News from Grand Cayman

Canadian budget airline Westjet has announced details of seasonal, non-stop flights between Grand Cayman and Toronto.

Flights will commence in November 2010 and run until April 2011. The service will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.

Outbound flights leave Toronto Pearson International Airport at 9.40 am, landing at Owen Roberts International Airport 4 hours later. The return flight to Canada departs from Grand Cayman at 2.35 pm.

Introductory one-way fares start at 189 CAD plus taxes.

A list of 2011 public holidays in the Cayman Islands has been released by the Deputy Governor’s Office.

All are confirmed with the exception of the date for the Queen’s Birthday which awaits confirmation from the UK.

A delegation from the Cayman Islands headed by the Premier, the Hon. McKeeva Bush, met officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London last week. Colin Roberts, Director of Overseas Territories Department, chaired the meeting. His Excellency the Governor, Duncan Taylor, also attended.

The aim of the talks was to discuss how to deal with the challenges faced in balancing the Cayman Islands’ budget and to consider credible and deliverable measures with which to eliminate the recurrent deficit in the public finances of the Cayman Islands by the end of the 2012/13 financial year at the latest.

In view of the financial situation that the Cayman Islands finds itself in and the findings of the Miller Commission report, the meeting agreed that swift and significant action, including cuts in Government expenditure, needed to be taken to bring public spending back onto a sustainable track.

An economic team from the FCO will visit Cayman during the week of 22 March to conduct an economic review. They will also discuss with the Financial Secretary and his team the production of a draft three-year plan to deliver sustainable public finances, which could be presented with the budget for 2010/11 in April. The plan will need to feature measures to reduce public spending to an affordable level; a properly costed strategy for managing public assets, perhaps including private finance initiatives; a clear estimate of borrowing requirements; and possibly new measures to broaden the revenue base.

The meeting agreed that current levels of expenditure are not sustainable. The FCO and the Governor welcome the commitment made by the Premier to bring public expenditure back onto a sustainable track The FCO recognises that decisions on exactly how to achieve this must lie with the Cayman Islands Government but undertakes to do what it can to help.

New legislation banning smoking in public places came into effect today.

One of the key elements of the Cayman Islands’ Tobacco Law 2008 is that smoking restrictions will apply in certain public places from December 31 2009.

Buildings covered by the law include enclosed restaurants and bars, public transportation terminals, public toilets, shopping malls and shops.

The legislation permits designated smoking areas in open areas of bars and restaurants. These must be clearly signed and 10 feet from non-smoking areas.

His Excellency the Governor, Mr. Stuart Jack, CVO, and his wife, Mrs. Mariko Jack, have announced that they will depart the Cayman Islands on Wednesday, 2 December.

Deputy Governor, the Hon. Donovan Ebanks, MBE, will act as governor until Mr. Duncan Taylor, CBE, takes over the position in January 2010.

Until recently, Mr. Taylor was the British High Commissioner for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, a position he held from 2005. The posting covered Antigua and Barbuda; the Commonwealth of Dominica; Grenada; St. Kitts and Nevis; St. Lucia; and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

A career diplomat, Mr. Taylor was born 17 October 1958. He has served in the UK’s Foreign Service for 27 years.

The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism is improving its customer service to cruise passengers at the Royal Watler Cruise Terminal with the opening of the new Visitor Information Centre.

The office, which primarily acts as a hub for incoming passengers interested in tours, attractions and facilities on-island, boasts a striking mural of Caymanian photos representing the culture and beauty of the island.

Since the Royal Watler Cruise Terminal received its first cruise ship in October 2006, the Department of Tourism has been stationed in an old Caymanian-style temporary office in the open area. This new space offers a professional environment that not only allows guests to cool down from the heat, but moreover provides guests with a visual depiction of Cayman’s unique and diverse offerings with the anticipation that it will entice guests to experience something new.

‘The new space we have at the Royal Watler Cruise Terminal will positively impact the visitors’ experience with DOT staff when requesting information and brochures on the islands’ attractions, watersports, restaurants and everything else the Cayman Islands has to offer,’ said Racquel Brown, Manager – Tourism Development Services for the Department of Tourism.

In addition to supplying information and materials for incoming visitors, the office supports the Cruise Conversion Programme, ‘Welcome Back’, which encourages cruise passengers to return as stay-over guests. ‘Welcome Back’ will be relaunched November 2009. For the first time, the Department of Tourism has a physical and convenient location for guests to register for the programme and for staff to be able to deliver personalized service and enhance awareness about ‘Welcome Back’ to cruise passengers.

Government has declared November 6 a public holiday to mark the introduction of Cayman’s new constitution.

The day will be a public holiday in 2009 only.

Banks, many shops, and government offices will be closed for the day.

Getting married in the Cayman Islands has just become a little more expensive.

In a bid to reduce its budget deficit, government has increase a number of fees, including those for marriage licences. Licences now cost CI$150.

Fees for attorneys, and music and dancing licences were also raised.

The Butterfly Farm closed for business earlier this week, blaming lack of tourists on the island as the main reason for its demise. Rebuilding costs after Hurricane Ivan were also a factor.

The butterflies, which have a lifespan of around 2 weeks, will be allowed to die out and will not be replaced. The gift shop will remain open until the weekend.

The company behind the attraction also operates farms in Aruba, St Martin and St Thomas. All are doing well and will remain open.

The UK has given the Cayman Islands permission to borrow $279 million to help deal with its financial crisis.

Leader of Government Business McKeeva Bush broke the news at a United Democratic Party meeting last night. He was speaking after a week of talks with the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

The UK has given immediate approval to $50 million of borrowing. The remainder is conditional on the Cayman Islands making cuts in financial expenditure over the next two financial years. An independent study of the impact of direct taxes on the islands’ economy will also be carried out.

Mr Bush outlined significant cuts in government expenditure including new staff hire, purchases of furniture and equipment, and non-essential travel. He stated there were no immediate plans to introduce income or property taxes. Additional revenues will be raised by increasing customs duties by two percent, passport fees, tobacco duties, and introduction of new duties on luxury and other goods.

The legalisation of gambling was also mentioned as a potential source of new revenue. Mr Bush stated that if this was considered necessary, the matter would be decided in a referendum.