Speaker of the House of Assembly Julian Willock believes that vaccinations should be made mandatory in the British Virgin Islands for all residents except two special categories of persons.
The speaker made the statement during a recent Sitting of the House of Assembly, where he said he believes vaccines should be made mandatory for all persons except those with valid medical or religious reasons.
He said, “I have listened keenly to the national debate about being vaccinated or not. I speak here for myself to say, I fully support vaccination, as while it cannot prevent you from getting COVID-19, all the research and statistics have proven in a compelling way, that those who are vaccinated have an over 90% chance of surviving the deadly disease.”
“My heart goes out to those who have lost loved ones, it is my personal view that if for medical or religious reasons one cannot take the vaccine, that decision must be respected, however, I strongly believe, taking the COVID-19 vaccination should be mandatory for all others,” he added.
Willock speaking for himself and not the government
Willock also made it clear to the listening public that his mandatory stance on vaccinations was a personal opinion and not one shared in sync with the government’s ideology.
“Again, I speak on this for myself, it is not the policy or position of the House of Assembly or the Government of the day. It is my personal view,” he stated.
“Two exceptions; medical or religious reasons. If one does not fall in any of those two categories, it is my humble position that taking the vaccine should be mandatory. This is the personal opinion of the Speaker,” Willock reiterated.
The Andrew Fahie led Administration has constantly stated that they do not intend to make vaccinations mandatory for the people of the Virgin Islands.
However, several businesses in the BVI have been taking the mandatory stance through adjusting their work policies, requiring staff to become vaccinated or face termination.
The government is yet to publicly state whether such a decision by these businesses are lawful.