Failed Vote of No Confidence put a disunited Opposition on full display- Willock
The Opposition, through Leader of His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, Hon Myron V. Walwyn (R6), was finally able to bring forward the Motion of No Confidence against Premier and Minister of Finance Dr the Hon Natalio D. Wheatley (R7) on July 31, 2025.
Hon Walwyn, however, was only able to secure one additional vote in favour of his motion.
Walwyn’s failure shows an Opposition not united
Mr Willock, who is publicly a supporter of the Virgin Islands Party (VIP), with political ambitions himself, said the Vote of No Confidence was expected to fail, and so was not surprising.
Speaking during Talking Points on ZBVI 780 AM, on Monday, August 11, 2025, Mr Willock said, “What was surprising to me is that it’s clear to the public that the Opposition is not united, that there is a big faction within the Opposition. My personal view is that if you want to be a leader, you ought to be able to command the respect of followers.”
This, he said, is troubling to him, as in any democracy, there needs to be a strong, united opposition.
“I would declare that I’m a supporter of the Virgin Islands Party, but still, you need a strong, objective, forceful opposition to keep everybody in check, to keep everybody in line.”
Mr Willock continued that Votes of No Confidence are used as a tool to challenge the government, and are part of the Parliamentary system.
He referred to the current Deputy Premier and Minister for Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change, Hon Julian Fraser, RA (R3), bringing a Vote of No Confidence while in Opposition, as well as former Premier Hon Andrew Fahie, while he too was in Opposition.
“I think when Hon Fraser and Fahie brought it, it was only two of them. This is a situation now where you have five members…so at least at a minimum, you could have had four members voting, but I know the At-large member had an emergency, and the former Opposition Leader abstained, and the member for the 8th, I think he was absent.”
Experience over theatre
Co-Host Mr Elvin G. Grant added, “It’s strange how these emergencies pop up with critical votes and things of the like,” and asked, “Why do you think only one member debated?”
Mr Willock responded that what happened in the House on July 31, 2025, in terms of only Hon Walwyn debating the Motion of No Confidence he brought, is a “test of understanding Parliamentary procedure”.
Hon Fraser, he explained, was able to cite Standing Orders 36, “Whereby if no member responds to a motion brought, then you have to go straight to the vote.”
The Standing Orders were invoked because no member debated.
“I was surprised that not even on the opposition side, they supported their opposition leader. So there is where you have experience over theatre, where the Hon Fraser was able to use Standing Orders, to ensure that no one said anything at least on the government’s side, therefore Hon Walwyn had no comeback, no wrap up, so you go straight to the vote…Using that Standing Orders 36, again, is experience over theatre.”
See link to related story
https://www.virginislandsnewsonline.com/en/news/hon-walwyns-motion-of-no-confidence-crushed-in-hoa
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11 Responses to “Failed Vote of No Confidence put a disunited Opposition on full display- Willock”
God Don't Sleep.
We need to get rid of all of them. They can’t even manage the affairs of the country, what was a paradise, is now a rundown ghetto. You leaders have no shame.
You all are so power hungry you will drag everyone down especially us the people, who work hard to keep our nation alive.
You fighting for independence for what, public health care is a joke, the town smells of sewage, the roads are in a bad state, look at the highways, they just dig it up and did some half ass patch, who’s in charge who supervised that? It’s best they just left it because that is an embarrassing road work, you want to invite the UN here to do what, they will laugh at your third world mentality, way and info structure. We have no running water, and we are so backwards we will turn off the water in the day and leave it on at night when people sleep, who is the one making these stupid idiotic decision? It’s like fools leading fools.
I am so ashamed of my home, it’s on the brink of collapse, and these politicians raping her more and more everyday eventually there will be nothing left .
It so sad to see what the BVI have become, the UK not even interested in saving us, they rather watch us fail.
It’s so heartbreaking.