The politics of

Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is a British Overseas Territory located in the South Atlantic and consisting of the island of Saint Helena, Ascension Island and the archipelago of Tristan da Cunha including Gough Island. Its name wa ...

operate under the jurisdiction of the government of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The three parts of the territory—

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

Ascension Island Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overseas Territory o ...

and

Tristan da Cunha Tristan da Cunha (), colloquially Tristan, is a remote group of volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is the most remote inhabited archipelago in the world, lying approximately from Cape Town in South Africa, from Saint Helena ...

—effectively form an asymmetric federacy and collectively constitute one of United Kingdom's fourteen

overseas territories A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

Structure of government

Because of the islands' status as an

overseas territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...

of the United Kingdom, they are currently ruled over by

Charles III 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 ...

and his government in the United Kingdom, with the

Governor of Saint Helena The Governor of Saint Helena is the representative of the British monarch in the United Kingdom's overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The Governor is appointed by the monarch on the official advice of His Majesty ...

serving as the monarch's representative to the territory as well as the territory's

executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...

. This position is currently held by

Nigel Phillips Air Commodore Nigel James Phillips, (born 10 May 1963) is a British diplomat, former Royal Air Force officer and former Governor of the Falkland Islands and Commissioner of the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. He has served as Gov ...

, who took office in 2022. Island Administrators serve as the representatives of the Governor on Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, which are distant from Saint Helena island, and are permanently resident on those islands. These roles are presently filled by

Colin Wells Colin Wells may refer to: *Colin Wells (actor) (born 1963), English actor in ''Titus'' *Colin Wells (cricketer) (born 1960), English cricketer *Colin Wells (historian) (1933–2010), English classicist *Colin Wells (Spooks), fictional character in ...

and

Sean Burns Sean Burns may refer to: * Sean Burns (administrator), Administrator of Ascension and Administrator of Tristan da Cunha. * Sean Burns (footballer), Scottish football player * One of the characters in the ''Highlander'' films See also * Sean Byr ...

respectively. The territory's Governor and Attorney General reside at Jamestown on Saint Helena.

Formation and Constitution, 1922–present

In September 1922, Ascension Island became a dependency of Saint Helena, followed by Tristan da Cunha in January 1938. The three islands were held under this flagship as "Saint Helena and Dependencies" until they were collectively changed to equal status in 2009, becoming Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. A new constitution, the St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Constitution Order 2009, replaced a previous constitution drafted in 1988, providing a Bill of Rights for citizens and details outlining balanced provisions for the islands. It confirmed the allegiance of the three islands to the United Kingdom, its Government and the Crown and that the islands now formed a single, territorial grouping. The constitution also placed restrictions on the governor's power, forming more of a union between the Governor and the two Resident Administrators.

Attorney General of Saint Helena

The post of the Attorney General of Saint Helena was created around 1978. Beforehand, the "Legal Advisers Office", as it was called at that time, was to provide legal advice to the St. Helena Government and the Judiciary and legal support to the Land Adjudication exercise." Antony Rushford is identified as having been the Attorney General of Saint Helena. However, his years of service are unknown. Rushford had also served as the Attorney General of Anguilla and Attorney General of Grenada.

Media

Each of the islands offers radio stations and local newspapers. While there are no locally operated TV stations anywhere in the territory, overseas programming is broadcast via satellite in St. Helena. Cable and Wireless Communications, based in the UK, operates its telecommunications infrastructure. The BBC Atlantic Relay Station transmits radio programs to Ascension Island but television service is limited to the British Forces Broadcasting Service. A radio station operated by the US Air Force, "Volcano Radio", also carries locally produced programming. On Tristan da Cunha, Atlantic FM carries local broadcasts. BFBS TV is also available. The island's first internet cafe opened in 2006.

Judiciary

The territory has four courts of its own: *Court of Appeal *

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

*Magistrates Court *Juvenile Court Governor

appointed Sir John Henry Boulton Saunders and H H Michael Paul Yelton as the President and the Justice respectively of the Saint Helena Court of Appeal from 2023-2026. The

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 Augus ...

, in London, is the final court of appeal for the territory however, as is the case with all other British overseas territories. Criminal matters are investigated by the

Saint Helena Police Service The Royal Saint Helena Police Service, formerly the Saint Helena Police Service, is the local police force for the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, consisting of the South Atlantic islands of Saint ...

and prosecuted at court by the Crown Prosecutor. The current Crown Prosecutor is Ben Brown, having been appointed on 9 February 2021.

Public Solicitor

Although there are no private practice lawyers on Saint Helena, there is a Public Solicitor (the office was established on January 2, 1998) that is supported by legally-trained lay advocates. They provide legal advice and assistance to residents, as well as offer court representation whenever appropriate. Depending on the severity of the case, a lawyer from the United Kingdom might be sent for to represent a defendant.

Notes

{{Africa in topic, Politics of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Politics of Saint Helena