Governance, security, constitutional reform and other topics will be on the agenda when Premier Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley leads a delegation to London for the Joint Ministerial Council later this month, he said.
The annual JMC meetings, which will be held from Nov. 24- 28, will bring together United Kingdom overseas territory leaders, UK OT Minister Stephen Doughty and other UK ministers.
“The week will consist of a bilateral meeting with Minister Doughty; a meeting of the United Kingdom Overseas Territories Association, of which I serve as president; the JMC itself; and other meetings on matters of interest to the Virgin Islands,” Mr. Wheatley said during a Friday press conference.
At the bilateral meeting with Mr. Doughty, the premier plans to discuss matters including the coming constitutional negotiations with the UK.
“I will propose dates for the negotiations to begin and agree on the process and programme leading up to the negotiations,” he said. “In the meantime, I will be naming the members of the [negotiating] delegation shortly, subject to a resolution of the House of Assembly.”
Wide-ranging talks
Other topics the premier plans to address with Mr. Doughty range widely, he said:
• governance reform, including an update on six-month reviews requested as part of a monitoring plan coming out of the 2022 Commission of Inquiry report;
• the territory’s “security and justice transformation programme” and implementation of recommendations from the recent law-enforcement review;
• assistance with institutional development and capacity building;
• the 2012 Protocols for Effective Financial Management;
• climate change; and
• the VI’s membership in the Caribbean Community as well as the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States.
In his capacity as UKOTA president, Mr. Wheatley will also chair the UKOTA Political Council meeting in London, where matters of interest to the 12 UK OTs will be discussed.
At the top of the list, he said, are bilateral compacts between territories.
“I will be pushing for a Caribbean overseas territories compact given our common geography and issues related to it, such as climate change, migration, security, human smuggling and other problems,” he said.
Attendees, he added, will also discuss compacts and charters with the UK, as well as other common concerns including education, health and pensions.
Mr. Wheatley’s delegation also plans to meet with students and others from the VI diaspora; members of the BVI All-Party Parliamentary Group; financial services professionals; and representatives of other UK government agencies, he said.