Senate (Trinidad and Tobago)

Senate of Trinidad and Tobago
11th Republican Parliament
        Flag         Coat of Arms
Type
Type
Leadership
Nigel de Freitas[a]
since 18 January 2023
Muhammad Yunus Ibrahim, PNM
since 22 March 2022
Leader of Government Business in the Senate
Amery Browne, PNM
since 22 March 2022
Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate
Wade Mark, UNC
since 23 September 2015
Structure
Seats31
Political groups
Government
  •   People's National Movement (16)

Official Opposition

Other

Elections
Appointment by the president on advice of the prime minister (16), at her discretion (9) and opposition leader (6)
Meeting place
The Red House, Abercromby Street, Downtown, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Website
www.ttparliament.org
Constitution
Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago

The Senate of Trinidad and Tobago is the appointed upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago, along with the President and House of Representatives of Trinidad and Tobago. The Senate currently sits at the Red House. The Senate has 31 members all appointed by the President: 16 Government Senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, 6 Opposition Senators appointed on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition and 9 Independent Senators appointed on the discretion of the President from outstanding persons who represent other sectors of civil society. The presiding officer, the President of the Senate, is elected from among the Senators who are not Ministers or Parliamentary Secretaries. A senator must be at least 25 years old and a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago. The current President of the Senate is Senator Nigel de Freitas. As of 20 April 2021, there are only 13 female senators, or 41.9%[2] and 6 Tobagonian senators or 19.4%.[3][4] The Senate made history on 15 February 2022 by appointing Jowelle de Souza as an acting opposition senator, thus making her the Caribbean's first and only transgender parliamentarian.[5][6][7][8]

  1. ^ "Trinidad and Tobago Parliament".
  2. ^ "Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments". Parline: the IPU’s Open Data Platform. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  3. ^ "Log into Facebook". Facebook. Retrieved 2021-04-20. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  4. ^ "Senate to debate THA Bill on March 2". Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. 2021-02-22. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
  5. ^ "De Souza makes history in Senate". Trinidad Express Newspapers. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  6. ^ "Jowelle De Souza makes history as the first trans woman sworn into the Senate". IzzSo - News travels fast !!. 2022-02-15. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  7. ^ "History in Senate: Transgender De Souza Appointed Temporary UNC Senator". AZP News. 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  8. ^ "Jowelle De Souza on Senate appointment: Trinidad and Tobago maturing to accept different people". Trinidad and Tobago Newsday. 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-18.


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