Government

Noting the planned assembly on the grounds of the Cabinet Office tomorrow (29 June),  Premier David Burt today confirmed that he and the Cabinet will break from their scheduled meeting to greet those assembled.

Premier Burt said: “The organisers wrote to me last week indicating their intention to assemble peacefully in the grounds of the Cabinet Office and to ask if I would be available to receive documentation from them at 11:30 am.

Good Afternoon,

Today I am joined by the Minister of Labour, the Hon. Jason Hayward to highlight the 2020 Labour Force Survey Report from the Department of Statistics, and to discuss Bermuda’s labour and workforce market.

Thank you, Minister Furbert and good day to members of the media and the general public. 

“I join the community in extending my deepest and sincerest condolences to the families, loved ones and friends of the two men who tragically lost their lives last week,” said the Minister of National Security, Renee Ming today.

Minister Ming continued, “These two separate deaths happened in the worst possible circumstances, in such brutal and callous ways. My heart breaks for these young men’s families, and they are foremost on our minds today as we continue to process these tragic deaths.”

There are causes to which we should rally and come together. Two families in Bermuda are mourning young men, taken from them so unexpectedly. This in addition to the families who have lost their lives to COVID-19. Have we become so lost in social media play in Bermuda that we fail to value those lives lost and to make our first priority to comfort the families they leave behind? Our sense of community and our priorities must be re-ordered so that we again capture the love and unity that saw us through the darkest days of 2020.

“We are working around the clock to make this vital process seamless and easier for travellers,” a Government spokesperson said today. “The Bermuda Tourism Authority (BTA) has assigned team members to be at the JFK airport to assist Bermuda-bound travellers to navigate any potential issues with travel authorisation forms.

The Ministry of Health received 5335 test results since the last update, and four (4) were positive for COVID-19. This gives a test positivity rate of 0.1%. 

These results are from testing done on Monday (3 positive out of 1616 results (0.2% positivity)), Tuesday (0 positive out of 1884 results (0.0% positivity)), and Wednesday (1 positive out of 1835 results (0.1% positivity)).

COVID-19 Update – 22 June 2021

The Ministry of Health received 5913 test results since the last update, and two (2) were positive for COVID-19. This gives a test positivity rate of 0.03%. 

These results are from testing done on Thursday (0 positive out of 1796 results (0.0% positivity)), Friday (0 positive out of 1490 results (0.0% positivity)), Saturday (2 positive out of 1508 results (0.1% positivity)) and Sunday (0 positive out of 1119 results (0.0% positivity)).

The Ministry of Public Works advises the public of a water mains break on Middle Road, Devonshire, near Mosquito Hill, affecting customers east of the Middle Road junction with Hermitage Road Devonshire.

Customers impacted include businesses and residents in the Flatts, Shelly Bay, Radnor Road areas, including but not limited to Dunkley’s Dairy and the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo.

The water main has been closed to prevent water loss, and a team from the Water and Sewage Section are working to effect repairs.  

The Ministry of National Security takes this opportunity to advise the public of the quarantine guidelines for non-immunised persons.

As a reminder, the mandatory supervised quarantine for non-immunised travelers arriving in Bermuda by air takes effect today.

Upon entering Bermuda, all non-immunized travelers will be placed on quarantine, which includes a mandatory 14-night pre-paid booking at a government-authorized hotel at the traveler’s expense, except in the case of certain limited exemptions.

There are seven (7) approved quarantine locations:

The Government is aware of persons who are having issues with getting Travel Authorisations resulting in several people not being able to board flights to Bermuda. 

It is important to note that no Bermudian will be denied the ability to return home, and the Government has told the airlines serving Bermuda this directly. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has the information that a Bermudian cannot be denied the right to travel home. 

Father’s Day is this Sunday, June 21, and to celebrate fathers and all they do for their children, Primary 5 and Primary 6 students in the Bermuda Public School System shared why their father should be Father of the Year in an essay competition. 

The Ministry of Education in partnership with the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc, sponsored the Minister of Education’s fourth annual Father of the Year Essay competition which honoured eight fathers.

The Government of Bermuda today moved to clarify the changes to exemptions to the supervised quarantine for non-immunised travellers.

Initially, there were seven (7) exemption categories that were announced.

The Ministry of Health received 1713 test results since the last update, and zero (0) were positive for COVID-19. This gives a test positivity rate of 0.0%.  Additionally, there were no recoveries and no deaths.

There are currently ten active cases, of which;

• Ten are under public health monitoring and; 

• Zero are in the hospital.

Since March 2020, Bermuda has recorded 2504 total confirmed cases of COVID-19; out of those, 2461 persons have recovered, and sadly, there were 33 COVID-related deaths.

The source of all cases is as follows:

Mr Speaker, I would like to update my honourable colleagues about yet another exciting educational opportunity for the people of Bermuda. Today, I am pleased to announce yet another initiative to promote the relationship between the Bermuda Government and the University of the West Indies. Mr Speaker, By way of some background, The University of the West Indies was founded in 1948 and is the largest and longest standing higher education provider in the English-speaking Caribbean. Currently, UWI is ranked in the top 4% of Universities in the world.

Mr Speaker,

This morning I rise before you and my Honorable colleagues to share about the summer programmes that the Department of Education will be putting in place for our students to help make up for the lost number of school days they have experienced during the past school year.

Mr Speaker,

Good Morning Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to provide an update on the property – Wantley – located at 20 Princess Street in the City of Hamilton.

The property was purchased by the Bermuda Housing Corporation in March 2008 with a view to developing the site. In the intervening years funding was curtailed and the building was shuttered and boarded up.

The Ministry of Health received 1818 test results since the last update, and five were positive for the coronavirus. This gives a test positivity rate of 0.3%. 

If you’re a young person interested in the sciences and are looking to gain first-hand experience working in a laboratory environment, then the Bermuda Government’s Molecular Diagnostics Lab (MDL) is looking for you.

The MDL is currently accepting applications for its Summer Student Volunteer Programme, which will run from July 4, through Saturday, September 4, 2021. The Bermuda Government Molecular Diagnostics Lab is the primary laboratory for the testing of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease) in Bermuda.

The Ministry of Health received 1607 test results since the last update, and zero were positive for COVID-19. This gives a test positivity rate of 0.0%.  

Additionally, there were no recoveries and no deaths.

There are currently five active cases, of which;

• Four are under public health monitoring and; 

• One is in the hospital.

Since March 2020, Bermuda has recorded 2499 total confirmed cases of COVID-19; out of those, 2461 persons have recovered, and sadly, there were 33 COVID-related deaths.

The source of all cases is as follows:

Good day Bermuda, and Welcome, 

Today, I am pleased to announce yet another initiative to promote the relationship between the Bermuda Government and the University of the West Indies.  To assist me I am joined by Dr. Cleveland Sam, Marketing and Communications Manager at the University of the West Indies (UWI) as we discuss advantageous initiatives to support Bermudians seeking higher education. 

The Department of Social Insurance advises the public that its office will be closed from 2:00 PM Thursday, 17 June and all day Friday, 18 June due to floor installation works. The Department will be closed on Monday 21 June to observe National Heroes Day, a public holiday.

The office will reopen and be accessible to the public at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, 22 June. Telephone service will not be available during this time. However, members of the public can still email any queries to the following department sections:

Good evening Bermuda.

For more than a year now we have endured tests on our resilience, the likes of which we have not seen in a century. We have all lived through a time of unparalleled challenges, frustrations, and restrictions on our everyday lives that we could never have dreamed of. Throughout it all we have been resilient, and we have been united.

Thank you Premier, and good evening everyone.

Let me start by expressing my gratitude to everyone who has worked tremendously hard to keep Bermuda safe during this pandemic.

We have made significant progress in controlling the spread of the virus, and we appear to be turning the corner with our positive coronavirus cases continuing to fall.

The Ministry of Health received 1445 test results since the last update, and one (1) was positive for COVID-19. This gives a test positivity rate of 0.1%. 

The Ministry of Health is advising the public of a false email error message regarding COVID-19 vaccination certificates.

Please find below a statement from the Minister of Labour, the Hon. Jason Hayward, JP, MP, regarding the St. Regis Resort benefitting Bermudians and our economy.

Minister of Labour, the Hon Jason Hayward, JP, MP, said, “Members of the public will recall that in March 2021, the Government announced that over 90 Bermudian staff would start work at the St. Regis Resort in the first recruitment phase.

Bermuda will observe National Heroes Day on June 21, 2021. And to commemorate the day, the Department of Culture will host the Bermuda National Heroes Tribute Concert on Saturday 19^th, 5.00 pm at Victoria Park.

The concert will feature performances by Gene Steede, Joy T. Barnum, Willard Burch, Val Sherwood, Working Title band, Wendell “Shine” Hayward and other artists who will honour our eight National Heroes:

Ø  Mary Prince

Ø  Gladys Misick Morrell

Ø  Sir John W. Swan, KBE, JP