Dear Sir,

Given the recent notice that Bermuda will hold a General Election in just six weeks’ time and then with the lack of in-person canvassing these days … and because even if you did get a meeting with the incumbent in your constituency, it is unlikely that you could share your thoughts with candidates in the other parties … I thought I would express some of my wishes for the future in the hope that they might be seeds of ideas worth considering:

1, I think Bermuda should strengthen our ties to Britain. There are quite a number of Bermudians living and sheltering there, so it can’t be as bad as some in leadership positions would have us believe. There could be many benefits for us, individually and collectively, although paying taxes might be a new experience.

2, We need to seriously start solving the many problems we have in our community. It’s really easy to engage people on the exciting possibilities of moving forward, but less so when we factor in the need for us to accept the responsibility for what we are leaving in our wake in that path “forward”. Life isn’t just peaches and cream. Just a few of the unresolved problems that I can think of at this moment are:

• Feral cats and chickens

• Regulations related to vicious dogs

• Illegal development

• The promise of governmental transparency

• The promise of public consultation

• The state of our roads

• The issue of gang violence and violent crime

• Drug and alcohol abuse

• The cost and quality of food

• Homelessness and the lack of affordable housing

• Poor public transportation system

• Road fatalities and poor driving habits

• Lack of a published agricultural strategy for growing food in Bermuda

• Lack of a national policy and plan for adaptation and mitigation of the impacts of climate change

• Lack of meaningful vision for what we want to achieve in Bermuda … let alone how we plan to do that

• Lack of meaningful enforcement of rules and regulations … and, no, enforcement does not have to be punitive alone

Now, problem-solving isn’t a skill that everyone has, and so I would suggest establishing a government department, staffed by qualified and experienced people, to focus on plans to resolve these and the many other problems. In order to fund this new Department of Innovation and Solutions — for the lack of a more appropriate name — we could get rid of the superfluous Gaming Commission and use that budget for getting some real work done for the country.

3, We need a new political system/model — one that is on a more appropriate scale, is more reflective of modern times, and is inclusive not divisive. We need to find ways to work together at a time when there just isn’t the luxury for the inefficiency of division.

I wish for a deeper vision for Bermuda; one that would stimulate a desire to be a community committed to the ideals of sustainability so that our future generations can expect to have the quality of life that they deserve. It is within our power to strive more fervently to provide that for them.

We are blessed to be living in an isolated place geographically, somewhat out of reach of a world that is almost unrecognisable to past generations. Together we can make Bermuda into whatever we want it to be. I think our greatest asset is our potential. We can, and need, to work together more productively and to each play a part in protecting our beautiful but vulnerable island home.

For any of this to happen, honesty and integrity must be of the highest order so that we may be good role models for the youth who will carry the vision forward.

KIM SMITH

Pembroke