Due to the territory’s current spike in COVID-19 cases, coupled with many outstanding important documents, the Commission of Inquiry (COI) will be breaking for hearings until late August as the team prepares to make a brief return to the United Kingdom. This is according to a media release from the COI’s Secretary Steven Chandler who … Continued
Whistleblowers in the British Virgin Islands may no longer have to worry about acts of victimisation following the recent passing of the legislation which legally protects persons from such acts. A whistleblower can be defined as any person – usually an employee – who exposes information or activity within a private, public, or government organization … Continued
The approval of some contracts and waivers by the Cabinet of the British Virgin Islands has been deemed troubling by Governor John Rankin. Governor Rankin made the disclosure in his recently submitted Position Statement to the Commission of Inquiry where he raised a number of concerns regarding some of Cabinet’s procedures. Rankin who is responsible … Continued
Governor John Rankin has flagged several deficiencies observed within Cabinet’s system of governance since taking office in late January 2021. The governor highlighted some of those deficiencies in his Position Statement submission to the Commission of Inquiry recently. According to the BVI’s Constitution, the Governor is responsible for chairing each Cabinet meeting, but he does … Continued
Government is working on making the Register of Interests declarations by legislators a public document, but will be bringing forward two options to the House of Assembly (HOA) to best choose from. This is according to Premier Andrew Fahie who made the statement before the ongoing Commission of Inquiry (COI) recently. He said the amendments … Continued
Premier Andrew Fahie has said that recent breaches of the Register of Interests Act by both past and present legislators should not be used to label Members of the House of Assembly as being incompetent to their responsibilities. The premier made the statement during a hearing of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Friday June … Continued
Member for the Fourth District Mark Vanterpool has not filed a Register of Interest declaration from the periods of 2011 to 2016. This was revealed during the ongoing Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Friday June 18, after Vanterpool was brought before the inquiry to answer a number of questions. The COI’s Attorney Bilal Rawat asked … Continued
Premier Andrew Fahie has expressed a need for having seminars to educate Members of the House of Assembly on how to properly complete important obligatory documents such as the Register of Interest declaration form. Premier Fahie’s call came during his recent Commission of Inquiry (COI) hearing on Friday June 18. This was after the COI … Continued
Commissioner Sir Gary Hickinbottom has refuted claims published within a local news article which suggests that confidential information was leaked to the news agency by senior officials of the Commission of Inquiry (COI). Sir Hickinbottom also ordered an immediate investigation into the leak which he termed to be a very serious breach of confidential information. … Continued
The late submission of the Register of Interests declaration by at least one first-time legislator has been linked to the absence of an orientation process upon taking office. This was the sentiments shared by Junior Minister for Tourism Sharie de Castro when she appeared before the Commission of Inquiry (COI) on Monday June 14. The … Continued
