Barbados
About parliament
Basic information such as the official name of parliament and details of its structure and leadership. Also includes the current breakdown of MPs by sex and age, and provisions for quotas and reserved seats.
Parliament name
Parliament of Barbados (Parlement de Barbade)
Chamber name
Senate
Structure & Status of parliament
This field is to indicate lower/upper in the back end.
Upper chamber
Parliamentary term (years)
5
IPU membership
Affiliation periods
Speaker
Official title
The Speaker may for example be known as the Presiding Officer, President, Chairman/Chairperson, etc.
President of the Senate
Speaker
Reginald
Farley
(Male)
Year of birth
1961
Term
15.09.2020
Additional information
Elected on 15 Sep. 2020.
Secretary General
Official title
This post is most commonly called Secretary General or Clerk. It may also be called Secretary, Head/Chief of the Secretariat, Director General, etc.
Clerk of Parliament
Secretary General
Pedro
E. Eastmond
(Male)
Members
Statutory number of members
Statutory number of members, as defined in the constitution or other fundamental law.
Principal mode of designation of members
Appointed
Compare data of this field.
Appointed members
Appointed, for example, by the Head of State.
21
Note on the statutory number of members
The Senate comprises 21 appointed members as follows:
- 12 senators appointed by the Prime Minister;
- 7 by the President of the Republic*;
- 2 by the Leader of the Opposition.
* Instead of the Governor General, the President of the Republic appoints seven senators, following Parliament’s adoption of the Constitution (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill in October 2021, under which the country became a republic.
See historical data for this field.
- 12 senators appointed by the Prime Minister;
- 7 by the President of the Republic*;
- 2 by the Leader of the Opposition.
* Instead of the Governor General, the President of the Republic appoints seven senators, following Parliament’s adoption of the Constitution (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill in October 2021, under which the country became a republic.
Current number of members
Number of members who currently hold seats in parliament. May be lower or higher than the statutory number of members.
Men
The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Women
The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Percentage of women
Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
Statutory number of members per country
As defined in the constitution or other fundamental laws. Combines the number of parliamentarians in both chambers in bicameral parliaments.
Population (in thousands)
Click for historical data
See historical data for this field.
Age
Data on the age of parliamentarians is collected at the start of the legislature, following the most recent elections. This data is not updated during the legislature, except when parliament notifies the IPU of a change in the youngest or oldest member.
Reserved seats and quotas
There are reserved seats in parliament for certain groups
Reserved seats are a means to ensure the parliamentary representation of certain groups in society.
Number of reserved seats, by group
Notes
Seven senators shall be appointed by the Governor-General, acting in his discretion, by instrument under the Public Seal, to represent religious, economic or social interests or such other interests as the Governor-General considers ought to be represented.
Electoral quota for women
Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Legal source
Legal text that stipulates the quota, such as the Constitution or electoral law.
Constitution, article 36 §4
Electoral quota for youth
Quotas to promote the representation of youth in parliament.
Links to additional information
Parliamentary website
Link(s) to parliamentary web site in English, French and/or local languages.
Rules of procedure/Standing Orders
Link(s) to Rules of procedure on the parliamentary web site in English, French and/or local language.
List of members
Link(s) to list of members on the parliamentary web site.
Constitution
Official links to the Constitution in English, French and/or original language is provided. Links to unofficial translations where no other source is available.