Topic: Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Baroness Sugg named UK Overseas Territories Minister
Baroness Elizabeth Sugg is taking over from Lord Tariq Ahmad as the UK Overseas Territories Minister.
UK election delays JMC
This year’s Joint Ministerial Council meeting between the UK government and British Overseas Territories has been postponed.
Britain’s bond with Cayman: Governor seeks to restore ‘trust and confidence’
Amid turbulent times for the relationship between the Cayman Islands and the U.K., Governor Martyn Roper sees himself as “the bridge” between the two countries.
Committee calls on UK to intervene if Overseas Territories do not legalize same-sex marriage
A committee of U.K. lawmakers is urging its government to intervene if the British Overseas Territories do not legalize same-sex marriage or abolish rules tied to belongership, the equivalent to Caymanian status, or a similar status.
Cayman, UK hold constitutional talks
The U.K. government will formally respond in the coming weeks to proposed constitutional safeguards made by the Cayman Islands government.
FCO director makes rounds in Cayman
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office director for the overseas territories, Ben Merrick, visited Grand Cayman on Friday, for a full day of meetings with government and local officials.
Cayman delegation to meet UK officials on constitutional reform
Opposition politicians and government will present a united front in talks with British officials over proposed changes to Cayman’s constitution designed to protect the island’s right to make its own decisions on domestic matters.
Cayman seeks veto power over future Governor appointments
Incoming governor Martyn Roper could be the last head of state in the Cayman Islands to be unilaterally appointed by the U.K., if the islands’ government gets its way.
Cayman’s UK rep to attend hearing for Commons Select Committee
Eric Bush, Cayman’s representative to the United Kingdom, is scheduled to attend a hearing with the Commons Select Committee on Tuesday as part of the ongoing inquiry into the relationship between the U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British Overseas Territories.
Cayman, UK resume crime-fighting cooperation
The U.K. and the Cayman Islands have reached an agreement that will allow the continued cooperation in the fight against money laundering and other crime under an agreement struck more than two years ago.
Opposition reacts to governor’s removal
The FCO disclosed that Mr. Choudhury would be continuing in a diplomatic post in London, from which, not incidentally, we can only infer that the “allegations” against the Governor could not have risen to any very serious level.
Governor officially removed from post
Cayman Islands Governor Anwar Choudhury has been officially removed from his post following an investigation in London into unspecified allegations.
BREAKING: Choudhury removed as Cayman Islands governor
The Cayman Islands Governor's Office announced Thursday that Anwar Choudhury has officially been removed from his post as governor of the Cayman Islands.
Premier: Cayman ‘will not be bullied’
Premier Alden McLaughlin has criticized the U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) as being “disingenuous” in regard to the Cayman Islands’ cooperation with British law enforcement, in a statement issued Monday afternoon.
Full statement from Premier Alden McLaughlin
It is correct that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Cayman Islands Government continue to have a difference of opinion on parts of the agreement termed the ‘Exchange of Notes’, but it is disingenuous for the FCO to say that the Cayman Islands is not cooperating with the UK with regards to investigating serious crimes.
Conflict between UK, Cayman over financial investigations
The National Crime Agency, the U.K.’s equivalent of the FBI, has claimed it is not getting the information it needs from the Cayman Islands in its anti-money laundering and criminal investigations.
Full statement from UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office released a statement Saturday, indicating that the Cayman Islands has pulled out of an information sharing agreement with U.K. law enforcement. This is the statement in full:
Manderson: Complaints about Gov. Choudhury ‘belong to UK’
Cayman Islands Acting Governor Franz Manderson has deferred any public release of the contents of staff complaints made against withdrawn Governor Anwar Choudhury, stating all such records belong to the United Kingdom government.
Bush drops Florida court action against FCO staffer
Cayman Islands Speaker of the House McKeeva Bush has abandoned an attempt via the American courts to retrieve years’ worth of emails and other documents from a U.K. Foreign and Commonwealth Office employee as part of a lawsuit Mr. Bush filed in 2015 claiming wrongful prosecution.
Cayman’s finances discussed at London meetings
The Cayman delegation to London met on Thursday with Miriam Sachak, head of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Economics and Financial team, to discuss the island’s finances.
Premier to update UK on beneficial ownership
Premier Alden McLaughlin is in London this week to meet with leaders of law firms, financial institutions, government departments and U.K. MPs. “This is one more opportunity to tell the good story that is Cayman’s to MPs and Peers,” he said.
Cayman in talks with UK on borrowing rules
While it has helped drive down Cayman’s national debt over the past three years, a financial management agreement between the Cayman Islands and U.K. governments has delayed major public projects and may also delay repayment of further debts, Finance Minister Marco Archer said this week.
Cayman’s cruise pier to go out to bid this year
A tender for a new cruise and cargo facility will likely go out in December once the final engineering study is complete, according to Tourism Minister Moses Kirkconnell. He said that study would inform the specifications for a request for proposals which should result in a contract being awarded by March next year for the two piers.
Overseas territories ministers to gather in London for annual meeting
Ministers from the British Overseas Territories will gather in London next week to discuss Brexit, economic development and good governance at the annual Joint Ministerial Council meeting.
EDITORIAL – From the desk of the Governor(s)
How much do the people of the Cayman Islands really know about their U.K.-appointed governors?
Applications open for FCO grad degree scholarships
The United Kingdom government’s Chevening Scholarships program is accepting applications for students who want to study for a master’s degree in the U.K. in the 2017-2018 year.
An adventurous career brings FCO officer to Cayman
In 1989, Matthew Forbes was about three months into his first posting with the U.K.’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office in Beijing, China, when the Tiananmen Square massacre happened.
Pre-UK ministerial meeting wraps up in Turks and Caicos
Anticipated consequences of the U.K. ‘Brexit’ vote was the major topic of discussion this week as British Overseas Territories leaders gathered in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Baroness Anelay will oversee Cayman for UK
Joyce Anelay, Baroness Anelay of St. Johns, will be the Foreign and Commonwealth Office minister with responsibility for most overseas territories, including the Cayman Islands, the Governor’s Office confirmed on Tuesday.
Have questions about Brexit? Government will seek answers
The Cayman Islands government will seek answers to residents’ questions regarding the pending departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union, officials announced Thursday.
