Mia Mottley

Mia Amor Mottley QC MP
Leader of the Opposition (Barbados)
In office 7 February 2008 – 18 October 2010
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Governor General	Clifford Husbands
Deputy	Dale Marshall
Preceded by	David Thompson
Succeeded by	Owen Arthur
Constituency	Saint Michael North East
Personal details
Born	1 October 1965 (1965-10-01) (age 46)
Political party	BLP
Profession	Lawyer

Mia Amor Mottley, QC, MP (born 1 October 1965) is a Member of Parliament for the Constituency Saint Michael-North East at Barbados.

Biography

Early life

Mottley has been much influenced by her family. She is the granddaughter of Ernest Deighton Mottley (1907–1973), a real estate broker and successful politician particularly at the parish level. He was the first Mayor of Bridgetown (1959) who had represented Bridgetown in the House of Assembly from 1946 and who belonged to the conservative party and helped the poor. He was granted the 'Ordinary Commanders of the Civil Division' for public services in Barbados in June 1962 and assisted Wynter Algermon Crawford (1910–1993), Barbados' Trade Minister, at the Independent Conference in London during June and July 1966.

Mottley's uncle, also named Ernest Deighton Mottley (1931–2008), a refuse disposal officer who lived in Great Britain for 18 years, he became the political leader of the short lived Christian Social Democratic party (CSD) created in March 1975.^[1]

Her father Elliott Deighton Mottley (26 Nov 1939-), was also a barrister who sat in the House of Assembly, albeit for a relatively short time before vacating the seat to become consul-general in New York. He was educated at Eagle Hall School, Harrison College (Barbados) and Middle Temple (London) once served as Bermuda's attorney-general and sits on Belize's Court of Appeal. He married Mia's mother Santa Amor Tappin in December 1964 just three years after being called to the Bar and was elected to represent Bridgetown (Barbados) in May 1969. It has been suggested Prime Minister of the time, Errol Barrow, used his parliamentary majority to abolishing local government altogether and therefore undermine Elliott Mottley's strength in the political arena.

Mia Mottley was educated at Merrivale Preparatory School (Barbados; closed summer 2010^[2]), The United Nations International School (New York), and Queen's College (Barbados).

Mottley has grown to be among a handful of elected official with that kind of family background in Barbados's parliamentary history and her colleagues at the Bar describe her as aggressive and knowledgeable about the law giving her gusto in the political arena.

By 1986, Mottley was finalizing her training as attorney and received a law degree from the London School of Economics (Houghton Street, London, England).

A political woman

Mottley first served Barbadian politics as early as 1991, when she had lost an election race in St. Michael North East between herself and the late Leroy Brathwaite (a defeated of less than 200 votes). Between 1991 and 1994 she one of two Opposition Senators in the Upper House where she was Shadow Minister of Culture and Community Development. During that time, she also served on numerous Parliamentary Joint Select Committees on areas ranging from Praedial Larceny and Domestic Violence.

In September 1994, Mottley became one of the youngest Barbadians ever to be assigned a ministerial portfolio at age 29, she was appointed to the Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs and Culture. During her tenure she co-authored the White Paper on Education titled "Each Child Matters" that draws the link between better education and job fulfillment.

She was elected General Secretary of the Barbados Labour Party two years later. In that same year and again the following year (1997) she served as Chairman of the Caricom Standing Committee of Ministers of Education.

Mottley was appointed Attorney General and Minister of Home Affairs in August 2001 and is the first female (in Barbados) to hold this position. She is also the youngest ever Queen's Council in Barbados. In addition to being a Member of the Privy Council of Barbados, she was Leader of the House and a member of the National Security Council and the Barbados Defence Board. She is also credited with being the visionary behind the Education Sector Enhancement Programme, popularly known as Edutech, which aims to increase the number of young people contributing to the island’s sustainable social and economic development. This revolutionary programme involves the widespread use of information and communication technologies to assist in improving the quality of the teaching/learning process.

In Youth Affairs, Mottley directed the establishment of the Youth Entrepreneurship Scheme and a National Youth Development Programme.

Two years later Mottley was to serve as Barbados's second female Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Social Council of Barbados and the Deputy Chairman of Barbados' Economic Council. A position she held until 2008 and allowing her extended responsibilities including the chairmanship of a number of key Cabinet sub-committees, notably Telecommunications Reform and one oversight of the administrative and legislative initiatives to prepare Barbados for the advent of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy. 

Under Prime Minister Owen Seymour Arthur's (17 October 1949-) administration of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) in February 2006, a government reshuffle ensured Mottley became Minister of Economic Affairs and Development, a post she also held until 2008, where her responsibilities put her in charge of key economic agencies.

Following the defeat in the election held on 15 January 2008 and Owen Arthur's laying down the mantle as party leader, Mia Mottley was chosen as BLP party leader on 19 January 2008. She is the first woman to lead the party, as well as the country's first female Opposition Leader.^[3] Mottley was sworn in as Opposition Leader on 7 February 2008; since her inauguration as Leader of the Opposition she has promised the people of Barbados that the Barbados Labour Party will be a strong and unified Opposition who will fight for the rights of all citizens in the country.

On October 18, 2010, Mottley's appointment as Leader of the Opposition was revoked following a vote of no-confidence of five of her Parliamentary Colleagues. The five MPs placed their support behind former Prime Minister Owen Arthur who assumed the leadership position that same day.

References

1. ^ Caribbean monthly bulletin, Volumes 7-9, Institute of Caribbean Studies, University of Puerto Rico., (1973)
2. ^ Merrivale (Shenstone, Pine Road, St. Michael), on its 51st anniversary, closed its doors for good at the end of the summer term 2010, and the property went up for sale because Mrs. Carrington is then 91. All the then current teachers at Merrivale would begin teaching at the new Westwood in the next school year (2011).
3. ^ Trevor Yearwood, "Mia Takes Over", nationnews.com, (24 January 2008).

External links

• Mia's rich political heritage, The Nation, (23 January 2008).
• Barbados Parliament Opposition Leader, barbadosparliament.com, (2008).

Political offices
Preceded by	Shadow Minister of Culture and Community Development 1991–1994	Succeeded by Cynthia Forde
Party political offices
Preceded by	Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs and Culture 1994–1996	Succeeded by Ronald DaCosta Jones
Preceded by	General Secretary 1996-2001	Succeeded by Joseph J. S. Atherley
Preceded by	Attorney General 2001-2003	Succeeded by Dale Marshall
Preceded by	Minister of Home Affairs 2001-2003	Succeeded by Dale Marshall
Preceded by	Deputy Prime Minister 2003-2008	Succeeded by Freundel Jerome Stuart
Preceded by	Minister of Economic Affairs and Development 2006-2008	Succeeded by Tyrone E. Barker
Preceded by Owen Seymour Arthur	Party Leader 2008-2010	Succeeded by Owen Seymour Arthur

Persondata
Name	Mottley, Mia Amor
Alternative names	Mottley, Mia
Short description	Leaders of the Barbados Labour Party
Date of birth	1 October 1965
Place of birth	Eagle Hall, St. Michael, Barbados
Date of death
Place of death