Skelton: ‘He stabbed me in the front’

A new rift has reopened old wounds in the House of Assembly.

Ronnie Skelton said this week that Myron Walwyn “stabbed” him “in the front” to replace him as leader of the downsized opposition after Lorna Smith’s recent departure for the government bench.

In response, Mr. Skelton has now rejoined the National Democratic Party, which he previously served for about two decades before losing an acrimonious NDP leadership battle to Mr. Walwyn in 2018.

“It’s this game of politics,” Mr. Skelton told the Beacon. “He didn’t stab me in the back: He stabbed me in the front.”

He added that he was “forced out” over disagreements with opposition colleagues.

“The way they were trying to proceed, I disagreed,” he said.

Mr. Skelton didn’t explain the specifics of their disagreement, but on Tuesday he said that he was the only sitting member of his party — the Progressive Virgin Islands Movement, which he formed in 2018 amid the NDP split — after his PVIM colleagues Stacy Mather and Mitch Turnbull backed Mr. Walwyn’s leadership bid under a new “Alliance” grouping.

“The others have left,” he said. “They have made their decisions on the way forward, and I have made my decision on theway forward.”

It is unclear if the “Alliance” is now an official party or if Mr. Walwyn remains a member of the NDP, which has been led by the fifth opposition member, Marlon Penn, since Mr. Walwyn’s 2019 election loss.

Yesterday, however, the NDP hinted at an answer when it announced that Mr. Skelton had rejoined its ranks.

“The NDP and PVIM share largely the same support base, leading to unnecessary division and vote-splitting,” the party stated. “This fragmentation has weakened both parties, weakened governance structure, and has significantly diminished progress in the territory.”

Mr. Skelton said he was ousted from the opposition leadership under Section 70 of the Constitution, which requires the governor to appoint an opposition leader recommended by the opposition party holding the most seats — or, in the absence of such a party, a leader who the governor believes can best command the opposition’s support.

With the support of Messrs. Mather and Turnbull, Mr. Walwyn’s block now includes three of the five members left on the opposition after Ms. Smith’s departure, and Governor Daniel Pruce swore him in as opposition leader on Monday before an HOA meeting.

Mr. Skelton’s ouster came the week after Ms. Smith left the opposition bench to rejoin the government as junior minister for financial services and economic development, increasing Premier Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley’s majority in the HOA to eight of the 13 elected members.

Minister-of-state plan

During a Friday press conference before the opposition shake-up, Mr. Wheatley defended his proposal to give Ms. Smith a more senior title by adding new positions to the government bench.

In what is believed to be a first for a British Caribbean overseas territory, Mr. Wheatley has asked the United Kingdom for the two existing junior minister posts to be upgraded to ministers of state and for two new under-secretary-of-state posts to be created. This system, he said, would mirror the one used by the UK Parliament.

The proposed changes, which would require a constitutional amendment, would enable him to upgrade Ms. Smith from junior minister to minister of state — a position he said is more in keeping with her qualifications.

“Somebody like Lorna Smith gives good value for money,” Mr. Wheatley said. “Remember, financial services is our bread and butter. It brings in 60 percent of government revenue.”

The premier added that Ms. Smith has unrivalled experience in the sector.

Ms. Smith previously served as deputy premier and financial services minister, but Mr. Wheatley abruptly sacked her in October over fears he could not rely on her support in a confidence vote proposed by the opposition.

Asked Friday if the proposed ministerial reforms amount merely to adding a “vanity title,” Mr. Wheatley said, “It’s not necessarily about vanity. In the United Kingdom, nobody refers to ministers as ‘junior ministers.’ I’m not sure why we do that here, and some persons might interpret that to mean that the portfolio that they manage is not important. I think that’s the purpose of discouraging the use of the term ‘junior minister.’”

The premier added that perception matters.

“I think the use of the terminology is something that we have to review, because it sends a message,” he said. “There’s nothing junior about Lorna Smith.”

The premier declined to comment on possible salary increases for any new positions.

“It will be premature to discuss salaries,” Mr. Wheatley said.

Mr. Pruce declined to comment and Messrs. Walwyn, Mather and Penn did not respond to requests for comment.