Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Oct 30, 2025

Formation Of Public Accounts Committee In The Making

Formation Of Public Accounts Committee In The Making

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is a major watch dog body within the House of Assembly is expected to be finally constituted.
The Motion to form the Committee was placed on the Order Paper for today's sitting, November 14 and takes away the need for the Opposition to take a stance on the matter, which the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Marlon Penn hinted might have occurred. However, considering that the Order Paper is packed and the PAC Motion is the last item it is not certain that the body would be constituted today.

Most of the other select committees of the House of Assembly have been formed and the Opposition was becoming concerned that there was still no PAC.

This concern was mentioned to the media during a press conference by the Opposition Members on November 13.

"The reality is that if it is not done tomorrow (November 14) it is very unlikely that it would not be done before 2020. That would mean ten months or a year before we have a functioning Public Accounts Committee. We have done all of the things we needed to do in terms of the changes to the Standing Orders,” Hon. Penn stated.

He explained that part of the delay was the fact that Government only had one eligible member for the PAC. However, he said that the Opposition cooperated in the sorting of that conundrum.

“We’ve done all the things that we needed to do. We have written to the Premier on the urgency and our concern regarding this Committee not functioning. It is our intent that they would do as they said they would,” Hon. Penn stated.

The Leader of the Opposition said that he has been making representation to have the PAC formed for months but nothing was done before.

“We have been pushing the current administration to ensure that the Public Accounts Committeebe established for the last eight months. This very important institution of the House of Assembly must function in order to provide the necessary checks and balances for the executive; so that we can uphold the tenants of accountability, transparency, and good governance that a democracy requires,” Hon. Penn outlined.

He further explained that he wrote to the Premier last week to enquire about the PAC and up to November 12, he said that he had not seen the PAC formation mentioned on the Order of the Day which he was told would be amended.

“After a letter from myself to the Premier and other members Friday 8 November imploring that the PAC be established -- two subsequent versions of the Order Paper was submitted to members, the formation of the Public Accounts Committee was still not on the Order Paper of the Day. In a miraculous turn of fortune I was told yesterday (November 12) that the Order Paper would be further amended and it would be put on the Order Paper for tomorrow’s sitting. I wonder if this press conference had anything to do with that. I guess we will wait and see if the amended order paper has the resolution included,”: Hon. Penn said.

Meanwhile the final version of the Order of the Day was released hours after the Opposition held its press conference and contained the Motion to form the PAC. The document noted that Premier Hon. Andrew Fahie will be moving a Motion to form the PAC which Leader of the Opposition Hon. Penn will Chair. It was also mentioned that Hon. Julian Fraser, Hon. Neville Smith and Hon. Melvin Turnbull will be the members.

The functions of the PAC are to consider, report and make proposals on matters relating to public accounts.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
UK and Vietnam Sign Landmark Migration Deal to Fast-Track Returns of Irregular Arrivals
UK Drug-Pricing Overhaul Essential for Life-Sciences Ambition, Says GSK Chief
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Temporarily Leave the UK Amid Their Parents’ Royal Fallout
UK Weighs Early End to Oil and Gas Windfall Tax as Reeves Seeks Investment Commitments
UK Retail Inflation Slows as Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since Spring
Next Raises Full-Year Profit Guidance After Strong Third-Quarter Performance
Reform UK’s Lee Anderson Admits to 'Gaming' Benefits System While Advocating Crackdown
United States and South Korea Conclude Major Trade Accord Worth $350 Billion
Hurricane Melissa Strikes Cuba After Devastating Jamaica With Record Winds
Vice President Vance to Headline Turning Point USA Campus Event at Ole Miss
U.S. Targets Maritime Narco-Routes While Border Pressure to Mexico Remains Limited
Bill Gates at 70: “I Have a Real Fear of Artificial Intelligence – and Also Regret”
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
×