Dr. Hugh Gordon Hylvestra Cummins (2 February 1891 – 26 October 1970) was a Barbadian politician. He served as

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

of Barbados from 17 April 1958 to 8 December 1961 and was a member of the

Barbados Labour Party The Barbados Labour Party (BLP), colloquially known as the "Bees", is a social democratic political party in Barbados established in 1938. Led by Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley, it is the governing party of Barbados and the sole ruling party i ...

(BLP). In 1919, Dr. Cummins graduated from Queen's Faculty of Medicine where he became medical practitioner and later established a medical practice in the Bridgetown. In 1940, he became one of the first Barbados Labour Party members of Parliament. In 1951 he together with

Grantley Herbert Adams Sir Grantley Herbert Adams, CMG, QC (28 April 1898 – 28 November 1971) was a Barbadian politician. He served as the inaugural premier of Barbados from 1953 to 1958 and then became the first and only prime minister of the West Indies Federa ...

, Mencea Cox (Sir Mencea) and Frank Walcott (Rt. Excellent Sir Frank) were appointed members of the Executive Committee of the BLP. He also became a Minister in 1954 when Ministerial Government was introduced. Cummins was the Speaker of the House of Assembly of Barbados from 1956 to 1958. He became the second Premier of Barbados when Sir Grantley was

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

of the

West Indies Federation The West Indies Federation, also known as the West Indies, the Federation of the West Indies or the West Indian Federation, was a short-lived political union that existed from 3 January 1958 to 31 May 1962. Various islands in the Caribbean that ...

. During his premiership he held the additional portfolio of

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

. His outstanding achievement was the abolition of the Located Labourers Act and he is commemorated by the naming of the

ABC Highway The ABC Highway is the main urban highway in Barbados. Opened in 1989, it is named after three famous Barbadian politicians: John Michael Geoffrey Manningham ("Tom") Adams, Errol Barrow, and Hugh Gordon Cummins. From the east, the highway st ...

and the Gordon Cummins Hospital in St. Thomas, the constituency that he represented.

References

1891 births 1970 deaths Finance ministers of Barbados Prime Ministers of Barbados Leaders of the Barbados Labour Party Speakers of the House Assembly of Barbados {{Barbados-politician-stub