Owen Arthur

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The Right Honourable
 Owen Seymour Arthur
Owen Arthur
In office
6 September 1994 – 16 January 2008
Monarch Elizabeth II
Governor General Clifford Husbands
Deputy Mia Mottley
Preceded by Erskine Sandiford
Succeeded by David Thompson
Constituency Saint Peter
Born 17 October 1949 (1949-10-17) (age 58)
Political party BLP
Spouse Julie Arthur
Profession Economist

Owen Seymour Arthur, MP (born 17 October 1949) was the Prime Minister of Barbados from 1994 to 2008.

He is leader of the Barbados Labour Party, which brought him to victory in general elections in September 1994. He won general elections again in January 1999 and 2003. In the 2008 general election, his party lost the elections to the Democratic Labour Party and their leader David Thompson. Owen Arthur is currently the member of parliament for the constituency of Saint Peter.

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[edit] Early life and education

Owen Arthur was educated at the University of the West Indies - Cave Hill, Barbados and Mona, Jamaica where he earned a BA in economics and history (1971) and an MSc in economics (1974). After graduating he held positions with Jamaica's National Planning Agency and the Jamaica Bauxite Institute before returning to Barbados and joining the Ministry of Finance and Planning in 1981.

[edit] Member of Parliament

He was appointed to the Barbados Senate in 1983 and elected to the House of Assembly in 1984. He was chosen to serve as Leader of the Opposition in 1993 very shortly after giving notice that he was considering departing from politics due to his inability to survive at a satisfactory level on the means of an MP.

[edit] Prime Minister

One of the main platforms of Prime Minister Owen Arthur for the 2003 elections was his promise to continue the process of independence for Barbados and transform the country into a Parliamentary republic, replacing Queen Elizabeth II with a Barbadian President as Head of State. Owen Arthur stated a national referendum would be held in 2005. However, this was pushed back in order to speed up the implementation process for the Caribbean (CARICOM) Single Market and Economy, and the focus of his term was directed to the hosting of Cricket World Cup 2007.

In the general election held on 15 January 2008, the Barbados Labour Party was defeated by the Democratic Labour Party, winning ten seats against 20 for the DLP. DLP leader David Thompson was sworn in on 16 January, succeeding Arthur.[1] Despite the party's defeat, Arthur was re-elected to his own seat from St. Peter constituency with 65% of the vote.[2] He also said that he felt he could still contribute to CARICOM.[3] On January 19, he stepped down as BLP leader, saying that he felt an immediate leadership transition would be in the best interests of both the party and Barbadian democracy; former Deputy Prime Minister Mia Mottley was chosen as the new party leader. Arthur said that he intended to serve out his parliamentary term.[4] Owen Arthur is the holder of the Order of José Marti of Cuba.

Owen Arthur with George W. Bush
Owen Arthur with George W. Bush

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Thompson sworn in as Barbados PM", Xinhua, January 17, 2008.
  2. ^ Election result page for St. Peter constituency.
  3. ^ "Arthur: Still a role for me", nationnews.com, January 18, 2008.
  4. ^ Trevor Yearwood, "MIA TAKES OVER", nationnews.com, January 20, 2008.

[edit] External links

[edit] About

[edit] Press coverage

Preceded by
Erskine Sandiford		 Prime Minister of Barbados
1994 – 2008		 Succeeded by
David Thompson
v • d • e
Prime Ministers of Barbados

G. Adams† • Cummins† • Barrow† •Barrow • J. Adams • St. John • Barrow • Sandiford • Arthur • Thompson

† Served as Premier of St Kitts and Nevis.

i sorry i lose to david in 2008 elections