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Kevin Gameiro and Rodrigo score as Valencia beat La Liga champions Barcelona to win the Copa del Rey
Prime Minister Mia Mottley has been reflecting on her first year as the country’s leader. She posted the following message on social media today: One year ago, today, I accepted the responsibility of leading our great country. I did so with humility. I did so conscious that it is an awesome responsibility given what our country was facing. I did so conscious that we could only build the best Barbados we could if we did so together. But I was comforted that our country has been blessed to have risen to the occasion of wrestling down challenges and crises before, especially in the last 80 years. If there is 1 word to describe the last year, it is the word intense. Intense in every respect. It has also been challenging but also rewarding as we see how we have stabilised and saved our Dollar. Rewarding as we see what we have done to make many people’s lives better and their opportunities - pensioners, students, public servants, those living and working on the South Coast, persons earning at the bottom with expanded access to reverse tax credits, our companies who will now pay less corporate taxes; removing the stain and the cost of corruption from our landscape; restoring our name internationally so we may expand our country’s opportunities. As we continue to wrestle down the challenges we found, we recommit as a Government to act always in the interest of the people of Barbados; to remain faithful to our values and our principles as expressed in our “Covenant of Hope” and to deliver on our programme as expressed in our Manifesto of 2018 “Building the Best Barbados Together”. Bajans must always know what to expect of its Government. I have asked Barbadians to stay the course because we know it will take time to achieve this mammoth agenda and to transform our nation. We have passed all of the right road signs to date. But to transform, we must stay the course. And I am confident Bajans shall do so. This next year we will start to see the signs of growth, the investment and jobs and the opportunities. We will see Bajans benefitting more and more, moving to that point where they will be each given the chance to be the best that they can be; so that Barbados may soar once again! For now today, I say thank you to God. I say thank you to the Barbadian people for taking this journey with us. I say thank you to my colleagues for walking this journey with me. Together we shall make it! Blessings always. The post PM Mottley reflects on her first year in office appeared first on Barbados Today.
Police are investigating a shooting incident which allegedly occurred about 5:30 p.m. on Friday near Cheapside Market along Mortuary Road, St Michael. Police say that shortly before 6 p.m. n Friday, 18-year-old Kyle St Louis of Mills Apartments, Haynesville, St James, went to Black Rock Police Station and reported that he was shot to the back of his head by unknown men whilst in The City near Cheapside, St Michael. An ambulance was summoned and the victim was taken to QEH for medical attention. Police, acting on information, learnt that a number of males had boarded a route taxi in the area. The route taxi was intercepted about along Bridge Gap, St Michael, near a popular restaurant. Several males were taken into custody along with a small quantity of cannabis, four rounds of ammunition, a knife, a scissors, a cutlass, and two cap guns. The post Police investigating shooting incident near Cheapside Market appeared first on Barbados Today.
Ferrari are giving the impression they are set on staging a Formula 1 pantomime with their latest mistake in qualifying for Monaco, says Andrew Benson.
Cabinet has approved a new Juvenile Justice Bill, which Minister for Home Affairs, Edmund Hinkson says will reform child laws in Barbados and bring Barbados’ juvenile justice system in line with international best practices. Addressing the annual Hildegarde Weekes Memorial Public Lecture at the Central Bank last evening, Hinkson said the new Bill will provide a fresh approach to the way in which juvenile matters are addressed in the criminal justice system, which are currently governed by laws that are almost a century old. In a subsequent interview with Barbados TODAY he said that currently, children aged 11 to 18 who run afoul of the law are dealt with under the Juvenile Offenders Act which was passed into law in 1926, and the Reformatory and Industrial Schools Act, which was passed in 1932. “This of course was before the majority of Barbadians presently alive, even before their grandparents were born; laws that are over 95 years old and were obviously passed coming down from the United Kingdom when we were still very much a colony. “And these laws clearly are pointed to people who were from the poorest aspects of our society, and who were of a particular colour,” he said. Under the new law, no child under age 12 will have criminal responsibility. Additionally, children between 12 and 14 years old will not be confined to a penal institution. “So, only children over age 14 will have to go to the Government Industrial School. And children will be only placed in that penal institution as a very last resort, and only where it is not their first offence … [or] where they’re charged with a serious crime such as murder and other similar offences.” Hinkson added that the Bill also requires a mandatory probation report done by a qualified probation officer, and also allows the child the right to an attorney. “A lot of our children who are charged with an offence criminally, and who are subsequently found guilty and sentenced to the Girls’ or Boys’ Industrial School, don’t have an attorney at law. Under the new system you will have the right to an attorney at law, you’ll have the right to a social worker, you’ll have the right to a probation officer, you’ll have the right to a health worker, you’ll have the right to a religious counsellor, you’ll have the right to access to reading material, adequate exercise, recreational activities and adequate clothing,” Hinkson said. [caption id="attachment_300491" align="alignnone" width="650"] Members of the audience at last night's lecture.[/caption] Another change will be to the minimum sentence to which a Magistrate can confine a child to the Government Industrial School (GIS), which is now three years. “I have often wondered why this hasn’t been challenged as being unconstitutional because I find it absolutely offensive that you’re telling me that a girl who is wandering on the street at 10 o’clock at night and she’s found guilty, is sentenced to three years in Girls’ Industrial School. [It] can’t be just. “She’s wandering in a lot of cases because an uncle or step father in the house [is] sexually abusing her, or she is being otherwise domestically or physically abused. It is absolutely not fair. So this new legislative regime, when it comes into effect, will give the child all these rights, protective rights, place the safety, welfare and wellbeing of the child at the centre of the whole issue, and to be a paramount consideration. “And [it] will mean that society is better able to deal with these children who have problems, in a lot of cases not of their own making but which we cannot afford to ignore,” the St James North MP said. It is hoped that the new Bill will also contribute to a reduction in the number of juvenile offenders who also end up on the wrong side of the law as adults. “The facts are that many teenagers historically who have been confined to the Government industrial Schools, end up a few years later as adults in Dodds … It is better to spend money on them trying to rehabilitate them, trying to save them earlier in their life when they are early teens than to have to spend, $30,000 annually to house them as adults in Dodds,” Hinkson said. He added that government is also looking at alternative sentencing. “So the bill provides for compensation to be granted for offences of children relating to property or against the person. There’s also the provision for the child to provide a community service … or to pay compensation to a specified organisation where [there is] no identifiable person or organisation to whom compensation can be made.” Hinkson also added that Prime Minister Mia Mottley has set up a sub-committee, to be chaired by him, to look into setting up a residential facility for at-risk children. (MCW) The post Cabinet approves new Juvenile Justice Bill appeared first on Barbados Today.
Leinster score two tries to beat Glasgow Warriors at Celtic Park and retain the Pro14 title.
Steve Smith hits his first century for Australia since being banned for his part in the ball-tampering scandal to steer his side to a 12-run victory over England.
The South Korean director won the prestigious award for his dark comedy thriller, Parasite.
Steve Smith's century leads Australia to a 12-run victory over England in a World Cup warm-up in Southampton.
Barbados is participating in the Beijing International Horticultural Expo 2019, one of the world’s largest horticultural exhibitions, which showcases a huge collection of plants, flowers and ideas for green development. Barbados will have a booth in the Caribbean Community pavilion, an area which aims to raise the profile of the region in China. During the five-month expo, the Caribbean will host a number of cultural, commercial and culinary activities, including film-related events. Approximately 16 million visitors are expected to attend the expo. Exhibiting countries will have the opportunity to promote horticulture, tourism, goods and services, as well as the creative and cultural industries, and to make contact with potential Chinese partners and representatives from the 110 participating countries and organizations at the expo. Barbados is presently represented at the expo in China by Senior Foreign Service Officer, Kendra Holdip, and Assistant Cypher Officer, Jacqueline Griffith, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. Representatives of other public and private sector entities will ensure continued representation throughout the expo, which ends in the first week of October. Barbadians who may be attending the expo should indicate their intention to do so by contacting the Barbados Embassy in Beijing. Complimentary tickets to enter the expo will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. The post Barbados participating in Expo 2019 in Beijing appeared first on Barbados Today.