MP Bryan Explains The 2024 Referendum For A Cruise Pier, Encourages Persons To Come Out & Vote

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By Alric Lindsay

Minister of Tourism Kenneth Bryan appeared in a Cayman Compass YouTube video this week explaining that the Government is working on the wording for a referendum on whether to build a cruise pier. According to Bryan, this vote will take place by the end of the year.

Form of referendum

Regarding the types of referendum and legislation required, the Cayman Constitution states:

A law enacted by the Legislature may make provision to hold a referendum amongst persons registered as electors in accordance with section 90, on a matter or matters of national importance, when so resolved by the majority of the elected members of the Assembly; but the question of whether the Cayman Islands should seek any amendment to this Constitution that may result in their independence shall be deemed to be a matter of national importance.

Before a people’s-initiated referendum can be held, the Constitution explained that a petition signed by registered electors must be presented to Cabinet.

The Constitution added:

… the Cabinet shall settle the wording of a referendum question or questions within a reasonable time period as prescribed by law.

…  the Cabinet shall make a determination on the date the referendum shall be held in a manner prescribed by law.

… subject to this Constitution, a referendum under this section shall be binding on the Government and the Legislature if assented to by more than 50 per cent of persons registered as electors in accordance with section 90.

In the case of the cruise pier, Bryan said that this would be done by way of a Government-initiated referendum.

He explained:

So constitutionally, a people’s-initiated referendum has those protections in place that makes it binding on the government. A Government initiated referendum does not have those obligations unless the government decides to do so. And at this current moment, the Government’s position is that we are going to accept the people’s will based on the outcome, on a simple majority.

Timing of referendum

Regarding the timing, Bryan said:

The guesstimate is around end of October, middle of November, to give enough time necessary for the Elections Office and illegal Parliamentary process to happen, because we have to take a motion to Parliament to pass the necessary legislation to have the referendum.  And from then, you know, there’s a certain amount of time before we can have the referendum.

Notwithstanding this timing, some members of the public are asking whether it would be more convenient if the referendum vote were held on the same date as the elections contemplated for 2025. That way, the expenses for an election process would be spent once, and voters would vote on one occasion rather than two.

Persons encouraged to participate in the vote

Regarding the vote, Bryan encouraged voters to show up and cast their votes, indicating that the issue would be decided only with their votes.

He added:

That’s how democracy works.

And that’s why this is a directive referendum.

We’re not going to be picking sides.

We’re going to ask the people to talk about it, think about it, present the pros and the cons to the public, encourage them to discuss it amongst themselves with the industry players, those who are against or for, and take those factors into whether you want it or not, because it’s a guidance for the Government, this Government, as well as future Governments, on what is the people’s will.

He continued:

We think that that should have been done from the last administration. Unfortunately, it wasn’t done, which leaves the industry in limbo as to whether they want to stay in cruise or not.”

Expanding on the importance of the vote to Cayman’s tourism industry, Bryan said:

Now, the reason why it’s so important to do this now is because the numbers are projected to continue to decline. What rate of decline is subjective…  you don’t know how far out the decline is going to get to a severe point where it’s so harming before the Government can step in.

So, projections are usually based on shipping schedules for cruise lines, and that usually is about a year or two, maximum three years out, because they can’t give you the commitments of what the ship capacity stops are going to be in six years.

But what we are seeing is the trend of it declining.

He added:

So, you don’t wait till a bus hits you before you react, if you know a bus is coming.

So, that’s why we want that directive from the people.

Do you want a cruise pier? Because a cruise pier is an essential component to that decline, or lack thereof the decline, based on the indications from the cruise industry.

A pier is one of the main reasons why many of the ships are not stopping, as they used to.

He continued:

So indirectly, if the people choose to have a pier that’s been able to allow us to stabilize the industry and keep those numbers that the people want, whether it’s higher or low or moderate.

If we don’t have one, we can’t control that mechanism. It’s left to the cruise industry to dictate our future. And that future is currently projected to continue to decline. And we need to know the answer of what the people’s will is on that, because if it’s a no, then we have to plan other things of how to counteract those effects, like if the numbers continue to decline, we see further businesses shutting down or people being unemployed. We have to plan for that, whether it’s by immigration policies or DCI policies for businesses and so forth.

He concluded:

So, this is again a directive referendum, because we need a plan either way.

And if we, if the people do say they want to pier, what does that mean? And that will be discussed later on, because there’s no prepared plan, unlike the last administration, who went out and got a financier and a design and all that. We’re not doing that… the question is simply, do you want a pier, which is a key infrastructure for the continued stability of the cruise industry? If they say yes, then we’ll decide what options there are. And in our view, it’s simple, as cheap as it possibly can be, most environmentally friendly it can be.

And we don’t think you need two. The country can simply survive on one based on the ship amounts. We want to make sure that we can stay in the industry, if that’s what the people’s will is. If not, then we prepare for whatever outcome of the fallout of the decline and the numbers are. So that’s why this is a directive referendum.

It is perhaps important to note here that, while Bryan emphasized a potential “fallout of the decline” in tourism if there is a vote against the cruise pier, the Cayman Islands operated with tenders for decades without a cruise pier. Whether that system can be improved is open to discussion among voters when making an informed decision about their votes on the soon-to-be-announced referendum date.

Voters may also take into account the environmental, economic, social and cultural aspects of the proposal.

For example, will the docking of large ships cause air or water pollution, habitat destruction, and strain local ecosystems?

In addition, will the economic gains outweigh the costs?

Further, what are the potential impacts on local businesses and the distribution of economic benefits among residents? Will a few large businesses or the cruise lines reap a majority of the economic benefits?

Lastly, does the island have the infrastructure to sustain larger tourism traffic from larger ships and how will this affect traffic congestion?

While these are some examples of questions voters can ask themselves and discuss with their MPs, this list is not exhaustive. In fact, there are many other items to consider which informed voters may think of and highlight nearer to the referendum date.

How to register to vote

For persons who are not yet registered to vote, details can be found on the website of the Elections Office at https://portal.elections.ky/index.php/home/registeration-process

Summarising:

Eligible persons must complete Form 4 and submit the required original documents to the Registering Officer for their district or to the Elections Office.

The following original documents are required:

If you are a CAYMANIAN STATUS HOLDER: (Items # 1 and 4 on the Form 4 application.)

1)    Birth Certificate

2)    Caymanian Status Certificate /Letter.

3)    Photo ID: Passport or Drivers License

If you are CAYMANIAN BORN AND HAVE CAYMANIAN PARENT/S OR GRANDPARENT:

1)    Birth Certificate of applicant, if born in the Islands, and

2)    Birth Certificate of one of  the applicant’s parents or grandparents who was born in the Islands

3)    Photo ID: Passport or Drivers License

If you are CAYMANIAN with an ACKNOWLEDGEMENT LETTER from Immigration or WORC:

1)    Birth Certificate of the applicant

2)    Acknowledgement letter from WORC/Immigration

3)    Photo ID: Passport or Drivers License

Contact details of the Elections Office are as follows:

Telephone: 345-949-8047 ( Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm)

Email: [email protected]

Address: P.O Box 10120, 68 West Bay Road, Bay Town Office Suites, George Town, KY1-1001, Cayman Islands

Volunteer groups are also anticipated to set up voter registration desks in various locations, including supermarkets, to provide eligible persons with information on voter registration.