Senate
The Senate (upper house) consists of 16 members (known as Senators) appointed by the Governor-General. Nine of these senators are selected on the advice of the Prime Minister, four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition, and three on the advice of the Prime Minister after consultation with the Leader of the Opposition. The Senate is authorised by the Constitution to pass Bills in the same manner as passed by the House or it can make such amendments to the Bill should it consider it necessary. Those amendments will then have to be approved by the House of Assembly. The Senate may even reject a Bill outrightly that had been passed by the House. However, if the House passes the Bill in two successive sessions, and the Senate rejects the Bill each time, the House of Assembly may send the Bill directly to the Governor-General without the Senate having consented to the Bill.
If the House passes a Money Bill and sends that Bill to the Senate for its consent, and if the Senate does not give its consent within a month after receiving the Bill, the money bill is sent to the Governor-General for assent even though the Senate had not consented to it
In a historic vote, attorney The Hon. Sharon Wilson was unanimously elected to a second term as President of the Senate, marking the first time a woman won re-election to head that legislative body. She previous served as President of the Senate from 2002-2007, and succeeded The Hon. Lynn Holowesko who served as President of the Senate from 2007-2012.
Read more about this topic: Parliament Of The Bahamas
Famous quotes containing the word senate:
“It took six weeks of debate in the Senate to get the Arms Embargo Law repealed—and we face other delays during the present session because most of the Members of the Congress are thinking in terms of next Autumn’s election. However, that is one of the prices that we who live in democracies have to pay. It is, however, worth paying, if all of us can avoid the type of government under which the unfortunate population of Germany and Russia must exist.”
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)
“This is a Senate of equals, of men of individual honor and personal character, and of absolute independence. We know no masters, we acknowledge no dictators. This is a hall for mutual consultation and discussion; not an arena for the exhibition of champions.”
—Daniel Webster (1782–1852)
“As the House is designed to provide a reflection of the mood of the moment, the Senate is meant to reflect the continuity of the past—to preserve the delicate balance of justice between the majority’s whims and the minority’s rights.”
—Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)