Boyd McCleary » Governor, Tortola

Despite the close relationship between the BVI and the UK, no British Minister has visited the territory since April 2009. This was put right last week with the visit of Mr Henry Bellingham MP, the Minister in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with responsibility for the Overseas Territories. Like most visiting ministers, Mr Bellingham wanted to meet the Premier, members of the Cabinet and Leader of the Opposition. Those meetings … Read more »UK Minister Visits BVI

Sunday 22 April was Earth Day and it was marked with a series of events in the Territory throughout the previous week, including a coastal clean-up, which was organised by the Conservation and Fisheries Department and a first anniversary party held by Green VI at Cane Garden Bay. On Thursday 19 April all the staff from the Governor’s Office and Government House joined me to help out with the annual … Read more »Earth Day

This month, I would like to welcome a special guest blogger – Leading Fire Officer Gaston Walters from the Virgin Islands Fire & Rescue Service. Mr Walters recently visited the UK with his colleague Benson Thomas to take part in an attachment to West Yorkshire FRS in Leeds. Both firefighters were beneficiaries of the Overseas Territories Programme Fund (OTPF) which is administered by the Governor’s Office. I am delighted that OTPF … Read more »Virgin Islands Fire & Rescue Service

To round off the special series of blogs on the HRH The Duke of Gloucester’s visit to the BVI, I have invited some members of the public who had the opportunity to meet the Duke or who participated in his programme to offer their thoughts on his visit. Marion Levons, Programme Manager from the Ashford Waters Community Centre said ‘residents were so looking forward to the Duke’s visit and were … Read more »Royal Visit: Views from the public

For any readers of this blog who might be unfamiliar with the geography of these beautiful islands, it may surprise you to learn that although the Territory’s land mass is only 59 square miles, the islands are spread across nearly 1000 square miles of the Caribbean Sea.  So the logistical challenges of getting from one island to another can be somewhat inhibitive when it comes to planning an itinerary for … Read more »Royal Visit: Day 4 – Salt Island

Day 3 of HRH’s visit to the BVI saw him back on Tortola with a packed day of engagements across the island – from Road Town to Cane Garden Bay to East End. The day’s appointments touched upon several themes of personal interest to the Duke: the environment (with a call on Green VI), heritage (with visits to the Callwood rum distillery and Fort Purcell aka The Dungeon) and youth … Read more »Royal Visit: Day 3 – Tortola