THE Falkland Islands Government has approved a new immigration health policy setting out for the first time the medical conditions, treatments and medications that may lead to a work or residency permit being refused.The policy is intended to provide greater clarity about how health assessments are considered when immigration applications are assessed and whether an applicant is likely to become a “substantial charge on public funds”.Under the policy, permit refusals may be considered for applicants with a range of serious medical conditions, including certain cancers, severe heart and respiratory diseases, progressive neurological disorders, severe psychiatric illnesses, organ transplant recipients requiring ongoing treatment and some developmental disorders requiring significant support.The policy also states that an application may be refused if an applicant requires medication costing more than £2,500 a year or medication that cannot be sourced through the Falkland Islands supply chain.The document has been developed by Customs and Immigration and...

WHILE Members of Legislative Assembly might find it hard to believe the staff at Penguin News are a warm and empathetic lot and we do understand that the Falkland Islands Government faces genuine challenges.Struggle as I do with financial terms, I always think smooth talking Financial Secretary Pat Clunie does a grand job delivering fairly jargon-free presentations to us dum dums. Certainly enough so that I could work out great big infrastructure projects are underway, corporation tax revenues have fallen from recent highs, borrowing costs are now a permanent feature of the financial landscape and the wider global economy feels less predictable than it has for many years. (I hope you’re impressed).So yes, even this wooden head knows prudence isn’t just a Beatles’ song.But when I was sitting there on Monday I couldn’t help noticing how often the discussion returned to scary words like risk, uncertainty, contingency and resilience. (I...

FISHING licence allocations are set to change for 2027 after remaining frozen for the past three years, the Fisheries Committee heard on Wednesday.Presenting the department’s licensing advice, Head of Science Dr Andreas Winter said vessel unit (VU) allocations, which determine the amount of fishing effort available under each licence, had been held at 2024 levels for 2025 and 2026 after the previous method of calculating them became distorted by changes in non-permitted bycatch. The department is now proposing to resume annual adjustments based on changes in Total Allowable Catches (TACs).Under the proposals, A licence allocations will fall slightly from 22.83 to 22.76 vessel units – the equivalent of around four and a half fishing days across the fleet. A small increase in hake TAC has been offset by reductions in most other finfish species, resulting in the overall decrease.G licence allocations will increase from 10.14 to 10.65 vessel units, mainly...

NEXT week the Falkland Islands newspaper Penguin News will increase its cover price to £2.50. It’s not a decision I’ve taken lightly, but is one I believe is necessary. For the past two years the newspaper has received a relatively small but quite important subvention through the Falkland Islands Government’s funding of the Media Trust. Following this year’s budget, that subvention to the Media Trust was reduced, as were the allocations made to other organisations and government departments.The latest allocation was intended solely for Falklands Radio. The Media Trust nevertheless offered, generously and fairly, to share a small proportion of that funding with Penguin News.I have decided that we will not accept that offer.Instead, Penguin News will stand on its own feet. The increase in the cover price (there has been no increase for 8 years incidentally) is intended to replace that income and maintain the newspaper’s financial independence. It...

A NEW mobile banking app being launched by Standard Chartered (SC) will be a “game changer” for the Falkland Islands, SC Chief Executive Sarfraz Rao tells Penguin News.The ability to undertake moblie banking in the Falklands has been long awaited, something Mr Rao acknowledged, “the Islands present unique banking and infrastructure considerations, so we wanted to ensure that the app… is fit for purpose meaning that it meets the highest standards possible in terms of security, resilience, as well as customer experience.“From that standpoint it is not about how long it has taken, it is more about now that the app has been delivered what does it entail.“It is modern and it is secure and that is what our Falklands banking customers have been wanting and they deserve it as well.”The app, for now, will only be available to personal banking customers and will “essentially give a bank in their...

MEMBERS of the Falkland Islands Legislative Assembly have written an open letter to FIFA calling on disciplinary action following Argentine football players displaying a political flag.At the conclusion of the England Argentina World Cup semi final game, a number of Argentine players held up a flag stating “Las Malvinas Son Argentinas” which the Falkland Islands Government have denounced as “insensitive.”A press statement from FIG was clear: “It is the avowed policy of the Falkland Islands Government that we do not wish to see politics being brought into sport.“Nor do we wish the Islands and their people to be used as a political football in every conversation about England and Argentina. We welcome the UK Government’s supportive statement this morning.”The MLAs sent a letter to the football governing body on Thursday morning pointing out the prohibition of political messaging in their own rules, and to reaffirm to the clear democratic will...

Two Canadian consultants invited to the Falkland Islands by Unity Marine outlined their experience of salmon farming, fish health and environmental regulation at a public meeting on Monday evening. The meeting is part of the consultation on potential large-scale fish farming. Speaking on behalf of Unity Marine, Fortuna General Manager Darren Christie said the consultation concerned the principle of salmon farming rather than a specific development application. The first speaker, veterinary fish pathologist Dr Gary Marty, said much of his work involved diagnosing disease in farmed fish and examining whether pathogens associated with salmon farms affected wild salmon populations. He presented figures for Fraser River sockeye salmon in British Columbia, comparing  the number of spawning fish over successive 30-year periods before and during the development of salmon farming. He said the total number of spawners had increased during the 30 years in which salmon farms operated along the migration route...

WORK on Marine Managed Areas (MMAs) in the Falkland Islands has been paused “until we find out what happens at the end of the consultation phase for the salmon” MLA Michael Goss has confirmed to Penguin News.A draft policy on MMAs had been put together and was approved for consultation in September 2025. However this consultation has not yet been run.Going into more detail about why the work on MMAs has been paused MLA Goss explained, “the biggest issue is that a fair amount of the areas identified [for MMAs] could potentially have a knock on point in regards to salmon farming as well. The two things are in a very strange way intrinsically linked but obviously completely separate.”MLA Goss added that the MMA work is “in effect ready to proceed in its current format, but the stumbling block is the current consultation phase that we are currently going through.”Penguin...

THE Falkland Islands have been on the agenda in the UK House of Commons this week, after geo-political rows have surrounded the Islands.Comments made by US president Donald Trump suggesting US support for UK sovereignty of the Islands was being reviewed emboldened his ally, Argentine president Javier Milei to make a speech last Thursday.In reiterating what Argentina refer to as their claim over the Islands, Milei announced plans to sanction oil companies with drilling interests in the Sea Lion project. Following this speech the Argentine government has since said it will file criminal charges against Navitas Petroleum.MLAs responded to these developments with a statement: “our future is a matter for the people who live here to decide. That is a right grounded in international law, and it is not altered by the statements of any other government.“Statements like the ones made this week are not new to us. Our long-established...

IF circumstances weren’t the way they were I’d feel quite sorry for Argentines. Imagine believing you were the coolest people in South America and then having Javier Milei for a president.I usually try not to fall into the trap of insulting their heads of state, although admittedly there was once an iconic incident, but it must be deeply humiliating for such proud people to watch their president offer himself as a kindred spirit to Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, when this is the guy you actually voted for.OK, so I don’t suppose I’ve ever had great things to say about successive leaders of our neighbouring country. It would be difficult when their main aim has been to cause varying degrees of difficulty for the people of these Islands.But at the same time I’ve followed their careers to an extent and noted achievements, whether improvements in incomes, pensions and living standards,...