Parliament voted to pass the National Coalition for Caymanians first budget, with the bill passing in spite of four members of the opposition choosing to abstain.
The Appropriation (Financial Years 2026 and 2027) Bill, 2025 was passed with 11 votes in favour, no votes against and four abstentions from opposition leader Joey Hew, opposition deputy leader Kenneth Bryan, Pearlina McGaw-Lumsden and Roy Tatum. Four MPs – Katherine Ebanks-Wilks, Roy McTaggart, Juliana O’Connor-Connolly and Dwayne Seymour were absent.
After the initial vote was taken, Hew asked for a division of the house, meaning that each member’s vote is recorded individually, which revealed the abstentions.
‘Abundance of joy’
Finance minister Rolston Anglin said “it gives me an abundance of joy” to present the bill to Parliament, a sentiment echoed by Premier André Ebanks when the bill was passed.
Standing in the chamber, Ebanks thanked all MPs for their participation, saying, “The country now has a budget, and it gives me an abundance of joy to know that my finance minister is smiling.”
Parliament was then adjourned until 2pm on Wednesday, 10 Dec.
The PPM opposition party later issued a statement saying that they had abstained from the vote “due to concerns about the administration’s financial strategy of tax, borrow, and spend, and the impact this approach may have on Caymanians.”
Budget concerns
The PPM statement said that its first major concern “is the proposal to borrow $236 million over 2026 and 2027 without a clearly defined plan for how these funds will be used,” adding: “This lack of transparency is troubling.”
Another concern was that “consultation with Caymanian stakeholders – particularly small business owners – is still underway on the Government’s proposed revenue measures. While the PPM recognises that the budget contains some positive initiatives, the concerns outlined prevented us from offering full support. We therefore abstained in the best interests of the people we represent.”
Details of the new government’s budget, which amounted to a record $2.5 billion spending plan, were announced in Parliament on 6 Nov. Premier Ebanks
Premier Ebanks described it as a “transformative blueprint for a stronger, fairer Cayman” which increased spending on healthcare, education and training, as well as additional funding for social housing and financial assistance.
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