John Alfred Osborne (27 May 1936 – 2 January 2011) was a

chief minister of Montserrat The Premier of Montserrat is the head of government of the British Overseas Territory of Montserrat. The Premier is appointed by the Governor of Montserrat on behalf of the monarch of the United Kingdom, currently King Charles III. The current P ...

. He first came to that position in November 1978, as a member of the People's Liberation Movement, and continued until losing legislative council elections on 10 October 1991. By 2001 he had switched parties, joining the

New People's Liberation Movement The New People's Liberation Movement was a political party in Montserrat led by John Osborne. History The NPLM was established in 2001 by a merger of the People's Progressive Alliance and the Movement for National Reconstruction,

. Under his leadership, the NPLM won 7 of 9 seats in legislative council elections on 2 April 2001, and he served as chief minister from 5 April 2001 until 3 June 2006 when he resigned after elections in which his party was defeated. A major issue for his government has been the continuing recovery of the island of Montserrat after a volcanic eruption which devastated the southern part of the island, burying the capital city of

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

in ash and forcing its population to flee, in many cases off the island due to lack of housing. The eruption, which began in July 1995, continues today on a vastly reduced scale, the damage being confined to Plymouth and the surrounding areas. , a new airport and docking facilities have opened and Montserratians and tourists alike are beginning to return. In July 2008, Gerald's Airport in Montserrat was renamed

John A. Osborne Airport John A. Osborne Airport (Gerald's Airport until 2008) is a small airport located in the village of Gerald's on the island of Montserrat, a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean Sea. History Gerald's passenger terminal was dedicated in Fe ...

in his honour.Montserrat renames its airport
at the Travel Daily News His daughter

Shirley Osborne Shirley Osborne is a politician in Montserrat. She was Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Montserrat between September 2014 and October 2019. She is the daughter of the late John Osborne, a former Chief Minister of Montserrat. Osborne trained ...

is the Speaker of the

Legislative Assembly of Montserrat The Legislative Assembly is the legislature of Montserrat. A unicameral body, it has nine elected members. History The Legislative Assembly was established following the promulgation of a new constitution in 2011, replacing the Legislative Counc ...

References

1936 births 2011 deaths Chief Ministers of Montserrat Alumni of the University of Manchester New People's Liberation Movement politicians {{Montserrat-politician-stub