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| Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007 | |
|---|---|
| Name | Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007 |
| Jurisdiction | British Virgin Islands |
| Enacted by | Parliament of the United Kingdom |
| Date enacted | 2007 |
| Signed by | Elizabeth II |
| Status | Active |
Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007 is an Order in Council establishing a written constitution for the British Virgin Islands and defining the relationship between the Territory, the United Kingdom, and local institutions such as the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands, the Governor of the British Virgin Islands and the Premier of the British Virgin Islands. It replaced earlier constitutional instruments and sought to codify rights, public offices, and procedures following negotiations involving local political parties including the Virgin Islands Party and the National Democratic Party (British Virgin Islands). The instrument interfaces with instruments of the Commonwealth of Nations and obligations under treaties such as the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Order arose from constitutional discussions after the Constitution of the British Virgin Islands, 1988 and amid wider reform trends influenced by cases like Hinds v The Queen and frameworks from the United Kingdom Parliament and Privy Council. Consultations featured local actors including the Premier of the British Virgin Islands and figures from the Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands’s office, civil society groups, and external advisers from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Home Office. Drafting drew on comparative models such as the Constitution of Bermuda, the Constitution of the Cayman Islands, and precedents from the Constitution of Gibraltar, while responding to pressures evident in reports by the United Nations and decisions of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
The Order establishes a preamble and modular parts defining the Head of State role occupied by Elizabeth II in her capacity as monarch of the United Kingdom and local executive arrangements via the Governor of the British Virgin Islands and the Cabinet of the British Virgin Islands. It enumerates offices including the Speaker of the House of Assembly (British Virgin Islands), the Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands, and the Director of Public Prosecutions (British Virgin Islands), and prescribes legislative procedures for the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands and financial controls reminiscent of provisions in the Public Finance Management Act models used elsewhere such as in the Cayman Islands and Bermuda. The Order contains a chapter on the Bill of Rights and transitional provisions influenced by legal scholarship tied to cases like R v Secretary of State for the Home Department, ex parte Simms.
Executive power under the Order vests nominally in the monarchy of the United Kingdom with local exercise by the Governor of the British Virgin Islands, who acts on advice from the Premier of the British Virgin Islands and the Cabinet of the British Virgin Islands. The Order defines appointment processes for officers including the Chief Justice of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court where applicable, and establishes functions for bodies such as the Public Service Commission (British Virgin Islands) and the Human Rights Commission analogues modeled after institutions like the Ombudsman (New Zealand) and commissions in the Commonwealth of Nations. It delineates reserved powers retained by the United Kingdom for matters tied to external affairs, defence, nationality, and international relations as reflected in treaties such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and practices in other overseas territories like the Falkland Islands.
A central part of the Order is a catalogue of rights and freedoms patterned on instruments such as the European Convention on Human Rights and cases decided by the European Court of Human Rights and the Privy Council. It secures civil liberties including protections against unlawful detention exemplified by rulings like A-G v Jonathan Cape Ltd and entitles individuals to procedural safeguards linked to jurisprudence from the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and decisions such as R v Incedal and Reka. Provisions address equality and non-discrimination resonant with principles in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and establish limitations and derogation mechanisms comparable to those in the Constitution of Jamaica and similar Caribbean constitutions.
The Order empowers courts sitting in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and the High Court to exercise judicial review of statutory and executive acts, drawing on doctrine developed in cases like Entick v Carrington and Marbury v. Madison as applied in Commonwealth jurisprudence. It prescribes remedies for breaches of constitutional rights and contemplates appeals to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Provisions outline the tenure and independence of judges, echoing safeguards found in the constitutions of the Cayman Islands and Bermuda, and include mechanisms for enforcing constitutional obligations against public officers akin to remedies authorized in precedents such as Bancoult v. Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs.
The Order sets out amendment routes requiring both local legislative approval in the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands and assent by the Governor of the British Virgin Islands, with certain entrenched clauses requiring referendum-like safeguards similar to practices under the Constitution of Saint Lucia and the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago. It contemplates the United Kingdom Parliament’s role in further Orders in Council and envisages periodic reviews influenced by constitutional commissions such as those that reported in Jamaica and Barbados.
Implementation involved institutional adjustments in offices including the Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands and reforms to legislative procedure in the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands, with commentary from regional actors such as the Caribbean Community and critiques by local political organizations like the Concerned Citizens Movement (BVI). Legal scholars compared its provisions with those in the Constitution of the Cayman Islands and the Constitution of Bermuda, while civil society groups and media outlets including the BVI Beacon evaluated effects on rights and governance. International reactions referenced practices from the United Nations decolonization agenda and jurisprudence of the Privy Council, and subsequent amendments and legal challenges have tested its provisions in forums like the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court and the Privy Council.