The Government proposes tomorrow 23rd April amongst a raft of minor bills to move an amendment to the Local Government Act. The minor amendment will give the power to local councils other than in Freeport to give permits for the construction of wooden piers not exceeding one hundred and twenty feet and which do not require excavation of the land.

This is certainly not revolutionary and one must ask the question, if the government is serious about local government reform why after almost 12 months in office, they have not come with more significant legislation.

We cannot ignore the fact that the first anniversary of the 2007 election of the FNM to office is upon us.  Their record in the legislature over the past year has been dismal.  It is clear they have no agenda.

This amendment while deserving qualified support clearly shows that they have no agenda.

However, we think that this provides an opportunity to say what we would have done and remind the public what we pledged to do as a party.

It is clear that Local Government Authorities are hobbled by the inability to allocate sufficient for the needs of their districts.  We think that the time then has come to significantly increase the allocations to local councils to meet some of the major needs of the people in the islands without recourse to the authorities in Nassau.

The local people are nearest to the situation on the ground and there is therefore a need to go much further than we have already in the allocations of money to local councils.

This is a clear call for more money for local government councils.  I am further proposing that the stipend which is presently paid to the Local Government Chief Councillors be increased from $400 to $600 and to all other councilors from $75, which is totally inadequate to $200 per month.

It is time for the FNM to say when they will reveal plans for local government in New Providence.  In our Action Agenda for Election 2007, the Progressive Liberal Party pledged that it would within 12 months of the Election 2007 review the law and seek to implement plans for local government in New Providence.

As this island becomes more populated and its social and economic arrangements more complex, it is clear that there is a need for local government here.

I quote from The Action Agenda: “[We] will begin the introduction of local government systems and structures on New Providence during our first 12 months of our second term.”

We believe that the FNM should adopt this pledge forthwith.

Further, it is also well known that local government elections will take place throughout the islands except New Providence in June of this year.
These elections are crucial to the well being of local communities.  On behalf of the Progressive Liberal Party, I wish to take this opportunity to encourage all men and women of goodwill to step forward to participate in the local government elections.

I should also like to call at this time for the law to be amended further to reestablish a Director and Deputy Director of Local Government.  The elimination of these posts was an error committed by the last FNM government and one which we intended to correct.

Over the next few weeks, the PLP will continue to speak out in support of the issues that we have raised here this morning.  We believe that the local government councils must not be a staging ground for the abuse of local communities, taxation without representation, responsibility without authority.

We are committed to assisting local communities in their better governance and further development.