The third meeting of the second session of the twelfth Anguilla House of Assembly was held on Tuesday, December 14, 2021. The House approved the minutes of its last meeting as circulated.
Announcements by the direction of the Speaker included words of condolences to the Honourable Deputy Governor, Perin Bradley; former Member of the House, Evalie Bradley; and their family – on the loss of their brother and son. A moment of silence was observed on behalf of the Bradley family as requested by the Honourable Premier, Dr. Ellis L. Webster.
Single Island-wide Member, Mr. Jose Vanterpool, rose on behalf of the Parliamentary Reform Committee (PRC), to present and discuss the report: Governance, Organisational and Administrative Review of the Anguilla House of Assembly. The report had been commissioned by the Anguilla House of Assembly to review the current governance and administrative arrangements of the Legislature.
Mr. Vanterpool noted that the report was prepared and presented to the PRC by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) as part of their technical assistance programme to undertake a formal benchmarking process.
He said: “The process produced a report containing several recommendations for establishing the independence of parliament, and for strengthening the assembly as an institution for governance in Anguilla.”
The report is broken down into four parts, each with specific recommendations for implementation: Governance of the House (8 recommendations); Finance of the House and Members’ Remuneration (7 recommendations); Administration of the House and Services (11 recommendations); Infrastructure and Physical Resources (2 recommendations).
Accompanying the report was a separate implementation plan which broke down key steps for reform based on the desired approach the House and Government wish to pursue.
Continuing with the current business of the Assembly, the Honourable Member for District 1, Dr. Ellis Webster, brought two motions to the House. Motion 3/2021-2/12-HOA: Customs Duties and Tax Exemption (Motion 3/2021-2/12-HOA) Regulations, 2021, and Motion 4/2021-2/12/HOA: Customs Duties and Tax Exemption (Motion 4/2021-2/12-HOA) Regulations, 2021.
The Honourable Member for District 2, Mrs. Cora Richardson-Hodge, and the Honourable Member for District 6, Mr. Haydn Hughes, contributed to the debate on Motion 4/2021-2/12/HOA: Customs Duties and Tax Exemption. Both motions were passed by The House without amendment and became Resolutions of the Assembly.
A second reading of a Bill for Licensing of Business Act, 2021, was presented to the House by the Honourable Single Island-wide Member, Mr. Kyle Hodge. He explained the objectives and reasoning for the Bill as outlined in the following Clauses: Definition of key terms used in the wording of the Bill; Issues surrounding the Business Licensing Board; Requirements to have a license and any exemptions pertaining to the same; and Issuing of the license.
Leader of the Opposition, Mrs. Cora Richardson-Hodge, rose to support the merits and principles of the Bill for Licensing Business Act, 2021. She gave a brief historical background to the Bill. She spoke specifically to the moratorium on the issuance of business licenses that was put in place by the previous AUF Administration.
The Bill for Licensing of Business Act, 2021, was amended slightly. A third reading of the Bill was presented to the House. The Bill was moved, voted on, and passed by the House.
Members of the House of Assembly rose to offer condolences to the Deputy Governor, Mr. Perin Bradley, former Member of The House of Assembly, Mrs. Evalie Bradley, and the Bradley family on the tragic loss of their son, Kareem Bradley.
