Cayman Islands National Party holds first rally

At its first official party rally, the Cayman Islands National Party delivered what it called ‘commitments’ rather than ‘promises’ it plans to make if elected, as its candidates took turns outlining changes to education, transport, development and immigration.

They also listed what they plan to do about the cost-of-living crisis, employment, healthcare, environment, government financed and, one of the big topics of the evening, traffic.

While party members have appeared en masse at members’ individual district public meetings, this was the official launch rally of the CINP, coming two weeks after the People’s Progressive Movement and The Caymanian Community Party launched theirs.

After a technical glitch with the candidates’ individual theme songs, leading to some of the members being introduced twice to the audience, they took to the stage at the Compass Green in George Town on Saturday night to the sounds of their respective tunes, as well as the ringing of cowbells, the blowing of vuvuzela horns and the waving of flags by the audience.

Party leader Dan Scott, the last to step onto the stage as the meeting got under way, did so to lyrics blasting ‘Dan Scott is De Man for Cayman’.

Tony Ritch, the party’s secretary general and emcee for the evening, introduced the 12 candidates – Scott, Nickolas DaCosta, Dawn Thomas, Jordan Rivers, Michael Myles, Julie Hunter, Vassel ‘Bud’ Johnson, Gary ‘Peanut’ Rutty, Gueva Richards, Haymond Rankin, Carmen McField and Craig Merren.

Each candidate took on a separate topic – effectively outlining a manifesto for the party.

Carmen McField, candidate for George Town Central, dealt with the issue of housing, saying many Caymanians can no longer afford to buy, or even rent, homes on the island anymore. “Our people are being priced out of their own homeland while the government turns a blind eye,” she told the crowd.

Haymond Rankin, standing in Bodden Town West, pointed out that Cayman’s National Development Plan had not been updated since 1997, and pledged that implementing a fit-for-purpose plan would be among his party’s priorities. A draft National Development Plan has been under review by government since last year.

Rankin said the lack of a development plan that is relevant to modern-day Cayman was one of the reasons behind the housing and traffic crises the island is facing.

Changing immigration processes

Gary ‘Peanut’ Rutty, standing in George Town South, who spoke on immigration, also pointed out that the ever growing population was impacting housing, traffic, employment and education on island, saying his party was willing to take “bold, decision action to ensure that immigration works for all Caymanians”.

He said the permanent residency and Caymanian status process “must be carefully structured”, and called for an updated version of the original Caymanian Protection Board to be established, as well as a requirement for companies to train locals.

He likened criticism that had been levelled at the CINP for being a party with no government experience to the barriers being placed before Caymanians who are not hired because they lack experience. “Where are you going to get experience before you get the job?” he asked.

Michael Myles, owner of Inspire Cayman Training and candidate for Prospect, reflected on his decades of work with Cayman’s youth development and advocacy, saying he was tired of hearing about children leaving school and remaining unemployed for years, and hearing from employers that Caymanians are not employable. “I’m so tired of hearing politicians make dumb excuses on why we can’t fix the education system,” he added.

Describing himself and his CINP colleagues as “change agents”, he said his party would ensure the “best teachers” would be in place in early education, so they would be there at the start of students’ educational journey, “not at the end when they cannot read and write properly”.

He added that national vocational training must be implemented in local schools.

Healthcare

Gueva Richards, running for the East End seat, spoke on health insurance and healthcare issues. She said the party intended to provide “proper regulations and oversight” and work on establishing a national captive insurance company to pool risks and subsidise health insurance premium costs, as well as monitor and negotiate rates and charges for standard healthcare supplies.

A review of how medical tourism licences are granted would also be carried out, she said.

Several of the candidates pointed to repeated administrations that had not delivered on their election promises , and asked why the electorate would vote to put back into power politicians that had served the country for years but repeatedly failed to do what they said they would while on the campaign trail.

‘A movement’ rather than a campaign

Scott, the last of the 12 to address the crowd, said his party believed in family, community, economic prosperity and “fostering hope”, as well as preserving “Caymanian values, traditions, heritage and our environment”.

He said this run for election by the recently formed CINP was “more than a campaign, this is a movement”.

That movement, he said, was one that would “reclaim the Caymanian dream, a dream where every Cayman citizen can thrive, where hard work leads to success, and no Caymanian is left behind”.

He told the audience, “No longer should Caymanians accept incompetent, self-serving politicians who have created the very problems” Cayman faces.

Taking a jab at the PPM, whose slogan is ‘Proven Stable Leadership’, Scott said, “Those politicians do indeed have a proven stable history of wasting government’s money on vanity projects to benefit the select few and to benefit themselves. We know the mess they have created. We feel the challenges our islands are facing.”

He said, “when elected”, his party would stop the “unfettered granting of Caymanian status; strictly enforce the requirements for companies to hire and to train Caymanians; bring relief to the cost of living crisis; ensure affordable homes for our families; deliver affordable and effective healthcare and education; strengthen law enforcement and restore security and trust to our communities; and address the traffic problem.”

Key commitments outlined at the meeting

Among the key ‘commitments’ the candidates laid out were:

• Develop and implement a National Development Plan.
• Implement a master ground transportation plan to address traffic issues, including overhauling public bus system and mandatory school bus services for public and private schools.
• Introduce speed cameras.
• Restrict the purchase of vehicles by temporary work permit holders.
• Review the path to Caymanian citizenship, including requiring government expat employees to adhere to the same rules to obtain permanent residency as those employed in the private sector.
• Increase the minimum wage.
• Implement a National Workforce Development Plan to train Caymanians instead of relying on imported labour.
• Improve the quality of early childhood education and introduce more vocational training in schools.
• Compulsory apprenticeship programmes for Caymanians as a condition of Trade and Business Licence issuance.
• Mandatory recycling as part of a modern waste management solution that would include a modular waste-to-energy system and composting.
• Stricter zoning laws and stronger legal protections for mangroves, beaches and reefs.
• Alternative insurance solutions to provide affordable healthcare coverage for all Caymanians.
• Remove fuel duty charge attached to electricity bills.
• Establish consumer protection legislation.
• Create affordable, fixed-rate mortgages for Caymanians with a government-issued 30-year fixed rate bond to local banks.
• Restrict land banking by foreign investors and prioritise Caymanians on land purchases.
• Streamline planning and building permits process to ensure faster turnaround time.
• Limit short-term rentals in certain areas, to make more rental housing available for Caymanians.

• Establish direct trade partnerships with countries in the region to help provide cheaper imported produce.