Revamping gaming laws key to unlocking VI's horse racing potential- Deputy Premier
Chief among the proposed reforms is the urgent need to modernise the territory’s gaming laws—a step Hon Fraser believes is essential for unlocking the sport’s long-dormant potential.
Hon Fraser was at the time addressing citizens during the most recent broadcast of Virgin Islands Voice, on May 14, 2025, and declared, “Our legislation needs to be fixed. “I think we've got to tweak the gaming model. And I think that with a little more patience, something will happen.”
It should also be noted that while the Virgin Islands Gaming and Betting Control Act, 2020, is now a law, the Gaming and Betting Control Commission is yet to be established. This means that gambling and pari-mutuel wagering remain illegal in the Virgin Islands.
His Excellency Governor Daniel Pruce, in his Speech from the Throne in January 2025, stated that improvements to the Virgin Islands Gaming and Betting Act 2020 are to be made during the Second Session of the Fifth House of Assembly (HOA).
The Gaming and Betting Control Act establishes the framework for a regulated gaming industry including the Commission to oversee activities in the industry.
Land ownership issues still prevail
The Deputy Premier also pointed to recent developments in Antigua as inspiration for a more progressive approach to racetrack management. “I was in Antigua the other day and I noticed that their racetrack is torn up. It's just been worked on, torn up. And I'm saying to myself, I asked around and I found out that they’re using a particular model that is more 21st century than the one we’ve been using.”
This comparative experience, he explained, has already sparked high-level conversations about reforming the Virgin Islands’ horse racing industry.
He was quick to note, nonetheless, that a major structural challenge exists in that the government does not own the land on which the existing horse racing track sits. “Remember the horse track does not belong to government. It’s privately owned. The land is privately owned. And I can't make statements unless those statements were first brought to the owners of the land.”
To this end, he did seek to use the occasion to reaffirm his enduring commitment to horse racing, citing its cultural and historical significance—particularly to his Third District constituency. “As far as horse racing is concerned, my interest in horse racing has not changed. It’s still the same.”
To this end, he was adamant, “I don't want people to go out and say Fraser was on television saying that he's going to start horse racing and all that. He didn't say that, so don't say it. And I want you to know that my interest is still the same.”
There has not been any horse racing in the Virgin Islands since August 2022.
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12 Responses to “Revamping gaming laws key to unlocking VI's horse racing potential- Deputy Premier”
Any Fraser you need to catch up P487 now got in gear and the third pillar is now more important than this 2327th pillar of the economy, The farmers and going to be given the land and to plant on the racecourse. and finally make some use of the place, The horse can be kept on for manure.......Not on the disputed land. Those fools can keep that and farm it themselves and get their own horse.