"The light that comes from wisdom never goes out"
A private register of interests for senior public officers. New integrity rules. The creation of a government department known as the Virgin Islands Public Service Learning Institute. All are among …
Continue reading “HOA debating sweeping reforms for public service”
House of Assembly members voted this week to make changes to their Register of Interests, but the extent of those changes is not clear because a bill they passed Tuesday …
Continue reading “HOA votes to change Register of Interests”
When lawmakers voted in July 2022 to make the Register of Interests public as advised by the Commission of Inquiry, they also added several viewing restrictions that drew strong criticism …
Continue reading “Bill keeps restrictions on interests register”
Ever since the Register of Interests Act was passed in 2008, the register has not functioned properly because legislators have used every trick in the book to hamstring it. For …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: HOA must fix flawed Register of Interests”
Important progress has been made on governance reforms recommended last year by the Commission of Inquiry, but much more work is needed to ensure that they will “take root” by …
Continue reading “Guv upbeat on COI reforms, but says more work needed”
After “much consideration,” Governor John Rankin announced his plan to assent to the Register of Interests (Amendment) Act, 2022 despite his misgivings about amendments legislators made behind closed doors. However, …
Continue reading “Guv gives one year to fix interests register”
This month brought good and bad news as Governor John Rankin and Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley both reported on the first three months of the ongoing Commission of Inquiry …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Government, governor must collaborate on reform promises”
Our first draft of this editorial praised legislators for passing a bill last month to finally make the Register of Interests public, thereby promoting the sort of government transparency that …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Open the interests register with no restrictions”
On June 30, legislators missed their deadline to make the Register of Interests public and establish penalties for violating declaration rules. On July 21, however, they passed a bill to …
The House of Assembly missed its deadline on June 30 to pass legislation to reform the Register of Interests by making it public. However, Governor John Rankin said the next …
Continue reading “Interests bill tabled, but not passed by deadline”
For 13 years as the territory’s first registrar of interests, Victoreen Romney-Varlack worked tirelessly to urge reluctant House of Assembly members to register their interests as required by law, according …
Continue reading “Commission of Inquiry slams ‘attack’ on registrar of interests”
In recent days, the Commission of Inquiry has shone a glaring spotlight on the long-standing need to reform the system through which legislators declare their interests, a task that leaders …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: The Register of Interests is broken. No surprise there”
Focusing on elected officials’ financial interests and how they go about allocating $1.8 million each year in assistance grants, the Commission of Inquiry resumed public hearings again this week. COI …
Continue reading “Inquiry probes Registry of Interests, assistance grants”
Though the commissioner leading the United Kingdom’s corruption inquiry has the powers of a High Court judge when it comes to summoning witnesses and obtaining documents, Attorney General Dawn Smith …
Continue reading “Commission of Inquiry given access to register of interests”
The first House of Assembly sitting of 2021 is scheduled to kick off this week with a packed agenda that includes a slew of bills in the digital sphere up …
The United Kingdom’s threat to impose public registers by 2020 has led to increasing calls for a review of the 2007 Constitution, particularly in the heating-up pre-election campaigns. But if …
Continue reading “LETTER: Steps seen as needed before constitutional review”