Falklands : Emma Edwards' Motion for Adjournment Speech
Submitted by Falkland Islands News Network (Juanita Brock) 28.10.2010 (Article Archived on 11.11.2010)
Mr Speaker, Honourable members, I actually had a long closing speech on the smoking ban and how we are all going to be happy to support it etc., etc.
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY MOTION FOR ADJOURNMENT SPEECHES
The Hon Miss Emma Edwards:
Mr Speaker, Honourable members, I actually had a long closing speech on the smoking ban and how we are all going to be happy to support it etc., etc. However, it hasn’t quite gone through today and I would be much happy to know that when it does go through we are all in agreement with what has gone through in the legislation rather than forever seeing little amendments going back, here, there and everywhere. I just feel that we need to get things right and, if it takes a little bit of extra time then so be it.
I would like to nudge my Honourable Colleague to the right, who sits on the Transport Committee. Here we go again. It’s all about the Gypsy Cove Road and the road to Murrell. To call them roads – I still think is a little bit misleading. I would refer to them all as tracks. They are definitely in need of some TLC. Both of these roads are very important routes for our tourism industry. And I am not sure, given their current state of repair, that our visitors to the Islands will actually be leaving with the impression that we would like them to leave with. So please urge the Transport Committee, please try to find some funds and perhaps even a bit of time for our road gangs to at least grade them, improve them and make them, rather than tracks, into roads. That would be great.
I am also pleased to see that the toilets are back at Gypsy Cove, much to the Honourable Gavin Short’s dismay. However, please understand that the Tourism Committee are not particularly happy with these toilets. They are not really suitable for the type of work that they do – that’s coming out wrong. However, they do get terribly smelly on days when they are very heavily used. Although this is going to be a stop-gap measure for this current season, it is something which we are going to have to seriously look at and improve for the future years. Not only that, unless the road is actually fixed to Gypsy Cove we could find our toilets being shaken to bits as they have to be carted away of an evening to be emptied. So we do need to have a more permanent and a less smelly solution down there at Gypsy Cove.
Whilst we are on the sort of subject of environment, I received a very interesting e-mail from a member of the community the other day expressing their concern over a proposed shooting party of ducks – or mass slaughter of ducks. Currently we’ve got a duck shooting season and its fine. I don’t actually have a problem with people going out and blasting away at the poor little innocent Teal Ducks. I personally don’t like eating them. I find it’s a mouthful of lead half the time. But I do have a problem when ducks are being shot just for sheer pleasure of being shot. And currently we don’t really have any legislation in place that actually puts a quota on the number of ducks which are shot. I’m not saying it should be an outright ban. I don’t believe that because I do know that people like shooting ducks and like eating ducks. But I am a little bit concerned at the back of my mind that something like this could actually start to hurt and damage some of our duck populations in certain ponds and areas. I would be very interested to hear from members of the public what they have to say on this particular subject.
I, too, would also like to welcome our new Governor Haywood to the Islands and his wife, Louise. And I would like to wish them a very enjoyable time in the Falklands and I hope they catch lots of Trout and lots of other fish as well. And if the weather continues in such good style as they brought with them on the Saturday they arrived I also wish them a very good summer and a very good 3 years here.
Honourable Members, I support the Motion.
(100X Transcription Service)
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