill in as Acting CMO during Dr. Diggle’s absence. Furthermore, they wrote a new contract last year requiring me to do exactly that. This appears not to have been properly checked although I had specifically asked and expressed my concerns on several occasions.
The Government has apologised to voters and myself for this embarrassing and expensive oversight. However, the only way to regain my seat and fulfil the commitment I made two years ago is by winning the by election.
If I am re-elected, I will continue to act as a Medical Officer but I will not act as CMO when Dr. Diggle is on leave. The Department will delegate his duties appropriately and without additional expense.
I want to talk about three important issues I mentioned in 2005 and briefly mention some other current issues. There isn’t time to go into any depth but if you want to know more, phone me, or if you have internet access go to my blog on http://www.richardspage.horizon.co.fk.
The most important challenge for us is to continue to secure self-determination for ourselves, for our children and grandchildren. We must continue to strongly defend our right to remain British in the face of Argentine propaganda and economic harassment. We can be quite clear and confident that Argentina has no valid claim on the Falklands but this does not mean we can afford to be complacent.
For generations successive Argentine governments have brainwashed their people to think that they have a claim over us. I personally have got no quarrel with the Argentine people but I do have a big quarrel with their politicians and with their corrupt, aggressive, cynical policies towards the Falklands. Argentina uses its considerable resources at every opportunity to winge about this claim and the supposed injustice of 1833. It is nonsense but its dangerous nonsense because it’s wide-spread. And, I am sorry to say it was repeated again by Christina Kirshner, the new President in her speech on Monday.
To promote and secure our future I am sure we need to do two things. Firstly, it is vital to get a clear, consistent message across. Our case is a lot stronger than Argentina’s but it needs to be put across at every opportunity. Our case is rarely heard outside the United Kingdom and, in particular, is rarely heard in South America. South Americans understand about justice and self-determination. And, in my experience, they are ready to listen but at the moment they only hear Argentina’s message.
Secondly, we must continue to hold the moral high ground and show the rest of the world that we have a more mature, less corrupt government than they do and that we are prepared to co-operate on issues such as the conservation of fish stocks.
Let us be quite clear that such co-operation is nothing to do with negotiating sovereignty. It is not even a step towards it. We will never negotiate on our right to remain British and to govern ourselves.
In the last two years I have used every opportunity to raise the subject and to promote our right to self-determination. I put the Falklands case clearly and consistently at four meetings of the United Nations Decolonisation Committee and strongly argued against the Argentine claims.
To move on to more domestic issues, I strongly support fair treatment of all employees in Government and the private sector and I campaigned for this in 2005. The Government has a particular responsibility to set a good example as it is the biggest employer in the Islands. We have to insist on equal pay for equal work. It’s quite unacceptable for people to be doing the same jobs side by side and be paid at different rates.
We need clear, effective policy to get Falkland Islands’ citizens into jobs and it needs to be well publicised. We need job security, fair sick leave provision, flexible working arrangements for parents, proper consultation with employees. In 2005, I said I can’t promise to change things on my own but I will make sure your case is heard. And, I believe I’ve done that. There is still a way to go but progress has been made.
In my first year on Council I supported and helped to achieve a proper cost of living award for Government employees following consultation with the Union. More recently, on my instigation the Chief Executive has been tasked to look at a range of problems in Government centring on working conditions and the retention of employees.
The Government has introduced a complaints procedure for employees isn’t perfect but it is a start. And, the last thing I did before losing my seat was to ask for the policy on positive discrimination to be clarified and applied consistently because I am very concerned this doesn’t always happen.
Employers shouldn’t be nervous about this. It should be obvious that to achieve a good quality of life for all we have to ensure a healthy economy and a vigorous private sector. And I will support policies to achieve this.
However, when setting the budget we do have to look at social, political and quality of life issues as well as economic ones. And, regarding the Abattoir, I don’t believe in throwing good money after bad. But I haven’t yet been persuaded that we should pull the plug on it. It may not be simply a question of continuing a subsidy or pulling the plug. There may be other options. I would support the suggestion made by Michael Hart in his report that we should consider an independent review of FIMCO but only if we are prepared to take its conclusions seriously.
Among other things the Falkland Islands need is a deep water port and we have to find a way to fund this. As an ex-seaman, I can’t see how this can be achieved at the FIPASS site.
I am pleased with progress in a number of areas. The Historic Dockyard project is well off the ground and it will, when finished, offer facilities for local people as well as being a tourist attraction which will boost the economy.
There is a shortage of affordable housing and plots to build on. Over the last two years we have developed a coherent housing strategy to address this problem. And, there are signs it is beginning to work with private developers and land owners showing an interest in house building. The private sector is going to find more economic ways than Government will.
A year ago I proposed a ban on smoking in public places and I believe it will come to fruition although it has been slower than I hoped. The ban in Scotland has not been difficult to implement and it hasn’t harmed pubs or other businesses. Moreover, the rate of heart attacks in Scotland in smokers and non smokers has dropped by nearly 20% - that’s 1/5th. I don’t want to stop people smoking if they want to and I certainly don’t want a ‘nanny state’ but smokers should not smoke where it can harm other people.
Regarding open Government, we have still got some way to go. There have been some improvements but many decisions and discussions still take place in secret. I am now more confident about the changes that are needed. Two years on Council has only confirmed my belief that much of Executive Council discussion could be held in public. I proposed a motion calling for this but I lost my seat and that debate did not happen. At the very least the minutes of EXCO meetings should be published. Other governments such as the Welsh Assembly Cabinet do so. I do understand the arguments about having some debate in private but I believe that they are outweighed by the benefits.
I would like to talk about other issues including Education and Holiday credits and Pensions but time does not allow it. Feel free to give me a ring, or if you have internet access, have a look at my blog.
In a democracy everyone’s vote is important. Thank you for listening.
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