A pleasant morning to you Mr. Speaker, Members of this Honourable House, Strangers in the gallery, my good people of Leeward and Long Bay, those listening via Radio Turks and Caicos and the streaming live on www.gov.tc/hoa.
Mr. Speaker, this morning I stand here, a proud Member of this Progressive National Party Government; and I would like to take a minute to commend the Honourable Premier and his team at the Ministry of Finance for all their hard work which resulted in a number of persons collecting their stimulus cheques over the weekend.
Mr. Speaker, there was much energy and enthusiasm in the air over the week and I am grateful to our Government for taking the bold step to provide tangible financial relief to the people of these Islands during these very difficult times.
Mr. Speaker, I urge our people to ensure that their stimulus packages are used in a meaningful way, but also remind us who are members of the Christain Faith, do not for your tithe and offering for your house of worship.
Mr. Speaker, I now turn my attention to giving a few brief updates from my Ministry and advise on some important upcoming activities.
Planning Department – National Physical Development Plan
Mr. Speaker, having participated in the consultation process for the Plan, I was quite knowledgeable about ongoing work.
Mr. Speaker, members of the Consultation team were in country last week, March 22-26 and met with a number of essential agencies before the implementation of the Plan. My Ministerial colleagues and I had an opportunity to meet with the team Mr. Speaker and heard first-hand some of the recommendations for land use development in these islands over the next ten years, building upon five key principles.
Mr. Speaker, those principles are:
Equity
Resilience, sustainability & multi-functionality
Island Linkages
Nature as beauty
TCI Culture
Mr. Speaker, another important recommendation I would like to share: it has been common practice over the years that most development proposals are initiated by developers first contacting various TCIG departments/statutory bodies such as Invest TCI, Crown Land Unit, then the Planning Department, further Mr. Speaker, agreements are often reached prior to the involvement of the Planning Department.
The NPDP recommends that the Department of Planning be the focal point/the logical nexus for coordination of all future development. The Department already follows an established development plan approval process via the Development Manual and Physical Planning Ordinance, so the Plan recommends TCIG and the Planning Department follow to streamline the development process and continually make development and preservation decisions that fall in line with the NPDP.
Mr. Speaker, as we work towards, development of our implementation priorities, we will keep members abreast.
Public Works Department
Mr. Speaker, my team and I participated in the First National Hurricane Preparedness meeting on March 9, 2021, and as a result of that meeting Mr. Speaker, Public Works Department has already begun to prepare the required checklist of works to be carried out for this year’s Hurricane Season, which is again predicted to be very active.
Mr. Speaker, as a part of that checklist, our team has already completed the inspection of all shelters. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to inform this Honourable House that a number of Government owned shelters have recently been refurbished and outfitted with standby generators, with the assistance of a generous donation from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
Mr. Speaker, the remainder of Government Approved and Private Shelters require minor repair works, which are being scoped and prepared to be sent our through the Public Procurement Process (PPP for quotations.
Mr. Speaker, it is our intention to procure fire extinguishers (which are a requirement) for all of our shelters in the new Financial Year. As a result of the protocols put in place by the Ministry of Health Mr. Speaker, additional washing stations and automatic hand sanitising machines are being procured for the all shelters to assist with the mitigation of the spread of COVID-19.
Mr. Speaker, also by way of information, the Ministry of Infrastructure is in the process of procuring new Satellite Phones and Handheld Radios for our offices throughout the islands, these would ensure that we are able to be in contact with staff during and following the passage of a storm.
Mr. Speaker, the final update I would like to give by way of purchases that we have made to assist us in our Disaster Preparedness efforts, is to advise that the Public Works Department has procured several pieces of heavy equipment, inclusive of a tractor with attachments, portable fuel tanks, verge cutters and mulching machines.
Mr. Speaker, this equipment should be in country by July and would not only assist us in times of disaster Mr. Speaker, but would be a welcomed addition for our Maintenance team.
Mr. Speaker, the team is also in the process of finalizing some additional works for a number of schools around the islands; however, we anticipate that those works would be completed for the re-opening of schools following the Easter Break.
Mr. Speaker, my teams at the Estates Management and Public Works Department collaborated with colleagues at the Ministry of Education for the successful reopening of schools and I would again like to express my thanks and appreciation to them as we work together to ensure the safety of our children. We conducted a site visit with our Colleagues yesterday, and have chart a way forward at ECPS.
Mr. Speaker, before I take my seat, I would like to advise the General Public and in particular Petty, Small and Medium Contractors and TCIG Vendors of the Ministry’s intention to host a Contractors & Vendors Summit in Grand Turk and Providenciales, with virtual capacity for Middle/North Caicos, South Caicos and Salt Cay.
Mr. Speaker, the Grand Turk & South and Salt Cay Summit has is scheduled for Tuesday, April 20, 2021 and Provo & Middle & North Caicos for Thursday, April 22, 2021. More details of both events would be communicated shortly, contractors and vendors in those categories are asked to look out for additional information and registration details. This summit was brought forward as the bulk of one-on-one meetings requested since being appointed as Minister, this is the main discussion point and concern. Further, Mr. Speaker we are reviewing the larger contract process as it fits within the Public Procurement Process and relevant ordinances.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, the team at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing, Planning and Development will be participating in a Staff Retreat on Friday, April 9, 2021 we chart the course for the Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing, Planning and Development towards being a well-oiled machine tasked with supporting planning policy, infrastructural development & plant management within these islands.
Mr. Speaker, thank you again for allowing me to update this Honourable House on the continued work of my Ministry and I look forward to giving further updates on our upcoming activities.
Mr. Speaker, I thank you, and wish everyone a blessed Holy Week as we pause and reflect on the ultimate servant’s final days, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May God bless and keep each of us all the days of our lives.
