Pennelope Althea Beckles-Robinson (born 12 September 1961) is a

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

attorney and politician. She has served as a

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 of ...

in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

for

Arima Arima, officially The Royal Chartered Borough of Arima is the easternmost and second largest in area of the three boroughs of Trinidad and Tobago. It is geographically adjacent to Sangre Grande and Arouca at the south central foothills of th ...

since the 2020 general election. She is the current Minister of Planning and Development. Previously she was the country's

Permanent Representative A permanent representative is a diplomat who is the head of a country’s diplomatic mission to an international organisation. Organizations that receive permanent representatives from their member states include the United Nations, the World Tr ...

to the United Nations.

Early life and education

Beckles was born on 12 September 1961 in Borde Narve Village, three months before parliament history was created in Trinidad and Tobago growing up without electricity or running water. Her father, Lionel Beckles, worked for the Oilfield Workers' Trade Union and she has four brothers and one sister. She attended St Raphael's Grade School and St Joseph's Convent,

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

. She graduated from the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 17 English-speaking countries and territories in th ...

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

and

Hugh Wooding Law School The Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) is a law school in Trinidad and Tobago. History Named for Trinidad and Tobago jurist and politician Hugh Wooding, HWLS is one of three law schools empowered by the (Caribbean) Council of Legal Education to award ...

Career

Beckles has practised as an attorney since 1988, attached to the Chambers of Theodore R Guerra and Associates. Beckles first entered parliament when she was appointed an opposition

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for the

People's National Movement The People's National Movement (PNM) is the longest-serving and oldest active political party in Trinidad and Tobago. The party has dominated national and local politics for much of Trinidad and Tobago's history, contesting all elections sinc ...

(PNM) in 1995. She was then elected to the

representing the

constituency in 2000, serving until 2010. She was appointed Minister for Social Development in 2001, Minister for Culture and Tourism in 2002, and Minister for Public Utilities and the Environment in 2003. Beckles was Trinidad and Tobago's first female Deputy Speaker of the Parliament from 2007 until 2010 and served as Leader of Opposition Business from 2010 until 2013. In November 2012, she was elected lady vice-chair of the PNM, but she was dropped from the senate by party leader

Keith Rowley Keith Christopher Rowley (born 24 October 1949) is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian politician serving as the seventh prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, first elected into office on 9 September 2015 and again following the 2020 general electi ...

in December 2013. In May 2014, she unsuccessfully challenged Rowley for the leadership of the party. On 4 February 2015, she was rejected in her bid to represent the PNM for the constituency of Arima in the 2015 general election. Beckles was appointed Trinidad and Tobago's Permanent Representative to the UN by

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 ...

Rowley in August 2016. She postponed taking up the appointment to attend the funeral of former Prime Minister

Patrick Manning Patrick Augustus Mervyn Manning (17 August 1946 – 2 July 2016) was a Trinidadian politician who was the fourth Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago; his terms ran from 17 December 1991 to 9 November 1995 and from 24 December 2001 to 26 Ma ...

in July. She was appointed as Minister of Planning and Development on 16 March 2022 following a cabinet reshuffle.

Personal life

Beckles married Noel Robinson in December 2008, and she has four stepchildren. She also became the guardian of her ten-year-old niece after her sister Michelle died in 2015.

References