Premier and Minister for Tourism Dr Natalio Wheatley had previously updated the territory on the matter saying the plans were stalled because of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) report and its ensuing recommendations which were released some five months ago.

The Tourism Minister had promised another update on the matter but now says it is a legal issue that has put the plan on hold and has prevented it from moving forward with a United States-based firm that was tipped to draft the plan.

“We haven’t moved ahead with the contract as yet. As you know, that was a contract that we put on hold. In fact, I am not quite sure we had a contract but the decision that was made to go with that particular company on our National Tourism Plan was put on hold. It is a legal matter, and I don’t wish to comment on it any further,” Dr Wheatley said.

Back in 2020, former Premier and Minister with senior responsibility for tourism, Andrew Fahie, announced that the BVI would soon have a National Tourism Plan to govern the operations of that local industry. At the time, the plan was under review before the House of Assembly.