People of the Virgin Islands, I am making this statement in my capacity as Speaker of the House of Assembly of the Virgin Islands and Head of the Legislative branch in reference to the continued delay and refusal of the Office of the Governor and the Secretary of State, the Right Honourable Dominic Raab’s refusal to assent to the following bills, which were duly passed in the House of Assembly:

1. Drugs (Prevention of Misuse) (Amendment) Act; and
2. Disaster Management Act, 2021

Mr. Speaker, I rise to second this motion. Mr. Speaker, it is a very important one that the Attorney General has brought forward. This Government in its wisdom has brought to the table, as one of the actions that we as a Government would like to move forward with, in the spirit of cooperation and transparency.

On January 19, 2021 the former Governor, His Excellency Augustus J. U. Jaspert, appointed Sir Gary Hickinbottom, to hold a Commission of Inquiry (COI), to inquire into whether corruption, abuse of office or other serious dishonesty in relation to officials, whether statutory, elected or public, “… may have taken place in recent years.”

The deadline has been extended to March 3, 2021, for applications to the post of Registrar of Interests.

Good Afternoon, my name is Julian Willock, the Speaker of the House of Assembly.

Mister Speaker, it has been some time since my last update on the Housing Recovery Assistance Programme. 

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present an update on the Department of Waste Management’s ongoing efforts to increase recycling and waste reduction in the Territory.

Mister Speaker, let me first extend New Year Greetings to everyone in these beautiful Virgin Islands; throughout the region and via all the usual communication mediums, who have had to endure the sound of my voice giving updates on what I think is the most critical topic in this Territory’s history, over the past 10 months – that of COVID-19. 

Mister Speaker, yesterday on 30^th December 2020 the United Kingdom’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for supply in the United Kingdom approved AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford/Vaccitechs Covid-19 vaccine candidate AZD1222.

Mister Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to share in this Honourable House and with the entire community, updates on the progress in schools since the start of the 2020/2021 school year and plans for the upcoming term.