The Governor of PitcairnWhile the territory is commonly called 'Pitcairn Islands', the official title of the office of her governor is 'Governor of Pitcairn' under section 27(1) of the
Pitcairn Constitution Order, 2010
''. is the representative of the

British monarch The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...

in the

Pitcairn Islands The Pitcairn Islands (; Pitkern: '), officially the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, is a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four isl ...

, the last remaining

British Overseas Territory The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...

in the Pacific Ocean. Despite technically being under the authority of the colonial governor, Pitcairn has local autonomy. Because of the dependency's small population (it peaked at 233 in the 1930s, and has since dwindled to 50), the British never considered it worthwhile to station a resident governor on Pitcairn. Instead, the

Governor of Fiji Fiji was a British Crown colony from 1874 to 1970, and an independent dominion in the Commonwealth from 1970 to 1987. During this period, the head of state was the British monarch, but in practice his or her functions were normally exercised loca ...

doubled as governor of Pitcairn from 1898 onward. When Fiji became independent in 1970, the governorship of Pitcairn was transferred to the British high commissioner to New Zealand. The office is currently held by Iona Thomas. Throughout the island's history, the authority of the British governor was almost never used. An exception was Governor

Richard Fell Richard Taylor Fell CVO (born 11 November 1948) was the British High Commissioner to New Zealand and the colonial Governor of the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands (of which only Pitcairn is inhabited) from 2001 to 2006. He was edu ...

's dismissal of Mayor

Steve Christian Steven Raymond Christian (born 26 June 1951, Pitcairn Island) is a politician, convicted sex offender and child rapist from the Pitcairn Islands. He was mayor of the islands from 1999 until 2004, when he was removed from office after being fo ...

, who was convicted in the

Pitcairn sexual assault trial of 2004 In the Pitcairn sexual assault trial of 2004 seven men living on Pitcairn Island faced 55 charges relating to sexual offences against children and young people. The accused represented a third of the island's male population and included Steve C ...

List of governors since 1970

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Governor of the Pitcairn Islands Government of the Pitcairn Islands Politics of the Pitcairn Islands

1898 establishments in the Pitcairn Islands

List of governors since 1970

See also

References