The Cabinet Office is a constitutionally established department of the Government of the Virgin Islands as defined in section 51(1)(a) of the Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007.
The Cabinet Office primarily facilitates and monitors the implementation of the Government's Policy Programme/Agenda by providing the technical and administrative support services required for the effective and efficient functioning of the Cabinet, the National Security Council (NSC) and the Virgin Islands Cadet Corps Council (VICCC).
The Office serves as the repository of documents relating to the Cabinet, NSC and the VICCC. It is therefore responsible for the management of current and archived documents for the aforementioned constitutional and legal bodies. Hence, the Cabinet Office has custody of and manages the access to all Cabinet and NSC documents.
The role of the Cabinet Office is to also serve as the Cabinet Secretariat. In addition to providing technical and administrative support services, the Secretariat is responsible for advising the Governor and the Premier on the conduct of Cabinet business in a timely manner. This is to also ensure that the decisions taken by the Cabinet and the National Security Council are based on sound, timely information and advice. The Secretariat is staffed by a complement of 11 public officers.
The Cabinet Office, through the Cabinet Secretary, provides the link between the Cabinet Office and the Public Service, ensuring that the Public Service effectively, efficiently and fully implements the decisions of Cabinet and the National Security Council. The Cabinet Secretary has joint responsibility to the Chairman of the Cabinet and the Premier regarding business of the Cabinet, National Security Council and the Virgin Islands Cadet Corps Council.
The Cabinet Secretary is the Head of the Cabinet Office, and is appointed in accordance with Section 92(5) of the Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007 which states that power to make appointments to the office of Cabinet Secretary is vested in the Governor, acting in accordance with the advice of the Premier. The Cabinet Secretary must be a public officer as defined in section 51(1) and a Virgin Islander, in accordance with section 65(2) of the Virgin Islands Constitution Order 2007.
Operations and Structure
Strategic Role and Function of the Virgin Islands Cabinet Office
The Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007 provides the functional areas by which the Cabinet Office operates. This structure came into effect on 22nd August, 2007 with the taking of office by the Government after the General Elections.
Policy Advice
The Cabinet Secretary, under section 51(3)(a) of the Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007 provides policy advice to the Cabinet. In this regard, it is expected that this office provides advice on the overall strategic framework and the strategy in the short, medium and long term.
The Cabinet Office must ensure that the business of Cabinet is able to be executed in a timely and efficient way that allows full collective consideration of facts and options for decision-making. This entails the timely distribution of papers, memoranda, documents, as well as minutes and extracts of minutes.
Policy Implementation Monitoring
Another key role of the Cabinet Office is the monitoring of the implementation of policies and all decisions made by the Cabinet and the National Security Council, Virgin Islands Cadet Corps Council across ministries. This calls for the classification, cataloguing and processing of decisions taken, and the monitoring of the progress of implementation across ministries. This area of responsibility is led by the Deputy Cabinet Secretary, and is executed with the assistance of designated Cabinet Liaison Officers; public officers who serve as the contact between the various ministries and the Cabinet Office. The Cabinet Office is constitutionally mandated to submit periodic reports to the Cabinet in accordance with section 51(3)f of the Constitution.
Promote Adherence to Cabinet Rules
Subject to the Constitution, the Cabinet Office ensures that the Cabinet, NSC and VICCC adhere to the respective rules, procedures and guidelines governing each body. Guiding documents include the 2009 Cabinet Handbook, a Cabinet Paper Preparers’ Guide and the Virgin Islands Cadet Corps Act, 2008.
Mission
The Cabinet Office is dedicated to facilitating and monitoring the executive decision-making within the Government of the Virgin Islands.
The Gazette Unit
Since 2010, the Gazette Unit has been under the management of the Cabinet Office. The Unit is responsible for producing “The Virgin Islands Official Gazette” which is the official newspaper of the Government of the Virgin Islands. Published weekly on Thursdays, the Gazette is a compilation of Government, Statutory, Liquidation and other Notices. In addition, documents such as Bills, Acts, and other official documents are circulated with the Gazette from time to time.
