The Anguilla United Front is the first political party for the April 22 General Election to publicly launch and present it’s printed manifesto.
The 28-page document was presented by Mr. Victor Banks, the AUF Leader, at a press conference on Thursday, April 9, incidentally Nomination Day.
The front cover of the manifesto carries the AUF’s rallying theme – “The Anguillian Dream. Growing Hope, Increasing Opportunity, Embracing Our Youth, Caring For All…It’s all about YOU.”
The manifesto encapsulates the party’s vision for 2015-2020 and beyond. It contains fifteen points of its Human Development Mission to which the AUF will work towards with commitment, passion and purpose.
Those key points are as follows:
• Restore full employment, diversify jobs, promote the payment of living wages in the lowest paying jobs and set up an effective national minimum wage.
• Provide relief from the Interim Stabilisation Levy and other taxes, which have hurt workers and businesses and depressed commerce, since 2010.
• Promote the use of unused tourism and other assets to grow business and jobs.
• Improve air access, expand the Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport and Blowing Point Port, build Corito Port, improve the Valley roads and promote a national bus service.
• Support local investors with programmes, especially for young entrepreneurs, and promote foreign investment in specific sectors and joint ventures with local investors generally to grow jobs, incomes, wealth and foreign exchange.
• Champion energy conservation and renewable energy independence, develop and implement a comprehensive climate change strategy.
• Strengthen public finances – generate surpluses, build reserves, and limit loans.
• Normalise commercial banking and maintain local ownership in commercial banking; increase the role of the Anguilla Development Board; encourage innovative funding methods and strengthen the overall financial system.
• Provide creative and innovative business support programmes especially for young entrepreneurs.
• Achieve 5-8% annual economic growth, working with business and labour.
• Expand social benefits for the employed; the unemployed; children; the elderly; and the disabled.
• Emphasise mathematics, science, technology, creativity and business education.
• Implement an affordable National Health Insurance System, providing basic health care to all; raise the Health Authority of Anguilla (HAA) service quality; and strengthen collaboration between the HAA and private sector healthcare providers.
• Reduce violent crime, especially gun violence among youth; pursue an overall crime reduction strategy; promote peaceful conflict resolution and mutual respect; strengthen family life, social and gender affairs; improve respect for the law; strengthen police-community relations; improve the prison system; and secure an upgraded and more advanced constitution and improved transparency and accountability.
It is likely that the Anguilla United Movement, the Dove Party and the remaining two independent candidates, may release their manifestos during the remaining days in the run-up to the general election.
Usually, the manifesto of the elected party forms the basic blueprint for the policy and programmes of the emerging new Government of Anguilla.
