Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Jul 25, 2025

Throne Speech: Long overdue Constitutional Review ‘moving forward this year’

Throne Speech: Long overdue Constitutional Review ‘moving forward this year’

Buried beneath a mountain of legislative plans for 2022, as revealed in the Speech from the Throne, the Virgin Islands' status on its long-overdue Constitution Review process was mentioned just once.

Governor John J. Rankin, CMG, in his inaugural January 18, 2022, Speech from the Throne prepared by the Andrew A. Fahie (R1) Government, touched lightly on the subject matter.

“It should be borne in mind that while the above-mentioned legislative programme is being executed, work will also be taking place in other very important areas to support the continued development of the Virgin Islands,” he said.

“For instance, the Government has already indicated that the Constitutional Review, which has been overdue for some time, will be moving forward this year,” the Governor said.

Governor John J. Rankin, CMG, in his inaugural January 18, 2022, Speech from the Throne prepared by the Andrew A. Fahie (R1) Government, touched lightly on the subject matter of Constitutional Review.


Constitutional Review Commission first


Back in February 2021, Cabinet had approved some $300,000 max budget for the Virgin Islands' Constitutional Review Commission, in a meeting chaired by Mr Rankin where all Members of Cabinet were present.

To advance the process, the review will be conducted by a Constitutional Review Commission, which will consist of nine members including a Chairperson, a Deputy Chairperson and five other members appointed by the Premier.

Already, sources indicated to Virgin Islands News Online (VINO) that Mrs Lisa Penn-Lettsome, a local attorney with over 26 years of experience and the current Executive Director of International Business, will chair the committee; however, it remains unclear when the process will start.

Premier and Minister of Finance Honourable Andrew A. Fahie (R1) has reportedly already approved the Members for the Constitutional Review Committee.


Push for more self-autonomy in VI


One of the burning issues could be reducing the powers of the Governor as a remnant of British colonialism and white supremacy from a constitution level. Already, the Fahie Government had taken the legislative route to partly address the subject through amendments to the Disaster Management Act, however, it ultimately failed as the Act needed the Governor’s assent to reduce his own powers.

The Government’s bid was to put the powers to manage disasters into the hands of VI's democratically elected leaders, rather than the UK-appointed Governor as outlined in the constitution.

It remains unclear what other key issues the Government may want addressed in the constitution; however, Premier Fahie has also raised that the constitution has no mechanisms to complain about the conduct of Governors in office, on behalf of the Government or People of the VI.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
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
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
×