Noting that “the Bahamian government announced that it will drop its travel visa requirement,” Shadow Health Minister Michael Dunkley said Bermuda’s travel authorization process is “a hindrance to locals and visitors to the island alike” and reiterated his call for the Government to “end the TA as soon as possible.”
Mr. Dunkley said, “Yesterday, the Bahamian government announced that it will drop its travel visa requirement as of Sunday. Yet Premier David Burt and the Progressive Labour Party government are steadfast in wanting this prohibitive process to continue. It is a hindrance—to locals and visitors to the island alike.
“It shows once again that the PLP Government is more interested in the $40 fee than the interests of the island. It should be noted that the Bahamas government dropped its $40 fee for Bahamians and residents back in December.
“There is no justification that Premier Burt and his colleagues can offer in keeping the Travel Authorisation as the world turns away from closed borders with restrictive and bureaucratic submissions. It has now become an embarrassment that the government continues to support it.
“Bermuda has been hit hard by Covid and now is also feeling the impacts of the war in Ukraine, compounded with the alarming rise in the cost of living under the PLP.
“As we endeavour to tackle the challenges we face as a country, how can Bermudians have hope for better days ahead when the PLP government is unable to make the right decision and remove the TA and free up Bermuda?
“Once again the OBA calls on the Government to hear the cry of the people and end the TA as soon as possible.”
