A private member’s motion filed by West Bay West MP McKeeva Bush is seeking a moratorium on new Wildlife Interaction Zone licences and the convening of a government task force on North Sound water-sports operations.
Bush, speaking with the Cayman Compass on the motion, said water-sports operation in the North Sound “has been a very aggravating and contentious issue for years”.
He is hoping, through his motion, that a solution will be found to the issue that has been a source of contention for local operators.
“As our tourism industry grows so [too does] the need for safeguarding Caymanian operators and` their investments. There are many contentious issues associated with the situation and I believe we have to address those issues in a wholesome way. So [the] setting up a task force of knowledgeable individuals to go through the various issues and make recommendations is a good start,” he said.
Bush, in his motion, which was seconded by Bodden Town West MP Dwayne Seymour, said for years there have been concerns over North Sound water-sports operations which the West Bay Central MP Katherine Ebanks-Wilks, now House Speaker, had identified and began looking into.
He argued in his motion that “there is continuing evidence of local water-sports operators being put in a less competitive position and disadvantaged in an industry that was built by Caymanians”.
The West Bay West MP is asking, through the motion, that the government considers setting up a task force “inclusive of a member of the Department of Environment, the Cayman Islands Coast Guard and local persons of knowledge with our snorkelling and fishing industries to address the various issues affecting local water-sports operators.”
He is also proposing that a moratorium be put in place on new licences until the task force has reported its findings back to government.
“I believe that the kind of ‘mom and pop’ business operators in the North Sound should be for Caymanian operators as that is how it began. The licences for such operations should be local only and any kind of LCCL licences need to be stopped as I believe that locals can find the wherewithal to do certain businesses. A moratorium is a good start,” he told the Compass.
Earlier this year, water-sports operators with expired Wildlife Interaction Zone permits, who applied for a new licence before 31 July, were granted a fee waiver as part of a government COVID-19 relief initiative.
The waiver would have benefitted up to 270 vessels.
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