Leader of His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, and Member for the 6th District Myron V Walwyn will move a motion of No Confidence in the HOA during its next sitting on Tuesday June 3, 2025.
The extensive outline of the no confidence move which will be presented under ‘Private Members Buisness’ is listed as follows:
The Leader of the Opposition and Member for the Sixth District to move the following motion:
WHEREAS since the formation of this Government in April 2023, the Premier and Minister for Finance has governed in such a way that has led to a bleak economic outlook for the Territory, a rapidly declining quality of life for the people of the Virgin Islands and a lack of public confidence in his leadership and in his Government.
AND WHEREAS the Premier and Minister for Finance by his own admission in the House of Assembly presided over an underestimation of the salary increases to public officials by approximately 20 Million USD which has placed a significant burden on the public’s resources and has placed the Territory in a position where its recurrent expenditure is more than its projected recurrent revenue for 2025.
AND WHEREAS the Premier and Minister of Finance has not to date produced a strategic financial plan outlining the Government’s vision and goals for its term in office as mandated by the Public Finance Management (Amendment) Act 2012.
AND WHEREAS the Territory of the Virgin Islands continues to suffer from a lack of inward investment while other Caribbean nations and our neighbours in the United States Virgin Islands continue to attract major investments to add to their tourism product and increase their respective Government’s financial resources.
AND WHEREAS the Premier in his capacity as Minister for Tourism has failed to produce a Tourism Plan to safeguard and enhance our tourism market share despite repeated calls to do so by industry stakeholders and Members of the Opposition.
AND WHEREAS Prospect Reef Hotel, an extremely valuable piece of Government owned real estate, remains in a dilapidated state with little details of the plans for its revival to enhance the tourism offerings of the Territory.
AND WHEREAS the Premier and Minister of Finance continues to squander public resources on matters that bring no financial returns to the people of VirginIslands including; his non-stop party following the inaugural flight of American Airlines from Miami to Beef Island, the failed Virgin Islands Music Festival 2024, approximately $300,000 USD to sponsor the Vybz Kartel show, the constant international traveling by him and his colleagues compliments of the public’s purse with no results to show while other important initiatives remain unfunded or underfunded.
AND WHEREAS education has been the driving force for the success of this Territory and its people, but this important sector remains severely unfunded by the Minister of Finance and receives far more funding assistance from the private sector than it currently receives from the Government.
AND WHEREAS the Government continues to underfund the public health institutions which are essential to the well-being, stability and future of our Territory.
AND WHEREAS the most vulnerable persons in our community such as the differently abled, the mentally ill, seniors and pensioners are not being treated with the level of dignity and fairness that they are entitled to by this Government.
AND WHEREAS there have been numerous calls, to no avail, for a Sex Offenders Register to keep track of individuals who have been convicted of sexual offences and to protect the public, especially vulnerable individuals such as children, by monitoring those who may pose a risk.
AND WHEREAS small businesses, legitimate farmers and fisherfolks etc. which suffered the effects of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, the Covid-19 pandemic, the effects of the war in Ukraine and other global and local shocks have been unable to access sufficient funding and other capacity building opportunities through the National Business Bureau due to the low funding that was allocated to the Ministry of Trade to assist them in 2025 and the onerous conditions that must be satisfied by small business owners in order to quality for funding.
AND WHEREAS the agricultural industry continues to be neglected by this Government which was evidenced by the admission of the Junior Minister for Agriculture that the Government has no plan for the development of the industry.
AND WHEREAS the Premier and Minister of Finance and Agriculture has been asked repeatedly by farmers and Members of the Opposition to subsidise the agricultural industry to increase food production which is needed now more than ever particularly in light of the global tariff wars and possible disruptions to food supply chains.
AND WHEREAS the minimum wage in the Territory was increased without ensuring that all the necessary mechanisms were in place to prevent a hike in the cost of living generally, that the disposable income of those persons who should benefit from the increase would be enhanced and that the financial health of already struggling businesses, which were not properly consulted, would not be further compromised.
AND WHEREAS the Public Assistance program is not effectively and efficiently meeting the needs of the most vulnerable (elderly, unemployed, indigent) in our community due to a lack of proper restructuring of the Social Development Department to take on this new task (with approximately 1.7 Million USD allocated in 2024 for public assistance but only $600,000 USD was spent) and the lack of updated legislation to enable the staff at the department to be able to assist citizens in a more timely fashion.
AND WHEREAS unemployment in the Territory is extremely high, particularly among young people, and the Government has failed to address this issue in a sustainable way despite numerous requests from the public and Members of the Opposition to do so.
AND WHEREAS our citizens and visitors continue to suffer from the deplorable conditions of our public infrastructure (especially our roads, sewage and the lack of access to a reliable supply of potable water etc.) which the Premier and Minister of Finance continues to willfully disregard by not providing the necessary financial resources to address the issues despite repeated calls to do so by the public and Members of the Opposition.
AND WHEREAS our citizens and visitors continue to endure the filthy physical state of the Territory which lacks proper maintenance and upkeep as can be evidence in the overgrown bushes that now compromise the safety of motorist and pedestrians and the ever presence of garbage, derelict vehicles and sunken boats from the hurricanes from the 2017 etc. which continue to spoil the natural beauty of our islands without the proper intervention by the Premier and his Government.
AND WHEREAS criminal activity, including murders and other gun crimes, robberies and burglaries continue to rise causing significant social and economic problems and to date the Premier and his Government (with two Government members being members of the National Security Council) has not produced a comprehensive crime reduction strategy to mitigate the situation.
AND WHEREAS the Premier and Minister of Finance continues to dialogue with the UN Special Committee on Decolonization on the political future of the Territory vis-à-vis its relationship with the United Kingdom without having a national conversation with the people of the Territory to ascertain their wishes.
AND WHEREAS the Government of the Virgin Islands continues to disregard the tenets of good governance, accountability and transparency by bringing legislation to this Honourable House of Assembly without properly scrutinising and understanding its impact on the people of the Virgin Islands and without allowing sufficient time for public consultation on matters which affect the lives of the populace.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Assembly of the Virgin Islands that it does declare a lack of confidence in the Government led by the Honourable Dr. Natalio D. Wheatley.
Previous No Confidence Motion
It was September 3, 2024 when former Leader of the Opposition Ronnie W Skelton, listed a Motion of No Confidence to be moved in the HOA sitting, however, the Premier moved to strike it out due to timelines for listing not being met.
A contentious debate followed, with the Opposition Members walking out of the HOA in protest.
The Premier was successful in his bid to have the motion removed, and the Opposition vowed to bring it back.
HOA Reshuffle After Previous No Confidence Attempt
Following the No Confidence attempt, the Premier fired his Deputy Premier, At Large Rep Lorna Smith. He cited a lack of confidence in her to stand with him when the vote was called. Honourable Julian Fraser who was a Member of the Opposition, at the time, and had been a part of laying the No Confidence Motion, crossed the floor, and now sits as the Deputy Premier.
The Opposition was also reshuffled, and now sits divided amongst two groups; the newly formed Alliance and the now united NDP and PVIM, with Hon. Myron Walwyn holding the position of Leader of the Opposition.
Protest Planned
A protest has also been planned by popular Radio Host of Tola Radio, Heritage HBH Da Don for Monday June 2, 2025, also citing a lack of confidence in the leadership of Premier Natalio Wheatley and his Government.