Residents want more public consultation

Chairman of the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) Lisa Penn Lettsome recently shared that during last year’s meetings with the public, many residents voiced the need for more public consultations so they can know policies that are guiding government decisions.

The CRC submitted their report to the government and it has since been tabled in the House of Assembly and made public.

Penn Lettsome said to satisfy the need for more public consultations, the CRC recommended that the constitution be slightly amended to allow the House of Assembly’s Standing Orders to mandate public participation.

Penn said this change could allow the public to view the committee deliberations that are usually held before laws are passed or amended. And she said the constitutional change would make it mandatory for the now-delayed Public Accounts Committee to be convened, instead of being left to the House of Assembly.

“For instance, the Public Accounts Committee – that is not active. The Opposition Leader has tried to get that restarted, but in other constitutions that is embedded. In our constitution, it is left to the Standing Orders. We feel like it should be mandated that those sessions be made public,” Penn Lettsome explained.

She said the BVI would not be the first jurisdiction to have a constitutional amendment that would facilitate public participation, adding that the Fiji Islands has already done this.