Island Council (Pitcairn)

The Island Council is the legislature of the Pitcairn Islands.

Structure

The Council has ten members, seven (five Councillors, the Mayor, and the Deputy Mayor) of whom are elected by popular vote and are the only members that are allowed to vote during any Council meeting. The other three are ex-officio members: the Administrator (who serves as both the head of government and the representative of the Governor of the Pitcairn Islands), the Governor, and the Deputy Governor. The Councillors and the Deputy Mayor all serve two year terms. The Mayor is elected for three years and is eligible to serve a second term in office, whilst the Administrator is appointed by the Governor for an indefinite term.[1]

History

The presiding officer of the council was traditionally the Magistrate, who held executive, legislative, and judicial authority. Following a constitutional review in 1998, this office was divided and replaced by the Mayor and the council chairman, effective from 1999.

Until 2011 the Governor appointed a second member of the Council. However, this position was scrapped in favour of introducing the fifth elected seat.[2]

Council membership

As of 23 November 2016,[3] the composition of the Island Council was:

Voting Members:

• Mayor: Charlene Warren-Peu
• Deputy Mayor: Kevin Young
• Councillors: Lea Brown, Darralyn Griffiths, Michele Christian, Leslie Jaques, and Brenda Christian

Non-voting (ex-officio) Members:

• Administrator: Nicholas Kennedy
• Governor: Laura Clarke
• Deputy Governor: Kevin Lynch

References

1. "Local Government Ordinance (Revised Edition 2015)" (PDF). Government of the Pitcairn Islands. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
2. 12 December 2011 - Pitcairn Elections Archived 19 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine Pitcairn News, December 2011
3. "PITCAIRN ISLAND COUNCIL - Minutes of Meeting held in The Square - Public Hall (Wednesday, 23 November 2016)" (PDF). government.pn. Retrieved 2017-01-13.