Politics of Barbados
The politics of Barbados function within a framework of a parliamentary republic with strong democratic traditions; constitutional safeguards for nationals of Barbados include: freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association.
Executive power is vested in the President of Barbados, and is exercised by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, who together, form the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of the Parliament. The political system is dominated by two main parties, the Barbados Labour Party and the Democratic Labour Party. The judiciary of Barbados is independent of the executive and the legislature. Jurisprudence is based on English common law.
Many of the country's legislative practices derive from the unwritten conventions of, and precedents set by, the United Kingdom's Westminster Parliament; however, Barbados has evolved variations.
Summary of governmental organization
- Name
- Barbados
- Type of government
- Parliamentary democracy with a constitutional republic.
- Capital
- Bridgetown.
- Administrative divisions
- 11 parishes: Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas; and the city of Bridgetown
- Constitution
- Westminster system, based on unwritten conventions and written legislation.
- Legal system
- English common law; accepts compulsory International Court of Justice jurisdiction, with reservations.
- Suffrage
- Citizens aged 18 years or older.
- Participation in international organizations
- .
- Description of national flag
- Three vertical panels – the outer panels of ultramarine and the centre panel of gold. A broken trident in black is the centre of the flag.
Executive power
- Head of State
- Sandra Mason, President of Barbados (since 30 November 2021).
- Head of Government
- Prime Minister Mia Mottley(since 25 May 2018).
- Cabinet
- Ministerschosen by the Prime Minister and appointed by the President's assent. Cabinet leads various ministries and agencies. Constitutionally, there must be at least five ministers, who may be appointed exclusively from within Parliament.
- Elections
- The President is indirectly elected by Parliament, by a two-thirds supermajority in each House, for a four-year term. In following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party in the House of Assembly is usually designated by the President to become Prime Minister.
Government of Barbados
Head of state
The
Head of government
The
The Prime Minister holds office until he resigns is effectively subject to a winning vote of no confidence[1] or is removed by the President; therefore, the party that was in government before the election may attempt to continue to govern if they so desire, even if they hold fewer seats than another party. Coalition governments have never occurred.
If the Assembly passes a
When there are enough seats for another party to form a government after the resignation of a government, the President may ask the other party to try to form the government.
Legislative power
Political parties and elections
Summary of the 2022 Barbadian General Election
Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Barbados Labour Party | 78,720 | 69.03 | 30 | 0 | |
Democratic Labour Party | 30,273 | 26.55 | 0 | 0 | |
Alliance Party for Progress | 3,205 | 2.81 | 0 | 0 | |
Solutions Barbados | 699 | 0.61 | 0 | 0 | |
Bajan Free Party | 191 | 0.17 | 0 | 0 | |
New Barbados Kingdom Alliance | 122 | 0.11 | 0 | New | |
Barbados Sovereignty Party | 120 | 0.11 | 0 | New | |
Independents | 705 | 0.62 | 0 | 0 | |
Total | 114,035 | 100.00 | 30 | 0 | |
Registered voters/turnout | 266,330 | – | |||
Source: Nation News (seats); calculation based on Nation News (votes); [citation needed] (turnout) |
The parishes of Barbados are usually further divided into one or more constituencies for candidates seeking election to the House of Assembly. As of 1967, there are no longer any Local Government Councils at the parish level, as issues such as schools, public works, government health facilities and other institutions are administered at the national level. However, local representatives to the House of Assembly will usually be responsible for local causes and may take up issues with the respective Ministers of the Crown.
There are two major and long-standing parties in Barbados: the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) and the Democratic Labour Party (DLP). The 1990s have seen the dissolution of a third party: the National Democratic Party (NDP), and in recent times the creation of other parties such as the People's Empowerment Party (PEP), United Progressive Party and the People's Party for Democracy and Development.
Despite initial historical disparity (the BLP was once conservative and the DLP liberal), their modern incarnations are all moderate and largely have no major ideological differences. Electoral contests and political disputes often have personal overtones and voter sway tends to be based on tradition. The major political problems facing Barbados today are in promoting economic growth: creating jobs, encouraging agricultural diversification, attracting small industry, and promoting tourism.
The BLP decisively returned to power, after the DLP ruled from 2008 to 2018, after winning
Party eras
- Democratic Labour Party (1966–1976)
- Barbados Labour Party (1976–1986)
- Democratic Labour Party (1986–1994)
- Barbados Labour Party (1994–2008)
- Democratic Labour Party (2008–2018)
- Barbados Labour Party (2018–present)
Political pressure groups
The main political pressure groups are:
- Barbados Workers Union; led by Leroy Trotman
- Clement Payne Labor Union; led by David Commissiong
- People's Progressive Movement; led by Eric Sealy
- Unity Workers Union; led by Caswell Franklin
Judiciary
Barbados has an independent judiciary composed of Magistrates' Courts, which are statutorily authorized, and a Supreme Court, which is constitutionally mandated. The Supreme Court consists of the High Court and the Court of Appeal,[3] each having four judges. The Chief Justice serves on both the high court and the court of appeal. The court of last resort is the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago (which replaced the British-based Judicial Committee of the Privy Council). The CCJ's decisions are binding on all parties. Judges of the Supreme Court are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister after consultation with the leader of the opposition. Supreme Court of Judicature judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Service.
See also
- Future Centre Trust
References
- ^ Caribbean 360 21 December 2007.
- ^ "Jamaica Observer Limited". Jamaica Observer. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
- ^ Barbados' criminal court system
Further reading
- Lewis, Gordon (2022). "The Struggle For Freedom". Barbados. www.newworldjournal.org. New World Journal. p. 15. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
External links
- Government of Barbados website
- Barbados' General Election 2003
- Case Study: "The Barbados Experience" – political history, by the Department of Public Sector Reform
- The Constitution of Barbados
- The Barbados Constitution its Administration and separation of powers under the Constitution.
- Barbados Constitution profile – The Commonwealth of Nations
- Barbados Government and Legal System
- Political history of Barbados, Fun Barbados
- Women in politics of Barbados, Guide to Women Leaders