Mia Amor Mottley, (born 1 October 1965) is a Barbadian politician and attorney who has served as the eighth

prime minister of Barbados The prime minister of Barbados is the head of government of Barbados. The prime minister is appointed by the president under the terms of the Constitution. As the nominal holder of executive authority, the president holds responsibility for co ...

since 2018 and as Leader 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 ...

(BLP) since 2008. Mottley is the first woman to hold either position. She is also Barbados' first prime minister under its republican system, following constitutional changes she introduced that abolished the country's

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

. Mottley has been the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for the constituency of Saint Michael North East since 1994. From 1994 to 2008, she held a succession of ministerial portfolios including the post of Attorney-General of Barbados becoming the first woman to be appointed as such. She is also a member of the Inter-American Dialogue. Mottley was twice the Leader of the Opposition in the

House of Assembly of Barbados The House of Assembly of Barbados is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Barbados. It has 30 Members of Parliament (MPs), who are directly elected in single member constituencies using the simple-majority (or first-past-the-post) sys ...

first from 2008 to 2010 then from 2013 to 2018. In 2018, the Mottley-led BLP won a historic landslide victory in the 24 May general election, securing all 30 seats in the House—making them the first party to accomplish this feat—in addition to winning 72.8 per cent of the popular vote, which is the highest share ever achieved by a party in a general election. Mottley won a second term in office at the

2022 general election The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2022. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. * 2022 United Nations Security Council election * 2022 national electoral calendar * 2022 local ...

, once again sweeping all 30 seats in the legislature in a

snap election A snap election is an election that is called earlier than the one that has been scheduled. Generally, a snap election in a parliamentary system (the dissolution of parliament) is called to capitalize on an unusual electoral opportunity or to ...

that she called.

Early life, family and education

Mottley is the granddaughter of Ernest Deighton Mottley (1907–1973), a real estate broker and successful politician particularly at the parish level. He was the first Mayor of

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the capital and largest city of Barbados. Formerly The Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the parish of Saint Michael. Bridgetown is sometimes locally referred to as "The Ci ...

(1959), representing Bridgetown in the House of Assembly from 1946, who belonged to the conservative Barbados National Party. He was granted the Ordinary Commander of the Civil Division for public services in Barbados in June 1962 and assisted Wynter Algernon Crawford (1910–1993), Barbados's Trade Minister, at the Independent Conference in London during June and July 1966. Mottley's uncle, also named Ernest Deighton Mottley, became the political leader of the short-lived Christian Social Democratic Party (CSD) created in March 1975. Her cousin was the actress Eva Mottley. Mia's father Elliott Deighton Mottley was a barrister who sat in the House of Assembly for a relatively short time, vacating the seat to become consul-general in New York. He was educated at Eagle Hall School,

Harrison College (Barbados) Harrison College is a co-educational grammar school (secondary school) in Bridgetown, Barbados. Founded in 1733, the school takes its name from Thomas Harrison, a Bridgetown merchant, who intended it to serve as ''"A Public and Free School for the ...

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...

and the

Inns of Court School of Law The City Law School is one of the five schools of City, University of London. In 2001, the Inns of Court School of Law became part of City, and is now known as the City Law School. Until 1997, the ICSL had a monopoly on the provision of the Bar ...

. He once served as Bermuda's attorney-general and sits on the Court of Appeal of Belize. He married Mia's mother Santa Amor Tappin in December 1967, three years after being called to the Bar, and was elected to represent Bridgetown in May 1969. It has been suggested that the Prime Minister of the time,

Errol Barrow Errol Walton Barrow (21 January 1920 – 1 June 1987) was a Barbadian statesman and the first prime minister of Barbados. Born into a family of political and civic activists in the parish of Saint Lucy, he became a WWII aviator, combat ve ...

, used his parliamentary majority to abolish local government altogether and therefore undermine Elliott Mottley's strength in the political arena. Mia Mottley was educated at Merrivale Preparatory School, the United Nations International School, and Queen's College (Barbados). She later studied at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

and was awarded a law degree from the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

in 1986.

Political career

Mottley first entered Barbadian politics in 1991, when she lost an election race in St. Michael North East against Leroy Brathwaite (a defeat of fewer than 200 votes). Between 1991 and 1994, she was one of two Opposition Senators in the Upper House,

Senate of Barbados The Senate of Barbados is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Barbados. The Senate is accorded legitimacy by Chapter V of the Constitution of Barbados. It is the smaller of the two chambers. The Senate was established in 1964 to re ...

, where she was Shadow Minister of Culture and Community Development. During that time, she served on numerous Parliamentary Joint Select Committees on areas including Praedial Larceny and Domestic Violence. Following the BLP's victory in the

1994 Barbadian general election Early general elections were held in Barbados on 6 September 1994. Dieter Nohlen (2005) ''Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I'', p90 The result was a victory for the opposition Barbados Labour Party, which won 19 of the 28 seats ...

, Mottley was appointed as the Minister of Education, Youth Affairs and Culture in September 1994, under Prime Minister

Owen Arthur Owen Seymour Arthur, PC (17 October 194927 July 2020) was a Barbadian politician who served as the fifth prime minister of Barbados from 6 September 1994 to 15 January 2008. He is the longest-serving Barbadian prime minister to date. He also ...

. At the age of 29, she was one of the youngest Barbadians to be assigned a ministerial portfolio. During her tenure, she co-authored the White Paper on Education entitled ''Each Child Matters'', which draws the link between better education and job fulfillment. She was elected General Secretary of the Barbados Labour Party in 1996. In that year and again in 1997, she was Chairwoman of the Caricom Standing Committee of Ministers of Education. Mottley was appointed Attorney-General of Barbados and Minister of Home Affairs in August 2001 and is the first female (in Barbados) to hold this position. She is also the youngest ever

Queen's Counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of a queen, is a lawyer (usually a barrister o ...

in Barbados. In addition to being a Member of the Privy Council of Barbados, she was the Leader of the House and a member of the National Security Council and the Barbados Defence Board. She is also credited with being the visionary behind the Education Sector Enhancement Programme, popularly known as "EduTech", which aims to increase the number of young people contributing to the island's sustainable social, cultural and economic development. This revolutionary programme involves the widespread use of information and communication technologies to assist in improving the quality of the teaching and learning process. In Youth Affairs, Mottley directed the establishment of the Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme and a National Youth Development Programme. Two years later, Mottley became the second female Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Social Council of Barbados and the Deputy Chairman of Barbados's Economic Council. She held the chairmanship of a number of key Cabinet sub-committees, notably on Telecommunications Reform and on oversight of the administrative and legislative initiatives to prepare Barbados for the advent of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy. In a government reshuffle in February 2006, Mottley was appointed Minister of Economic Affairs and Development, a post she also held until 2008, where her responsibilities put her in charge of key economic agencies. Following the BLP's defeat in the

2008 Barbadian general election General elections were held in Barbados on 15 January 2008.Attorney-General of Barbados, Dale Marshall (politician). She is the first woman to lead the party, as well as the country's first female Opposition Leader. Mottley was sworn in as Opposition Leader on 7 February 2008. She promised the people that the Barbados Labour Party would be a strong and unified Opposition that would fight for the rights of all citizens in the country. On 18 October 2010, Mottley was ousted as Leader of the Opposition following a vote of no-confidence by five of her parliamentary colleagues. The five MPs placed their support behind former Prime Minister Owen Arthur, who assumed the leadership position that same day after another leadership election where former Prime Minister

defeated Mia Mottley. In the February 2013 general election, the BLP was narrowly defeated, obtaining 14 seats against 16 for the Democratic Labour Party (DLP). A few days after the election, on 26 February 2013, the BLP parliamentary group elected Mottley as Leader of the Opposition, replacing Arthur.

Prime Minister

In the 24 May 2018 general election, the BLP won the biggest majority government in Barbadian history, winning more than 70 per cent of the popular vote and all 30 seats in the legislature. Mottley was sworn in as Barbados's first female Prime Minister on 25 May 2018. During her tenure as prime minister, she has 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", " ...

. A week after the elections,

Joseph Atherley Joseph Junior Sylvester Atherley (born 26 February 1954) is a Barbadian religious minister and politician who served as Leader of the Opposition in the House of Assembly of Barbados from 2018 to 2022, and as leader of the People's Party for Dem ...

, MP for St. Michael West, left the BLP to become the House of Assembly's sole opposition member, citing concerns about democracy. He was subsequently appointed Leader of the Opposition. In May 2018, Mottley disclosed previously uncovered financial obligations of the state, saying that the new government inherited a large debt. Disclosure of information about the current level of debt led to an increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio from 137 per cent to 175 per cent — the fourth-highest value in the world after Japan, Greece, and Sudan. Mottley announced that new government had no other choice than to ask the IMF to facilitate debt restructuring. A week later, following the election, on 5 June 2018 Barbados failed to fulfil its obligation to pay the 26th coupon on Eurobonds maturing in 2035. This was the first time in history that a sitting government did not fulfil its obligation. In the 2019 New Year Honours, Mottley's father Elliott Mottley received a knighthood on the nomination of the Barbadian government. Mottley addressed the

United Nations General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; french: link=no, Assemblée générale, AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN. Curr ...

in New York on 27 September 2019 with a 39-minute speech centred on

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

and its effects on Barbados and other Caribbean nations. In 2020, Mottley served as the Chairperson of the

Caribbean Community The Caribbean Community (CARICOM or CC) is an intergovernmental organization that is a political and economic union of 15 member states (14 nation-states and one dependency) throughout the Caribbean. They have primary objectives to promote econo ...

(CARICOM) bloc, a rotating position held for six months. World Leaders' Summit Opening Ceremony (51647621153)

In the 2020 Throne Speech, Mottley's government announced a plan to abolish the Barbadian monarchy, removing the Queen of Barbados,

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

, as the country's sovereign and head of state, making Barbados a republic. She argued that after more than 54 years of independence, it was time for Barbados to "fully leave our colonial past behind". Under her proposal, the country would retain a parliamentary system, with a mostly ceremonial president as head of state. The goal was to conclude the plan by 30 November 2021, the 55th anniversary of the country's independence. Whether the process could be completed by that time was "not clear", according to an investigation of the situation by the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

in March 2021. On 27 July 2021, the Day of National Significance in Barbados, Mottley announced that Barbados's cabinet had decided that the country would become a parliamentary republic by 30 November. On 12 October 2021, incumbent governor-general, Dame Sandra Mason was jointly nominated by Mottley and the leader of the opposition as candidate for the country's first

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, and was subsequently

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 ...

on 20 October. Mason took office on 30 November 2021 in a ceremony also attended by

Charles, Prince of Wales Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...

. Mottley addressed the

in New York on 24 September 2021 with a short speech to support

UN Secretary-General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary- ...

António Guterres' warnings that the world is moving in the wrong direction. She threw away her original script and instead gave a passionate post in which she called for global, moral leadership in the fight against climate change, economic and technological inequality, racism and unfair distribution of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

vaccines. Following her party's landslide victory in the 2022 election, Mottley was sworn in as prime minister for a second term on 20 January. Mottley was featured on the cover of ''TIME'' magazine, the first Barbadian to do so, for their 2022 edition of "100 Most Influential People" for her outspoken advocacy for addressing climate change. On 20 June 2022, it was reported that Mottley had tested positive for COVID-19. A media statement was released, stating: "It is a mild case and she has indicated that she is doing well." Mottley hosted a retreat convened in Barbados at the end of July with senior

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

officials, the Rockefeller and Open Society Foundations, academics and civil society, and other international figures, following which she laid out the "Bridgetown Agenda", offering practical solutions to reform the international financial system in connection with halting climate change . On 23 September 2022, Mottley delivered the inaugural Kofi Annan Memorial Lecture, hosted by the Kofi Annan Foundation, in partnership with the

International Peace Institute The International Peace Institute (IPI, formerly the International Peace Academy) is an independent non-profit lobby group based in New York (beside the headquarters of the United Nations, with which IPI works closely). The institute has regional ...

, Open Society Foundations and International Crisis Group. In November 2022, Mottley delivered the Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture.

Criticism

Mottley has been criticized in relation to the way the establishment of the republic was handled, without a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

on the issue having been held. A UWI poll in Barbados found that, although only a minority wanted to retain the British monarch as head of state, most objected to the lack of consultation.

Honours and awards

Mottley is a recipient of the following honours: *Lifetime Achievement Award ( Champions of the Earth) in 2021. * Order of the Golden Heart of Kenya

- - Elder of the Order of the Golden Heart – EGH, of

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi ...

(2019) *

- - Order of Roraima – OR, of Guyana (2020) In December 2020, Mottley was named Person of the Year by '' Caribbean National Weekly'', along with Oliver Mair. In May 2022, Mottley was named one of "The 100 Most Influential People of 2022" by ''

TIME Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

'' magazine. In November 2022, the

United Nations Foundation The United Nations Foundation is a charitable organization headquartered in Washington, DC, that supports the United Nations and its activities. It was established in 1998 with a $1 billion gift to the United Nations by philanthropist Ted Turner, ...

announced Mottley as the recipient of one of its annual Global Leadership Awards, honouring her as "Champion for Global Change" in recognition of "her exemplary leadership in fighting for a just, equitable, and sustainable world". In December 2022, Mottley was named on the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

's '' 100 Women'' list as one of the world's inspiring and influential women of the year, and by the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Ni ...

'' on "The FT's 25 most influential women of 2022".

Notes

References

External links

*
"Mia's rich political heritage"
''The Nation'' (23 January 2008).
Barbados Parliament Opposition Leader
barbadosparliament.com (2008).
"PM Mottley Interviewed by CNN's Amanpour Show (April 29/20)"

Mia Mottley
Getty Images
"Mia Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados at the Opening of the #COP27 World Leaders Summit"
7 November 2022. , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mottley, Mia Amor Living people 20th-century Barbadian politicians 20th-century Barbadian women politicians 21st-century Barbadian politicians 21st-century Barbadian women politicians Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of the University of London Attorneys-General of Barbados Barbadian people of Grenadian descent Barbadian Queen's Counsel Barbadian republicans Culture ministers of Barbados Deputy Prime Ministers of Barbados Economy ministers of Barbados Education ministers of Barbados Elders of the Order of the Golden Heart of Kenya Female finance ministers Female heads of government Female interior ministers Female justice ministers Finance ministers of Barbados Interior ministers of Barbados Justice ministers of Barbados Leaders of the Barbados Labour Party Members of the House of Assembly of Barbados Members of the Inter-American Dialogue Prime Ministers of Barbados Queen's College (Barbados) alumni Women government ministers of Barbados Women prime ministers 1965 births BBC 100 Women