Cayman Islands - Government

Government

The Cayman Islands are a British overseas territory, listed by the UN Special Committee of 24 as one of the last non-self-governing territories. The current Constitution, incorporating a Bill of Rights, was ordained by a statutory instrument of the United Kingdom in 2009. A 15-seat Legislative Assembly is elected by the people every four years to handle domestic affairs. Of the elected Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs), five are chosen to serve as government ministers in a Cabinet headed by the Governor. The Premier is appointed by the Governor.

A Governor is appointed by The Queen of the United Kingdom on the advice of the British Government to represent the monarch. Governors can exercise complete legislative and executive authority if they wish through blanket powers reserved to them in the constitution. Bills which have passed the Legislative Assembly require Royal Assent before becoming effective. The Constitution empowers the Governor to withhold Royal Assent in cases where the legislation appears to him or her to be repugnant to or inconsistent with the Constitution or affects the rights and privileges of the Legislative Assembly or the Royal Prerogative, or matters reserved to the Governor by article 55. The executive authority of the Cayman Islands is vested in the Queen and is exercised by the Government, consisting of the Governor and the Cabinet. There is an office of the Deputy Governor, who must be a Caymanian and have served in a senior public office. The Deputy Governor is the Acting Governor when the office of Governor is vacant, or the Governor is not able to discharge his duties or is absent from the Cayman Islands. The current Governor of the Cayman Islands is His Excellency Duncan Taylor, CBE, and the current Deputy Governor is Franz Manderson, MBE.

The Cabinet is composed of two official members and five elected members, called ministers; one of whom is designated Premier.

The official members are the Deputy Governor and the Attorney General. They are appointed by the governor in accordance with Her Majesty's instructions, and although they have seats in the Legislative Assembly, under the 2009 Constitution, they do not vote.

The five ministers are voted into office by the 15 elected members of the Legislative Assembly of the Cayman Islands. One of the ministers, the leader of the majority political party, is appointed premier by the governor.

After consulting the premier, the governor allocates a portfolio of responsibilities to each Cabinet member. Under the principle of collective responsibility, all ministers are obliged to support in the Assembly any measures approved by Cabinet.

Almost 80 departments, sections and units carry out the business of government, joined by a number of statutory boards and authorities set up for specific purposes, such as the Port Authority, the Civil Aviation Authority, the Immigration Board, the Water Authority, the University College Board of Governors, the National Pensions Board, and the Health Insurance Commission.

The defence of the Cayman Islands is the responsibility of the United Kingdom. The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service provides police services in the country. The Cayman Islands Cadet Corps was formed in March 2001.

Since 2000, there have been two official major political parties: United Democratic Party (UDP) and the People's Progressive Movement (PPM). While there has been a shift to political parties, many contending for an office still run as independents.