During a recent visit to London, on the heels of successful meetings in Paris at the UNESCO 40th Session of the General Conference, Dr. the Honourable Natalio D. Wheatley engaged senior officials from three UK Government departments as part of his first official visit to the UK.

Minister Wheatley met first with the UK Department for Education's Chief Operating Officer in the Operations Group, Mike Green. They openly discussed what technical assistance could be made available to the BVI in the areas of special educational needs, teacher training, and the construction of disaster resilient schools. The Minister explained the current challenges facing the BVI in these areas and sought the department’s assistance in acquiring the technical and administrative support required to advance the BVIs overall ambitions.

The Minister met next with the UK's Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs where he discussed opportunities to diversify the BVIs economy in part through revitalising the BVI’s fisheries and agricultural development sectors. He discussed at length available options for the regulation of the Territory’s commercial fisheries and licensing sectors.

The possibility of the UK extending its membership to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation to include the BVI was discussed.

Dr. the Honourable Wheatley, explained that, “extending membership to the BVI would give the Territory the leverage and security it needs to confidently move in the desired direction regarding local and international fishing in Territorial waters.”

 A later courtesy call was made to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) where the Minister received a brief overview and update on the current state of affairs. There was an expressed willingness by the FCO to follow up and support the Minister's efforts in seeking technical assistance from the various stakeholders.

A visit to Hertfordshire allowed the Minister to engage the Territory’s partners in Hertfordshire County Council on the local level. In East Herts he visited two allotment sites.

The first site was run by the Mudlarks charity whose aim is to "integrate people with learning difficulties and mental health issues into the community through gardening." The second site is dedicated to the community at large to grow fruits and vegetables. Minister Wheatley indicated during his visit to the sites, that he intends on establishing community allotments in the BVI.

Minister Wheatley said, “The concept of community allotments resonates with me as this can be an avenue for Virgin Islanders to reconnect with their agricultural history and culture through community gardening.”

“Moreover, the concept provides an opportunity to integrate the diverse members of our society such as those with special needs and mental health issues,” the Minister added.

In the afternoons wrap up session, the Minister attended a meeting with the Deputy Executive Member of Education, Libraries, and Localism, County Councillor Mark Mills-Bishop and Head of School Standards and Accountability Tania Rawle of Hertfordshire County Council. The meeting focused on understanding how the County Council approaches special educational needs, teaching standards and accountability, teacher training, behavioural issues amongst students, and vocational training. Further consultations on how the BVI can realise some of Hertfordshire’s success in these areas will be made in 2020 with follow up site visits.

The Minister's visit to Hertfordshire County Council and East Herts Council actively sought to renew and further strengthen the BVI's partnership with UK regional authorities on matters of importance to the BVI's development.

Photos Attached: 

Photo 1 – Hon. Wheatley with Matt Ofield of the FCO

Photo 2 – Hon. Wheatley with Deputy Councillor for Education, Libraries and Localism Mark Mills-Bishop

PHoto 3 – Hon. Wheatley with Councillor and Mayor of Hertford Mrs Rosemary Bolton, Councillor Mrs Sue Barber and others at Mudlarks