Premier pledges unity with opposition for constitutional talks

Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley is urging a unified stance between government and Opposition ahead of constitutional talks with the United Kingdom, saying consensus from the entire House of Assembly will guide the territory’s negotiating position.

The Premier explained that lawmakers have already debated the Constitutional Review Commission’s recommendations and found common ground.

“The members of the House of Assembly debated those recommendations, and I believe that we formed some level of consensus. There are quite a number of issues where we had agreement among all the members of the House, regardless of whether opposition or government.”

He said the committee stage, now underway, is designed to consolidate that agreement. “The purpose of us going into committee is for us to be able to have dialogue with the members of the House and form a level of consensus.”

Dr Wheatley added that the outcome will be a single House position for the UK talks. “At the end of that process, we have a report that states the positions of the entire House of Assembly, not the government, not the opposition. It states a position for the entire House of Assembly.”

He also confirmed the BVI’s negotiating team will be bipartisan. “Yes, we will have members of the opposition on our negotiating team. That’s been the tradition.”  “So it will comprise members from the government, members from the opposition, and also we will have resource persons.”

The Premier stressed the importance of a single message once talks begin.

“It’s important that the group that goes is unified in defending the report, which is put forward… We’re going to go up there to defend this report that we are going to produce in committee. That’s what we’re negotiating for, and we all must be aligned in that.”

The BVI’s Constitution was last updated in 2007. Since then, natural disasters, the Commission of Inquiry (COI), and global challenges have delayed further review. The current process follows years of debate over local autonomy and the balance of power between the elected government and the UK-appointed governor.

Premier Wheatley has repeatedly said constitutional advancement is the next step after the territory’s successful governance reforms that led to the removal of the UK’s Order in Council earlier this year.

“Our timing is good,” he added. “We can be able to say, look, these [COI] challenges have been remedied. Yes, we have to sustain the progress we’ve made. We have to maintain the progress we’ve made… Now it’s time for us to look for further advancement.”