Opposition Leader Ronnie Skelton warned this week that government’s accidental overspend on public service pay raises could cost $19 million instead of the $13 million previously estimated by Premier Dr. …
September 26, 2024
September 16, 2024
Old Admin Building gets exterior work under $74k contract
After delays caused by Tropical Storm Ernesto, preliminary rehabilitation works are under way on the exterior of the Old Administration Building on Main Street, government announced. The work is an …
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September 12, 2024
Virgin Gorda health crisis sparks cries and demands
With emotion audible in her voice, Charlene Henderson spoke slowly in short sentences that commanded the room’s attention. “Bucky was dying. He could hardly breathe. He was breathing through his …
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September 9, 2024
First-half tourism record driven by cruise ships
The first six months of 2024 set a tourism record, bringing the most visitor arrivals of any first half in Virgin Islands history and causing Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley …
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September 3, 2024
Businesses urged to prep for storms
With another three months of hurricane season stretching ahead, businesses in the territory have been warned to get their disaster plans up to speed. The call came as BVI Finance …
August 30, 2024
Bidders to visit site of planned West End port today
Thanks to a recent green light from the Caribbean Development Bank, the procurement process for the construction of a new West End ferry terminal is moving ahead following years of …
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August 22, 2024
For many, Ernesto cut power for days
The day after Tropical Storm Ernesto passed over the territory, BVI Electricity Corporation General Manager Dr. Neil Smith told ZBVI Radio that he expected power to be restored by last …
August 17, 2024
Virgin Islands heading for intense financial scrutiny, experts predict
The Virgin Islands is headed for increasingly intense international scrutiny despite a government drive to push through a raft of anti-financial-crime measures in the coming weeks, experts have warned. Deputy …
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August 2, 2024
New UK gov’t seen as ‘less hostile’ to OTs
The United Kingdom’s new Labour government will likely take a “less hostile approach” than its predecessors toward the Virgin Islands and other overseas territories, a senior VI official has predicted. …
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July 6, 2024
Premier rules out fully public company register
The government will not permit “uninhibited” access to information about companies registered in the Virgin Islands despite previous promises to implement a public register of beneficial ownership, Premier Dr. Natalio …
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July 4, 2024
Beryl batters the Caribbean, setting record
Hurricane Beryl swept across the Caribbean this week as an unusually early Category Five storm, laying waste to several islands, causing at least nine reported deaths, and lending credence to …
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July 4, 2024
US aims to jail Fahie for life
Last month, former premier Andrew Fahie asked a Miami judge to sentence him to the minimum 10 years in prison for conspiring to smuggle thousands of kilograms of cocaine into …
July 3, 2024
BVIEC mum on cost of 3-year fuel deal
Despite weeks of requests from the Beacon, the BVI Electricity Corporation has withheld basic details of a major fuel deal signed recently with SOL St. Lucia Limited. The utility, which …
June 13, 2024
First week of hurricane season brings floods
The first week of the Atlantic Hurricane Season brought heavy rains that caused landslides, power outages and flooding across much of the territory. On June 5-6, some 9.5 inches fell …
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June 7, 2024
Expo showcases Virgin Islands careers
Beresford “BJ” Woodley is no stranger to the annual Hire BVI Career Expo, which helped him land his current job as a warehouse assistant at Parts & Power. And on …
May 30, 2024
Reform deadlines pushed forward
The deadline for delivering the delayed Commission of Inquiry reforms has been pushed to the end of August as Governor Daniel Pruce hailed a new understanding with Premier Dr. Natalio …
May 29, 2024
Virgin Islands works to free up climate finance for Overseas Territories
As leaders of island nations around the world prepare to converge on Antigua and Barbuda next week for a major international conference, the Virgin Islands recently hosted a preliminary meeting …
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May 9, 2024
Penn questions 1-bid road tender
Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer claimed last week in the House of Assembly that his approach to repairing roads in the territory will ensure that taxpayers get good value …
March 20, 2024
US expert set to assist with barge death probe
A New Jersey expert on enclosed spaces will help investigate a death and three injuries last month aboard a barge docked at Pockwood Pond, Police Commissioner Mark Collins said Friday. …
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February 29, 2024
Money laundering report brings threat of ‘grey list’
A major international report released Monday raises serious concerns about the territory’s ability to deal with money laundering and other financial crime, leading one expert to warn that “red lights” …
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February 16, 2024
After Rutley visit, premier ‘confident’ on reforms
Nearly half an hour late to the press conference he called on Friday morning, Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley stepped into the multimedia room on the first floor of his …
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September 21, 2023
Progress promised at Prospect
Ever since government purchased the Prospect Reef Resort in 2005 with plans to convert it into a hospitality-training centre, the property has been mired in controversy and false starts as …
September 11, 2023
EDITORIAL: Six years after Irma, all is not well
The past year has seen the most progress yet on the government’s protracted recovery from hurricanes Irma and Maria. Unfortunately, that’s not saying much. First, though, the good news: The …
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June 8, 2023
Contracts signed for social homes on JVD, VG
Contracts were recently signed for the construction of three new social homes on the sister islands as part of the Housing Recovery Assistance Programme, government announced. Two homes will be …
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September 5, 2022
EDITORIAL: VI strong, but government recovery far behind
For the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Irma, we asked a handful of residents to grade the territory’s recovery on a scale of one to ten. Their scores averaged nearly seven, …
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