TCI News
TCI: Premier addresses nation on her government’s 3rd anniversary in office
#Providenciales, 19 December, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – My fellow Turks and Caicos Islanders, Residents and Visitors, three years ago today, December 16th, the people of this country elected my Party overwhelmingly. The past few years has been met with great challenges never before imagined but equally marked by accomplishments never before seen.
Three years later, we must give God thanks despite the winds of encouragement to complain, we are a blessed nation and many more blessings are on the horizon.
On being elected to Office in December 2016, we were able to finalise financial priorities within three months and passed the country’s Budget by March 31st. Our focus in a supplementary in two months benefitted the vulnerable, prison management and other critical needs. We were able to purchase three buildings for purposed retrofitted Government Offices for the Police, Immigration, Customs and Road Safety. We were on our way to tackle all the big issues left unaddressed by the past 14 years.
Hit by two hurricanes nine months later, my Government was put to the test like no other before. Though devastating and disruptive, with the help of God, and valuable partners locally, regionally and internationally, my Government rose to the challenge and made critical policy and executive decisions that saw an early recovery that earned us respect at home and abroad.
I have personally been invited regionally and internationally to speak of our accomplishments as a people including conferences in London, St Maarten, New York on two separate occasions and here in our region on multiple occasions. We remain grateful to God and while our agenda became more recovery focused, my Government has been able to deliver on and advance most of our key Manifesto promises contained in The Change Document. We intend to fulfill our contract with the people and will give our annual account of our work on January 7, 2020.
We remain proud of the major changes made and the critical work ongoing in national security, border protection and immigration. We are proud of our achievements and critical work ongoing in repairing and rebuilding the crumbling infrastructure we inherited (and worsened after the Storm); in advancing constitutional work and crown land changes; for ground breaking changes in health, special needs, education including our Trade School, culture, the delivery of social services, tourism, maritime, disaster management, environment, housing, delivery of public utilities services, safe reliable public service transportation, agriculture, youth and sporting programs, critical studies relating to our economy, economic stimulants, airport and port redevelopment, reviews of social safety net programs, progressive changes for the civil service and police, critical policies and laws that will empower our people in our economy including 100% service charge for hospitality workers, improvements, trade, business support, international obligations in the financial services sector and many other critical areas.
On January 7, 2020, we will set out, as you have become accustomed, our record of work across Government. Hold us into account. Much has been done but there is much more to do. Through stable, visionary leadership and with government and people uniting around our Vision 2040 National Plan, I am confident that we can achieve a united Turks and Caicos Islands. Working together, we can become a global leader in levels of prosperity and human development and our people can be positioned to be fully responsible for our collective future as a nation; we can have a more resilient country that balances economic, social and environmental development for the greater benefit of all our people and our posterity. This is in our reach: together we can; together we must.
We remain grateful for your trust and continued support, but more importantly, your prayers. My Government has been tested and scrutinized like no other and we know our record will stand the test of times. We are a working Government and while you see visible evidence of the changes on the way, there is much more underway.
May God continue to bless us and may He continue to bless these Beautiful by Nature Turks and Caicos Islands.
Release: TCIG
TCIG knew from April that fuel factor could surge almost 80%; Minister says $500 cost-of-living payment was part of Government’s response
PROVIDENCIALES — The Turks and Caicos Government knew months before July’s shocking electricity bills that consumers faced a potentially massive increase in the fuel factor.
Minister of Information Technology and Energy E. Jay Saunders revealed Friday that Pelican Energy warned his Ministry in April that generation fuel costs were projected to rise from $3.09 per gallon in May to $4.79 in June and July.
That translated into a projected fuel factor jump from about 17.5 cents to 31 cents per kilowatt-hour — an increase of almost 80%.
Saunders said he personally advised Cabinet of the projected increase and presented options for cushioning the impact.
He characterised Government’s $500 cost-of-living payment as its “initial response” to rising fuel costs, before a separate fuel-factor subsidy was approved.
Cabinet records show Government agreed on June 24 to provide funding to mitigate the fuel-factor impact, with the relief programme approved July 8.
Eligible residential customers — those averaging less than $1,500 monthly over the previous three bills — are capped at 22 cents per kWh from July through October.
Pelican confirmed Friday that Government’s contribution was already applied to July bills, meaning the bills now triggering widespread public outrage would have been even higher without the subsidy.
Saunders did not disclose the programme’s total cost.
His admission that Government knew since April, however, raises another question amid the backlash: why were consumers not directly warned by Government about the scale of the approaching increase?
PROVIDENCIALES — New commercial Crown Land applications are facing a six-month pause as the Turks and Caicos Islands Government takes inventory of its holdings.
During Cabinet meetings held July 15 and 16, an immediate six-month moratorium was approved on the acceptance, processing
and approval of new applications for commercial Crown Land grants, leases and allocations.
The pause will remain in place pending completion of the Crown Land Inventory Review. Cabinet’s summary did not state what prompted the review or indicate whether availability of commercial Crown Land is a concern.
The two-day meeting also advanced major consumer legislation. Cabinet approved the National Fair Competition Policy 2026 and drafting instructions for a Fair Competition Ordinance, moving TCI toward stronger consumer protection and fair competition rules.
In Grand Turk, Cabinet approved rezoning land in the North West Suburbs from low-density to medium-density residential use to facilitate a new apartment development.
Cabinet also advanced fisheries reforms, water legislation allowing private and public-private investment, minerals legislation and appointments across tourism, health and finance.
Progress toward establishing a TCI Credit Union was also noted.
PROVIDENCIALES — Major development projects outside Providenciales received Cabinet attention on July 8, with Government approving agreements connected to the redevelopment of Dellis Cay and a resort development in North Caicos.
Cabinet approved a Development Agreement between the Turks and Caicos Islands Government, Desarrollos Hotelco DC Ltd. and
Desarrollos Hotelco Astoria Ltd. for the redevelopment of Dellis Cay.
The long-discussed private island development sits between Providenciales and North Caicos and its return to Cabinet signals another step toward redevelopment.
Cabinet also approved amendments to an agreement involving SPR LND Ltd. (Royal Reef) and TCIG Development Agreement for a resort/hotel development in North Caicos.
Other decisions included approval of the First Supplementary Appropriation Bill 2026 for onward transmission and the appointment of Cindy Ewing as Chair of the Invest TCI Board, effective August 1 for three years.
Cabinet also noted consultation outcomes concerning changes to business licensing, approved professional membership expenses for qualifying Telecommunications Commission staff and approved advice relating to the Interim Clinical and Estates Services PPP.
The July 8 meeting was chaired by Acting Governor Anya Williams.
Photo Credit: Royal Reef (Keith)
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