C ommo nwe a l t h memb e r c o u n t r i e s Governance institutions Commonwealth Governance Handbook 2013/14 160 Government and politics Last elections: December 2009 Next elections: 2014 Head of State: President Charles Savarin (2013–) Head of Government: Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit Ruling party: Dominica Labour Party The economy continued to dominate the political agenda. The government’s top priority in the run-up to the 2000 elections had been to secure financial backing for its new airport project – the key to expansion of the tourism industry, which was set to become crucial as, inevitably, the international banana market became more competitive. In the January 2000 general election, the Dominica Labour Party (DLP – ten seats) narrowly defeated the United Workers Party (UWP – nine seats). The DLP formed a coalition with the Dominica Freedom Party (DFP – two seats) and Roosevelt (Rosie) Douglas became Prime Minister. Following his sudden death in October 2000, he was succeeded by Communications and Works Minister Pierre Charles. In October 2003 Dr Nicholas Liverpool was elected President by the House of Assembly for a five-year term. In January 2004 Charles died suddenly and Roosevelt Skerrit was sworn in as Prime Minister. In the general election in May 2005, the DLP took 12 seats, the UWP eight and independents one. DFP failed to win any seats and was unable to continue as coalition partner with DLP in government. In December 2009, in an election that was called early, the DLP won 18 seats – with 61.2 per cent of the vote – and the UWP the balance of three (34.9 per cent). In early January 2010 Skerrit announced his new cabinet, in which he was Finance and Foreign Affairs Minister. Following the resignation of President Nicholas Liverpool, the House of Assembly elected Eliud Williams as his successor on 17 September 2012. On 30 September 2013 Charles Savarin was elected president by the House of Assembly for a five-year term. Local government Ministry: Community Development, Gender Affairs and Information Association: Dominica Association of Local Authorities Local government is provided for by the Town Council Act 1937, the Village Council Act 1954, the Carib Council Act 1978, the City Council Act 1984 and the Urban Council Act 1992, and not by the constitution. The Ministry of Community Development, Gender Affairs and Information is responsible for local government. For the purpose of local government there are three urban councils, 37 village councils and the Carib Council in the Carib territory. The local authorities have powers to raise revenue from property and land taxes, and they receive transfers from national government, which include amounts matching revenues collected by authorities. The largest part of local government spending is on road maintenance. Governance A major initiative in combating corruption in public office was the establishment in 2008 of the Integrity Commission of the Commonwealth of Dominica, which is chaired by a former judge of the High Court, an attorney-at-law of fifteen years standing at the Bar or a former chief magistrate; and has a further six members including two government officers, two opposition politicians, one accountant and one attorney-at-law. The commission’s mandate is to examine and verify the declarations of all public officers; and to investigate any allegations of bribery or corruption or failure to comply with the Integrity in Public Office Act, 2003. Further information Dominica Government: www.dominica.gov.dm Commonwealth Secretariat: www.thecommonwealth.org Commonwealth Governance: www.commonwealthgovernance.org Electoral Office: electoraloffice.gov.dm House of Assembly: houseofassembly.gov.dm Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court: www.eccourts.org Ministry of Tourism and Legal Affairs: tourism.gov.dm Eastern Caribbean Central Bank: www.eccbcentralbank. org Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange: www.ecseonline.com Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority: www.ectel.int National Telecommunications Regulatory Commission: www.ntrcdom.org
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