House of Assembly Prorogued
The Government of the Virgin Islands has announced that the House of Assembly (HoA) has been prorogued effective Wednesday 31 December 2025 under Section 84(1) of the Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007. The action — enacted by the Governor on the advice of the Premier — is a routine procedural step that suspends formal sittings until the House is summoned again; independent reporting from Guavaberry has confirmed the government notice. Residents are advised that legislative business is paused during prorogation, that members and ministers remain in office, and that updates on the resumption of sittings will be provided in due course.
The House of Assembly (HoA) of the Virgin Islands has been prorogued effective Wednesday 31 December 2025, the Government of the Virgin Islands announced. The government notice says the prorogation was implemented under Section 84(1) of the Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007 (U.K.S.I. 2007 No. 1678) and was enacted by the Governor on the advice of the Premier in accordance with established constitutional process.
Independent outlet Guavaberry published a matching report confirming the government’s announcement and noting the same legal basis and effective date. Both the government statement and the Guavaberry report describe the step as routine and consistent with the constitutional requirement that the House be prorogued at least once in every calendar year, except in years when the House is dissolved.
Prorogation is a normal parliamentary procedure that brings the current session to an end and suspends formal sittings until the Governor summons members for the next session. Authorities emphasised that prorogation is not the same as a dissolution of the House, which would trigger a general election; instead it pauses the formal calendar of debates, legislative sittings and committee work while the session is closed.
Practically, the immediate effect is that scheduled legislative sittings, debates and committee meetings are paused. The government has advised that all legislative business is suspended during the prorogation and that updates on when sittings will resume will be provided in due course.
Guavaberry’s update reiterated this guidance to the public. Outstanding matters before the House are typically halted during prorogation: some bills and committee work may be carried forward into the next session while others may require reintroduction under parliamentary rules. The exact handling of individual items will be determined by parliamentary procedure and any announcements from the Speaker and the government, the official statement said.
Members of the House and ministers remain in office while prorogation is in effect, and routine administrative and public services provided by government departments continue to operate. The government stressed that day-to-day government functions are not suspended. For enquiries related to House business, the House of Assembly’s Public Relations Officer Giovanni Herbert can be contacted at 1 (284) 468-6909 or gherbert@gov.vg.
The HoA maintains a Facebook page at https://facebook.com/HOABVI and a YouTube channel listed as @houseofassemblyvi2922. International media enquiries may be directed to BVIGovernment@dgagroup.com. For general government services, residents can call the Government of the Virgin Islands at 1 (284) 468-3701 or use the WhatsApp line at 1 (284) 468-9760.
The government also points users to a virtual booking system for services and lists its offices at 33 Admin Drive, Wickhams Cay 1, Tortola. The Government of the Virgin Islands and Guavaberry said they will provide further information about the resumption of sittings in due course.
Primary source: BVI Government