S.Atlantic : Financial Information and News (080108)
Submitted by SARTMA.com (Juanita Brock) 08.01.2008 (Article Archived on 22.01.2008)
Day 2 and the problem still isn't fixed so clients can view what was produced today.
SOUTH ATLANTIC ISLANDS NEWS TEAM
FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND NEWS
Tuesday, 08 January 2007
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CONTENTS
Section 1: Local News
Section 2: Relevant Internet News
Section 3: Business News from St Helena
Section 4: Industry News (Hydrocarbons)
Section 5: Relevant Financial Statistics
Section 6: Announcements and Adverts
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Section 1:
COUNCILLORS ADAMANT – NO CHARTER FLIGHTS OF ANY KIND UNTIL THE BAN IS LIFTED
By J. Brock (FINN)
Commenting on remarks made by UK Overseas Territories Minister, Ms Meg Munn that the Falklands and Argentina should work together to ensure the proposed Next of Kin went smoothly, Cllr Mike Summers, Council’s spokesman, has reiterated their view that there should be no charter flights until the Charter Flight Ban is lifted by Argentina.
This does not mean that Next of Kin cannot visit – just not via a flight from Argentina.
Cllr Summers said that it had been proposed that the Next of Kin come by ship as the huge number of visitors would be housed more conveniently on a cruise ship and it would suit catering for such a large influx of people..
Cllr Summers reminded the media that it was the Argentines who imposed the ban on all charter flights and, while it would seem sensible to allow charter flights in for the visit he didn’t feel it was right for the Argentines to break their own rules if and when they chose – no matter what the reason.
The Charter flight ban was imposed by Argentina in order to harm the Falklands’ tourist industry.
TAMAR-FI BACK IN STANLEY
By J. Brock (FINN)
Monday’s FINN reported that the Tamar had been grounded. Today it is reported that the Tamar had been stuck on the rocks near Kepple Island. According to Tim Cotter (reporting on FIRS) he received a phone call on Saturday morning from Tamar-FI’s Captain saying that his vessel was stranded on some rocks east of Kepple Island and that his attempts to re-float Tamar-FI were in vain. He requested assistance from another vessel and the St. Brandon went to the area to help. The first attempt to free the Tamar on Saturday evening was unsuccessful. The Military then released a tug from Mare Harbour with an air compressor to help re-start the engines. However, the St Brandon later managed to free the Tamar on Sunday morning due to higher high tides during this month. The Tamar-FI managed to dock in Stanley at 0800.
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Section 2:
RELEVANT INTERNET NEWS
Delegates attend OCT-EU forum
Published on Friday, January 4,
Acknowledging the solidarity between the Overseas Countries and Territories, and the European Union, the Cayman Islands stressed its desire to be involved in the revision of the European Union (EU) Savings Tax Directive, Jennifer Dilbert, the Cayman Islands Representative in the UK, noted Government’s position during the recent sixth Overseas Countries and Territories of the European Union Forum (OCT-EU Forum), held 27 to 28 November in Brussels.
Commenting that Cayman is aware that a committee has been formed to facilitate the revision, Mrs Dilbert requested that the territories – through the Overseas Countries and Territories Association (OCTA) – be represented to ensure that all perspectives are considered.
She also requested that the results of any appraisals resulting from examination and assessments from regulatory watchdogs, such as the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force or the International Monetary Fund, be carefully appreciated by the European Commission Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union.
The forum, which drew about 130 delegates, was also attended by Chief Representative from Cayman Cabinet Office Policy Analyst Christina Rowlandson; Mrs Dilbert’s Personal Assistant Kate Kandiah, and Cayman’s Chief of Protocol Virginia Madison.
The forum’s key theme, as noted by OCT Ministerial Chairman Stephane Artano, was solidarity between the OCTA and the EU.
“Not a static solidarity, but a solidarity based on active roles, both on the OCTs’ side and on the side of the commission. It is a solidarity that respects the OCTs’ right of self- determination,” he said.
Also addressing that relationship, Mr Artano explained that it essentially has its origins in the common citizenship of Europe; in our people, in each OCT; and the particular challenges they face. Essentially, those challenges are “economic vulnerability, both in the face of natural disasters and climate change,” he said.
The OCTs in the OCTA are constitutionally linked with the Netherlands, the UK, Denmark, and France. They are geographically located in the Caribbean Sea, and in the Pacific; Indian; and North and South Atlantic oceans.
The commission is currently interested in a renovation of OCT-EU Relations, which respects a familial type of partnership between the EU and the OCTs. Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid Louis Michel reinforced this theme during his forum presentation.
Other key agenda items included the need for speedier and simpler procedures relative to preparing, processing, and approving European Development Funds, in order to realise agreed sustainable development objectives.
Through this fund, the European Union has allocated significant general and sectoral budgetary support, for infrastructure as well as technical and managerial improvements, to the OCTs in all regions. In the Cayman Islands the European Commission is committed to financing repairs and reconstruction of houses after Hurricane Ivan devastated the Cayman Islands in late 2004.
Forum delegates also reviewed the work of the OCTA Partnership Working Parties on priority topics such as trade and the environment, including adaptations to climate change, and the OCTA Sustainable Development Seminar.
This seminar is expected to be launched in 2008 and will focus on risks and opportunities in four key areas: energy policy, hazard management, waste management and water sanitation, and environmental impact assessments.
The seminar’s overall objective is to promote best practice in infrastructure development in small island nations.
“All of these perspectives are at the heart of sustainable development of the OCTs,” Ms Rowlandson said. “Regional cooperation may be critical to developing these perspectives and to benefit from economies of scale.”
An OCT brochure titled Sustainable Development of the OCTs: The Economy at the Core of the Privileged Partnership with the EU also was presented by the OCTA, in order to draw attention to the economic stakes of EU decisions. The contribution from the Cayman Islands highlighted the financial services industry.
The brochure illustrates the OCTs’ different development strategies, as well as common traits such as public interventions in managing strategic resources.
What is the OCT-EU Forum?
The OCT-EU Forum is a tripartite that includes the associated and dependent territories of the EU; the European Commission; and the four EU Member States that have such territories (UK, France, Denmark, and The Netherlands).
The Overseas Countries and Territories Association (OCTA) comprises 17 members (Anguilla; Aruba; British Virgin Islands; Cayman Islands; Falkland Islands; French Polynesia; Greenland; Mayotte; Montserrat; Netherlands Antilles; New Caledonia; Pitcairn; St Helena and dependencies; St Pierre and Miquelon; French Southern and Antarctic Territories; Turks and Caicos Islands; Wallis; and Futuna).
More information about OCTA, including the ministerial declarations from the 2007 meeting, is available on www.octassociation.org.
Reprinted from the Cayman NetNews
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Section 3:
BUSINESS NEWS FROM ST HELENA
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 18 DECEMBER 2007
This Exco followed hard on the heels of the last one only a week ago. There is a great deal of business to get through, and this meeting was necessary to ensure that we get a good start to 2008. It began as usual at 9.30 and although divided into the normal two sections – open to the public and not open to the public – none of the public was present.
The first four items were all matters that were returning to us from consultation. You will remember from last week that I highlighted the fact that both policies and legislation will be presented at public meetings so that anyone can have a say in what our Councillors are advising.
The first was the Land Disposal Policy. This is about the manner and price at which the government will dispose of land for house building. During the consultation phase there have been those who feel that the pricing has been set too high, having only a 50% discount, others have felt it to be too low and capable of depressing private land values. The major concern is for those who find it hard to afford their own homes; the younger members of the community or those with low incomes. It was felt that if the discount were to lower the price even more, it would benefit those who are better off just as much as those who have less. It was revealed that when Ann Muir returns in January she will be tasked with making recommendations about the affordability of housing, and so the advice was that we should leave the policy in its present form.
The Land Planning and Development Control Bill had received some detailed recommendations during the consultation phase, for which we are most grateful. These are being studied by the Attorney General and some of the recommendations will be dealt with during the committee stage of the bill in Legco during January.
The public had raised no concerns regarding the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, and the Mutual Organisations Bill had been the subject of some minor changes – both will now proceed to Legco.
You may recall that during November we agreed to proceed with a Population Census during 2008. The draft forms had been trailed with 60 households, and although some minor amendments had been made as a result of that, on close examination there were several uncertainties in the form that require clarification. One key issue is that of confidentiality. There will be a great deal of information about each individual resident on these forms and we feel that it is important that there is a reasonable guarantee of anonymity for all those completing them. Thus each form will have a front page, where one’s name will be filled in, and that will subsequently be removed from the rest of the document. So although each one of us will be traceable, because the forms have an identifying number, the clerks actually processing the data will not be aware of the identity of the person concerned. Amended forms will be looked at again by Exco early in the New Year.
Under Matters arising from last week we felt that the Tobacco Control Action Plan should be made public. This is to enable discussion even before a policy is recommended in order to ensure a robust democratic approach to this issue.
It was reported that certain Health & Safety issues that had recently been raised regarding the new Community Care Complex had been thoroughly dealt with, and the Attorney General informed us that he is progressing with the final drafting of the Financial Services Legislation. That will be ready for consultation and public comment shortly.
The issue of whether St.Helenians will be affected by the decision by the UK to reduce holiday visas from 6 months to 3 was raised, and I undertook to look into that.
This was another business-like session that ended around 11.40. We parted for a breather before the demands of 2008 bear in on us.
AMG 18th December 2007
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