Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Oct 07, 2025

'Don't make UK Loan Guarantee issue political'- Ray A. George - says Opposition meetings behind Premier's back was not in 'good taste'

'Don't make UK Loan Guarantee issue political'- Ray A. George - says Opposition meetings behind Premier's back was not in 'good taste'

"It didn't seem like I missed much," were the words of former BVI Ports Authority (BVIPA) Director, Mr Ray A. George while commenting on a series of Opposition sponsored meetings on the United Kingdom (UK) Loan Guarantee issue facing the territory.

Mr George, who has urged the Opposition Members to not make the issue of the UK Loan Guarantee a political one, was at the time speaking on the Tuesday, September 17, 2019, edition of 'Honestly Speaking' with Claude O. Skelton-Cline where he touched on a number of burning issues relating to the topic and the Recovery and Development Agency (RDA).


Newfound Love for Crown


"One of the reasons I'm here also, [is] so that we don't make this thing a political ordeal. I note very keenly... but I found that the series of meeting were taking place behind the back of the Premier [Hon Andrew A. Fahie] while he was in the UK, I don't know if that was in good taste and hopefully, was a coincidence," he said.

Mr George, on touching what he called a "newfound love", for VI's relationship with the UK," said, "I'm all for a non-adversarial relationship with the Uk... I think there are benefits to be had, and that will come through harmonious relationships and negotiations and I'm all for that 100%."

Within the past week, Opposition Members, including Leader, Hon Marlon A. Penn (R8), Hon Julian Fraser RA (R3), Hon Melvin M. Turnbull (R2) and Hon Alvera Maduro-Caines (R6), have been holding a series of meetings raising a number of concerns surrounding the UK Loan guarantee.

Throughout the meetings, the overarching theme was one where the Opposition was urging the Hon Andrew A. Fahie (R1) led Virgin Islands Party (VIP) government to take up the loan offer with the aim of preserving good relations with the Crown, even as the administration was seeking better terms and conditions.

UK addresses concerns


According to Mr George, "I found it a bit strange that we are now, talking about that... as far as I'm concerned, when we did not swear in the Governor in the House of Assembly, I did not think that was in good spirit or relations, and also when we actually flew in the face of good governance and transparency, with a number of projects that went down, that wasn't in keeping with good relations as well," he said.

The National Democratic Party (NDP) Government had refused to follow long established tradition to swear in the new Governor, Mr Augustus J. U. Jaspert, in the House of Assembly (HoA) on his arrival to the territory in 2017 after they were reportedly flustered by remarks the previous Governor (John S. Duncan) had made, including about mismanagement of funds and lack of spending priorities.

Governor Jaspert was subsequently made to take the Oath at a quiet and short ceremony at the Virgin Islands Supreme Court building in Road Town on August 22, 2017, where some eight (8) elected members were absent, including now Opposition Leader Hon Marlon A. Penn (R8), Hon Julian Fraser (R3), Hon Alvera Maduro-Caines (R6), and Hon Melvin M. Turnbull (R2), all current Opposition Members.

Meanwhile, Premier Fahie has since returned from his diplomatic trip to the UK, where in a Tuesday, September 17, 2019 meeting held at the House of Assembly (HoA) Conference Room, it was announced that the visit was “a resounding success”.

He said the administration is on its way to signing the Loan Guarantee agreement once the UK puts on paper what it has agreed to address.

“It would be correct to say that we are on our way to signing on to the UK Loan Guarantee and while we are going we making sure that the language is correct so that when we get there we can know if we signing on, but we on our way,” Premier Fahie stated.

Opposition 'throwing punches when we out the ring'


Commenting on the Opposition Meetings, Hon Fahie said several public meetings on the Loan Guarantee were held and the Opposition never raised any questions or asked for any discussions on the issues, "but as soon as we get up on a plane they started, which is their democratic right might I add, holding public meetings.

"And they throwing punches while we are out of the ring. Well I am back in the ring, I am back here, so they could throw the punch now that I am back here because, as we know, we are going to answer based on facts."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
×