There will be one Election on Wednesday 17 July 2013, to elect 12 Councillors to represent the whole Island. This means that all the candidates’ names will all on one Ballot Paper.
Each voter will be able to select up to 12 candidates. But you do not have to use all 12 votes – you can just select your one favourite, or two or three – in fact any number up to 12. If you select more than 12, your Ballot Paper will be invalid, and none of your votes will be counted.
Polling Stations at the Levelwood, Harford, Jamestown, Blue Hill, Sandy Bay, Kingshurst and Half Tree Hollow Community Centres and at Judges’ Lodge, Alarm Forest will be open from 10 am to 7 pm.
Counting of votes will begin in the main hall at Prince Andrew School at approximately 8 pm – after which the results will be declared, with candidates and supporters in attendance.
The public are reminded that entries are invited from 10 years and upwards in the St Helena Photography Competition.
All photos submitted must be taken on St Helena, but otherwise there are no conditions or caveats. They can be existing photographs that you have already taken, or new ones, and can be on any subject. For example, your family or friends, your home surroundings, a celebration or your favourite spot on the Island. Indoors or outdoors, high quality or not – please feel free to submit all types of photographs that reflect any aspect of life on this Island.
Apart from terrific cash prizes, winning entries will receive publicity as well as being placed on SHG’s new, more visual website.
Prizes for first place (£150), second (£75) and third (£50) will be awarded in each of three age categories. These are those aged 10-15, 16-21 and 22 years and over. So get snapping!
Images submitted for judging (a maximum of 5 photos per entry) should be stored on a CD or a memory stick, and placed in an envelope with a description of the pictures and approximate date/s taken, together with your name, age, and contact details. Your entry should be addressed to Ian Jones, Chief Public Relations Officer, 1 Main Street. If you have any questions at all about the competition, please call tel. no. 2368.
The closing date for entries is 4pm on Wednesday 31 July 2013.
Mark Brumbill, Commercial Fisheries Development Manager, left St Helena on Sunday 7 July. Julian Morris, Chief Executive for Economic Development, said:
“Mark had completed his initial appraisal and report on the St Helena Fishery, which sets out the many opportunities available to the Island.
“I regret Mark’s departure, which is a loss to the Island, although I fully understand his decision to leave. After considering a number of factors, including unfair and unwarranted comments from a few individuals, including some very serious personal threats to him and his family, Mark concluded that it would be extremely difficult for him to remain here to help Saints develop a prosperous and sustainable fishing industry. I am grateful to Mark and his family, who made a significant commitment by leaving their home in Brazil to come here and share Mark’s skills and experience with those who want to see growth in St Helena’s fishing sector.
“Mark identified great potential for St Helena’s fishery, provided that it can adapt to change, involving various fishing techniques and different approaches to business organisation, all matters on which he was well qualified to advise. Looking ahead, we will build on his work by supporting a number of local fishing initiatives – the Fish Aggregation Devices and local boats trialling alternative fishing techniques, Argos moving the fishing boat The Argonaut to St Helena, the IGFA initiative and exploring the possibilities with Global Fish.”
Harry Legg OBE JP has today been appointed by Governor Capes as Acting Sheriff of St Helena (see attached photo), whilst the current Sheriff, Greta Pat Musk MBE JP, is temporarily away from the Island.
The Sheriff’s prescribed Oaths were taken before His Excellency in the Governor’s Office at the Castle and become immediately effective, until the substantive Sheriff returns to St Helena on 29 July 2013.
The Sheriff of St Helena is nominally responsible for enforcing Court Orders, and this is usually carried out by the police service on the Sheriff’s behalf. The Sheriff is also responsible for summoning Jurors when a Jury is required, either in the Supreme Court or for a Coroner’s Inquest. The most conspicuous public role, however, is the swearing in of Governors and Acting Governors.
In the run-up the St Helena General Election on 17 July 2013, there continues to be much interesting discussion about the role of Councillors and officials and the structure of Government. The public may find this brief summary helpful.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
The 12 Councillors (Elected Members) who are elected on 17 July will make up (along with three non-voting members) the Legislative Council – usually known as ‘LegCo’. LegCo is our Legislature – empowered to make laws. Technically, it is the Governor who ‘makes’ the law, but he can only do so with the explicit approval of LegCo. The 2009 Constitution took away the residual power for the Governor to make a law which LegCo had rejected.
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
The 12 members of LegCo will choose five of them (with the same three non-voting officials) to form the Executive Council – usually known as ‘ExCo’. The Executive Council is, for most purposes, ‘the Government’ [together with the Council Committees (see below) and LegCo]. All major policy decisions, including proposals to make new laws, or amend existing ones, pass through the Councillors on Executive Council.
Voters who have listened to, or read, the Governor’s ExCo Reports will know the vast range of subjects which ExCo deals with and determines. Its meetings are, in effect, St Helena’s equivalent of UK Cabinet meetings. Again, the 2009 Constitution reduced the Governor’s ability to act contrary to the Council’s advice.
COUNCIL COMMITTEES
Beneath the Executive Council, there will be five Council Committees. Each will have a Chairman (one of the 12 Elected Members, chosen by them), and each will have a number of other Members. Non-Councillors may be appointed, but there will be a majority of Councillors. Currently, all Committee Members are Elected Members of LegCo.
Unless the new Councillors advise differently, the five Committees will deal with a wide range of issues under the titles of:
Economic Development
Heath & Social Services
Education
Environment & Natural Resources
Community Development
These Committees have a central role in Government. They formulate policies in their subject areas and submit these to ExCo for approval. The supporting role of officials here is to advise upon, implement and operate approved policies.
VALUES
The operation of all arms of SHG are governed by and based upon the Partnership Values written into St Helena’s Constitution. These principles are:
Good Faith
the Rule of Law
Good Government
Sound Financial Management
the Impartial Administration of Justice
the Impartiality of the St Helena Public Service
the Maintenance of Public Order
Compliance with Applicable International Obligations of the UK and of St Helena
the Maintenance of International Peace and Security and the Right of Individual or Collective Self-defence
In exercising their responsibilities and powers, all those working within Government have a duty to give effect to these Partnership Values and principles of good governance.
INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS
Under the Constitution, every person in St Helena is entitled to the fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual – that is, has those rights, without distinction of any kind, such as sex, sexual orientation, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association, property, age, disability, birth or other status – subject to respect for the rights and freedoms of others and for the public interest.
The Constitution contains extensive rules about fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual, including:
the Right to Life, and Protection from Torture or Inhuman Treatment
the Right to Liberty
Freedoms of Conscience, of Expression, and of Assembly
Privacy and Family Life
Protection from Discrimination
All those working within Government are under a duty to respect these rights and freedoms.
Executive Council met this morning with just one item on the agenda related to the airport project. As mentioned in my EXCO report of 25 June this was to more fully consider a request for an amendment to the consent for the Airport Project, given by the Governor in Council in 2008.
To assist with this we were joined by Deon de Jager from Basil Read, colleagues from the Project Management Unit, and Janet Lawrence from the Access Office.
In 2008 it was proposed that two culverts should be constructed beneath Dry Gut fill to convey the runoff from the Dry Gut catchment and the south western portions of the airfield footprint. Basil Read proposed a design involving a single culvert coupled with an attenuation dam upstream of the culvert inlet. This was adopted as the Reference Design within the airport contract.
During the design stage a number of alignment options were investigated for the culvert, but it was found that risks were associated with them all, relating primarily to the risk of culvert subsidence. Basil Read therefore looked at alternatives. This resulted in a proposal to construct an open drainage diversion channel through the ridge to the south of Dry Gut; this solution would replace the culvert and attenuation dam.
The open channel proposal has been thoroughly reviewed and confirmed as a viable design solution for dealing with drainage in Dry Gut. There are also a number of additional benefits associated with the proposal. For example, without the need to construct the attenuation dam, the impacts in that area of Dry Gut will be reduced. The channel will also allow easier access for maintenance, thereby reducing long-term maintenance costs.
A further benefit will be that construction of the open channel will make available 600,000 cubic meters of material which can go directly into the Dry Gut fill. This is a useful bonus as Basil Read has encountered higher quantities than expected of material that is unsuitable to be used as fill.
Noting that the open channel proposal has been through rigorous appraisal from technical, financial, economic, social and environmental perspectives, Executive Council fully agreed that the original consent for the Airport Project should be amended to enable the Open Channel proposal to proceed. And so ended our short meeting.
Unless any other urgent matter arises, this was probably the last meeting of Executive Council before the general election on 17 July.
As I’m sure most of you will know there are 20 candidates confirmed as standing for election. Now it is up to you, the voter, to make sure that on 17 July you are ready to cast your vote. Between now and polling day on 17 July you have plenty of time to listen to what the candidates have to say about how they would like to see St Helena develop.
Do take time to listen to the candidates when they are interviewed on the radio. If you can, do go along to their various public meetings where you can put your questions to them. The 12 candidates that are successful on polling day will be making decisions about the future of your Island. So it is absolutely in your interest that on 17 July you should turn out to vote for the candidates that you believe have the ability to provide the leadership that the Island needs to guide it to a successful future, to shape St Helena as you would like to see it.
For my part as Governor, I commit to you to work hard with the Councillors that you elect to move St Helena forward, while always ensuring that we do so guided by the Constitution, its partnership values, and the principles of good governance.
So come rain or shine on 17 July please do use your vote.
Thank you as always for listening and a very good afternoon to you all.
Members of the public who wish to view the Register of Electors or to collect Proxy forms, can also do so by contacting their district Assistant Registration Officers.
They are as follows:
Half Tree Hollow: Mrs Karen Yon, Mrs Michelle Yon, Mrs Connie Johnson
Jamestown: Mr Robert Essex, Mrs Alicia Thomas, Mrs Olive Williams, Mr Douglas Bennett
Alarm Forest: Miss Jane Augustus, Mrs Brenda Thomas
Longwood: Miss Paula Moyce, Miss Christina Henry
Levelwood: Mr Ronald Coleman, Mrs Pamela Joshua
Sandy Bay: Mr Alfred Isaac, Miss Anita Legg
Blue Hill: Mrs Elizabeth March, Mrs Georgina Young
St Paul’s: Miss Alfreda Yon, Mrs Jackie Moyce
Individuals who are not named in the Register of Electors, cannot vote on polling day. The deadline for submission of Proxy forms is Monday 15 July at 10am.
St Helena is a small Island, eleven miles by seven in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean. Although small it is still possible to lose things. Just occasionally, however, they turn up again. The 3mm long leaf hopper ‘Chlorita’ edithae was described from eight specimens collected by Vernon Wollaston during his visit to the island in 1875 and it hasn’t been seen since – until now.
The Rare Endemic Leaf Hopper Chlorita Edithae on a Whitewood Leaf – photo by Lourens Malan
On Bank Holiday 1 April 2013, while exploring tiny fragments of remaining natural vegetation above Wranghams on the high central ridge of the Island, Lourens Malan [Terrestrial Conservation Officer in the Environment Management Division (EMD) of the St Helena Government] noticed a few brightly-coloured leaf hoppers. Quickly grabbing his camera he managed to get several photographs of them. He later showed these to David Pryce (Invertebrate Conservation Co-ordinator at the St Helena National Trust) who nearly fell off his chair – it hadn’t been seen for 137 years.
This major discovery is all the more important as the hopper was found on the endangered endemic Whitewood Tree (Petrobium arboreum) of which there were only 80 surviving in 1995. Active conservation work on the Island has helped safeguard this species for the immediate future.
Most of the new stock has been grown from seedlings collected from the wild and grown on in more accessible areas where they could be tended for and monitored. As the plants collected were small it is less likely that they will have much of their associated fauna on them. Many of these insects have very poor dispersal abilities, further restricting their ability to form new colonies. Discoveries like this mean that steps can be taken to conserve these species as well as their plant hosts.
The isolated island of three Whitewood Trees where the hopper was found is in a sea of invasive New Zealand Flax (Phormium tenax). This shows how rare invertebrates can persist for long periods in very low populations. It is hoped that future work by the National Trust and the Environment Management Division will identify more of these isolated pockets. Their health will be assessed by looking at the diversity of their invertebrate populations and hopefully more discoveries (and rediscoveries) will be made.
Tara Pelembe, Head of the Environment Management Division said:
“We are very excited about this find. Our rarest plants and animals exist in tiny pockets of native habitats. These unique habitats need to be safeguarded. EMD is working with a range of partners and stakeholders to ‘effectively manage the Island’s environment’ – which is a national goal. We are very pleased to be working in partnership with the National Trust and Buglife on a much-needed Darwin invertebrate project which will help us to better understand the invertebrate species and habitats that exist on this unique Island.”
Notes to Editors:
For more information or an interview contact Vicky Kindemba: vicky.kindemba@buglife.org.uk or telephone (+ 44) 07880 316032
Buglife The Invertebrate Conservation Trust is the only charity in Europe devoted to the conservation of all invertebrates, and is actively working to save Britain’s rarest bugs, bees, butterflies, ants, worms, beetles and many more fascinating invertebrates. Further information is available on Buglife’s website at www.buglife.org.uk. Follow us on Twitter @buzz_dont_tweet and ‘Like us’ on Facebook: Buglife – The Invertebrate Conservation Trust
Darwin Initiative
The Darwin Initiative is funded by the UK Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). The Initiative assists countries that are rich in biodiversity but poor in financial resources to meet their objectives under one or more of the three major biodiversity Conventions – the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD); the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES); and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Anima
ls (CMS) – through the funding of collaborative projects which draw on UK biodiversity expertise. The Darwin Initiative has invested £88,439,752 in 781 projects in 155 countries since 1992.
For media enquiries about the Darwin Initiative, please contact Laura Hunter on 0207 238 5334 or email laura.hunter@defra.gsi.gov.uk
St Helena Government
The St Helena Government’s Environmental Management Division was established in March 2013. Its mission is to ‘be the focus of environmental management for the St Helena Government through the creation and implementation of policy and legislation, and the provision of advice underpinned by a clear, transparent evidence-base – supported by systematic monitoring, evaluation, enforcement and a comprehensive communications strategy’.
For media enquiries about SHG’s Environmental Management Division, please contact Tara Pelembe, Head of Division at: tara-pelembe@enrd.gov.sh or on + (290) 2270.
St Helena National Trust
The St Helena National Trust is responsible for the protection, enhancement and promotion of St Helena’s unique environmental and cultural heritage. The Trust’s activities include restoration, conservation and education.
For media enquiries about the St Helena National Trust, please call (+290) 2190 or contact director@shnt.org.uk. Information about the Trust and its work can be found at www.nationaltrust.org.sh
Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology is the UK’s Centre of Excellence for integrated research in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems and their interaction with the atmosphere.
For media enquiries about Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, please contact Dr Barnaby Smith, Media Relations Manager, on tel.(UK): 01491 692439, mobile 07920 295384 or email bpgs@ceh.ac.uk
Returning Officer, Gillian Francis, this afternoon announced the names of 20 Candidates who will be standing for this year’s General Election. This year, with a single constituency, the electorate will have the opportunity to vote for up to 12 Councillors to represent the whole Island.
The candidates are as follows:
Leslie Paul Baldwin: of Half Tree Hollow
Audrey Mavis Constantine: of Maldivia, Jamestown
Nigel Dollery: of “Pleasant View Cottage”, New Ground, St Pauls
Wilson Charles Duncan: of Old Millsite, Nr Harford Community Centre, Longwood
Gavin George Ellick: of New Ground, St Pauls
Cyril Robert George: of “Clifton Cottage”, Sapper Way, St Pauls
Stedson Robert George: of “Utopia”, Two Gun Saddle, Alarm Forest
Anthony Arthur Green: of “Oltonia”, Knollcombes, St Pauls
Cyril Keith Gunnell: of “Cashem House”, Napoleon Street, Jamestown
Earl Hilton Henry: of Thompson’s Hill, St Pauls
Lawson Arthur Henry: of Sea View, Alarm Forest
Brian William Isaac: of “Elizium”, Longwood Road, Longwood
Brenda Elaine Moors: of Alarm Forest
Bernice Alicia Olsson: of “Association Hall”, Main Street, Jamestown
Ian Sebastian Rummery: of Alarm Forest
Christine Lilian Scipio-O’Dean: of Black Field, Longwood
Derek Franklin Thomas: of Cow Path, Half Tree Hollow
Lionel George Williams: of “Brenville”, Nr Half Tree Hollow, St Pauls
Raymond Kenneth Williams: of “Saddle Cottage”, Nr Horse Pasture, Blue Hill
Mervyn Robert Yon: of “High View Cottage”, Nr Red Hill, St Pauls
The full Declaration, including the names of Sponsors, will be Gazetted as soon as possible and hard copies will be placed at the usual outlets and published on the SHG website.
Polling Day is set for Wednesday 17 July 2013. Details on how and where to vote will be set out in an insert in both local newspapers this week.
