Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Jul 26, 2025

Government’s ‘internal review’ not a conflict, COI finds

Government’s ‘internal review’ not a conflict, COI finds

The Commission of Inquiry (COI) has indicated it is satisfied there is no conflict of interest involving the government-sanctioned internal review that was believed to be something being done in parallel to the COI.

The government announced the review on Twitter and later on its official website where it purported that the statement was issued by the Governor’s Office. This, among other things, raised the concern within the COI that the public has been given the “unequivocal impression” that the Governor ordered the review in parallel with the COI his predecessor had established.

Clerical error


In responding to the concerns, Attorney General Dawn Smith verified that the Governor’s purported association with the review was a clerical error.

She also said the announcement of the review was made days before the Cabinet discussed or made decisions on it.

AG Smith has since shared the gist of those Cabinet decisions and they indicate that neither the tweet nor the press release gave a clear or, accurate representation of the review.

Smith further told the COI the intention behind the review is merely for her to “lodge submissions and information on matters subject to the COI on behalf of the [government] ministers, etcetera”.

As it relates to Sir Geoffrey Cox who was instructed to conduct the review and whose law firm the government has acquired to represent them in the inquiry, AG Smith said he will “assist her in preparing those submissions”.

Disappointing


With that clarification from the AG, Commissioner Sir Gary Hickinbottom said “the additional concerns about conflicts of interest diminish”.

“I thank the Attorney for her helpful submissions and clarification. However, I am nearly four months into a six month COI. It is disappointing that the intentions of the Ministers etc with regard to their proposed course were not indicated to the COI earlier. It is disappointing that the first the COI knew of those intentions was a tweet and a press release, neither entirely clear or accurate, and apparently made some days before the Cabinet discussed the issue of the form of participation in the COI. It is disappointing that, even now, the work on preparing the submissions appears not yet to have started. There is no indication in the Attorney’s submissions as to how long the exercise of preparing the written submissions (presumably with supporting documents) might take,” he then stated.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
×