Governor Bryan also addressed the status of the federal stimulus checks and additional funding for the Paycheck Protection Program.
Senator Kenneth L. Gittens said Monday he will ask that the V.I. Education Department consider postponing rather than canceling graduation ceremonies planned for the Territory’s public high schools. “We all understand that we have to sacrifice in order to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, however, I do not want to see our seniors robbed of the recognition they deserve for their many years of hard work,” Senator Gittens said. “In speaking with seniors this week, they expressed their real disappointment at not being able to participate in a ceremony.” Senator Gittens said the students he spoke with were not pleased with the idea of a virtual graduation. “I do think there is room for some creativity here – perhaps a graduation motorcade or hosting a ceremony later this year,” Senator Gittens said. “The main thing is to ensure that we celebrate our graduates appropriately even if it means we hold a ceremony in December in the tradition of the many universities that host both spring and winter graduations.”
LIAT’s suspension of passenger services has been extended to May 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The airline will still be operating cargo flights to several destinations.
Sir Richard Branson has pledged his luxury island resort as collateral to help get a UK government bailout of his airline Virgin Atlantic. The billionaire Virgin Group boss said in an open letter to staff he was not asking for a handout, but a commercial loan believed to be £500m. The airline's survival was in doubt, and his Necker Island home in the Caribbean could be mortgaged, he said. Sir Richard said in his letter to staff: "Many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it." The crisis facing airlines, and the staff they employ, was "unprecedented," he said.