Speaking at a Media Briefing by Cabinet Members on Friday 11 August, Mr Tibbetts said that the Cabinet should have the CPA's review "in just a few weeks."

Mr Tibbetts said managing Cayman's growth had nothing to do with stopping growth.

"The Growth Management Process is about planning for sustainable development," he said.

Recently the question of managing Cayman's growth arose at the People's Progressive Movement (PPM) National Council Meeting held on 7 August.

However, speaking with the media Mr Tibbetts explained that at the PPM Council Meeting, the wrong interpretation - that of slowing down or stopping growth - had been given to growth management.

At the Council meeting, a member of the audience asked Hon Alden McLaughlin about the "runaway growth" that Cayman has experienced over the last 30 years.

The speaker linked the Islands' rapid growth, to the Immigration problems with which Cayman was now wrestling - such as the high number of expatriate workers here, and Caymanians being squeezed out of the job market.

Even Mr McLaughlin referred to Cayman's growth as "fast" and linked it to social problems when he said in his introductory remarks on the Immigration issue, "Cayman has, for many years, been in a difficult position. We have grown so fast that we are incapable of producing ourselves in adequate numbers," to keep apace with the growth.

Mr McLaughlin described the population growth from just over 16,000 in 1978 to over 52,000 now, as "amazing" but, at the same time acknowledged that it had brought social problems.

"There is always a trade-off but we have to try to strike the right balance," he said.

The speaker had asked Mr McLaughlin if the "rollover policy" would sufficiently deal with these problems, or is Cayman's level of growth really to blame.

"How much is enough is a question we have had to ask ourselves," Mr McLaughlin said in response.

"However, how do we accept the consequences of not continuing to grow?"

He added that holding back on development to cure these ills, was not an option and that the PPM was not prepared to stymie development as the consequences of turning off growth were too grave.

"We have not got a mandate to turn off the tap," he said. "No one in this country wants to earn less or have less opportunities for their children."

Speaking on 11 August Mr Tibbetts provided background for the creation of Cayman's Development Plan which he made clear was about growth management, not stopping growth which he was concerned had appeared to be the case at the PPM meeting.

He said that in 1997 a Development Plan was created - a document for which the accompanying Law stipulated that the Plan should be reviewed every five years and explained that in 2001, as required, while he was in Government, he began the review - scheduled for completion in 2002 as required by the Law.

As his term in office had come to an abrupt end, he did not get to see the process through.

Mr Tibbetts said that when he came back into Government the review was restarted.

Based on the Law, and previous dates, the next review should be completed by 2007 and that is the date the Government now has in sight.

Mr Tibbetts said that once the document reached to Cabinet "in a matter of weeks," then it would be despatched for public comments.

Mr Tibbetts explained that the Development Plan had to address both physical planning and economic development.

"Included in the terms of reference for the review is not only physical planning but sustainable development," he said adding that sustainable development was the link to growth management.

"For the growth management process certain things have to happen in continuity."