I was much encouraged when I read the Press Release from the LA opposition Independents informing us they had organised a Shadow Cabinet – see iNews Cayman story

This follows a system that has been operating in the UK Westminster Houses of Parliament since time began – or so it seems to me. Actually it was much more recent than I thought – 1951.

And it wasn’t formed, as Cayman Islands Opposition Leader Ezzard Miller would have us believe his is – “to keep track of the work and actions of specific government ministers”,

Labour Opposition Minister in the UK, Hugh Gaitskell, formed it to assist in opposing the policies of the government of the Conservative Prime Minister, Winston Churchill.

Wikipedia states “It is the Shadow Cabinet’s responsibility to criticise the policies and actions of the government, as well to offer an alternative programme”.

I am sure this is exactly how Cayman’s Shadow Cabinet will operate, even though the Press Release from Deputy Opposition leader Alva Suckoo said it was not intended to be disruptive. He said they would be seeking to develop volunteer advisory groups to help them as they did not have the resources as the government members.

It is surprising that it has taken so long to implement a Shadow Cabinet here but then India, that adopted the Westminster system when it formed its own parliament did not adopt a Shadow Cabinet.

Instead the opposition there has been disruptive, immature, and stalled democratic proceedings with a result that “the taxpayer’s hard-earned money goes down the drain.” – DNA

Having a Shadow Cabinet is going to help us here in the media as we will (or should) hear one voice presenting the opposite views.

The Press Release also said, “In order to address the many issues facing Caymanians and Cayman, as a first step, we invite the government to change the frequency that our Legislative Assembly meets from the required minimum of four times per session between May to April to instead meet once per week for one day with a rolling agenda. This we believe would greatly enhance our democracy and allow the Legislative Assembly to deal with issues much more timely and effectively.”

I will be interested in hearing Premier Alden McLaughlin’s response to that.

We are in exciting times. The One Man, One Vote system actually helped the Independents, so I am not surprised local TV pundit and ex UDP minister, Rolston Anglin, attacked the new system on the local TV station CITN/Cayman27 during the election night. He also wrongly claimed when former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown lost the election in 2010 he immediately stepped down and resigned leaving Conservative Leader David Cameron to form a coalition with the Social Democrats. He said this hoping Alden McLaughlin would do the same to allow the Independents to go to McKeeva Bush and form a coalition government.

He was absolutely wrong. Brown immediately contacted the Leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg, and tried to form a coalition with him even though the Conservatives had won the most seats. Clegg, instead, formed a coalition with David Cameron’s Conservatives citing his decision was exactly that. The Conservatives had won the most seats and “it would have been wrong of me to have taken up Gordon Brown’s offer.”

I suppose when you speak with such authority as did Anglin that night, even uttering more words of “wisdom”. It will be believed. Unfortunately, the normally well versed co-host Barrie Quappe, did not have the facts at hand to correct Anglin.

Even though the turn-out was just a few points shy of the record 2013 election this was grounds to dump the One Man, One Vote, according to Anglin’s logic.

Let things be and move on.

Perhaps Anglin will go back to the shadows. We now have a Shadow Cabinet instead. Much better.