ESTABLISHED 1965 www.caymancompass.com – 50 CENTS – MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 High of 87 Low of 76 Moderate with wave heights of 3 to 5 feet. EDITORIAL | PAGE 4 DOES THE UK HAVE THE FORTITUDE TO FIGHT THE EU’S TURPITUDE? WORLD | PAGE 12 BRITISH ROYALS TO CELEBRATE 70TH ANNIVERSARY SEVEN MILE BEACH WATERFRONT WALKERS ROAD TOWN CENTRE PLAZA RED BAY Nov. 30 is key date for pension refunds Some confusion over payout process BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com Although the effective deadline to meet eli- gibility requirements to receive a pension “re- fund” payment for Cayman Islands private sector employees is Dec. 31, 2017, it is likely that in many instances, the worker seeking that refund will have to leave their employ- ment by Nov. 30 to obtain those funds. According to the revamped National Pen- sions Law, which governs private sector pen- sions in Cayman, the territory’s six multi- member retirement fund administrators will cease issuing cash refunds from pen- sion plans at a specified date, although they will still allow transfers of funds in those plans to analogous retirement savings ac- counts in other countries. The rules also apply to single-client pension plans. Public employee pensions, governed under Cayman’s Public Service Pensions Law, are not affected by the rules for private sector re- tirement funds. The practical process for obtaining pension refunds does not seem to be well understood by many workers now leaving or considering leaving the islands to obtain their pension monies, HSM law firm managing partner Huw Moses said Friday following communications from firm clients who noted they were re- ceiving conflicting information. “We believe there’s a high level of confu- sion among people applying for these pen- sion refunds,” Mr. Moses said. “It appears the law is being interpreted differently by dif- ferent providers.” The Department of Labour and Pensions issued written advice to all private sector pen- sion plan providers on Oct. 26, 2017, which has HOW GOVERNMENT PLANS TO SPEND $1.5B BRENT FULLER bfuller@pinnaclemedialtd.com More than 80 percent of the Cayman Is- lands government’s core budget will be spent in five general areas over the next two years, according to a breakdown of planned public sector spending in 2018 and 2019. The central government’s operating ex- penses for the two-year cycle are anticipated to be just more than $1.3 billion. Added to the operational spending is nearly $193 mil- lion for capital projects during the period, for a total of $1.5 billion. Comprising 22 percent of the territory’s budget will be security-related expenses (po- lice, immigration, customs, etc.), based on fig- ures provided to the Cayman Compass by the financial secretary’s office. The other four top-dollar areas, on average, in the two-year budget include general gov- ernment services (18 percent), education (17 percent), health (15.5 percent) and social secu- rity/welfare (9 percent). Additional areas of government spending include economic affairs (8.5 percent), finan- cial services (4 percent), tourism (4 percent), culture (1 percent) and environmental protec- tion (1 percent). The only difference between the 2018 and 2019 budget breakdown is that economic af- fairs receives slightly more funding in 2018 and health services receives more during 2019. The figures do not include expenditures made by the government’s separately oper- ating statutory authorities and government- owned companies, some of which are self- funded as independently operating entities based on fees their customers or users pay. However, the government is expected to pay a total of $11.4 million to cover the overall More gas stations seek Sunday liquor sales JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com A decision on whether gas stations and liquor stores should be allowed retail licenses to sell alcohol on Sundays has been de- ferred pending legal advice. Tortuga Rum Company ap- plied in September to open its liquor stores on Sundays, while Peanuts Convenience Store at Red Bay gas station has also re- quested a renewal of its retail li- cense, which entitles it to sell al- cohol on Sundays. Brown’s Esso has submitted similar applications for Sunday sales at its locations in Indus- trial Park and Red Bay, which are scheduled to be considered at the Liquor Licensing Board’s next meeting on Dec. 1. Board chairman Noel Wil- liams confirmed Friday that the applications from Peanuts and Tortuga were still under review. “We have deferred those deci- sions because we wanted further clarification on the meaning of the law,” he said. “We have fur- ther information from the at- torney general and we are re- viewing the entire circumstances prior to making a final decision. Hedge Funds Care raises funds, awareness to combat child abuse Hedge Funds Care Cayman’s ‘Committee of Hearts’ gather at the charity’s annual fundraiser at the Kimpton Seafire resort on Saturday night. At the front row, center, from left, are, Jennifer Collins, treasurer of Hedge Funds Care Cayman board of directors and director at Carne Global Financial Services; Renee Skolaski, executive director of HFC; Dr. Bart Grossman, academic consultant for HFC and adjunct professor emeritus at University of California, Berkeley; and Cindy Hislop, chairwoman of the HFC Cayman board of directors and Committee of Hearts, and partner at Deloitte. For more on this story, see page 8. – PHOTO: STEPHEN CLARKE PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 » PLEASE TURN TO PAGE 9 »2 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Daily Matinees Every Day $8.00 Seniors, Mon-Fri Before 6pm Cayman Cinema@cbcinema6cbcinema6 JUSTICE LEAGUE 3D (PG13) 12:30 2D VIP I 12:50 I 1:30 2D 3:50 I 4:20 2D I 6:40 2D VIP 7:00 I 7:10 2D I 9:35 2D VIP 9:50 2D I 10:00 2D MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS (PG13) 1:00 I 4:00 I 7:00 I 9:50 THOR: RAGNAROK 3D (PG13) 12:50 2D I 3:20 2D VIP I 3:55 I 6:55 2D 9:55 TYLER PERRY’S BOO2! A MADEA HALLOWEEN (PG13) 1:30 I 4:20 I 7:15 I 9:45 *Additional charges will apply per 3D ticket requested. 640-FILM (640-3456) SATURDAY NIGHT: For your viewing pleasure, minors under the age of 18 will not be admitted to any film starting after 6pm, unless accompanied by their parent. - MONDAY - No evidence of medical error in patient’s death Open verdict in inquest of popular Cayman Islands resident JAMES WHITTAKER jwhittaker@pinnaclemedialtd.com An inquest into the death of longtime Cayman Islands resident Lisa Turner found no evidence of any surgical error or medical mistake. A coroner’s court jury re- corded an “open verdict” at the conclusion of the three-day hearing Thursday, meaning they could not de- termine exactly how she died. The 61 year old, originally from Canada but resident in Cayman for 25 years, died on Feb. 14 this year, four days after undergoing surgery to remove a cyst from her ovary. In her summing up to the jury, Coroner Eileen Nervik said there was no evidence of any injury caused by the op- eration that could have led to the infection and “septic shock” she suffered in the days that followed and that ultimately led to her death. “The operation probably precipitated the events that led to septic shock and death, but we do not have before us any direct link that it was the cause of her death,” she said. “Certainly there is no evi- dence the doctors intended her to die. Many doctors tried to save her life, every- body acted professionally, some may say heroically. All the doctors were attentive and appropriate.” Dr. Suzanne Muise, the gy- necologist who carried out the cystectomy surgery at Chrissie Tomlinson Memo- rial Hospital on Friday, Feb. 10., testified that the opera- tion had gone as planned and Ms. Turner was in a stable condition and able to be dis- charged the same evening. Several members of the med- ical team involved in the sur- gery also gave statements that it had been successful and uneventful. Ms. Turner developed a fever over the weekend, how- ever, and was readmitted to the private hospital Sunday evening before being trans- ferred to the Cayman Is- lands Hospital as her condi- tion worsened. Doctors concluded she was suffering from septic shock, a life-threatening re- action to infection. They were unable to operate because her blood platelet count was too low, impacting the blood’s clotting mechanisms, making surgery too dangerous. There were no plate- lets available on island for transfusion and an air am- bulance transfer to Florida was arranged, but she suf- fered a cardiac arrest be- fore she could be flown off island and was readmitted to the Cayman Islands Hos- pital, where she died the next morning. Several doctors from the Health Services Authority said in statements that their working theory at the time was that Ms. Turner may have suffered a perforated bowel during the earlier sur- gery, leading to the infection that caused the sepsis. In her summary of the evidence, Ms. Nervik said there was no evidence in the autopsy report that this was the case. A pathologist’s report de- termined the cause of death as “complications following a left ovarian cystectomy and saplingectomy” – an opera- tion to remove a cyst and fal- lopian tube. But the nature of those complications re- mained unclear. Ms. Nervik said the pa- thologist’s examination showed no holes in the bowel or any other organ and no evidence of fecal matter or pus having leaked from the intestines. “We have no evidence of any injury to the bowel or other organs, there is no evidence of any of those things,” she said. She added, “We don’t really have any defini- tive knowledge of how this sepsis occurred.” The patient was otherwise fit and healthy and there was no sign of any underlying ill- ness, the coroner added. Ms. Turner worked at In- ternational Design Group and was a familiar face at World Gym on West Bay Road. Fol- lowing her death in February, friends told the Compass she was a bright and vibrant woman who made an impres- sion on everyone she met. Pirates invade Little Cayman Pirates stormed Cayman Brac at the Nov. 4 weekend, turned their sights on Grand Cayman over the long holiday weekend that started on Nov. 11, and last weekend was the turn of Little Cayman, which got the final taste of this year’s Pirates Week swash- buckling and marauding. The pirates made their landing Saturday at Head O’Bay where they battled and overcame the Red Coats and the “governor.” The pi- rates’ landing was followed by a parade of five floats, manned by visitors and resi- dents who donned costumes and swords in the spirit of all thing pirate, and a fire- works display. The 40th anniversary Pi- rates Week drew to a close with a Pirates Farewell Lunch at McCoy’s Lodge. SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS DUE BY JAN. 31 The application period for overseas scholarships for the 2018-2019 academic year has begun and runs through Jan. 31, 2018. The Ministry of Educa- tion will hold an information session on the application process from 5:30-7 p.m. on Nov. 21 at the George Town Public Library. The government currently provides 750 scholarships for students studying overseas. For more information, call the scholarships secretariat at 244-2482 or email scholarships@gov.ky. The Red Coats get ready to take on the pirates. The Red Coats and governor, in blue, surrender to the invading pirates at Head O’Bay on Little Cayman, Saturday. You’re never too young to be a pirate. These pirates take their ‘ship’ on the road.The islands’ most-trusted news source 3 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 The islands’ most-trusted news source 4 – EDITORIAL – Opinion&Letters The Cayman Compass welcomes comments, opinions and viewpoints from readers. Letters to the editor can be emailed to editor@pinnaclemedialtd.com, submitted via www.caymancompass.com, sent by post or hand-delivered to the Compass office. PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY: Caymanian Compass Limited (a subsidiary of Pinnacle Media Ltd) Compass Centre Shedden Road, George Town SEND US YOUR VIEWS OR NEWS: P.O. Box 1365 Grand Cayman KY1-1108, Cayman Islands Telephone: (345) 815-0095 Email: newsdesk@pinnaclemedialtd.com ADVERTISE WITH US: Telephone: (345) 949-5111 Email: sales@pinnaclemedialtd.com Website: www.caymancompass.com PUBLISHERS DAVID R. LEGGE AND VICKI L. LEGGE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF DAVID R. LEGGE EXECUTIVE EDITOR PATRICK BRENDEL A MEMBER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION “Give light and the people will findtheirownway” On Dec. 5, 2017 – just three weeks hence – our sover- eign, the United Kingdom, will vote on whether to accede to the calumny of the European Union and blacklist in finan- cial markets several of its own territories, most notably the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, the Channel Islands and the British Virgin Islands. Such a vote, one would think, would be unthinkable, but, indeed, it is possible, if not plausible. Such a vote would do considerable, but certainly not irreparable, harm to the financial services sector of our islands. In effect, our Mother Country would be attacking her own progeny. For those who have not been following this issue closely, some background will be helpful. (Also, please read the Letter to the Editor on this page from attorney Anthony Travers.) The European Union, which is comprised of 28 nations (including the U.K., which is negotiating its exit through a process called “Brexit”), has compiled a list of 53 countries and territories that for want of a better phrase, it considers to be “tax havens,” operating out of compliance with the European Union’s somewhat fanciful, left-leaning view of tax equalization and redistribution. On Dec. 5, all 28 European Union nations will convene, represented by their finance ministers (through its arm Ecofin), to vote on which countries will be “blacklisted.” The U.K., of course, still remains in the European Union and, thus, will have a vote until the Brexit process is completed in two years or so. Now the most important fact: In order for a country to be added to the “blacklist,” the vote must be unanimous – 28 to 0. In other words, the U.K. has it in its power to “veto” the European Union’s overreach and its usurpation of other jurisdictions’ nationalism, sovereignty and, we would argue, inalienable right to establish their own tax and revenue policies and manage their own internal affairs. If anyone thinks for a moment that the European Union is acting fiscally, rather than politically, let us dissuade you of that delusion. Consider: The European Union has exempted all of its 28 member states from inclusion in the blacklist – including such finan- cial “offshore” behemoths as the U.K. (with its City of London), Luxembourg and Ireland. Also, conspicuously absent from the list are China and the United States, which for the enlightenment of the geo- graphically or economically challenged, includes the State of Delaware, which is the registered home of more than 1 million businesses, including more than half of all U.S. publicly traded companies and 64 percent of all Fortune 500 companies. Want to take a guess at which country internationally incorporates the most companies in Delaware? We will help you: The U.K. But also represented are China, Taiwan, Cypress, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Germany and France. Want to know why China and the United States are not candidates for the European Union blacklist? We will help you again: The EU does not have the guts. Premier Alden McLaughlin, much to his credit and the benefit of these islands, has taken a principled and vocal position on the pending EU blacklist. On the House floor last week, Mr. McLaughlin said, “We cannot make unreasonable concessions which will have the effect of making the Cayman Islands irrelevant to the very business that is the basis of our existence as a finan- cial services jurisdiction. So, if the choice is the blacklist or maintaining the basis of the business that we have now, we’ll choose the blacklist.” The U.K. – our steward and protector – has a duty to be our champion in this battle. If Cayman does appear on the EU blacklist, and the U.K. does not vote in our best inter- ests, our economy will be dented. But our faith in Mother England will be crushed. On Dec. 8, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed the United States Congress, seeking a declara- tion of war against the Empire of Japan one day after its surprise attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. President Roosevelt declared Dec. 7, “a date which will live in infamy.” If Britain’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office casts its lot against the best interests of its territories, especially these verdant isles, Caymanians will be entirely justified in memorializing Dec. 5, 2017 as our own “date which will live in infamy.” Does the UK have the fortitude to fight the EU’s turpitude? MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS LETTER TO THE EDITOR Thriving Cayman represents EU’s worst nightmare There comes a point in every failed negotiation where the words used should indi- cate that there is no possi- bility whatsoever of reaching an agreement with the nego- tiating party. In the present case, this is because the ne- gotiating party, here the Euro- pean Union, has no intention whatsoever of doing so. This is the position we have arrived at and Premier Alden McLaughlin is right to call the European Union position for what it is, effectively a charade representing a hidden agenda. For the EU to use “noncooper- ation” as the basis for black- listing the Cayman Islands, is not merely tortuous linguis- tics, it reveals the unbridge- able philosophical divide and the fear and loathing which re- side within the EU of any juris- diction which can demonstrate its success without the imposi- tion of unreasonably high tax- ation. And unreasonably high taxation we can predict with certainty is the doom of all EU resident taxpayers. The fact is that Cayman has complied with every FATF and OECD initiative and has been rated “largely compliant,” a somewhat uninspirational label that ought to more clearly establish the thought that the transparency demonstrated by Cayman in relation to tax mat- ters and law enforcement is unparalleled globally. To ignore this indicates the extent of our divide with the EU. Pierre Moscovici comments that the Cayman Islands still exhibits a “high and mitigat- able risk that it can be used for tax avoidance practices,” a nonsensical statement given that tax avoidance is a func- tion of the abuse of Double Tax Treaty networks from within the EU, of which he sits as a Tax Commissioner. Either Mr. Moscovici does not understand how tax avoidance works or he believes he can say what he likes because no one else does. The Premier is also right that nothing further can be done with the EU. There is no further initiative with which Cayman can cooperate. Nor is the OECD blameless; we should remember that its Charter requires it to pro- mote economic benefits in a non-discriminatory manner. It is not entitled to mischar- acterize the legitimate eco- nomic activity in Cayman in a misguided attempt to support the EU tax base. And that brings us to the hidden agenda and the root of the problem. Chancellor Angela Merkel is fond of quoting this crucial but alarming statistic – Europe accounts for just 7 per- cent of the world’s population and 25 percent of its GDP, yet it accounts for a massive 50 per- cent of its welfare spending. This is completely out of con- trol and unaffordable com- pared to the rest of the world. The populist politicians in Eu- rope have bought their votes with unsustainable govern- ment spending and borrowing and neither Ms. Merkel nor any of them have the will to do anything about it. The long-term concern in Europe is that fertility rates are decreasing and life ex- pectancy is increasing, which means that the cost of Euro- pean spending on healthcare and pensions must increase dramatically while tax reve- nues from the working popu- lations decrease. The migrant issue which was the EU quick fix and supposed to assist by providing inexpensive la- bour has turned into the worst nightmare imaginable; the German Commissioner for Im- migration believes that up to 75 percent of immigrants will be unemployed in five years and that Germany alone ex- pects to spend an estimated $86 billion on refugees be- tween 2016-2020 or US$48,000 per migrant. The net result of these demographic and failed policy issues is that taxes in Europe must not only increase significantly but the EU must harmonize tax rates and at the highest levels. In this context, a thriving Cayman Islands applying no tax at all represents the EU’s worst philosophical nightmare. Not because we are a jurisdic- tion for tax evasion or avoid- ance, neither of which alle- gations are supportable, but simply because we exist as an example to all of how to get it right when the EU is demon- strating how to get it wrong. If it were not for the fact that Mario Draghi at the European Central Bank is printing almost a trillion euros a year which do not exist, the EU project would have failed already. We are tar- geted for that reason alone. Only 8 percent of invest- ment in our fund industry comes from EU jurisdictions, which means that 92 per- cent of our investment comes from the rest of the world. It may well be, in the event we are blacklisted by the EU, that there will be a period of belt tightening. But as I have said before, you cannot appease an alligator that is hell bent on your extinction. For the time being, until Brexit is completed, the U.K. has a veto power over any EU blacklist. On the grounds of de- cency alone, the FCO ought to exercise it, but I will not hold my breath. What I would sug- gest, since there is evidently no quid pro quo being dem- onstrated by the EU, is that a letter be written to the EU Tax Commissioners and to the OECD and copied to every Eu- ropean MEP, the Prime Min- ister, her Cabinet and the FCO, listing every single act of co- operation in relation to every single transparency initiative entered into by the Cayman Is- lands since 2000, and making it very clear that if Cayman is blacklisted, it will reconsider its implementation of the OECD Common Reporting Standard and reconsider the benefits of every Tax Information Ex- change Agreement entered into with each EU jurisdiction. Revocation of those ar- rangements would set back the OECD’s transparency initiative by a good 20 years but at the very least, would provide the start point for a more sensible negotiation that we should un- dertake in plain English. Anthony Travers, Senior Partner, Travers Thorp AlbergaThe islands’ most-trusted news source 5 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 JOIN US FOR OUR 5 DAY EVENT November 27th - December 1st 9am - 5pm To schedule your preferred appointment please contact Muse hearing aids lead the industry in supreme sound quality and premium features. They are designed to • Help you better understand conversations and hear comfortably in any noisy environment • To suppress ringing in the ears (tinnitus) • Make speech more audible by keeping loud sounds comfortable and boosting soft sounds • Stream TV, music and more to your hearing aids SATISFACTION GUARANTEED! FREE HEARING CONSULTATION Schedule your confi dential, one-on-one session with our factory representative – no obligation! No one has to know you’re wearing hearing aids... Ask us about the new IIC Invisible- In-The-Canal. The only 100% custom, Invisible, digital and fully pregrammable hearing aid. Hearing Problems… or maybe just earwax? 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Cayman ENT Associates Cayman ENT Associates6 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Road User BRITISH CAYMANIAN INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED BritCay House, 236 Eastern Avenue, George Town Tel. 949-8699 12 Kirkconnell Street, Stake Bay, Cayman Brac Tel. 948-1760 www.britcay.ky A member of Colonial Group International Ltd. : insurance, health, pensions, life Our comprehensive cover is now even more generous. Free roadside assistance comes with your Road User comprehensive insurance from BritCay. It’s one of many generous benefits that include the lowest deductibles from $200 for no additional premium. Pay up to 15% less for comprehensive insurance Save 10% on car insurance if you have BritCay home insurance New car replacement (new cars only, 12 months max.) No windscreen damage deductible and a claim will not affect your NCD Free US$40,000 rental car damage coverage in USA or Canada. Free $10 million liability limit Fast-track repairs! Authorised Repairer programme Low cost 100% NCD protection Ask BritCay for a quote. CALL 949-8699 or visit www.britcay.ky cgigrp $250* CERTIFICATE WITH BUILDINGS INSURANCE *$250 BritCay gift certificate applies to new buildings insurance policies only . Students learn online safety tips KAYLA YOUNG kyoung@pinnaclemedialtd.com For an upcoming genera- tion of digital natives, life on- line often blends seamlessly with the physical world. Con- versations with friends flow freely between the class- room and the chatroom. An afternoon spent with class- mates can just as easily mean meeting in an online gaming forum as at the movie theater. To fully protect them- selves, these young people must learn to navigate be- tween two worlds. Students at five Grand Cayman schools learned about safety online last week, including the potential real- world consequences of digital activities. Micho Schumann and Petri Basson of KPMG’s cybersecurity team shared online tips with hundreds of students from Cayman Academy, Wesleyan Christian Academy, Triple C School, St. Ignatius Catholic School and Clifton Hunter High School. “The reason we’re doing this is that we want kids and teenagers to be careful what they share on the internet, be careful that they don’t have their social media accounts breached by using a weak password, for example. Often they will share too much infor- mation, which can come and haunt them later on in life,” Mr. Schumann said before a presentation at St. Ignatius. “We don’t want to scare them too much,” he said. “The idea is that the internet is a fantastic tool. They just need to be careful of what they do at the same time.” Bernadette Devlin, head teacher for Years 7-11 at St. Ignatius, said she has wit- nessed a problem with on- line bullying and students sharing potentially embar- rassing – or at worst, illegal – images or messages. “An argument gets out of hand and it then gets printed off and sent to me. They don’t realize they are calling the name of the school into dis- repute in social media. If it gets sent to us, it results in disciplinary consequences for the kids in school,” Ms. Devlin said. “The continual message for us is to try to get the kids to think twice. It can come back to haunt you. In most recent times, this issue with sharing images of themselves can lead to some very serious consequences.” She said students may not realize the severity of sending certain mes- sages. Provocative pictures shared between students can qualify as child pornog- raphy, for example. “It’s frightening to us and parents at the school that students do this without any comprehension that re- lationships break up and it can get very, very difficult for kids,” she said. Students should also be aware of the legal conse- quences of online bullying and be prepared to respond appropriately. “They need to know that there is a law in the Cayman Islands where you can be charged with bullying some- body. You’re not allowed to harass somebody over the in- ternet. You can get in trouble,” Mr. Schumann said. During the presentations, students were advised not to engage with online bullies. Instead, they should block such individuals and report them to an adult. St. Ignatius Year 6 teacher Suzanne Goodwin warned students that harassment online often damages con- fidence and creates stigma. She said online bullying can be hard for teachers to mon- itor, unless students come forward with copies of chats or screenshots of images. Online safety tips for chil- dren and teens: 1. Create a passphrase – longer than a pass- word – and do not re- peat it across accounts. A Facebook passphrase like “MaryHadaLittle- Lamb1FB” could be adapted for Snapchat as “MaryHadaLittle- Lamb2SC.” Remember to keep passphrases pri- vate, except from par- ents. Avoid sequential letters and numbers, and given names. 2. Consult with a trusted adult before setting up social accounts. Make sure security and privacy settings are enabled. 3. Only accept friend re- quests from people you know. Be suspi- cious of requests from strangers. Never meet a stranger from the in- ternet in real life. 4. Keep personal details private. Posting infor- mation, like where you live and study, on social media or in public cha- trooms can help online predators target you. 5. Don’t engage online bul- lies. Report the ac- tivity to an adult, block the individual and do not share insulting posts with friends. 6. Create a password for your phone. Make sure a parent or caretaker knows the password. 7. Deactivate GPS and loca- tion services on phones. This information is em- bedded in photo data, which can be used to locate individuals. From left, Petri Basson of KPMG, St. Ignatius teachers Bernadette Devlin and Suzanne Goodwin, and Micho Schumann of KPMG, at an educational session at the school last week by the KPMG cybersecurity team. - PHOTO: KAYLA YOUNG7 LOCAL NEWS CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 VIP package for two includes: • Round-tripairtravelandaccommodation • ProfessionalmakeoverbeforetheGRAMMYAwards® •Ticketstoattendthe60thGRAMMYAwards® • PrivatetourofNewYorkCity • Andmore! 186904-Ad-CompassJRpg-4colx12-MC-60th-Grammys.indd 111/7/17 5:57 PM LA grants Caymanian status to 3 residents KEN SILVA ksilva@pinnaclemedialtd.com Three longtime residents received Caymanian status on Thursday after the Legis- lative Assembly ratified the Cabinet grants. Under this process, appli- cants can apply to the Cay- manian Status and Permanent Residency Board, which makes recommendations to Cabinet. If Cabinet agrees with the rec- ommendations, the matter is then put before the Legislative Assembly. Four such grants can be made per year. The people granted status on Thursday were Ergun Berksoy, Chris Bounds and Angelyn Zayas. Speaking in favor of the grant for Mr. Berksoy, Premier Alden McLaughlin said he is a businessman who owns 33 condos and other property in the territory, which generates more than $500,000 annually for government in tax revenue. Mr. Berksoy, 73, is also an investor in the Crystal Caves development, which won the Governor’s Conservation Award last year for tourism industry conservation. When opposition leg- islator Kenny Bryan asked why Mr. Berksoy had to be granted status by Cabinet, Mr. McLaughlin responded that he is a holder of a residency certificate for persons of in- dependent means and there- fore cannot apply for status through the usual channels. When the premier moved to ratify the grant for Mr. Bounds – who taught in the public school system for more than 30 years before retiring last August – multiple MLAs spoke in the motion’s favor. “Mr. Bounds taught me and my siblings, and even one of my children. I was shocked to find out that he was not a Cay- manian already,” said Deputy Opposition Leader Alva Suckoo. “You can’t put a dollar value on his contributions.” Mr. McLaughlin said that Mr. Bounds never applied for permanent residency in his 35 years on island. “As a result, the Cabinet grant is the most fitting mecha- nism to make sure he can enjoy his retirement here,” he said. The last grant approved was for Ms. Zayas, a 39-year old who was born here to non-Caymanian parents. Mr. McLaughlin said Ms. Zayas could have received status by a special provi- sion in the former Immigra- tion Law that allowed anyone born in Cayman to non-Cay- manian parents between March 27, 1977 and Jan. 1, 1983 who never applied for Caymanian status before they turned 18 to do so. However, she applied for status long after that provi- sion’s Dec. 31, 2007, deadline expired, and so her applica- tion fell to “no power to act.” The premier said it would be a “travesty” if Cabinet’s grant for her was not approved. Opposition MLA Arden McLean said he agreed with the motion, but that many other so-called “Ghost Cay- manians” are in Ms. Za- yas’s position. Immigration legislation should be amended to allow people like Ms. Zayas to re- ceive status through means other than a Cabinet grant, said Mr. McLean. The premier responded that such immigration re- forms are indeed on govern- ment’s agenda. The government is hosting its “National Community En- hancement Project,” offering temporary seasonal work to unemployed Caymanians in Grand Cayman and the Sister Islands. The program will provide opportunities for the unem- ployed to work for up to two weeks before Christmas and one week after, on repairs and maintenance, gardening, cleaning parks and beaches, as well as beach access areas and roadside verges. The program is set to run from Monday, Dec. 4, to Friday, Dec. 15, and from Monday, Jan. 8 to Friday, Jan. 12, 2018. It is open only to unemployed Caymanians, ages 18 years and older, and unemployed spouses of Caymanians who have the right to work. “Rigorous vetting will take place to ensure that only those who are eligible are ac- cepted into the program,” ac- cording to a press release from the Deputy Gover- nor’s Office announcing this year’s initiative. Contracted workers will be paid $10 per hour and foremen will receive $12 per hour, the release stated. Application forms can be picked up at all district li- braries in Grand Cayman, as well as from District MLA Of- fices, the Needs Assessment Unit, the National Workforce Development Agency and at the Government Administra- tion Building’s reception area in George Town. Registration and training will take place at the Lions Centre on Tuesday, Nov. 28 at 9 a.m. Applicants will need to bring a completed application form and sup- porting documentation with them to prove immigration status on registration day. For further information, call or send a WhatsApp/text to 917-0153, or email ncep@gov.ky. APPLICATIONS INVITED FOR SEASONAL CLEANUP WORK Doctors Express holds official opening Health Minister Dwayne Seymour, left, and Samuel Banks of Doctors Express, celebrate the grand opening of the urgent care facility on Godfrey Nixon Way in George Town. Doctors Express held its official opening ceremony at a Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours event on Thursday, Nov. 16.8 LOCAL NEWS MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 • CAYMAN COMPASS Ocean Week, Shark Project raising funds and awareness TAD STONER tstoner@pinnaclemedialtd.com Ocean Awareness Week kicked off Sunday, joining with the Department of En- vironment and its Shark Project, raising public aware- ness, hoping to persuade pri- vate companies to launch conservation efforts and un- derlining critical issues of marine health. Ocean Awareness Week is the personal project of Price- waterhouseCoopers Audit Manager Marique Cloete, who this week marks the second year devoting her passion for things oceanic to her company and Cayman’s Shark Project. “I came up with it last year,” she says about Ocean Awareness Week, “as a sort of challenge for the staff,” about 60 PwC employees, “to engage in sustain- able activities.” She names half-a-dozen ways to contribute: “walking or cycling to work, maybe carpooling,” which, she writes elsewhere, will “cut down on carbon emissions that eventually result in coral bleaching,” long a problem for local reefs. “You can eliminate single- use plastic,” she says, such as milk and water jugs, grocery store bags for fruit and pro- duce, and sandwich boxes. “Stop using insect repel- lent and suntan products,” Ms. Cloete says, and “eat sus- tainable seafood, and sup- port companies that are com- mitted to environmentally friendly practices.” More generally, she adds, stealing a government phrase, “reduce, re-use, re- cycle,” and “raise funds for the people striving to save our oceans [such as] Plastic Free Cayman.” This week, her PwC col- leagues will clean an East End beach and try to re- move discarded fishing line from the reef. “It’s giving back” to the community she says. “I would love to challenge other companies to do sim- ilar activities.” Ms. Cloete’s recommen- dation to fundraise is some- thing she does “throughout the year,” describing it as a kind of educational activity Chief among her causes is the DoE Shark Project, the local effort of Ma- rine Conservation Interna- tional, which boasts at least three similar missions else- where: the Indian Ocean island nation of the Sey- chelles, the coral reefs of Saudi Arabia and the west coast of Scotland. Since 2009, the local Shark Project has counted, tagged, measured, photographed and protected half-a-dozen spe- cies in local waters, even naming some of them. “Louise,” for example, a shark tagged some years ago, has “come back every year about Christmastime,” says Mauvis Gore, project manager and a Ph.D. in marine biology with a zoology specialty. She oversees a shark log- ging program, tracking hun- dreds of individuals – nurse sharks, both black tip and Oceanic whitetip sharks, lemon, silky, tiger and ham- merhead sharks. Numbers, she said, are difficult to judge, but she ten- tatively proposes that “com- pared to Belize and Venezuela, we have fewer Caribbean reef sharks than we should. “We’re a little concerned,” she says, although not ready to sound alarms. “It’s a pre- liminary analysis: The num- bers are not quite high enough,” she suggests, but points to legal offshore and coastal protections for sharks since 2015’s National Con- servation Law. Although working from DoE offices, the project is not funded by government, and PwC’s Ms. Cloete, Ms. Gore says, has been crucial to keeping it afloat. One other funding source is West Bay’s Vivo restaurant, at Compass Point on North West Point Road, beside the Divetech dive shop. Owner Michele Zama, also described as “pas- sionate about the ocean” by both Ms. Gore and Ms. Cloete, said he started working with PwC last year, devising spe- cial menus and sharing $5 from every meal with Ocean Week and the Shark Project. “I pulled the menus to- gether, and Marique said she’d donate the money to the Shark Project,” he said, de- scribing a $29 three-course menu – appetizer, main course and dessert. The menu includes – but is not limited to – lion- fish cakes and sandwiches. Falafel, curry, pasta and even chocolate mousse are avail- able every day between 7 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. during the Nov. 19-24 event. “This is our special Ocean Week menu,” he said, “but we do a lot of good stuff.” A gala night for Hedge Funds Care Members of Cayman’s hedge funds industry gath- ered at the Kimpton Seafire resort Saturday night to help raise funds to combat child abuse and to treat the vic- tims of abuse. Greeters in traditional Japanese kimonos posed for photos with the guests, who numbered more than 350, at the Hedge Funds Care Cayman gala, the theme of which was “Into the Orient.” Organizers were still tal- lying the total raised at the gala, but said the an- nual event typically raises around $250,000. Deloitte partner Cindy Hislop, chairwoman of Hedge Funds Care Cayman, said the organization distrib- uted about US$368,000 to 10 grantees last year. Since its inception in 2005, the Cayman chapter of Hedge Funds Care has allocated more than US$3.2 million, ac- cording to the organization. Local beneficiaries include the Children and Youth Ser- vices Foundation, the Crisis Centre, the Red Cross, the Department of Counselling Services, the Health Services Authority, the Special Needs Foundation, the Frances Bodden Girls Home, the Family Resource Centre and the National Council of Vol- untary Organisations. Initiatives funded include a grant to the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service to train officers on how to interview victims of child abuse, as well as a grant for a child psychol- ogist for the Cayman Islands Hospital, said Ms. Hislop. The Hedge Funds Care chairwoman said the organi- zation would like to provide more support to Cayman’s ju- dicial system in its efforts to deal with child-abuse matters. To help guide them through the grant-making de- cisions to ensure the money raised is put to the best use, the hedge funds and finan- cial industry professionals who sit on the grant com- mittee use the services of an academic adviser from the U.S., child welfare expert Dr. Bart Grossman. Ms. Hislop said Dr. Grossman comes to Cayman twice a year to help dis- tribute grants and to follow- up with the progress of past recipients. He was among the guests at Saturday’s gala. This year, the event’s auction included two 2018 Audis, a two-night stay at the Kimpton Seafire, sports memorabilia, jewelry and vintage wine. Mark Lewis and Sarah Broad attend the gala. - PHOTOS: STEPHEN CLARKE Hedge Funds Care Cayman chairwoman Cindy Hislop is flanked by Governor Helen Kilpatrick, left, and her daughter Olivia Connolly. Police Commissioner Derek Byrne and his wife Deirdre arrive at the Hedge Funds Care Cayman gala. Hedge Funds Care Cayman chairwoman Cindy Hislop delivers a speech at the charity’s annual fundraiser at the Kimpton Seafire, Saturday night. Glenda and Roy McTaggart pose with greeters at the gala, which had an oriental theme.The islands’ most-trusted news source 9 CAYMAN COMPASS • MONDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2017 Copper Falls Steakhouse Invites You to Enjoy a Traditional American anksgiving with us ursday November 23, 2017 from 5:30 to 10:30pm For CI$29.95 Turkey with Herb Stu ng and Gravy Cranberry Sauce Mixed Vegetables Garlic Mashed Potatoes Pumpkin Pie And Included: Beer, Martini or Highball Garlic Mashed Potatoes Pumpkin Pie And Included: Beer, Martini or Highball Reservations recommended, please call 945-4755 A Rare Steakhouse, Very Well Done We Have Gi Certi cates Available For Your Christmas Present Needs been obtained by the Cayman Compass, regarding the issu- ance of pension refunds. The advice states that for any private sector workers to receive a refund they must meet three criteria: They must end their employ- ment with the Cayman com- pany, show they have made no contributions to their re- tirement savings account for at least two years before the deadline date to apply for a refund – which is Dec. 31, 2019 – and they must have left the Cayman Islands for at least six months before the application. In order for the two-year requirement for ending pen- sion contributions to be met, the person’s employer would have to pay all remaining outstanding contributions before Dec. 31, 2017. If the in- dividual keeps working until Dec. 31, that deadline would not be met, unless special ar- rangements were made be- forehand with the employer. According to the written advice from the department: “With respect to contribu- tions, November 2017 … is the last contribution period for which pension contribu- tions can be received by pen- sion plan administrators. As a result, employees can work until Nov. 30, 2017 and fulfil the three requirements. For the avoidance of doubt: em- ployees can work into De- cember [2017] as long as the employer is willing to pay their pension contributions on or before Dec. 28, 2017, which will facilitate the re- ceipt and processing of the payment by [the pension ad- ministrators] before Dec. 31, 2017 deadline.” The advice further states that employees should not be penalized if their employer has been late with payments of monthly contributions. Once workers who are de- parting the islands have met all three criteria, there is ad- ditional confusion regarding when they should formally apply to receive that refund, Mr. Moses said. He said HSM is aware of clients who were advised by some plan providers that they could not apply for the refunds now, and could not do so if they returned to the islands on vacation, because they would still be “resident in the islands,” even if they entered Cayman on a visitor’s permit. Another provider said the individuals seeking a re- fund had to apply by Dec. 31, 2017 – not Dec. 31, 2019. The Department of La- bour and Pensions advice also sought to clarify issues regarding when workers should apply to receive a re- fund: “Once the member has fulfilled all of the criteria, the member has until Dec. 31, 2019 to submit their ap- plication. Dec. 31, 2019 is the deadline to apply for the re- fund, recognizing that it will take time for the applications to be processed by [the plan administrators]. For clarity: applications should not be accepted after Dec. 31, 2019. Any applications that are re- ceived, where the member does not fulfil the three criteria by Dec. 31, 2019, should be denied.” Mr. Moses said, in the case of an employee whose last pension contribution was submitted on Dec. 23, 2017, they would not qualify for a refund until Dec. 23, 2019 – two years after their employer stopped making pension contributions. This would give that worker be- tween Dec. 23, 2019 and Dec. 31, 2019 – during the holiday season – to apply for the refund. Silver Thatch Pensions representatives said, in prac- tice, their administrators typ- ically allow pension plan par- ticipants to apply for refunds “a few months before” their eligibility comes up. So, in the case of departing workers, a refund application received in October or November 2019 would be accepted. The Chamber Pension Plan indicated the Depart- ment of Labour and Pensions had been abundantly clear about the Dec. 31, 2019 ap- plication deadline, but noted it had some concerns about individuals who left the is- lands some time ago and had not claimed their refunds yet, since those individuals might not even realize the refund application deadline exists. “Perhaps the govern- ment can clarify all this, so we can all have a happy Christmas in two years’ time,” Mr. Moses said. We want to be fair but we have to ensure we are in compliance with the laws. “We have to ensure we make the right decision and take all the necessary ad- vice and, if it takes another couple of weeks to get the clarification we need, then we will take that time.” Peanuts was issued a li- cense to sell alcohol on Sun- days following the release of a government internal audit report in September, which ruled that the pre- vious board had granted the license in March. The audit found that the board later attempted to re- verse that decision and al- tered official records, but ruled that the original deci- sion stood. The finding meant the board was compelled by law to issue the license to Peanuts in September. However, all liquor li- censes expired at the end of that month and the board, under new leadership fol- lowing the controversy sur- rounding the handling of that application, is con- sidering the matter afresh. The store is allowed to sell under the terms of the old license until a decision is made on renewal. It is also considering an application from Robert Hamaty, of the Tortuga Rum Company, for a similar retail license to open his li- quor stores on Sundays. Mr. Hamaty said, “The decision was deferred. To be honest, I don’t want to open Sundays but if they are going to do it, then we will have to as well. It has to be a level playing field.” Typically, liquor stores have been granted package licenses, which restrict opening to Monday through Saturday, and bars have been granted retail licenses, which allow for Sunday opening. Peanuts, which already had a package li- cense, changed that dy- namic when it was granted a retail license as well. Mr. Williams, who was not involved in that decision, said the new board had to make sure that it was cor- rect, according to the law. Commerce Minister Joey Hew told the Cayman Compass that the law was being reviewed, but said he could not comment on the details until that review was complete. Mr. Hamaty also took issue with the fact that the decisions from the Sep- tember meeting had yet to be publicly released. Previously, the board has published its decisions by emailing media houses and posting them on its website. But at press time Sunday, no decisions from the September meeting had been posted on the website. Mr. Williams confirmed decisions to the Compass when asked and said he would try to ensure the written decisions were forwarded to the paper, though that had not hap- pened by Sunday afternoon. Mr. Hamaty said, “It is required in the law that they publish the decisions. We are 15 days away from the December meeting and they haven’t told the public what happened in the Sep- tember meeting.” losses of those authorities and companies during the two years. Those figures are included in the operating ex- penses of the budget. Additionally, the govern- ment plans to spend $192.9 million during 2018-19 on construction or infrastruc- ture development projects. That spending includes more than $20 million on the continued construction of the new John Gray High School and another nearly $20 mil- lion on the development of local roads. More than $14 million is budgeted to plan the new waste management facility in George Town. Some $13 mil- lion is allocated for the de- velopment of a new mental healthcare facility. Other major spends during the two years include digital/IT infrastructure de- velopment and security ($16.2 million), equipment for the fire department ($7.7 million), development of new police stations in George Town and West Bay ($4.4 mil- lion) and development of the George Town cruise berthing facility ($3 million). The other big ticket item in the government budget not included in its operational expenditures is the repay- ment of principal amounts due on long-term debts. In 2018, government plans to spend $30.3 million to repay principal debt amounts (not including interest). In 2019, that figure jumps to $309.4 million – about half of which (an estimated $153 million) will have to be bor- rowed in order to make the payment. The remainder will be paid out of existing cash reserves. The government is re- quired to make a $262 mil- lion one-time repayment of a “bullet loan” in No- vember 2019 that was taken out in 2009 to pay for gov- ernment’s operating ex- penses, as well as some cap- ital projects. How government plans to spend $1.5B CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Nov. 30 is key date for pension refunds “We believe there’s a high level of confusion among people applying for these pension refunds.” HUW MOSES, managing partner, HSM Chambers Comprising 22 percent of the territory’s budget will be security-related expenses, based on figures provided to the Cayman Compass by the financial secretary’s office. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 More gas stations seek Sunday liquor sales CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Members of the Legislative Assembly pore over budget documents in the House earlier this month. - PHOTO: ALVARO SEREYNext >