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At a meeting of the Executive Council held on 11 March 2025, an increase to the minimum wage of 50p per hour was approved.

This change will take effect from 01 July 2025 and will increase from £4.00 to £4.50 for persons over 18 years, and £3.05 to £3.55 for persons aged 16 or 17 years. This represents an annual increase of 12% and 16% respectively.

The approval of this increase is in line with the objective of establishing a more ambitious minimum wage, benefitting workers and providing adequate time for businesses to plan and adapt.

The principle informing the minimum wage is that of the Minimum Income Standard (MIS), which states that “minimum income is based on needs and not wants, but it provides more than what is just needed for survival. It supports social participation and recognises that choice is important, but also that choice cannot be unlimited”. Although the MIS varies for people based on their specific circumstances, the current MIS of at least £5.23 per hour is dependent on the cost of housing, which includes costs to a family for renting accommodation or paying a housing loan, and car ownership.

In determining the increase, consideration was given to the current cost of living pressures on both employees and employers and it was noted that a balance would need to be struck. The Minimum Wage Policy therefore recognises that there is a limit to the size of increases that businesses can absorb in a single year, whilst at the same time acknowledging the need to continue raising the minimum income level on St Helena to go some way in encouraging residents to remain in employment on St Helena.

This year’s increase follows consultations with employers, employees and other relevant stakeholders including the Chamber of Commerce.

The minimum wage will be reviewed again in early 2026 and will include public consultation to consider further uplifts for the period 2026/27.

Since its inception in 2013, the minimum wage has raised from £2.30 to £4.50 for persons over 18 years, and from £1.45 to £3.55 for persons aged 16 or 17 years. These increases equate to a 95% and 145% rise respectively.

#StHelena #MinimumWage #AltogetherWealthier

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His Majesty’s Passport Office (HMPO) has advised of the following changes to British passport application processing.

HMPO will now directly contact applicants if additional information or documents are required to support an application. If original documents are requested by HMPO, applicants must post them directly to the address provided in the HMPO correspondence.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that prompt action is taken on any correspondence received from HMPO. There is a strict six-week timeframe for documents to be received by HMPO calculated from the date HMPO’s correspondence was sent.

Required Documents for all First-Time and Renewal Applications:

• A full birth certificate (and marriage certificate if applicable)
• If born after 31 December 1982, your mother’s birth certificate
• If applicable your parents’ marriage certificate (to show mother’s change of name)
• Two (2) passport-type photographs (signed)
• Your current passport (for renewals)
• A colour copy of the bio-data page of the passport belonging to the person who countersigns your application.

Passport Type	Passport Fee (Cheque payable to HMPO, submitted with application)	Handling Charge (Cash, paid at Customer Service Centre, receipt submitted with application)
Adult 34-page standard passport	£120.50	£18.80
Child 34-page standard passport (where the applicant is under 16 years of age)	£82.50	£18.80

Your counter signatory must meet specific criteria as outlined by HMPO:

Accepted Occupations/Criteria:

A counter signatory must either:

• work in (or be retired from) a recognised profession
• be ‘a person of good standing in their community’

Examples of recognised professions include:

• Accountant
• Chairman or Director of a limited company
• Commissioner for oaths
• Councillor, for example local or county
• Justice of the Peace
• Minister of a recognised religion (including Christian Science)
• Nurse (Rgn or Rmn)
• Person with honours, for example an OBE or MBE
• Police Officer
• Post Office Official
• Salvation Army Officer
• Social Worker
• Solicitor

Your counter signatory cannot:

• Work for HM Passport Office
• Be a doctor, unless they state that they know you well (for example they’re a good friend) and that they recognise you easily from your photo
• Be related to you by birth or marriage
• Be in a relationship with you or live at the same address as you.

The counter signatory must hold a current British or British Overseas Territory Citizen (BOTC) passport. If your counter signatory does not meet these requirements, you will be asked to find someone else.

For any queries regarding the above information, please contact the Immigration Office.

#StHelena #BritishPassportApplications  

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St Helena is set to take a significant step forward in its efforts towards digital modernisation with the approval of a new Communications Bill by Legislative Council on 18 June 2025.  The Bill will become an Ordinance when HE Governor signifies his assent.

This crucial legislation replaces the outdated Telecommunications Ordinance 1989.  When brought into force the new Communications Ordinance will establish a complete regulatory code for the management of the entire electromagnetic spectrum for St Helena as well as making wider provision concerning broadcasting and communications more generally.  Consumer protection and the protection of vital national interests are at its heart. 

This landmark Bill follows years of work, stemming from the Communications Networks and Services Policy first approved in 2020. The Policy, consistently endorsed by the Executive Council, most recently in July 2024, laid the groundwork for drafting a modern law that addresses the complexities of today’s digital landscape.

Key Provisions for a Modern and Fair Communications Landscape

The new Communications Ordinance contains more than 130 sections and is divided into 22 Parts.   Some of its key elements include:  

• Establishing a Communications Regulator: The Communications Regulator will oversee and enforce compliance with the Ordinance.  The Regulator will look to ensure that Communications Service Providers operate in the best interests of customers.  There will be a focus on fair pricing, quality, and innovation. To ensure transparency in a less competitive market, the Regulator will require companies to provide clear information and will impose penalties for non-compliance. This will lead to better decision-making and improved service.
• Clear Licensing Framework: The Ordinance together with regulations and codes will create a clear Licensing Framework.  This will provide certainty for investors, consumers, and all stakeholders.  In addition to these laws all licences, when granted will include conditions and obligations that licensees will have to comply with.  The aim is to foster confidence for licensees, for investors and for consumers.  It also seeks to protect vital infrastructure, future investments and support network upgrades across the island.
• Universal Service Obligation: A Universal Service Obligation is mandated, ensuring that all St Helena residents have access to affordable communication services, regardless of their geographical location.
• Enhanced Consumer Safeguards and Quality of Service: The Ordinance will strengthen Consumer Safeguards and make arrangements for the introduction of Quality of Service standards. Service providers will be required to establish complaint-handling procedures, protect user privacy, and meet minimum quality standards, with regular performance reporting.
• Power to Impose Price Controls: To ensure fair pricing for consumers, the Ordinance introduces the power to implement Price Controls. This ensures that services remain affordable while allowing providers fair returns that reflect operational costs and risks on St Helena.
• Robust Exit Provisions: To guarantee continuous service, even if a service provider departs, detailed exit provisions are required to be included in licences.  Licensees will be required to compile a comprehensive exit plan to ensure smooth transitions of services, assets, and data, protecting users from any disruption.
• Surveillance and interception: Communications networks carry vast amounts of information that can be of interest in criminal investigations. The powers in the Ordinance are carefully balanced and seek to safeguard privacy whilst at the same time giving appropriate investigatory powers.  The Ordinance looks to the appointment of a Surveillance Commissioner.  Part of the Surveillance Commissioner’s role will be to strike the appropriate balances between the needs of law enforcement and consumers rights to privacy.

Protecting St Helena’s Consumers

At its core, the new Communications Ordinance is designed with the consumer at its heart. It introduces robust regulation to safeguard the public and prevent harm, ensuring fair practices in the communications sector. The Ordinance provides necessary tools, including the power to implement price controls to ensure fair costs and a comprehensive licensing framework that holds providers accountable. These measures will collectively ensure that the island’s communications services genuinely serve the welfare of every resident.

This proactive legislative step underscores St Helena’s commitment to building a robust, equitable, and modern digital future for all its citizens.

Minister for Treasury & Economic Development Portfolio, Mark Brooks, commented:

“This Government is committed to ending the digital poverty and exclusion that St Helena has faced due to our remote location. We have taken decisive action by commissioning the Equiano subsea cable, which connects our island to the transformative potential of subsea fibre infrastructure, and started to realise the benefits when the cable was connected to our island network in October 2023.. With the passage of the Communications Bill, we are demonstrating to the world that St Helena is open for business with a modern, forward-thinking regulatory framework.

St Helena offers unique advantages: lightly used spectrum, an ideal mid-Atlantic location, and a government actively encouraging development as a hub for satellite ground stations and other businesses. This has been a significant journey, and I commend the dedicated work of SHG officials who have helped transform this ambition into reality with this Bill.”

A copy of the Ordinance can be found on the Bills for an Ordinance page on the SHG website at https://www.sainthelena.gov.sh/government/legislative-council/bills-for-an-ordinance/.  

#StHelena #CommunicationsBill #LegislativeCouncil

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SHG

20 June 2025

In his final week in office, the Hon. Martin Henry, St Helena’s Minister for Health and Social Care, has been invited to attend and participate in the UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs) Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Conference in London. The conference, funded by the FCDO (Overseas Territories Civil Resilience Programme), via UKHSA as the Delivery Partner, is scheduled to take place from 23 to 27 June 2025 and brings together CMOs from across the Territories to focus on Behavioural Science Approaches to Risk Communication, a critical pillar of St Helena’s recently approved Prevention Strategy.

Minister Henry’s attendance at this event is a strategically important step to ensure the continuity and advancement of St Helena’s Public Health initiatives. As the island prepares for a new administration, this conference offers a vital opportunity to showcase St Helena’s commitment to preventative health and the significant work undertaken to date. It also fosters collaboration that will benefit St Helena and other UK Overseas Territories as they collectively progress.

The UKHSA’s support for St Helena and its public health efforts has been, and continues to be, substantial, providing both funding and professional expertise. This support is built on a mutual commitment to improve current health outcomes and foster long-term sustainable strategies.

Minister Henry commented:

“This conference is not about the end of a journey, but the continuation of a commitment that should not be bound by any individual. St Helena is at a critical juncture, but much work has been done in securing important foundations that are critical to success. These have been laid in the hope that they will be built upon by the incoming government. Our work on the Prevention Strategy and our collaboration with UKHSA is a testament to the Government’s dedication to support the health and well-being of our people, both now and into the future.”

Minister Henry’s participation underscores that policy evolution does not pause during governmental transitions. Instead, it ensures that the island remains at the forefront of innovation, strengthening partnerships that are key to providing lasting impact beyond political cycles.

All elements of the visit are fully funded by the UKHSA and will have no impact on St Helena’s approved recurring budget for 2025/26.

Minister Christine Scipio will be responsible for the Health and Social Care portfolio in Minister Henry’s absence and can be contacted by email via Christine.scipio@sainthelena.gov.sh

SHG
17 June 2025