Bermuda is making history today, stepping onto the court for its first-ever Davis Cup World Group 2 tie against Mexico, with Daniel Phillips in the opening singles game.
Moments before play began, assistant coach Jenson Bascome spoke with Bermuda Broadcasting’s Julie Matthews-Borchardt about the significance of the occasion, the team’s mindset and the power of playing in front of a home crowd.
The Ministry of Public Works and Environment advises motorists that the Bermuda Triathlon Association – AON Ltd Mixed Team Relay Triathlon will take place on Sunday, 20 September 2026, in the Clearwater Beach and Cooper’s Island Road area, St. David’s.
The triathlon is scheduled between 8:00 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. Participants will travel from the Clearwater Beach car park along Cooper’s Island Road, onto Southside Road, before returning to Cooper’s Island Road and the finish area.
Roads along the race route, including Southside Road, Tommy Fox Road and Pepper Hall Road, will be closed for the duration of the event. Police officers and race marshals will assist with traffic control, and motorists are asked to follow their directions.
A 55 km/h speed variation will apply to race participants in accordance with the event schedule.
The Ministry encourages the motoring public to exercise caution in the area and apologises for any inconvenience that may result.
Bermuda’s public school system continues to be in a state of flux but our students’ need for a good quality education remains constant. We are writing to ask for your help in answering that need by purchasing new, or donating good quality second-hand, school/office supplies for our public school classrooms where 60% of our children are educated. The goal of SPS is to ensure that every public school teacher and student in Bermuda has the instructional resources they need to deliver and receive a world-class education. We aim to expand our reach to every classroom on the island, build lasting partnerships with supporters, and creating a culture of community support for public education in Bermuda.
By purchasing discounted school supplies via our SPS.bminitiative, you are putting wireless HDMIs, laminating pouches, colourful gel pens, Oxford Thesauruses, 3 tiered utility carts, Velcro dots, mounting putty, Play-Doh, cryptid construction kits, STEAM manipulatives, double dutch jump ropes, Badger learning guided reading books, Bermuda maps, digital timers, bounce band wiggle seats and other much needed supplies directly into the hands of Bermuda’s future leaders.
Founded in 2018 by Canterbury Law Ltd. attorney and Rhodes Scholar, Ms. Juliana Snelling, SPS asks people and companies to purchase or donate supplies that are specifically requested by teachers via “Wishlists” that enhance learning in their classrooms. This year SPS is continuing to support P4 and P5 classrooms in all 15 public primary schools (plus art teachers, librarians and PE teachers), as well as facilitating ad hoc donations to middle and senior schools.
SPS sources the supplies at discounted prices from our two suppliers, Phoenix Stores Limited and A.F. Smith Ltd. These companies, together with our SPS volunteers, then deliver the supplies free of charge to public schools on designated delivery days twice per year to ecstatic teachers and students.
Principals, teachers and students send us thank-you letters and cards describing how the supplies are being put to use in the classroom, which are then posted on our website (SPS.bm). Mr. Todd Fox, Principal of Francis Patton School, who was recognised as Bermuda’s Best Public Servant in 2022 said (June 2026):
“On behalf of the students and teachers at Francis Patton School, we would like to thank you once again for your generous donation of school supplies for P4 and P5, Art and PE. Your kindness and continued support to provide valuable resources that enrich our students’ educational experiences are truly appreciated. We are grateful for your commitment to our school community and for making such a positive difference. The teachers and students at Francis Patton School sincerely appreciate your generosity and ongoing partnership.”
As for our supporters, Butterfield has been a generous and repeat supporter of SPS.bm since inception, last year contributing $10,000 to help address public school teachers’ wishlists for supplies. Mr. Jody Feldman, Butterfield’s Managing Director in Bermuda said:
“We are proud to play our part in purchasing necessary supplies to help enrich the learning experience in Bermuda’s schools. Having worked with the Support Public Schools team since the beginning, we have seen the positive impact these contributions have had for students and teachers alike. We remain committed to investing in the future of our community and empowering our young people to thrive.”
How Can You or Your Organisation Give? It’s easy!
Option 1: Purchase supplies via our website SPS.bm with a credit card (multiple items may be purchased in one transaction) and choose your preferred primary school to support. You will receive a P-tix receipt detailing the items purchased. We can do this for you if you need help. Call Chelsea Cooke on 296-8444.
Option 2: Make a bank transfer to AF Smith Ltd. and SPS volunteer Tawana Adderley will meet your specific request or apply the funds towards supplies that are most in need. Funds may be transferred to A.F. Smith (HSBC 010715613001 or Butterfield 20006060173876100), with a memo note stating your name and ref. “SPS SUP003”. Please cc: spsteam@sps.bm a screenshot when you transfer.
Option 3: Telephone Tawana Adderley at A.F. Smith Ltd. 292-1882 ext. 139 with your credit card number and she will handle the purchase over the phone and select supplies in need. The SPS team works to ensure that the schools benefit equally.
Option 4: Donate good quality second-hand supplies as noted below. We accept good quality second-hand school supplies and used office supplies, including computers, office furniture and office supplies of all kinds, boxes of printer or scrap paper, plus used good quality books, Lego, puzzles and games.
Option 5: Think Outside the Box: Companies have donated water bottles, gardening supplies, pens, mugs and tote bags to schools, everything is welcomed!
For help, contact us at SPSteam@sps.bm or tel. 296-8444 (Canterbury Law ask for Chelsea or Juliana). To learn more, visit our website www.SPS.bm
The Ministry of Economy and Labour wishes to advise the public that the Bermuda Immigration and Protection (Prohibition of Entry) Order has now been gazetted and is in effect.
The Order updates Bermuda’s border and visa-control requirements, including provisions relating to the security vetting of travelers before arrival and continued access for visitors and residents travelling to and from Bermuda through regular commercial air service.
The Order also reflects the need for Bermuda’s border policy to take account of changes to border, transit and visa requirements in the United Kingdom. Given Bermuda’s geographic position and the limited number of commercial air routes available to the island, the United Kingdom provides an important commercial aviation pathway, and changes to UK border requirements can have a direct impact on Bermuda’s ability to facilitate secure and efficient international travel.
Under the Order, nationals of Botswana, the Northern Part of Cyprus, Côte d’Ivoire, Nauru, Nicaragua, Palestine and St. Lucia are now subject to visa-control requirements and require a multi-re-entry visa issued by the United States, United Kingdom or Canada to enter Bermuda. Indonesia and Taiwan have been removed from the list of visa-controlled nationals.
The Government encourages travelers who may be affected by these changes to ensure that they meet the applicable entry requirements before making arrangements to travel to Bermuda.
For questions or more information, please visit www.gov.bm/department/immigration or call 246-8093.
The Davis Cup is back on home soil and Bermuda is ready for a showdown with Mexico.
The tie pits Bermuda against a higher-ranked opponent, with a packed home crowd hoping to play its part in an upset.
The draw was made this morning, setting the stage for a weekend of tennis and a moment 30 years in the making.
Julie Matthews-Borchardt has the story.
Curtis Dickinson’s lawyers argue that the party has not been forthcoming with some of information that the court ordered them to hand over
Yet another day in Supreme Court for the PLP, as Curtis Dickinson’s lawyers argued that the party has not been forthcoming with some of information that the court ordered them to hand over.
The judge also ruled that certain statements from the PLP’s submissions that allege voter fraud must be stricken.
Furthermore, the PLP’s counsel sought to ‘wrap up’ the proceedings – but Mr Dickinson’s lawyers were having none of it.
Mark Pettingill, representing the PLP’s Chairperson and General Secretary, stood up at the beginning of today’s court hearing and cited his client’s desire to “turn down the heat” on this matter.
He added that even if the vote on the membership amendments is ruled unconstitutional, “there will be a Special Delegates Conference… so what are we doing?”
Justice Shade Subair Williams asked if Mr Pettingill was asking for more time. He was granted a few minutes to talk with Delroy Duncan, who is representing Curtis Dickinson and four other plaintiffs.
When he addressed the court a few minuted later, Mr Duncan said the discussion was “singularly unproductive”, asserting that “Mr Dickinson wants this settled more than anyone”.
However, he said Mr Pettingill’s assertion that the PLP wants to hold an SDC is so they can pass the amendments is currently restrained by the court.
That would amount to a retroactive removal of members, he said, which is not in line with the PLP’s constitution as it stands now.
Mr Duncan added that the only way for this matter to conclude is for the court to deliver a judgement.
He then argued that the defendants have not complied with all the court’s rulings by failing to provide certain information.
The existence of a document outlining the PLP’s 2026 membership process came into question. Mr Duncan cited references to the document in the affidavits, but Mr Pettingill said he had been told that there is no specific document outlining the 2026 membership process.
Nevertheless, Justice Subair Williams instructed that any documents connected with the membership process should be submitted.
As for some of the other information that Mr Duncan said was missing, including minutes from certain meetings, Mr Pettingill referenced PLP Chair Dawn Simmons and Secretary General Patricia Basden, who have been named by the plaintiffs as representatives of the PLP.
Mr Pettingill said that the two women, who were present in the court with family and supporters, have done their best to hand over what they can.
Mr Duncan cited sections in the affidavits which speak of efforts to validate memberships, with specific insinuations of “voter fraud and voter manipulation”.
The courtroom only heard one detailed example from the affidavits, in which a named individual was called up for validation, and they responded that a membership form was submitted without their consent.
Mr Duncan argued that such an example is just the validation process working as it should, rather than fraud.
He also argued that some allegations in the affidavits are hearsay.
He said, “the lack of a basis in the affidavits of a ground to suggest … voter manipulation and fraud – it is the most groundless allegation, the most baseless allegation, that I have heard in this court for many a year.”
Mr Duncan also said such allegations are irrelevant to the case.
Mark Pettingill argued that concerns over how people become members of the PLP should be considered as relevant, because the membership process determines who will vote in the PLP’s internal elections.
He said members should be able to show that they are not joing the party simply to select a particular candidate.
Ultimately, it was agreed that the portions of the affidavits implying ‘voter fraud’ which could be considered hearsay must be removed, and the judge amended the court order accordingly.
Mr Pettingill sought to further argue that it should be understood why the PLP makes certain decisions, but Justice Subair Williams stopped him.
The judge said she was not interested in the “politics behind any of this”, and affirmed, “this is a contract case”.
The case will be heard in the Supreme Court on October 1st and 2nd.
Former government Senator Curtis Richardson denies causing the death of Mr Warren by driving without due care and attention
A police officer told a jury today that defendant Curtis Richardson claimed to be a ‘good Samaritan’ while being arrested as a suspect in the investigation of the incident that killed Marco Warren.
Former government Senator Curtis Richardson denies causing the death of Mr Warren by driving without due care and attention.
PC DeForest Evans, Tactical Operations within the Roads Policing Unit, told the jury he was put in charge of the investigation.
He described specifically seeking out anything of evidential value from the scene of the incident.
This included searching along Trinity Church Road and Fractious Street near Bay Corner and to relay any findings Detective Christopher Sabean.
He said he seized a Kia Rio vehicle, on May 24, 2023, belonging to crown witness Renee Wallace and the Hyuandai H1 taxi vehicle driven by defendant, Curtis Richardson, to be examined by the forensic support team and traffic collision investigator.
On November 6th that same year, PC Evans said he arrested and cautioned Mr Richardson at the Hamilton Police Station on suspicion of causing the death of Marco Warren by dangerous driving.
He told the court what Mr. Richardson said: “I was told by Detective Jason Smith that I would be answering some questions. I asked if I was a person of interest. Now I’m arrested? I was being a good Samaritan.
“Next time, I will just drive off.”
Later that evening, after conducting a video interview with Mr Richardson alongside two other detectives, PC Evans said he charged Mr Richardson with careless driving.
During cross examination, defense counsel Victoria Greening asked PC Evans if he recalled a witness statement from Renee Wallace stating that she saw a Mazda hatchback car in the area of Bay Corner.
He initially denied remembering that part of Ms Wallace’s statement.
Do you recall her stating,”It was traveling quite fast. I had to move away – closer to the left hand side of the road.”
PC Evans replied: “In reviewing CCTV footage, I did not see a Mazda. Nothing of evidential circumstance was recovered.”
In his work on the case between May 14 and October 31 that year, PC Evans said he tried to identify the BMW i3 that was in close proximity to T1194, driven by the defendant.
Under questioning on the initial arrest of Mr Richardson, he said he carried it out after speaking with Detective Smith.
He told the court there was an arrangement for Mr Richardson to come in and give a witness statement at the police station.
He said Mr Richardson was advised to contact Detective Smith because he wanted to help the family of Mr Warren.
The prosecution’s case rests.
Payroll records for almost 1.5 million employees as of July this year showed male workers received average annual bonuses of £5,442 ($7,300) compared with £3,062 for women
International News via Reuters:
Women in Britain continue to receive substantially lower bonus payments than men, according to human resources data firm Brightmine.
Payroll records for almost 1.5 million employees as of July this year showed male workers received average annual bonuses of £5,442 ($7,300) compared with £3,062 for women.
The gap narrowed only slightly from a year earlier.
The data, published on Friday, also showed:
• 14% of male employees received a bonus compared with 9% of females
• The disparity widened with age: at 56, men received average bonuses of £8,817 compared with £3,769 for women
• Some of the biggest gaps were in finance and in professional and business services
• Sheila Attwood, HR insights and data lead at Brightmine, said the findings suggested differences in progression, seniority and access to higher-value incentive schemes
• 13% of employees received a bonus, unchanged from a year earlier
• The study was based on payroll data for almost 1.46 million employees at 1,190 organisations
• Britain’s statistics office has estimated that the gap in overall pay between men and women stood at 6.9% in April last year
Writing by William Schomberg, editing by Andy Bruce
The move will benefit Thyssenkrupp’s steel unit TKSE and Poland’s Stalprodukt SA, among the last European producers of electrical steel, which is used in wind turbines and power grids
International News via Reuters:
The European Union will impose a set of import quotas and minimum prices for electrical steel and downstream products, it said on Friday, in a bid to shield the EU from cheap imports, principally from Asia.
The move will benefit Thyssenkrupp’s steel unit TKSE and Poland’s Stalprodukt SA, among the last European producers of electrical steel, which is used in wind turbines and power grids.
To keep production in Europe going, the EU will establish ‘safeguards’ in the form of quotas for grain-oriented electrical steel (GOES), as well as laminations and transformer cores containing the metal. For the steel itself, the minimum price will be set between €2,800 and €3,400 per metric ton within the quotas and at €3,500 per ton for volumes above them.
“What is particularly significant is that, for the first time, an entire value chain, from electrical steel to the transformer core, is being protected rather than a single product alone,” TKSE CEO Marie Jaroni said.
The European Commission launched an investigation into safeguards for GOES in March. The measures to apply from September 25 are provisional, while the investigation continues. Definitive measures, at the end of the investigation, would require a qualified majority of EU members to be imposed.
Electrical steel was not covered by broader measures imposed earlier this year to protect Europe’s struggling steel sector, which has come under intense pressure from low-cost competition, including from China.
Thyssenkrupp last year announced temporary production stops at its electrical steel sites in Germany and France as a result of rivals selling excess capacity on the European markets at what sources have said are 25% discounts.
Brussels’ move comes as the continent’s industry is increasingly calling for better protection against China, the EU’s second-largest trading partner after the United States, with automotive, chemicals and steel firms all facing pressure.
Imports of electrical steel from China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States have been subject to anti-dumping measures, also in the form of minimum import prices, since 2015. The new minimum prices, while not strictly comparable, are significantly higher than those already in place. They will also apply to downstream products.
China represented more than 50% of EU imports of the steel and its downstream products in 2025.
Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop and Christoph Steitz; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Louise Heavens
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 1.4% lower at 10,659.13 points, logging a small weekly gain
International News via Reuters:
London’s FTSE 100 pulled back from a more than one-week high on Friday as financial stocks weighed, ending a week packed with economic data and central bank decisions.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 1.4% lower at 10,659.13 points, logging a small weekly gain. The midcap FTSE 250 finished 0.6% lower on the day, but still recorded its sharpest weekly rise since early August.
• On Friday, financial stocks were the biggest drags on the index. Banks lost 2.1%, with Lloyds and HSBC falling 2.9% and 1.6% respectively.
• Telecom stocks were the biggest percentage decliners with a 4.8% tumble. Airtel Africa lost 11.3% after a report said its Airtel Money was considering downsizing its London IPO.
• On the flip side, construction and materials stocks rose 1.3%, led by gains in Galliford Try.
• Data showed British consumers unexpectedly increased their shopping in August, although they cut fuel purchases after prices jumped.
• The report comes a day after the Bank of England held interest rates steady but warned that policymakers might have to raise borrowing costs if the Iran war drags on.
• Brokerages changed their rate calls following the decision, with Barclays joining J.P.Morgan in expecting a hike in November.
• The central bank on Thursday also paused UK government bond sales for six months and halted long-dated gilt sales entirely, days after a global bond rout. Gilts steadied on Friday after last session’s rally.
• The US Federal Reserve hiked rates by 25 basis points this week, and the central bank reinforced its fight against inflation, sparking a rally across global markets on Thursday.
• Among individual stocks, Softcat was among the top losers on the FTSE 250 index with a near 4% fall after the IT firm agreed to buy US-based GDT at an enterprise value of $1.05 billion.
• Globally, the mood was also sour as elevated developed market bond yields pressured riskier assets. [MKTS/GLOB]
Reporting by Purvi Agarwal and Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Alex Richardson
EU finance ministers and central bank governors were meeting in Dublin to discuss a European Commission report that called for less political interference in bank mergers and the removal of barriers to cross-border banking within the bloc
International News via Reuters:
European banks need greater scale and deeper capital markets if they are to compete with US rivals, senior European officials said on Friday, as the European Union looks to strengthen its position in an increasingly competitive global economy.
EU finance ministers and central bank governors were meeting in Dublin to discuss a European Commission report that called for less political interference in bank mergers and the removal of barriers to cross-border banking within the bloc.
“If European banks want to compete directly with large US banks in that area, they need to be able to operate on a much larger scale in a deeper capital market,” European Central Bank Vice President Boris Vujcic told Reuters.
Vujcic said EU banks compared well with US peers on liquidity, capitalisation, profitability and efficiency, but lagged in trading and post-trading activities rather than traditional lending and deposit-taking.
“That is an area where scale really matters,” he said.
One of the most high-profile cases of political interference in bank mergers in Europe happened in June when Germany rejected an offer from Italy’s UniCredit to take over Commerzbank. UniCredit began its pursuit of Commerzbank in September 2024, but it has faced strong opposition — highlighting how hard it is to pull off cross-border banking deals in Europe.
“Greater integration and further cross-border consolidation would give European banks the scale to invest, innovate and compete,” euro zone finance ministers’ chair Kyriakos Pierrakakis said. “We need European banking champions capable of competing globally.”
Pierrakakis said the largest US banks invest more than two-and-a-half times as much in information technology relative to their assets as European lenders, a gap that matters in areas such as artificial intelligence, digital payments and cybersecurity.
Vujcic pushed back against calls from some bankers for lower capital requirements, saying this would not necessarily boost lending and could instead fuel share buybacks.
Instead, he said the EU should complete its banking union and savings and investments union to create a truly integrated financial market.
“The European financial market remains highly fragmented in many ways,” Vujcic said, citing differing tax regimes, rules and legal systems that raise costs and reduce efficiency.
Reporting by Jan Strupczewski; Editing by Hugh Lawson
