Good afternoon to the Deputy Premier, Cabinet Colleagues and invited guests.

This is a great day for a humble MP from Warwick.

As all of you know this rubber tree is a landmark for the parish of Warwick. You mention the rubber tree and people know exactly what you’re talking about.

For me this big beautiful tree represents the strength of this community.

So it’s fitting that this site would also be the foundation for new economic opportunity. A day is near when this site will bustle with vendors and shoppers doing business with one another. I understand that new day is at least partly underway with a few vendors having set up shop, particularly on the weekends. They have already taken advantage of this Government’s commitment to economic empowerment island wide.

Last year Minister Cox brought EEZ legislation to the House of Assembly and this Government made it a reality. There is new entrepreneurial energy and excitement in North Hamilton and that is a direct result of the Economic Empowerment Zone. Others said they would economically empower North Hamilton community – but talk is cheap – it was Minister Cox who got it done.

We promised to spread economic empowerment principles to other parts of the country. And you are witnessing proof of that commitment today.

The Rubber Tree Market will be a legal place for entrepreneurs who don’t require a brick and mortar structure to sell their wares. The Bermuda Small Business Development Corporation will attract and manage the vendors that sell here to ensure the environment remains professional – and hopefully prosperous.

And should one of the Rubber Tree Vendors want to branch out into Hamilton or into the EEZ, the Small Business Development Corporation is there to provide the necessary support.

This Government’s goal is to diversify Bermuda’s economy and to create opportunities in places that before were overlooked. If you want to know how serious we are about it, consider the title ‘Economic Development’ added to the Ministry of Finance following the last election. We mean business.

Minister Cox and I, and indeed the rest of the Cabinet, are committed to creating a more economically empowered people. Today is another step in that journey, but rest assured it is not the last step. We are not done yet.

Dr. the Hon. Ewart F. Brown JP, MP