The Tribune

ALL too often it can be a challenge to determine what to include in this weekly column that may be of interest to readers at any given time. The aim is to offer comment on as wide a range as possible of developments both in Britain and around the world. But this week the choice is not difficult. It is clear that, after the recent turmoil and drama that created such a frenzied atmosphere in Britain, there is interest in hearing about how the nation’s new Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, is likely to perform as he faces what he himself has described publicly as a ‘profound economic crisis’ and tough times to come.

While concentrating on Britain this week, I should also like to write about UK aid to the Caribbean and mention a successful drugs bust carried out by the Royal Navy in waters off the Dominican Republic.

As well as The Tribune, there has been so much coverage in the UK press and international media of the so-called meltdown in the UK that the facts do not bear repetition today. Some say the press contributed to the mayhem by overemphasising the seriousness of the situation. In particular, having praised Liz Truss during the Tory leadership contest in the summer and welcomed her as the new PM, some now seem to have delighted in criticising her to the hilt. There is general agreement that she showed poor judgement in pursuing ideas for economic reform - whatever their merits - far too quickly and without proper consultation, debate or adequate preparation. But it does not necessarily follow that she was out of her depth overall as some have claimed. She has had a good record of achievement in senior positions in government – and she has showed leadership qualities which persuaded many to support her for the premiership.

Furthermore, the portrayal of Boris Johnson as nothing more than a comical buffoon is wide of the mark. Whether one likes him or not, he has been a highly successful, charismatic politician and proven winner of elections. Although under the Westminster system it is the political party which is elected - and not mainly its leader, as happens under a presidential system - the overwhelming 2019 election win by the Tories was mainly about Brexit with Johnson at the helm. However, it is clearly the case that he was responsible, in part, for his own political downfall through the lack of order, cronyism and culture of sleaze at No 10 Downing Street.

Suffice it to say, that having three different premiers within the space of seven weeks is a serious development in a country like Britain which is known for its political stability and good order and which has been an example to other countries of how to promote and put into practice democratic values in an open and free society. A frequent change of political leadership can lead to damaging instability. In a nation which continues to play an important role in the rest of the world as its sixth largest economy (having recently been overtaken by India), a permanent member of the UN Security Council and leading member of the Commonwealth, this can cause concern to other countries whose interests may be affected.

The 42-year-old Rishi Sunak has become the first British Prime Minister of Asian descent in history. He was born in England of Indian parents who moved to the UK in the 1960s. His father became a doctor and general practitioner and his mother was a pharmacist. He was educated at Winchester College, a leading public (independent) school, and Oxford University and is also a graduate of Stanford University business school in California.

His transition to the top job, after initially losing the race to become leader of the Conservative Party and then replacing Liz Truss after her resignation last month, ended up being surprisingly smooth. The ease and swiftness of his victory under new streamlined rules will have contributed to this after the Tories conducted a sensible and efficient leadership contest, and the bitterness and chaos of the dying days of the Truss administration appear largely to have evaporated.

Although it is, of course, too soon to tell how some Tory MPs might react in the longer term, the sense of calm that suddenly appears to have descended on the Tory party suggests that Sunak, who has already shown himself to be a better communicator than his predecessor, has emerged as the true unity candidate who has a good chance of bringing together its warring factions. It is being said that, because of the insidious ‘politics of envy’ in Britain in relation to wealth redistribution, his and his wife’s huge personal wealth may work against him. But, by all accounts, he seems to be the right man at the helm in face of the worsening economic storm, not least because, as a graduate of Stanford, he is capable of mastering the technicalities of finance. Reportedly, at the same time, he possesses the self-discipline and intelligence to grasp broader political issues, having already served as Chancellor of the Exchequer during which he enjoyed a reputation for being smart and energetic, not least in his response to the COVID epidemic. It is said that he naturally veers away from antagonism but has the strength of character to stand his ground when necessary.

All in all, therefore, less than two weeks into his job the signs are encouraging for the new PM. He is exuding determination and seriousness and is already closing the gap in the polls with the opposition Labour Party. A round of tax rises and spending cuts are due to be unveiled on November 17 when his Chancellor sets out plans in his Budget to restore economic stability and confidence. At this critical moment for the nation, the question is whether the new-found unity of the ruling Conservatives is real or is only a veneer that could crack in face of further economic turmoil, though Sunak says he is committed to taking the tough decisions based on the Conservatives’ 2019 manifesto.

It will be a demanding task to get the country back on track in face of the current economic mess, including soaring inflation and falling living standards, as well as an energy crisis and the problems of war in Ukraine, to name just a few of his problems. So, despite a promising start, commentators are warning, even at this early stage, that unless the new PM can gradually build on his initial success in time for the next General Election scheduled for no later than 2024, there is always the danger that his own MPs could turn against him – and that could even mean going back to none other than Boris Johnson as a proven electoral asset. For many, such a return would be unwelcome, but they accept that it cannot be ruled out.

UNTOLD STORY OF UK ASSISTANCE TO CARIBBEAN

IN BRITAIN, the issue of overseas aid has often been controversial. Traditionally, many people have seen it as a moral obligation – not least because of the nation’s colonial past – to help poorer countries in the world, but others believe that charity begins at home. Despite such mixed attitudes, in 2015 Britain enshrined in law that 0.7 per cent of the country’s gross national income must be spent on foreign aid. This figure was in accordance with an agreed United Nations target for donor countries.

According to the website of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in London, which is responsible for administering overseas aid, the purpose of it is to help create a safer, wealthier and more secure world. In October last year, the UK government reduced this figure to 0.5 per cent in order to free up more cash for domestic spending during the COVID pandemic. The shortfall was seen by many as a serious blow to poorer countries as they themselves struggled to recover from the pandemic that had knocked back economies and deepened poverty. But the government said at the time that it hoped to reinstate the higher level of such spending by 2024-5.

While studying this recently, it struck me that there is little publicity locally about UK aid to the Caribbean as a whole and, specifically, to The Bahamas. It is the case that historically bilateral direct aid to this country has been restricted because of the perception that this is a rich country as shown by its high per capita income. However, multilateral assistance through international bodies is another matter.

A little research shows that the UK funds regional projects via, amongst others, CARICOM and the Inter- American Development Bank; and British International Investment (formerly known as the CDC Group), which is the UK’s development finance institution, marked its return to investing in the Caribbean during a recent visit to Jamaica. I also found an official announcement in January, 2021 that the UK had committed to maintain its share of funding - as one of the largest donors - to the Caribbean Development Bank’s Special Development Fund, pledging up to some $25m over the next four years to continue supporting life-changing projects in the Caribbean.

This is not the time to offer detailed comment. But I spotted a short report in The Tribune about an address given on October 18 by the new British High Commissioner, Thomas Hartley, at a meeting here in Nassau of the Caribbean Water and Wastewater Association. In his wide ranging speech, he talked about natural disaster risk reduction and financing and announced that the UK will support the new Caribbean Water-Utilities Insurance Company (CWUIC) – an entity to be created next year as an offshoot of the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) -- with a contribution of BS$ 3.4 million, ‘as a down payment of more support in the future’.

He stressed the importance of reducing disaster risk in Small Island Developing States like ours which are particularly vulnerable to climate change because of hurricanes and rising sea levels. He said that the UK was active regionally in helping to strengthen resilience at the national, community and business level, while also working through its Centre for Disaster Protection (funded by the UK) to change how the world prepares and pays for disasters.

He went on to remind his audience that the Caribbean has led the world on “Disaster Risk Financing”, including setting up the CCRIF with the UK government and other donors in 2007, adding that insurance is a vital last line of defence – and concluding that “As home to the biggest insurance industry in the world, the UK knows this more than anyone else”.

It has been interesting to research this subject, albeit not in great depth. Assistance in connection with disaster protection is, of course, particularly important for The Bahamas because of the effects of climate change and increasingly stronger hurricanes. Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis brought the whole issue to the attention of other world leaders through his excellent address at COP26, the UN climate change conference in Glasgow in November last year. All will surely now hope there will be further progress for the benefit of the Caribbean at COP27 in Egypt later this month.

NEVER-ENDING FIGHT AGAINST DRUGS

AS ANOTHER piece about Britain in today’s column, it is good to report a story about a successful action in the seas of the Caribbean by the Royal Navy that hit the headlines at the weekend.

Because of space limitations there is only room for the bare facts. Briefly, the Caribbean-based RN patrol ship HMS Medway and a US Coast Guard boarding team, with help from a patrol aircraft, recently seized from a boat in waters near the Dominican Republic more than 400kg of cocaine worth around 24m pounds sterling on Britain’s streets. Following a tense and challenging chase, the vessel was boarded and the drugs discovered. Three crew members were detained. The boat was then sunk by Medway’s gunnery team.

Reportedly, Medway, which is deployed as the RN’s permanent presence in the region and visited The Bahamas earlier this year, recently helped the people of the Cayman Islands and of the Turks and Caicos in their recovery efforts following Hurricanes Ian and Fiona – and, after this successful drugs bust, the Commanding Officer was quoted as saying that ‘it’s a perfect example of Medway’s versatility and my team’s ability to shift from Disaster Relief Operations to Counter Illicit Trafficking Operations…’.

Another time, it might be interesting to examine the RN’s success since the beginning of this year in seizing what has been described as a “whopping” 70.8m pounds sterling worth of drugs during a string of high-profile busts across the world. With evidence that cash from the sale of narcotics funds terror groups like Islamic State, the interdiction of illicit drugs has become increasingly important – and these operations against drugs smuggling demonstrate the significant role the UK is playing globally.