Premier, Honourable Joseph E. Farrell led a Montserrat delegation to the UK for the annual Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in London from November 14 to 15, 2023. Premier and the other leaders of the UK Overseas Territories discussed and reviewed a Joint UK-OT Declaration on future UK strategy in its relationship with the Overseas Territories. Premier Farrell made several interventions on all the agenda items.
Whilst in London, Premier, Hon. Joseph E. Farrell and Deputy Premier, Dr. the Hon. Samuel Joseph and team, took the opportunity to have several bilateral meetings with His Majesty’s Government (HMG) departments, including the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) where discussions centred on the need for increased collaboration to ensure the sustainability of Montserrat’s water supply. Further collaboration is planned with potential visits in the future.
The Premier and his delegation also met with Montserrat’s participants in the inaugural UK Overseas Territories Association (UKOTA ) Youth Summit hosted by the Speaker of the House of Commons, Rt. Hon. Sir Lindsay Hoyle at the Speaker’s House located at the Palace of Westminster. During lunch, the Montserrat Youth Parliament representatives Hayley-Shai Kassie, Jaena Golden and Deuvaunn Darroux shared with the Hon. Premier and the Hon. Deputy Premier their ideas for the future development of Montserrat.
At a meeting with the new Chair of the Montserrat All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), Member of Parliament (MP) Pauline Latham, Premier Farrell highlighted the current issues and challenges affecting the island’s economic development and specifically, the need for additional support in redeveloping the Tourism Industry and the issues surrounding access and avenues for improvement.
The Honourable Premier, Honourable Deputy Premier and the delegation were joined by Her Excellency, Governor Sarah Tucker at a bilateral meeting with the Overseas Territories Minister David Rutley. Discussions were held on Access, Public Sector Capacity, Tourism, Private Sector support and Renewable Energy.
The final day at JMC ended with the Premier and Deputy Premier meeting with the Head of Tourism Affairs at Visit Britain/Visit England where they explored possible areas through Montserrat can benefit from their support to market and boost Montserrat’s tourism sector.
Another day of scheduled meetings are planned for Friday 17th while the delegation is in the UK.
The JMC is the principle forum for reviewing and implementing the shared strategy for promoting the security and good governance of the Territories and their sustainable economic and social development.
