Legislation has been passed allowing for municipal elections due this year to be held in 2026 after a vote in the Upper House yesterday.

Although opposition senators were against it, the Municipalities Amendment Act 2025, was passed with Kim Wilkerson, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, reassuring the Senate that it should not be branded “a demolition of democracy”.

She was responding to criticism from by Marcus Jones, the Opposition Leader in the Senate.

A legal battle with the Corporation of Hamilton over the fate of the municipalities came after MPs approved legislation in 2019 giving the minister responsible the power to appoint mayors and half the councillors, with the rest of the councillors chosen by a selection committee.

Mr Jones said: “I sincerely believe that these mayors and their councillors — they are tired, they are wary, they are tired of the fight and the battle for democracy, for being able to have things the way where its citizens and businesses are able to vote for their direct representatives.”

He said the One Bermuda Alliance would “stand and sound a loud defence in favour of democracy”.

Ms Wilkerson defended the legislation, noting an ongoing legal battle had led to an appeal by the Corporation of Hamilton to the judicial committee of the Privy Council in December 2024 after they were unsuccessful in the Bermuda Court of Appeal the previous year.

She said a decision was still awaited, calling the postponement “a move of practicality, and not anything that is a brick-by-brick demolition of democracy”.

John Wight, Vice-President of the Senate, backed the legislation, saying there were “more important issues” to be addressed.

Tawanna Tannock, an independent senator, said she could not endorse it since she gets “really nervous anytime we talk about suspending elections”.

She added: “I don’t think it sets a really good precedent.”

Ms Tannock and opposition senators Maurice Foley, Victoria Cunningham and Mr Jones opposed its final passage.

Joan Dillas-Wright, President of the Senate, joined Ms Wilkerson and Crystal Caesar, the Minister of Education; Mischa Fubler, Junior Minister for the Cabinet Office and Innovation; Lindsay Simmons, Junior Minister of National Security; and Lauren Bell, the Junior Minister of Health, in support.

Senators also approved legislation laying out penalties for breaking new corporate income tax laws.

Ms Caesar, who speaks on finance in the Senate, said the Corporate Income Tax (Penalty Provisions) Amendment Act 2025 affirmed Bermuda’s longstanding commitment to be a co-operative, compliant and transparent jurisdiction.

Responding to a question from Mr Jones, Ms Caesar said the Corporate Income Tax agency was equipped with requisite personnel for enforcement.

She said additional staff would be brought on to assist experts developing the tax regime.

Senators passed the Employment Amendment Act 2025, clarifying how paid leave for workers receiving gratuities and service charges as part of their minimum hourly wage rate should be calculated.

The Bill, passed by the House of Assembly last month, was presented by Lauren Bell, also the junior economy and labour minister.

Ms Bell explained that both gratuities and service charges had ended up being considered “tips”, separate from wages, which affected payment for staff receiving other gratuities.

She said that the Government had met with the Bermuda Hotel Association and the Labour Advisory Council to reach a consensus.

They agreed that “other gratuities” would not factor into the paid-leave entitlement, beyond the required minimum hourly wage rate still to be met by employers.

The change was welcomed by Mr Jones, a hotelier, who said clearing up “an issue that has been a conundrum for the last year” would be embraced by the wider public.

He added: “This type of practice is to be applauded.”

Ms Caesar also presented a motion rubber-stamping base salary increases for MPs and senators, which was approved without comment.