On June 23 voters in Britain will decide whether they wish to remain within the European Union (EU). If they vote to leave as some polls suggest, they may inadvertently affect the special status that the UK’s Overseas Territories in the Caribbean have with Europe.
In a recent indication of the uncertainty an out vote might create, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos Islands, together with other overseas territories, have jointly commissioned a study on the subject. This will not only review the issues that would arise should the British electorate vote to leave, but will also consider whether there might be alternative options in relation to the overseas territories status with both the UK and the EU, potentially opening the way for longer term change, irrespective of the outcome of the vote.
Their concerns in part relate to ambiguities in the status of