22 July 2013 | Comments
St Helena’s newly elected Councillors started their term in office today, with a briefing from senior officials. This is in preparation for the first formal meeting of the new Legislative Council (LegCo) on Wednesday 24 July 2013. The new Elected Members are:
- Leslie Paul Baldwin, Nigel Dollery, Wilson Charles Duncan, Gavin George Ellick, Cyril Robert George, Anthony Arthur Green, Lawson Arthur Henry, Brian William Isaac, Bernice Alicia Olsson, Ian Sebastian Rummery, Christine Lilian Scipio-O’Dean, and Derek Franklin Thomas.
At this inaugural LegCo, Oaths of office will first be administered. Following this, Councillors will elect a Speaker and Deputy Speaker, and also elect Committee Chairmen and Members to serve on Executive Council (ExCo). Finally, three Members to serve on the Public Accounts Committee will be elected. The Governor will preside over this inaugural meeting of the Legislative Council, but steps down as soon as the Speaker is elected.
The first meeting of ExCo will take place on Tuesday 6 August 2013.
As part of the Induction process for Elected Members, a Delegation from the UK branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) will arrive on-Island on Monday 29 July.
CPA Delegation
Members of the Delegation will work with Councillors over an eight-day programme to strengthen and promote good Governance in St Helena.
Members of the CPA Delegation are: Lord Shutt of Greetland OBE FCA (a former Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Lords and Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard), John Grimes (former Head of Governance at the National Assembly for Wales), Barry Paint (an Elected Member – or ‘Deputy’ – on the island of Guernsey), Tim Crookall (a Member of the House of Keys for Peel on the Isle of Man), and Joyce Watson (Welsh Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales since May 2007).
The post-Election seminar for Councillors will cover a range of subjects, including their role as Councillors, the leadership required from them, strategic policy making, the vital Councillor/community link, scrutiny and accountability, and the ethical behaviour and standards that are expected from Elected Members. The CPA will work with senior SHG officials in covering these subjects.
Notes for Editors
The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s mission is to advance Parliamentary democracy by enhancing the knowledge and understanding of democratic Governance. It seeks to build an informed political community able to deepen the Commonwealth’s democratic commitment and promote co-operation among its members.
SHG
19 July 2013
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