Earl Williams (politician)

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Earl Michael Williams (born February 28, 1964) is a Lawyer and Political Leader of the United Workers' Party in Dominica. He was educated at the Salisbury Government School and the Community High School. He completed his A-Levels at the Sixth Form College.

Williams then served as a teacher at various schools on the island and participated in sports as a coach and player. In addition, he was a member of the Young Freedom Movement, the youth arm of the Dominica Freedom Party which was important to the party's success. He was very active in his community, and he was rewarded for this when in the 1990 General Elections he was elected to Parliament for the Salisbury Constituency. By this time he was no longer associated with the Freedom Party and was now a member of the UWP.

The youngest ever parliamentarian on the island, he learned quickly and was a very vocal member of the opposition. In 1995 the UWP formed the government and Williams widened his margin of victory in the Salisbury (Barroui) Constituency, transforming it into a UWP strong hold. He was appointed Minister of Communications and Works. As a minister he was very instrumental in the liberalization of the telecoms market, which has had positive implications for the entire OECS.

In the January 31, 2000 General Elections Williams comfortably retained his seat. However, the UWP did not retain enough seats in the Parliament and they again returned to the opposition. Williams then decided that he would attend the University of the West Indies to study Law. This provoked some criticism from government supporters, but generally his constituents were not angered by his decision.

In May 5, 2005 Elections Williams again retained his seat by a wide margin, though his opponent did better than expected. The UWP put up a tough election campaign but they lost one seat in the parliament and remained in opposition. This second loss by the party evinced the need for a change of political leadership. Williams had become a very important member of the party, and he along with Julius Timothy (Minister of Finance in the UWP Government) were the main contenders for the leadership.

In October 2005, he was called to the bar. This only enhanced his chances of becoming the political leader. In December 2005, Edison James stood down as political leader and Williams replaced him. His election has alienated Julius Timothy, who as deputy leader under James thought he would have easily secured the leadership.

In March 2007, Williams called for a national referendum to decide whether the government should accept a proposal by the Venezuelan government to construct an oil refinery on the island.^[1]