Ten years ago, I made a choice. That choice was difficult, and there were two distinct paths before me. I weighed up my options endlessly, stuck between rejecting that change or embracing it; keeping everything as it was, or choosing another, unknown path, yet with more to gain. Ten years ago, the choice I made was to move to the Falkland Islands.

Change comes in many forms. The right change can improve lives, develop communities, and empower people. The wrong change, often enacted through fear or misunderstanding, disempowers and can be a threat to the well-being, heritage and cohesion of a community.

I’ve seen both types of change here in the Falklands, and each time a choice was made. I've seen our elected Members working to improve the lot of everyday people, investing in our future and ensuring we have a strong economy powered by the skills, knowledge and experience of Falkland Islanders. I’ve also seen elected Members support changes that would undermine hard-working families and some of the most vulnerable in our society.

This is not a unique situation; however, our response to it could be. We have the opportunity to make the right choices and be more proactive in our economic policies; to make financial decisions that both safeguard individuals’ well-being and allow continued long-term investment in our Islands. A rising cost of living and growing wage gap can and should be managed more readily in our small community.

Internationally, we can see the outcomes from similar policies...