Island Council (Pitcairn)

Island Council (Pitcairn)

The Island Council is the legislative body of the Pitcairn Islands. It also doubles as the court of the British dependency, making it one of the few bodies in the world to possess both legislative and judicial authority.

The council has ten members. The Mayor and the Chairman of the Island Council, both of whom are directly elected, hold membership on the council ex officio. Four ordinary councillors are popularly elected. The four ordinary councillors, together with the council chairman, co-opt a sixth member. The colonial governor appoints two councillors, one of whom is the Island Secretary. The tenth seat is reserved for a commissioner liaising between the governor and the Council. Apart from the Mayor, who serves a three-year term, and the island secretary, whose term is indefinite, all councillors serve one-year terms.

The presiding officer of the council was traditionally the Magistrate, who held executive, legislative, and judicial authority. Following a constitutional review in 1998, his office was divided and replaced by the Mayor and the council chairman, effective from 1999).