Dickinson: the PLP can heal from this
Curtis Dickinson has said there is no doubt in his mind that the Progressive Labour Party can unite after the deep divisions brought about when he challenged the party in court over membership changes, and won.
However, the backbencher, who is challenging Jason Hayward, the Minister of Economy and Labour, for leadership of the ruling party, insisted that he had no regrets over the action, which he described as a defence of the integrity of the PLP’s constitution.
Mr Dickinson also said he would welcome a conversation with his leadership rival, Mr Hayward, about him joining a Dickinson Cabinet should he be successful in his bid to lead the party and country.
The MP for Pembroke South East (Constituency 21) spoke after the Supreme Court largely ruled against party officials in the legal dispute.
The former finance minister and others filed legal action to seek “urgent relief” to block progress on a membership process that was perceived by the plaintiffs to be contrary to the party’s constitution.
Amendments sought to prevent those who had actively campaigned against the party in the past two general elections from automatically being approved as members, and allow only those who have been members for at least a year to be eligible to serve as delegates at the upcoming conference and election.
Mr Dickinson told The Royal Gazette: “I won’t dispute the point that this has been a difficult process. It has been divisive.
“There have been bruised feelings and we are going to need to work together through that. We need to bring respect back into how we do things as an organisation.
“We should be allowed to disagree without becoming disagreeable. A contest doesn’t need to devolve into combat.
“Will we recover from this? I am confident that we will. People will have a choice.
“At the end of the day, we have to be focused on doing the work to advance the interests of the people of Bermuda and it is important that the process be legitimate.”
Asked whether his Cabinet could include his leadership rival, Mr Dickinson said: “I would be amenable to considering Jason Hayward for a position in my Cabinet, and I would be amenable to considering a position in his.
“Ultimately, it would be down to both of us.”
As for whether David Burt could make the cut if he had a change of mind from remaining in the back benches, as the Premier has publicly stated to be his plan when standing down as leader of the party and country, Mr Dickinson said after a pause: “Time will tell”.
However, he added: “I am planning on becoming the Minister of Finance, initially.”
Mr Dickinson has faced criticism for not speaking up enough in Parliament since resigning as finance minister in 2022.
To that, he said: “There are a lot of people who say a lot of stuff in Parliament that is not memorable.
“I speak on things that I am passionate about or have experience in — I am not in the business of making noise for the sake of being heard.
“I have spoken about the cost of living, pensions, tax and a wide range of things.
“The assessments on my performance as the Minister of Finance have been very strong.”
Mr Dickinson said he had “no interest” in forming a new political party should he be unsuccessful — for a second time — in his bid to lead the PLP.
“That is not where my interests lie,” he said.
Mr Dickinson said he had no choice but to bring the legal action against the party, insisting he had exhausted every avenue in the time available to ensure that all who wished to were afforded the opportunity to become members.
“The obligations of members of the PLP in my mind are very clear — we are stewards of the party’s constitution,” he said.
Mr Dickinson said he did not support the motions brought by Mr Burt and should he become leader himself, he would not seek to introduce them.
“The PLP has always had an open door because we believe our approach to governing is the better one.
“The notion that we would sign people up with the expectation that they would become full members of the party … and then treat them differently, is an affront to the democratic process and to the PLP’s history
“You cannot disenfranchise people in a way that is not consistent with the constitution.”
As for concerns raised about individuals who have previously campaigned for other political parties, he used the recent US midterm elections to make a point.
“We just observed on Tuesday night a blue tsunami in the US,” Mr Dickinson noted.
“A number of people who had previously voted red [Republican], voted blue [Democrat]. People tend to vote on their issues of the moment. What is to say that same dynamic doesn’t exist here in Bermuda?”
He spoke about dwindling voter support for the governing party, which failed to win the popular vote in the last General Election.
“The reason people chose to sign up to our campaign is because they want change.
“I pride my self on being a reasonable, pragmatic person — you have to be open to working with people and advancing a solution, even if it’s not the way you want to do it.”
While no legal costs have been set in the court action brought by Curtis Dickinson and others, there has been speculation that they may extend into hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Progressive Labour Party.
Mr Dickinson said: “My posture on costs is very simple — there will be a time and a place to have a conversation around costs between myself, the plaintiffs and the defendants; the party.
“I will not litigate or discuss what will happen around costs other than there will be a time and place to engage in those conversations.”
He would not comment on how much the final legal costs may be, but added: “This has been an expensive process that could have been avoided.”
There have been allegations of some members having been signed up without their knowledge or consent.
Mr Dickinson conceded there were about 20 cases, one of which involved a man with dementia who said he did not have knowledge of being signed up.
“I heard from my campaign folks it was his wife who signed him up, taking the view he wanted to be a continuing member of the party.
“Inasmuch as I would have liked our processes to be perfect, there are very few things in life that are perfect. I am disappointed, one is too many, but in the grand scheme of things it is 1 per cent and that becomes the talking point.”
The Dickinson camp paid for bulk membership fees that were said to have also raised a red flag to the PLP during the campaign process, but Mr Dickinson insisted that was a “non-issue”.
“My parliamentary salary nets me about $2,000 a month. I use that money to support my constituents,” he said.
“It is not for clicks and adulation; it is what I have done quietly over the course of my time as a sitting Member of Parliament.
“My constituency is C21, some of my constituents have real challenges with groceries, school clothes, light bills …
“They would find it offensive, this notion that their votes can be bought for $25.
“Other campaigns have also submitted applications and payments in bulk, and there has not been a peep about those efforts.”
Asked who the member applicants in his camp were, Mr Dickinson responded: “They are ordinary Bermudians, teachers, health professionals, folks in IB [international business], in the hotel industry — a cross-section of people who live and work in Bermuda.”
He said there are more than 10,000 people who were not members of the PLP who have voted for PLP candidates in the election.
“Where is the concern around those people?”
Mr Dickinson said that a date had not yet been agreed for the leadership contest, which was pushed back as a result of the court action, but said it was his understanding that it would most likely be in January.
• It is The Royal Gazette’s policy not to allow comments on stories regarding court cases. As we are legally liable for any libellous or defamatory comments made on our website, this move is for our protection as well as that of our readers
