Some very good news for the economic stability of Saba: the NVAO accreditation for SUSOM has gone through. This is good news for those who were expressing worries about losing their livelihood about the whole affair going sour. ‘NVAO is an independent and authoritative accreditation organisation set up by the …

MPs from the right-wing VVD and the Labour party (PvdA) will meet today, Monday, to discuss the draft coalition accord which will form a blueprint for a new coalition government, Nos reported on Sunday. Although the measures will be applicable to the European Netherlands initially, some of these measures may …

With the VVD’ers Henk Kamp, Stef Blok and Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert the government team of the second kabinet Rutte is complete. Sources around the formation are reporting this. Long remained uncertain who would get the post of Minister of Economic Affairs. This goes to informateur and current Minister of Social Affairs …

Leaks about the right-wing VVD and Labour party PvdA’s plans for government show clear decisions are being made, according to newspaper editorials. The Financieele Dagblad says the coalition agreement shows that the two parties have been able to agree on a straightforward exchange of policies rather than getting bogged down …

The pending new Liberal-Labour government plans to scrap payments to help low-income households pay for health insurance from 2014, sources close to the cabinet formation talks said on Friday afternoon. Health insurance benefit – a maximum of €70 per person – will disappear as part of a shake-up in the …

Jan Kool, an advisor for Emergency Response Dutch Caribbean and North Sea unit under the Water and Shipping Division of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment arrived on Saba Thursday. He is  responsible for the implementation of the OPRC in the  Dutch Caribbean (OPRC= International Convention on Oil Pollution …

Dutch caretaker Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Liesbeth Spies said on Thursday that she was disappointed about the decision of the future coalition partners, the conservative VVD party and the Labour Party PvdA to scrap the ten million euros for nature management and sustainable development in Bonaire, St. …

The VVD-PvdA alliance has agreed to phase out tax relief on mortgages by an annual 0.5% from 2014 as the final touchs are put to the new coalition agreement, the Telegraaf reports on Friday. The maximum tax deduction will go down from the current maximum 52% to 38% over an …

The three political parties have signed the willingness agreement. There are also candidate ministers ready to be screened. These are: Ivar Asjes – Prime Minister Terry Hernandez – Minister of Finance Elmer Wilsoe – Minister of Justice Nasser el Hakim – Minister of Economic Development and Tourism Jacintha Scoop-Constancia – …

SABA–The postponed Island Council meeting of October 4 took place on Wednesday, October 24, with some obvious challenges and lasted for more than four hours of heated discussions. The stakes were high after Windward Islands People’s Movement (WIPM) Island Council Members Carl Buncamper and Eviton Heyliger notified Chairman Governor Johnson …

StatiaNews has issued a press release with some more information on the recent oil spill: Dear Statianews reader, Last week you recieved the press release about the oilspill. Here are 3 articles as they appeared in the Daily Herald about this occurance. The picture in the attachment was made Oct …

Chief Prosecutor for the BES islands David van Delft spoke on the occasion of the opening of the new OM/Probation-Rehabilitation Office in Saba, which took place on Tuesday, October 23. During his speech, Van Delft spoke about issues of concern with regard to failing detention capacity, the physical distance that …

The board of the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT for Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba had conversations with the three public entities’ Executive and Island Councils in which focus was on the execution of the 2012 and 2013 budgets, financial statements and the current status of their financial management, a …

It seems Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba lost the ten million euros that the Dutch Government had reserved for nature management and sustainable development in the Spring Accord to adapt the 2013 draft budget. In response to written questions by the Permanent Committee for Home Affairs of the Second Chamber …

The Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations has invested over eight million US dollars in laying a sea cable between St. Maarten, Saba and St. Eustatius, but it’s worth it. “The importance of the glass fibre connection is multi-faceted.” “It contributes toward an improvement of the social, economic …