News

Good afternoon Bermuda; and thank you, members of the media, for your attendance today.

I begin today’s press conference on a sombre note. On behalf of the Government of Bermuda and the people of Bermuda, I express my condolences to the family and friends of the young lady who lost her life at the hands of a heartless murderer on Sunset Lane, last evening in Pembroke during the early hours of this morning.

Today there were 418 test results received by the Ministry of Health, and none were positive for COVID-19. 

Bermuda now has 181 total confirmed positive cases. Their status is as follows:

• 167 have recovered, and
• there are 5 active cases, who are
• all under public health monitoring;
• none are hospitalized or in critical care, and
• the total deceased remains at 9.

The average age of all of our confirmed positive cases is 56 and the age range of all of our positive cases is from 9 to 101 years. 

After many weeks of negotiations, the Government of Bermuda can confirm that it has reached agreement in principle with the Bermuda Police Association (BPA) that will essentially see the Police participate in the austerity measures programme for a 12-month period.

As a further note, the parties have also reached an agreement in principle on the Conditions of Service Order, which will see the Police receive the cost of living increase of 2.5% for fiscal 2017/18 and 2.0% for 2018/19 which accords with the agreements reached with all other Public Officers.  

The Ministry of Health is advising the public that returning officers and presiding officers employed by the Parliamentary Registrar as well as election candidates have the opportunity to undergo saliva testing prior to Thursday’s General Election to help ensure voter safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This means the testing hours for the Perot testing location will be extended tonight and tomorrow night for this group of individuals who can attend between 6pm and 9pm either tonight or tomorrow night.

In response to the murder of a young woman which took place in Pembroke this morning, the Minister of National Security, the Hon. Renee Ming offered the following: 

“This was very distressing news to receive in the early hours of this morning,” she said. 

“Life is precious, and it saddens me that a young woman’s life was taken away in such a tragic circumstance. I wish to extend my sincerest condolences to the young woman’s family and loved ones during this extremely difficult time. 

PEMBROKE, Bermuda – September 29, 2020 – Athene Holding Ltd. (“Athene”) (NYSE: ATH) and its reinsurance subsidiary, Athene Life Re Ltd.(ALRe), announced it is donating 200 laptops to the Bermuda Public School System for the 2020-2021 school year. The donation aligns with Athene’s commitment to education-based initiatives in its communities as part of its broader corporate responsibility strategy.

Hamilton, Bermuda – Commencing March 28, 2021, Bermuda commercial air service from London will originate from Heathrow Airport, replacing service from Gatwick Airport, the Bermuda Ministry of Transport and British Airways announced jointly today. For Bermuda, this marks a welcome return to the UK’s busiest airport.

Later today, the Minister of Community Affairs and Sports, the Hon. Lovitta Foggo will participate in the premiere screening of Broadcasting Black, a locally produced film which explores the often overlooked contribution of black media to the success of the 1959 Theatre Boycotts. 

Today, Minister for the Cabinet Office the Hon. Wayne L. Furbert, JP, MP, released the June 2020 Consumer Price Index publication from the Department of Statistics. 

The Minister explained, “In June 2020 consumers paid the same as they did for the CPI basket of goods and services in June 2019. Between May 2020 and June 2020 the average cost of all goods and services decreased 0.1 percentage points.”