History of the House of Assembly
The history of legislature in the British Virgin Islands can be roughly divided into two: colonial legislatures in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and then a hiatus, followed by the modern legislature after the re-introduction of democracy in 1950.
The first Legislative Council of modern times was formed in 1950, pursuant to the Constitution Act, 1950. It had eight members, two ex-official members, two nominated members and four elected members. Requirements for standing for election included income, property, and a deposit (forfeited with failure to garner a certain percentage of votes). The four members were elected in 1950 on a Territory-wide basis.
In 1954 the existing constitutional provisions were replaced by the Constitution and Elections Ordinance, 1954, which expanded the elected membership to six, divided amongst five district seats (with Road Town having two representatives).
The 1967 Constitution expanded the elected membership to seven, with each district having a single representative. In 1977 the Elections Ordinance, 1977 expanded the number of district seats to nine.
Pursuant to the Elections Act, 1994, the British Virgin Islands introduced four Territorial At-Large seats in addition to the nine District seats, creating a total of 13 elected members to sit alongside the two ex-officio members (the Speaker and the Attorney General).
Following the new constitution of 2007, Hon. Roy Harrigan was elected Speaker to the First House of Assembly (2007 – 2011); Hon. Ingrid Moses-Scatliffe to the Second and Third House of Assembly (2011 – 2019) , and Hon. Julian Willock to the Fourth House of Assembly (2019 – present). The change from Chief Minister to Premier was also as a result of the new consitution of 2007.
British Virgin Islands Legislatures
Legislative Council
| Election | Years | Terms | Elected Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1950 - 1954 | First | 4 - Four at-large |
| 1954 | 1954 - 1957 | Second | 5 - Five territorial |
| 1957 | 1957 - 1960 | Third | 5 - Five territorial |
| 1960 | 1960 - 1963 | Fourth | 5 - Five territorial |
| 1963 | 1963 - 1967 | Fifth | 5 - Five territorial |
| 1967 | 1967 - 1971 | Sixth | 7 - Seven territorial |
| 1971 | 1971 - 1975 | Seventh | 7 - Severn territorial |
| 1975 | 1975 - 1979 | Eighth | 7 - Seven territorial |
| 1979 | 1979 - 1983 | Ninth | 9 - Nine territorial |
| 1983 | 1983 - 1986 | Tenth | 9 - Nine territorial |
| 1986 | 1986 - 1990 | Eleventh | 9 - Nine territorial |
| 1990 | 1990 - 1995 | Twelfth | 9 - Nine territorial |
| 1995 | 1995 - 1999 | Thirteenth | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
| 1999 | 1999 - 2003 | Fourteenth | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
| 2003 | 2003 - 2007 | Fifteenth | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
House of Assembly
| Election | Years | Terms | Elected Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 2007 - 2011 | First | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
| 2011 | 2011 - 2015 | Second | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
| 2015 | 2015 - 2019 | Third | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
| 2019 | 2019 - Present | Fourth | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
| 2023 | 2023–Present | Fifth | 13 - Nine territorial plus four at-large |
Chief Ministers/Premiers
| Election | Years | Person | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | 1967 - 1971 | Hon. H. Lavity Stoutt | Chief Minister |
| 1971 | 1971 - 1979 | Dr. the Hon. Willard Wheatley, LLD, MBE | Chief Minister |
| 1979 | 1979 - 1983 | Hon. H. Lavity Stoutt | Chief Minister |
| 1983 | 1983 - 1986 | Hon. Cyril B. Romney | Chief Minister |
| 1986 | 1986 - 1995 | Hon. H. Lavity Stoutt | Chief Minister |
| 1995 | 1995 - 1999 | Hon. Ralph T. O'Neal, OBE | Chief Minister |
| 1999 | 1999 - 2003 | Hon. Ralph T. O'Neal, OBE | Chief Minister |
| 2003 | 2003 - 2007 | Dr. the Hon. D. Orlando Smith, MBE, OBE | Chief Minister |
| 2007 | 2007 - 2011 | Hon. Ralph T. O'Neal, OBE | Premier |
| 2011 | 2011 - 2015 | Dr. the Hon. D. Orlando Smith, MBE, OBE | Premier |
| 2015 | 2015 - 2019 | Dr. the Hon. D. Orlando Smith, MBE, OBE | Premier |
| 2019 | 2019 - 2022 | Hon. Andrew A. Fahie | Premier |
| 2022-2023 | Dr. the Hon. Natalio Wheatley | Premier | |
| 2023 | 2023 | Dr. the Hon. Natalio Wheatley | Premier |
Speakers Legislative Council
| Election | Years | Person | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | 1967 - 1971 | Hon. Henry O. Creque, OBE | Speaker |
| 1971 | 1971 - 1975 | Hon. Howard R. Penn, MBE, OBE | Speaker |
| 1975 | 1975 - 1983 | Hon. Ivan Dawson, OBE, CBE | Speaker |
| 1983 | 1983 - 1996 | Hon. Keith L. Flax | Speaker |
| 1996 | 1996 - 2003 | Hon. Ruben Vanterpool | Speaker |
| 2003 | 2003 - 2007 | Hon. V. Inez Archibald, CBE | Speaker |
Speakers House of Assembly
| Election | Years | Person | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 2007-2011 | Hon. Roy Harrigan | Speaker |
| 2011 | 2011-2019 | Hon. Ingrid A. Moses-Scatliffe | Speaker |
| 2019 | 2019-2022 | Hon. Julian Willock | Speaker |
| 2023 | 2022-Present | Hon. Corine George-Massicote | Speaker |
Current Elected Members of the Fourth House of Assembly
| Year(s) | Name | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 - Present | Dr. The Hon. Natalio D. Wheatley | Premier and Minister of Finance and Member for the Seventh District |
| 2023 - Present | Hon. Lorna Smith MBE | Deputy Premier and Ministry for Financial Services, Labour and Trade and Territorial Member |
| 2019 - Present | Hon. Kye Rymer | Minister of Communications and Works and Member for the Fifth District |
| 2019 - Present | Hon. Sharie B. DeCastro | Minister for Education, Culture, Youth Affairs, and Sports and Territorial Member |
| 2019 - Present | Hon. Vincent Wheatley | Minister for Health and Social Development and Member for the Eighth District |
| 2023- Present | Hon. Luce Hodge Smith | Junior Minister for Culture and Tourism and Member for the Fourth District |
| 2023 - Present | Hon. Karl Dawson | Junior Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries and Member for the Ninth District |
| 2023 - Present | Hon. Stacy "Buddha" Mather | Deputy Speaker and Territorial Member |
| 2023 - Present | Hon. Ronnie Skelton | Leader of the Opposition and Territorial Member |
| 2023 - Present | Hon. Myron V Walwyn | Member for the Sixth District |
| 1999 - Present | Hon. Julian Fraser, RA | Member for the Third District |
| 2011 - Present | Hon. Mitch Turnbull | Member for the Fourth District |
| 2011 - Present | Hon. Marlon Penn | Member for the Eighth District |