Premier Wayne Panton said his PACT administration has no plans for a cruise berthing project, nor has government held any discussions with Royal Caribbean on the matter.
“We don’t have any plans to entertain that idea,” Panton said Wednesday afternoon as he responded to questions during government’s first press conference since taking office last month.
The port issue returned to the front burner this week following concerns raised by Cruise Port Referendum Cayman after Royal Caribbean CEO Michael Bayley said plans for a cruise berthing facility in Cayman had not been abandoned.
The cruise-line boss was speaking about the plans via Zoom at a Caribbean Tourism Organization forum held 28 April.
However, Panton said as far as he was aware, Bayley “has had no conversations with this government”.
The premier, who is also minister for climate change and resilience, had been vocal about the Progressives-led administration’s planned port project and lent his voice to public protests against it.
The project was abandoned by former Premier Alden McLaughlin following legal battles with CPR Cayman and community protests.
Tourism Minister Kenneth Bryan, who was the first Cabinet member asked about the project at the briefing, said the government had “not fully discussed” the issue, but he added, “We have no indication of any plans to do any cruise porting within this administration.”
Panton later clarified, “there are no such plans”.
Bryan was also asked whether there were any plans to move forward with the CPR Cayman people-initiated referendum on the proposed cruise port.
Bryan pointed to the legality of holding that referendum, saying after receiving “advice and direction” from the attorney general, that unless it was an identical plan to the one promoted by the Progressives, “a referendum would not stand, moving forward”.
Mandatory work-permit vaccinations?
While Panton has reiterated that reopening borders remain contingent on hitting a 70% vaccination target, he has said introducing mandatory vaccinations for work-permit holders is not being “actively considered at this point”.
“There are issues around it and until we can get more clarity around those issues, it’s not something that we’re actively going to consider. But, I think from our perspective, we want to implore our people to go out and get the vaccine and that’s the focus we’re taking at this point… just trying to encourage and cajole people to go and get it because it is the key for us going forward,” Panton said.
Last week Turks and Caicos made vaccinations mandatory for work-permit holders.
Here in Cayman vaccinations are voluntary.
As of 6 May, 69,299 COVID-19 vaccines have been administered.
Chief Medical Officer Dr. John Lee, in his 5 May report, said so far, 37,062 people (57% of the estimated population of 65,000) have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, with 50% having completed the two-dose course.
“Public Health continues to encourage the community who have not yet been vaccinated to come forward before 9 June 2021 to meet the expiration date of the last scheduled delivery of vaccines,” Lee said.
Cayman’s confirmed COVID-19 cases stands at 545 with 536 people listed as fully recovered.
Seven patients are asymptomatic and there are no hospitalisations.
At present, 664 people are currently isolating at government facilities or in their homes.
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