Local News

The people of Anguilla have been given an insight into the difficult financial position of the island (see follow-up statement elsewhere in The Anguillian) and various matters relating to the functioning of the Ministers of Government, since the election to office of the Anguilla United Movement Administration.

Many of the figures contained in the statement regarding the financial position of Anguilla, circulated at the Government’s public forum at the Rodney MacArthur Rey Auditorium on Thursday, March 11, have been refuted by Leader of the Opposition, Evans McNiel Rogers, who was a Minister in the previous United Front Government.

Police in Anguilla are investigating an armed robbery at TLC gas station on the Blowing Point Road on Tuesday, March 16. Reporters were told at Wednesday’s press conference by Inspector Emris Rogers, that two masked men, one carrying a hand gun and the other a knife, robbed the cashier of some EC$4,000.

One month after winning the general election and forming the Anguilla United Movement Government, an official delegation left the island on Tuesday, March 16, for visits to Brussels and London.

The delegation, headed by Chief Minister, Hubert Hughes, also comprises Minister of Social Development, Edison Baird, Permanent Secretary, Economic Development, Aidan Harrigan, and Legal Counsel, Josephine Gumbs-Connor.

A press release issued by Government House on Wednesday, stated that His Excellency the Governor, Mr. Alistair Harrison, had appointed Mr. Walcott Richardson as Acting Chief Minister during the absence of Mr. Hubert Hughes, now leading a Government delegation to Brussels and London.

Fairplay Group of Companies is this year sole sponsor of the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School’s Annual Road Races in the sum of US$4,800. In making the on presentation on Wednesday on behalf of himself, his wife and staff, Managing Director, Quincy Gumbs, said it was a great pleasure for them to partner with the teachers and students of the school.

Anguilla’s new Executive Council held their first discussion on financial services, a key economic sector in Anguilla, on 11 March. They noted the importance of the sector to Anguilla: it is responsible for approximately 6% of employment and typically generates around 12% of Anguilla’s GDP.

As a follow up to the presentation made by the Ministers of Government on the 11 March, 2010, the following is a release on the Fiscal Position as at December 31, 2009 and current.
Recurrent Revenue

Anguilla is among 70 countries in which the Queen’s Baton Relay will traverse over the length and breath of the Commonwealth for 240 days, before embarking on a 100-day national tour of India. The relay will conclude in the Jawalharlal Stadium where the 19th Commonwealth Games 2010 will open in Delhi on October 3.

The Special Education Needs Department at the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School is observing a week of activities under the theme SEN Partnerships – Helping Each Child To Maximize His/Her Potential.

Anguilla’s leading financial services providers met with the Chief Minister and Minister of Finance, other Ministers of Government and the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance at the Chief Minister’s Office to discuss plans for moving the Anguilla financial services industry forward and for establishing “Anguilla Finance”, the Agency to be charged with promoting Anguilla as an international financial services centre globally.

Anguilla was recently represented by Nurse Coreen Hodge, Ward Manager at the Miriam Gumbs Senior Citizens Home, at a Nurse Leader Workshop in Mexico City. It was held by the Inter-American Centre for Social Studies with sponsorship by PAHO/WHO and New York University. Her attendance was made possible by the Anguilla Social Security Board, PAHO and the Ministry of Social Development.

LIME, Anguilla, has undertaken to donate US$5,000 to the Anguilla Amateur Athletic Federation to cover the airfares and uniforms of the athletes and officials who will be participating in the CARIFTA Games in the Cayman Islands over the Easter weekend.

The OECS Family Law Reform Project is a part of the wider Judiciary and Legal Reform Project of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and it reflects the commitment by the OECS Governments to develop harmonized model Family Legislation for the Member States. The Domestic Violence bill is one of five model Family Law Bills produced by the OECS.

Mrs. Cora Richardson Hodge, the Anguilla United Front Candidate for District Number 2 in the 2010 General Elections, has announced her plans to implement various community programmes in her District. During the campaign trail, Mrs. Richardson Hodge spoke about bringing back the community spirit, and about creating programmes by the people of the Sandy Hill District for the benefit of the Sandy Hill District and she remains committed to achieving this objective.

The Anguilla National Youth Council Ltd. has elected a new Board of Directors at their Annual General Meeting held on Monday 15th March at the Teacher’s Resource Centre.

In mid February a panel of World Meteorological Organization experts released a consensus report (published in the journal Nature Geoscience on 02/21/2010).
What is significant is that the panel consisted of 10 leading experts from both sides of the Global Warming debate. Up to now there has been considerable division between the argument that Global Warming would lead, inevitably, to more hurricanes and tropical storms and those who either do not believe in Global Warming or do not believe in any relationship to increased risk of tropical storms.

The Anguilla Social Security Board has received a Certificate of Merit with Special Mention from the International Social Security Association (ISSA), the principal international institution bringing together social security agencies and organizations. It promotes dynamic social security as the social dimension in a globalizing world by supporting excellence in social security administration.

The Anguilla Golf Association (AGA) held a four-person two best net scores Shamble on 13 March at Temenos Golf Course. Thirty-two golfers participated in the eighteen hole event. Coming in second was a team Captained by Val Banks with Kerwin Baptiste, Courtney Morton, and Tommy Astaphan.

The Anguilla Bar Association (“ABA”) wishes to announce that at its Annual General Meeting held on Thursday 11th March 2010, which was attended by a significant number of its members, the following persons were elected into office: