Local News

The Lords Hansard Text from the House of Lords, in the British Parliament, dated Tuesday, November 15, 2011, quoted Lord Ashcroft, of Chichester, as asking a number of questions about Anguilla. The written answers were provided by Lord Howell of Guildford, Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Opposition Leader in the Anguilla House of Assembly, Evan McNiel Rogers, says he “is very disheartened and disappointed” by the way the Government is dealing with the Education Bill, which has repeatedly been the subject of public consultations and which was not allowed to be debated in the House.

Digicel’s Country Manager, John Gidharry, said that taking into consideration the economy in Anguilla, the company had tailored its special Christmas offers to the island in a way different from that in other islands.

The National Bank of Anguilla has joinedin creating an awareness of colon cancer.As part of its activities this month, NBA hosted two presentations at the Teachers’ Resource Centre on Saturday, November 20. The presenters were Dr. Rona Hodge of Hughes Medical Centre and Mrs. VerniceBattick, Nutritionist with the Health Authority of Anguilla.

The Ministry of Social Development in Anguilla, and other stakeholders, now have an official Policy Guideline, in the form of a booklet, to assist them with provisions relating to safeguarding children on the island.

The National Bank of Anguilla Ltd contributes to the 2011 Anguilla Race Against AIDS thus supporting the Optimist Club in their continued fight against HIV/AIDS. The event which is scheduled to commence at 6:30 am on Saturday December 3, 2011 is geared towards creating awareness to Anguilla’s children and youth about HIV/AIDS while incorporating the participation of regional citizens.

On Saturday November 19, the Anguilla Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACOCI) held a “Starry Night” dinner, dance and auction at the CuisinArt Golf Course Club House. It was attended by more than one hundred persons who supported the function held for raising funds to provide scholarships to enable students leaving school to pursue Associate Degree courses at the Anguilla Community College.

If all continues well in the pursuit of renewable sources of energy to combat rising oil and electricity prices, windmills and solar panels may soon punctuate the landscape of Anguilla.

Another Anguillian young woman has been called to the Bar, showing that an increasing number of local persons are entering the legal profession. The latest is 24-year-old Shameica C. Hodge, of The Farrington, daughter of Joycelyn and Chester Hodge.

While the ongoing financial restructuring at Cap Juluca continues, there is no threat of the resort closing. William Tacon (Partner, Zolfo Cooper) states, “The resort has recently received financial support through first round re-financing to ensure that normal operation continues.

Pastors Norril Gumbs and Gareth Hodge held a special session of prayer and counseling with 12 students at the HOPE CENTRE at East End, on Tuesday 8th November. The students, most of whom reside in the Sandy Hill area, are friends and family of Deion Richardson, a student at the Centre.

Anguilla, like many of the countries in the region, is continuing to monitor the spread of the invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans) in Anguilla’s coastal waters. This monitoring is being conducted by the Department of Fisheries and Marine Resources (DFMR) and it appears as if the population numbers of the lionfish are rapidly increasing. This increase in lionfish numbers does not bode well for our coral reef fishery resources and the ecological well-being of the coral reef ecosystems in Anguilla.

One of three investors, already having a stake in Cap Juluca, is expected to emerge as the new owner of Anguilla’s flagship tourism resort, under a new Memorandum of Understanding. The property is now in receivership. It sits on Government-owned land at Maunday’s Bay and, until recently, was operated by Adam Aron whose ownershipran into challenges with Charles Hickcox, one of the original owners who has now re-entered the scene.

The Anguilla Government and the citizenryarepinningtheir hopes on a planned major tourism development on Scrub Island, with local participation, for which a Memorandum of Understandingwassigned a week ago.

In what is considered to be one of his most passionate appeals, Anguilla’s Commissioner of Police, Rudolph Proctor, has chided persons believed to have useful information about criminal activity, but are failing to report the same to the Police.

Digicel in Anguilla has contributed EC$4,000 towards the fight against breast cancer, thus fulfilling a pledge the company made to donate EC$40 from the sale of each BlackBerry Curve 8520 handset it sold during October – Cancer Awareness Month.

The Anguilla Government, through the Ministry of the Environment, is giving consideration to a new set of proposals for the re-establishment of the Dolphin Project on the island. The proposed location is Sandy Point, Blowing Point, where a structure was previously located. The dolphinarium first operated at Meads Bay, on premises now owned by Viceroy Anguilla.

Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, Simon Fraser, has made the point that it is important for Britain and Anguilla to work together to get the island’s finances on a stable long-term footing.

The scheduled trial beach cleanup, of, Sandy Hill BAY by the Sandy Hill Neighbors was a great success! A decision was made to do a trial cleanup to see what problems, if any, we would encounter before we embarked on the major cleanup. It was discovered that by using forks instead of rakes less sand was picked up which is a very positive factor in maintaining our, beautiful beach.

The Anguilla Water Corporation officially commissioned its new state-of-the-art plant at Crocus Hill on Tuesday, October 31. The event climaxed the work of the outgoing Water Board which, for the past two years, had been under the chairmanship of retired Permanent Secretary, Kenn Banks.