Premier Alden McLaughlin tabled the Customs and Border Control Bill (the “Bill”) in the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday. The Bill is part of a package of legislation being brought to Parliament during the current session to reconfigure the way in which the Cayman Islands deals with border control, workforce management and immigration issues. The ultimate aim of the merger is to create a single checkpoint at the border for the majority of passengers and goods, while establishing more robust, secondary checks for high-risk passengers.
Mr. McLaughlin said the changes would be incremental and may take years to implement as there was much work to be done before the new “intelligence-led” approach to border control could be fully implemented. The Premier noted that the Cayman Islands government had received tremendous support from the US and the UK both of which made similar transitions to create their respective border agencies.
With opposition members, including Arden McLean, indicating at least partial support for the Bill in the early stages of the debate and the government’s strong majority in the house, it is expected that the legislation will pass unchallenged. The new agency will be established on January 1, 2019 under the leadership of the current Collector of Customs, Charles Clifford.
