Cruise berthing referendum motion heading to Parliament

Government has filed its motion to seek lawmakers’ support to trigger the referendum on cruise berthing in the Cayman Islands.

The motion, which is expected to be debated at the next sitting of the Parliament, was recently filed and is seeking a resolution from the House that the question “Should the Cayman Islands develop cruise berthing infrastructure?” be declared a matter of national importance.

The Cayman Compass obtained a copy of the motion, which is also seeking a resolution of the House that the question be specified in a bill and brought by the government to Parliament for debate in accordance with the provisions of Section 69 of the Constitution.

No date has been been yet for the next sitting of the Parliament; however, the Compass understands that the debate on the government motion will be the main focus when the House is called.

The Compass has reached out to Tourism Minister Kenneth Bryan and the Ministry of Tourism for comment on the next steps for moving the public campaign forward on the referendum, and is awaiting a response.

The vote on cruise berthing, which was announced the end of July, has been received with mixed reactions.

Cabinet approved a $1.2 million increase in funding for the Elections Office to hold the  referendum.

The additional funding was given the green light at Cabinet’s 30 July meeting after government approved conducting the referendum “on the development of cruise berthing to support the cruise tourism industry”, which is expected to be held before the end of 2024.

Both sides making their case

Bryan, who will be piloting the motion in the House, has previously said that the referendum is strictly seeking a “directive” from the electorate and does not back any proposed plan to introduce piers.

Parties on both sides of the issue have already started making their case for or against cruise berthing, urging voters to consider the implications of the choices.

Leading cruise ship operators, speaking at the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s annual State of the Tourism Industry Conference held earlier this month, warned that the Cayman Islands risk being bypassed by the next generation of cruise ships unless the jurisdiction builds berthing facilities which would allow passengers to walk ashore instead of being tendered.

Cruise Port Referendum Cayman has launched a survey seeking the public’s thoughts on the proposed cruise berthing referendum.

The grassroots group said the survey addresses “critical issues including environmental impacts, economic considerations, and the prioritization of government resources”.

Pro-cruise berthing group The Association for Advancement of Cruise Tourism has taken aim at CPR’s survey, saying it “is a classic example of a “push poll”, where questions are designed not to gather genuine opinions but to lead respondents towards a pre-determined conclusion”.

The Elections Office, which is also preparing for Cayman’s general election in April, has been putting systems in place to hold the referendum vote later this year.

“From an Elections Office perspective, we have commenced logistical preparations and are standing by for the progression of required referendum legislation,” Elections Supervisor Wesley Howell told the Compass on 11 Sept. via email.

How the process works

The Elections Office had previously confirmed that only those who have registered before the 1 July deadline will be eligible to vote in the port referendum when it is triggered.

As of 19 July, the revised list of electors totalled 23,529 registered voters, which will become official on 1 Oct. subject to any claims and objections.

This upcoming government-led vote is different from the people’s-initiated referendum which was triggered in 2019 by the Cruise Port Referendum group, mainly because there is no specific project being considered.

In the case of the 2019 people’s-initiated referendum, the question stated “Should the Cayman Islands continue to proceed with building the cruise berthing and enlarged and refurbished cargo port facility?”

However, for the planned vote under the United People’s Movement administration, the question is broader, with Bryan previously stating there is no specific project driving the call for the community’s position.

When the tourism minister pilots the motion in the House for the referendum and its question, it will be debated by MPs and then must be passed by the Parliament to authorise a government-initiated referendum.

Once the motion passes, the government will then need to publish a Referendum Act to set out the details of the referendum.

The referendum bill will be subject to a 28-day public consultation process, unless waived by the premier who has the power to deem the matter so urgent that it must forego the consultation period.

The bill would then head to Parliament for debate and vote.

If lawmakers pass the bill, then a referendum date can be set.

Bryan previously stated that he was aiming to have the referendum by late-October or mid-November.